Don't forget Alexandria

Advantages: Friendly and very Egyptian
Disadvantages: Not many sites to see, out of the way of most tourists (but that's why I like it!)

...Despite its amazing history, there is almost nothing left of ancient Alexandria - if you go there hoping to see the sort of remains that can be found in places like Cairo, Luxor and Aswan, you will be sorely disappointed. It is also not exactly what you would call 'beautiful' despite the fact that Egyptians call it the 'Pearl of the Mediterranean' and visit in their millions during the summer. Nevertheless, any visitor to Egypt should not forget Alexandria, for it is a truly wonderful city and full of character. You will probably see more of the 'real' Egypt during a weekend in Alex than a month touring the more famous sites further south. I spent a year living there while I was a student and totally fell in love with the place, although I didn't really realise this until I had flown home! Typical! Alexandria is basically long...

danielnunn 02.05.2001 · Read review
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Review of Alexandria (Egypt)

Exciting Egypt!!

Advantages: cheap, only 5 hours away, amazing weather, amazing sites!
Disadvantages: heat (for some may be disadvantage), annoying hagglers

..., including the Hard Rock Cafe and there are lots of shops and market stalls to look at. Just beware this is Hagglers Row, it will take you a long time to get through all the stall holders so beware!! For the younger generation, or the older of course (!) there is Pacha so get your dancing shoes on!! Our main experience whilst in Egypt was the pyramids in Cairo! What an amazing sight and a MUST if you are contemplating a trip to Egypt! We booked ours through a seperate company at our hotel but can also be booked through your tour operator - however we did discover from our group on the trip that we had all paid quite different prices for the trip so its probably a good idea to shop around before you make your final decision. We ended up paying around £300 for the whole trip. We opted for the short 40min flight over to Cairo; you can take...

rhinoklo 23.11.2007 · Read review
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Review of General: Egypt

The Other Side To Egypt

Advantages: Very clean, excellent staff, superb facilities, great location
Disadvantages: Food is not labelled very well

...My boyfriend and 3 friends have just got back from staying in the Hilton Sharks Bay hotel in Sharm el Sheikh in Egypt. This hotel has been awarded 4 * and has 317 rooms. We mainly booked this holiday to complete our PADI open water diving course as The Red Sea is meant to be one of the best places to do this, and we found that it was reasonably priced to stay in the Hilton so off we went? Travel Time from The UK We flew from London Gatwick and our flight took just over 5 hours which I consider to be a relatively short flight to get to somewhere so hot ? not like my last flight which was 16 odd hours! Hilton Sharks Bay is very close to the airport and it took s about 15 minutes for the transfer which was included in the price of our holiday. Price We paid £575 per person for 11 nights on an all inclusive basis which I...

daylehall 28.05.2007 · Read review
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Review of Hilton Sharks Bay; Sharm El Sheik, Egypt

ENJOYING EGYPT

Advantages: Please read my review
Disadvantages: Please read my review

...I have been to Egypt twice. The first time was when I won a free cruise of the Mediterranean from the Orient Cruise Company. I have been on 5 Cruises of the Mediterranean and the Orient wasn't my favorite. It was the only Cruise I took that stopped in Egypt. My Greek Friend Nini worked as a Tour Guide and she was able to get a free trip as well so we share a Cabin. Nini's Company arranged for a private taxi to take us on a short tour of Alexandria and then drive us to Cairo. They also arranged for us to have one free night at the Sheraton Hotel in Cairo. I was a little worried about how we would get back to meet our Ship the next day but Nini said she had a Friend, (Nesma Sadiq), who would give us a tour of Cairo and arrange for us to take a taxi to Port Said. ~O ALEXANDRIA O~ It took us a long time to dock in Alexandra...

MRS.CANADA 09.09.2002 (19.09.2002) · Read review
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Review of General: Egypt

Backpacking in Egypt

Advantages: Cheap, amazing things to see
Disadvantages: Hassle factor

...I spent 5 weeks in Egypt a couple of years ago. We did more or less the standard route, getting off the beaten track a little. Cairo - Alexandria - Siwa - Farafra - Luxor - Aswan - Abu Simbel - Hurghurda - Dahab. Egypt is not just all about the pyramids and the Valley of the Kings, although these are obviously not to be missed. I highly recommend going east. From Alexandria on the Med, you can go south to Siwa, which is an oasis town in the middle of the desert near the Libyan border, where donkeys remain the main form of transportation. The people here still live a traditional lifestyle. Women are fully covered from head to toe, and apparently do not speak to any man other than family until they are married (including the husband to be!) It is becoming quite touristy now but you do have to be reasonably dedicated to...

kam76 24.12.2004 · Read review
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Review of General: Egypt

ENCHANTING EGYPT

Advantages: amazing country!! lots to see and do
Disadvantages: bash to tourism after masacre

...Egypt, the land of camels and pyramids. Think on, there is so much more to this amazing country and this makes Egypt the potential holiday of a lifetime. I visited Egypt nearly 6 years ago and I can still remember it like it was yesterday because it made such an impression on me. My family flew to Egypt then joined a Nile cruise ship before setting off on a voyage along the River. We had a set week long schedule which would take us to 5 stops along the Nile where we would take in the sights of the Country. Being the kind of person that burns as soon as I hit sunlight I found the heat unbearable but valuing my skin enough I was marinaded in factor 32. Our first day in the town of Edfu was like walking into the flames of hell- we thought we would die we were so hot. It's therefor extremely important to carry around massive...

emilystobbs 07.02.2001 (14.10.2001) · Read review
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Review of General: Egypt

Egypt Egypt Egypt

Advantages: Beautiful, Cheap, exciting, warm
Disadvantages: sexual harassment, tourist manipulation

...Well being Egyptian I think I can write a global review covering the following aspects. Shopping Well, shopping for a non-Egyptian tourist would be the most benefical activity, the prices in Egypt would be so cheap because of the currency issue, 5.5 Egyptian pounds equal one dollar. When a dutch friend came to visit me, she couldn't believe how things were so cheap to her when she converted them to Euros compared to how much she would for them in her original country. Nightlife In summer, the nightlife in Egypt is superb, you can find real exotic practices, like folklore dancing and belly dancing spectacles. Value for money This issue was mentioned above. Friendliness of people As a tourist, you would be warmly welcomed. Maybe sometimes in an exaggerated way. The problems a tourist can...

postergal 06.11.2008 · Read review
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Review of General: Egypt

Egypt Air - Making long haul pleasurable

Advantages: Free Pyramids, Cairo, Giza and Museum tours
Disadvantages: You will want to stay longer!

...it and especially as I had no experience of Egypt air in the past although it was the cheapest flight back from Thailand at the time, hence the reason why I booked with them not knowing there history. So the first leg of the journey I thought was fabulous the flight crew service was efficient, the food was better than average, I mean this is airline food so gourmet just isnt going to happen but good enough. Leg room sufficient. The only critism here would be the inflight entertainment was a bit poor, and visibility was down, but it was a night flight so sleeping was the common activity in this case. This takes us to Cairo, and this is were the airline excelled. Firstly in transit passangers were instructed to re-check-in on arrival to Cairo at the transit building, which I thought was unsual. But the staff were efficient, helpful...

sanj77 14.03.2008 · Read review
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Review of EgyptAir - MSR

Egypt, Taba, Nuweiba, the bombs didn't stop us!

Advantages: History, atmosphere, weather.... I could go on!
Disadvantages: Not for you if you hate to haggle!

...through in just a few minutes. There are several checkpoints along the road, but we suffered little delay. *Hotels* Our journey to our hotel (Tropicana Nuweiba)involved stops at several hotels on the way, ranging from 3-5*, but all with the same level of security. At the door of each hotel is the mandatory security gate - a little daunting yes, but you know its there for your own safety. Maybe searches were a little more stringent due to recent events, but our coach was searched underneath at each stop. I can't speak for other hotels, but our hotel stocked very little in the way of alcohol - Stella beer, gin, whisky, vodka, bacardi, Coke, Diet Coke, Fanta plus a few juices. We heard later that guests staying in All Inclusive hotels also had difficulty in obtaining drinks, but I guess that as Egypt is a Muslim country this is to be...

chatterbox3110 29.10.2004 · Read review
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Review of General: Egypt

Aswan- Egypts best city

Advantages: history, friendly
Disadvantages: third world country so be prepared

.... Elephantine island is a short boat trip away and the hotel from death on the Nile is here as well. Egypt is still one of my favourite destinations and I recommend Aswan as one of Egypts best destinations....

rowemg 25.08.2000 · Read review
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Review of Aswan (Egypt)