Cairo, Luxor and the Nile: money, baksheesh, trains and flights, the cooler months, traveler tips, and mobile data via eSIM.
Egypt is the rare place where the clichés are true and still not enough. The Pyramids are bigger than the photos. Karnak at first light will rearrange your sense of scale. A dawn balloon over Luxor, a felucca on the Nile, and a plate of koshari in a Cairo side street will do the rest.
It is intense. Touts, baksheesh and the occasional hard sell are part of the texture, not a personal attack. A firm no, a smile, and a pre-booked driver will carry you. The people who love Egypt are the ones who stopped being shocked and started being curious.
Do Cairo and Giza, then fly to Luxor or Aswan. The overnight train is a story; the flight is a morning. Abu Simbel is a long, worth-it add-on. The Red Sea is a different holiday if you want to swim when the ruins are done.
Drink bottled water, tip small and often, and look up. The ceiling is usually the masterpiece they forgot to put on the postcard.
Essentials
Traveler tips
Real advice from people who have been to Egypt, curated by our team with links to the original sources.
Go early, with tickets from the official site or a trusted operator, and a driver who is waiting when you come out. Camel photos, 'free gifts' and unofficial guides at the fence are a business model. You can enjoy the site without funding all of it.
A 10 or 20 pound note solves washrooms, photo spots and the man who unlocks a side door. Large bills cause a delay that somehow costs more. Break money at the hotel.
Give Cairo the Pyramids, the museum and a couple of neighborhoods. Then go south. The density of temples and tombs between Luxor and Aswan is why Egypt is Egypt. Do not spend eight of ten days in traffic.
You do not owe a conversation to every offer. 'La shukran' and keep walking. The travelers who get worn down are the ones who try to be polite to a sales process that is designed to outlast politeness.
Flash is often banned in tombs for a reason. Look with your eyes. The colors in a 3,000-year-old chapel will not improve on Instagram, and the guard would like to go home.
FAQ
eSIM plans
Uber in Cairo, a pin for your driver, and a map of the West Bank: Egypt is smoother when your phone works. Airport SIM desks want your passport and your patience. An eSIM wants neither.
Download offline maps for temple days. Signal dips inside some sites, and you still want the rest of the day to be a tap, not a hunt for Wi-Fi in a hotel lobby that last worked in 2019.
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