Egypt was a dream come true. It was on my bucket list for ever so long waiting to be ticked. When COVID hit the world, I decided, that if things were coming back to normal, perhaps we should plan Egypt. Also, my mother wanted to see the pyramids while she was still fit enough to travel.
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| The Sphinx, The Pyramid of Khafre or Chephren (right), and The Pyramid of Menkaure (left) |
We flew Kuwait Airways from Delhi to Cairo via Kuwait City. This is not a sponsored blog as is very obvious, but I can vouch for Kuwait Airways. Have taken it a few times and the service and food were more than good. In fact, I loved the Arabic food on the way to Cairo. The flight to Kuwait was about 4.5 hours. We were not asked for COVID clearance, but as a precautionary measure, we got ourselves tested and carried the COVID-19 negative certificates and vaccination certificates. We had a layover of four hours in Kuwait. The airport is not crowded, well serviced, has good food outlets and has free internet. Lounge facilities are good too but we didn't use them. There was no requirement. Over all the layover was not inconvenient.
Tourist Visa Requirements from India and Italy :
As of December 2022, the Visa process from India and Italy is as follows:
From India:
Required documents:
1. Visa form (available on their Facebook page ) The consulate website is not quite user-friendly.
2. Flight Tickets
3. Hotel bookings
4. 6-month bank statement.
5. NOC from Employer (not mandatory)
6. 3 years IT returns (not mandatory)
7. Cover letter
8. 2 passport-size photos
9. 2 copies of the first and last page of the passport
10. Original passport
11. Guarantee letter from a travel agent in Egypt. This was clearly asked by the person who answered my call to the Delhi Consulate. They are prompt in answering calls. All visa-related queries are answered after 1:00 p.m.
I think E-visa is possible from India but I am not entirely sure if it can work without a valid guarantee letter. The Guarantee letter was actually the most tricky part since I had already booked my flight tickets and hotels and had planned a certain itinerary. Most travel agencies, I approached for the letter, wanted me to buy their package, which included their itinerary and their choice of hotels. After a tedious search and a lot of inquiry on random forums on TripAdvisor and booking-dotcom, I came across Ahmed, a travel agent based in Cairo, who agreed to provide me the guarantee letters at a cost of $35 per person without me having to book anything with him. However, as a courtesy, I did tell him, I would prefer to book any tours or services, if required, from him. Since I was traveling with aged parents, I didn't want the hassles of transportation and tour guides in Egypt. Therefore, I went ahead and booked Ahmed for transportation and a tour guide for the sites I had planned to visit. It actually worked out pretty good for us, He provided us with a good AC car and guided us to all the places of interest I had planned.
Those who do not wish to opt for tour guides and transportation services from agents can opt for Uber or Careem while in the city. Or get transportation services from the hotels they book with. However, I heard a lot of haggling happens in Egypt for car services within the cities ( I didn't have to face it since I had pre-booked my entire trip).
Coming back to the Visa process, as noted, getting the guarantee letter was the most difficult part of the process. The rest was pretty smooth. I applied at the Delhi embassy: 1/50 M, Niti Marg, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi, India, Delhi. We submitted the documents at a counter next to the
entrance gate of the embassy. It is open Monday - Friday 11-1 for
visa-related work. I suggest calling them a day before to confirm the timings Phone number: 011 2611 4097.
The submission process took less than 5 minutes. The person at the counter checked the documents. Took a payment of Rs. 2700 per person for the application (Rs.300) and Visa (Rs. 2400). Shared a receipt and asked us to collect our passports after 5 days. We collected the Visa and passport on the 5th day at the same counter. Took us less than a minute. There was no crowd at all. I suggest carrying cash for the payment. I didn't see any ATMs close by and I am not sure if other modes of payment are accepted.
From Italy:
The process from Italy was a little different. Some of my family members live in Italy and they applied for the Visa at the Milan Consulate. They were asked to apply for authorization first. The authorization process required them to submit a form available on their website. Additional documents required are mentioned on the website. Tickets and hotel bookings are not required before authorization is approved. Also, they are prompt in answering calls and emails for queries and questions.
The authorization approval took over a month and multiple follow-ups. Due to the holiday season in November and December, the paperwork took longer than usual, I guess. After the authorization approval, they were asked to apply for the visa. The authorization approval is a guaranteed visa. Tickets and hotels may be booked after approval and copies are required during visa application. I don't think a guarantee letter is required when applying from Italy but we still got them to avoid any kind of hassle later. E-visa option is available from Italy. The option is mentioned on their website but the staff at the consulate were not aware of the e-visa process and had no clue that it existed also!
To sum it up, other than the guarantee letter, the visa process is pretty simple and hassle-free.
Cairo has four terminals. T1 is the old airport and is the terminal for budget airlines and non-star-alliance airlines. T2 is for international flights, mostly non-star-alliance flights again. T3 is Egypt Air's hub and is the terminal for Star Alliance flights and domestic flights run by Egypt Air. T4 is a seasonal terminal used only for Hajj passengers. Kuwait Airways flight arrived at T2 since it is not a Star Alliance partner. We noticed unlike all airports I visited, Guides are allowed into the airport, and they receive their respective tourist customers right at the immigration area. My family members flying from Italy landed at T1 and they were received by our tour agent. Due to some issue with my phone, I could not connect with the agent when we landed in Cairo. Also, the wifi at the airport is unpredictable. Rather it didn't work on my phone at all. My family members in the T1 terminal were able to use the airport wifi.
Immigration was smooth. However, we had issues at the exit. It was crowded and chaotic, and there were charges for trolley carts which I never faced in any airport. I don't know if I was lied to or actually, it is charged. There were limited carts and somebody literally took away my cart and said it's paid for. I realized travel agents have men working at the airport, and it's kind of managed entirely by them.
One irritating part of Egypt that we faced right from the beginning was being asked for money (in dollars - minimum 5 dollars) for any and everything. I think they will ask for money to even give the direction :) Guess, that's the way it is! It was an experience for the first time. Somebody came and picked up our luggage and put it in the baggage check-in belt at Aswan airport, we didn't ask them to - we were doing it ourselves. My sibling thought it was an airport worker so maybe to hurry things up he was helping us, but after putting one suitcase on the belt he asked for 5 dollars. It is my advice, do not let anyone come to your aid if you do not need it. Not for clicking pics, taking directions, etc, etc. We spent a good amount on just tipping for unnecessary stuff.
Do keep some Egyptian pounds in cash for use at the airport. It will be useful when buying a SIM card. There are stalls for various mobile services in the exit lounge. Charges were pretty high, it is best to get international roaming but well, may depend. It is better to do a comparison when planning for your trip. I was able to contact our agent and my other family members once I got the new sim. We wasted almost an hour trying to get the phone working. My suggestion is to get international roaming at least for a day cause airport wifi may or may not work.
Currency:
US dollars are in great demand there. Most transactions happen in USD, if not in Egyptian pounds, We carried some Egyptian pounds from India but realized it was a bad decision and a huge loss. It is wise to convert the dollars in Egypt since the exchange rate is best there due to logical reasons. Euros work as well but are not the best option. Cash is preferred, though card facilities are available in most hotels, airports, and ticketing booths. However, local stores and restaurants may not have card facilities.
Weather:
We were in Egypt in late January. The weather was decent. Mornings and evenings were pleasant. A light jacket was handy. Afternoons did get extremely warm but a cool breeze once in a while gave good relief. I carried loose ankle-length cotton wear with long sleeves and scarves to cover the face. Yet I returned with burnt cheeks! Sunscreen is an absolute must.
Places of interest:
Day 1: Giza
7 days are too short to cover all the important sites of Egypt. At a minimum 14 days are advisable.
We planned to stay in Giza for the first two days since visiting the pyramids was our first priority. On the first day, we stayed at The Great Pyramid Inn, which is next to the Light and Sound show site. We watched the show from their rooftop restaurant. In fact, you can see a big part of the pyramid complex from the rooftop restaurant. The hotels on that lane are small budget hotels but neat and clean and really next door to the Sphinx. There are two entries to the Pyramid Complex one on the Sphinx side and the other near the Great Pyramid Side. This entry is close to the Mena House Hotel. It's a Marriott hotel and has a beautiful view of the Great Pyramid. On day 2 of our trip we moved to Mena House. It was pricey particularly because we went during peak season but was worth the stay.
Day 2: Giza
On day 2 we moved to Mena House. The main entrance to the Pyramid complex was just 2 minutes away. We got the tickets at the counter. The entry tickets to go inside the pyramids need to be taken here. Once you are in, it will be a long way back to buy the separate entry tickets into the pyramids. It's best to plan out way ahead whether you want to go inside the pyramids or not. Our guide suggested going inside the Pyramid of Khafre if we had to make a choice of one. We went ahead with that.
We walked to The Great Pyramid which is pretty close to the Ticket counter. Cars, horse carriages, and Camels are allowed in the complex. We traveled in a car. We also took a horse carriage ride and some of my family members took a camel ride to the Panoramic View hilltop. It's a small Hill, from where all the pyramids can be seen. It was definitely worth the $50 we spent. Well, once there, we stopped thinking about the money we were spending, since it was a once-in-a-lifetime trip and yes we knew Egypt was going to be the expensive one.
Will share the details of the Giza and Saqqara trips on Day 2 in a separate post.
Entry Passes for places of interest
It's a good idea to purchase the Cairo Pass and the Luxor Pass if planning to stay in Egypt for a long time and there's ample time to visit every single monument and tomb. The math works out well considering the entry tickets for tombs in Luxor can get quite expensive. Students get 50% off on the passes and if one purchases the Cairo pass, they get the Luxor Pass at a 50% discount and vice versa. When we were there, the Cairo Pass was $100 and Luxor Regular Pass was $100 and the Luxor Premium Pass was $200. Hence, getting the Cairo first and then the Luxor one works better. These passes are valid for 5 days. One needs to carry crisp dollar notes, copies of Passports (2 sets each for each pass), and passport-size photos. It's best to carry it from the home country since getting photocopies and photos in Egypt will get pretty expensive. Both passes are available in the Cairo Ministry of Antiquities. It might take a few hours to get both passes from the Ministry and should be planned accordingly.
Cairo Pass is available at the Pyramids Complex Ticket Center. Luxor premium and regular passes are available at the Ticketing Center of Valley of Kings.
We did not opt for the passes, because we didn't have enough time to cover everything in just a week.
Day 3: Cairo
On day three, we toured Cairo and flew to Luxor in the evening. We went to the National Museum of the Egyptian Civilization where most of the mummies are preserved. Then we visited the historic districts of Cairo, also called Islamic and Coptic Cairo. I was about to give these a pass but that would have been a big big mistake. Will share separate blogs on both. I think if you are in Cairo you should not miss them.
If one has time, a train ride or a cruise to Luxor wouldn't be a bad idea. I heard it's a beautiful scenic route. We flew Egypt Air for all internal trips. Cairo to Luxor was a 1 hr flight. Luxor is a small tourist town and its domestic airport is pretty small. We were perhaps on the last flight that day. Due to some communication issue with our Hotel's pickup, we ran into a bit of inconvenience getting to the hotel late at night (everything in Lusor closes by 8:00 pm or earlier). People here start their day early and all temples and tombs open by 6:00 a.m. and close by 4:00 p.m. / 5:00 p.m. in some cases. At 9:00 pm, the airport was pretty deserted but then thankfully, we got a taxi. We were a teeny bit apprehensive in the beginning but the driver turned out quite friendly and got us safely to our hotel. The 30-minute ride took us $35.
I had booked a West Bank hotel since I wanted to stay closer to the Valley of Kings and Queens. The hotel was lovely but a little difficult to locate. it was on the banks of the Nile and was built in Nubian style. I totally loved it. Djorff Palace is away from the main City but gorgeous for a stay.
Day 4: Luxor
Day 4 started really early. We wanted tried to squeeze in as much as possible in one day. Well honestly, not a good idea but when time is a constraint and you are not sure if you can make a second trip again, there's no other option. The Valley of Kings and Queens opens at 6:00 a.m. and we kind of reached around 8:00 a.m. We wanted to visit the tomb of Nefertari, which is open to a limited number of visitors a day, and were told tickets get sold pretty quick. So, we decided to go to the Queen's Valley first. It was surprisingly almost empty. The entry fee is 100 EGP, which allows entry to any three tombs excluding Nefertari's tomb which costs 1400 EGP. Honestly, Nefertari's tomb was the best of all tombs in the Valley of Kings and the Valley of Queens together. Absolutely recommended.
From the Valley of the Queens, we headed for the Valley of the Kings. It was as crowded as can be. The entry fee is 260 EGP and allows entry into any three tombs excluding the three below which have separate entry fees:
1. Seti I - Tomb KV 17 - 1000 EGP
2. Tutankhamen - Tomb KV62 - 300 EGP
3. Ramses V and VI - Tomb KV 9 - 100 EGP
We bought the entry ticket and the three additional tickets. I think they were all worth it. If I had more time, I would have covered the other tombs as well. I can never get enough of anything historical :)
By the time we completed the 6 tombs in Valley of Kings, the afternoon sun was scorching hot and we were exhausted.
Still, we decided to head for the Mortuary temple of Hatshepsut. My legs didn't want to move at all but I literally dragged myself. I didn't want to miss a thing! And one should not miss the Temple of Hatshepsut. She is THE ONLY FEMALE PHAROAH EVER! and THE ONLY FEMALE RULER whose tomb gets the privilege to be in the Valley of Kings. For those times it was more than an achievement!
From there we headed to a local restaurant for a local lunch. It was scrumptious. After the late lunch, we were back to the hotel. The sun was still up, so some of the family members decided to go have a swim at the pool. By evening the temperature was pleasant again.
Details of Day 4 will be shared in a different post.
Day 5: Luxor
Day 5 started early again. We went to Luxor temple, followed by Karnak Temple, then we headed for Aswan. On the way, we stopped by the Edfu temple. The drive to Aswan was through the western desert road and it was beautiful. Details will be shared in a separate post. At Aswan, we stayed at the Benben Hotel, built on an island on Lake Nasser. Lovely hotel. I do recommend it!
Day 6 started, at the earliest. We took a boat to the City at 4:30 a.m. Then a morning flight to Abu Simbel. Egypt Air has a to-and-fro package flight to Abu Simbel. Starts at 8:00 a.m. and reaches Abu Simbel around 8:45. An airport bus shuttles the passengers to the temple site. Waits for 1:30 hours and shuttles them back to the airport for the return flight at 11:55 a.m.
One can also drive to Abu Simbel which takes about 4 hours one way. Honestly, the flight was a little too hectic and I suggest, staying at Abu Simbel instead of Aswan. I I had to plan it any differently, I would have, flown to Abu Simbel the day before. stayed there overnight. Visited the temple at a slow pace without having to worry about missing the flight back. Anyway, Aswan doesn't have a lot to see unless one is an Agatha Christie Fan:) The Philae temple, the obelisk need barely half a day. The Aswan Dam tour and the Nubian Village tour weren't worth in my opinion, We spent 100 EGP for Aswan and $60 per person for Nubian Village, honestly, it was a total waste. I would suggest giving it a pass. This is the only bit I regret spending on! Will share the details of Day 6 in a separate post.
Day 7: Cairo
On the last day, we were back in Cairo. We didn't do much. Just lazed around. We stayed at Novotel, Cairo airport. It's just a 10-minute ride to T1 and T2. There is a free shuttle service from the hotel every 30 minutes. Our flight back to India was in the late afternoon. We flew back on the same route we came on Kuwait Airways via Kuwait.