An Introduction to Egypt

 

Egypt could be said to have six different tourist super-sites, each with its own flavour. Surprisingly most of these tourist areas – Luxor is the main exception – do not depend on ancient monuments to provide visitor interest. There are many more tourist destinations, particularly on the Red Sea and in Sinai and on Egypt's mainland interior, the oases. However, the tourist supersites encompass perhaps 95 per cent of the ancient monuments and pretty well everything else that there is to do in Egypt.

These super-sites are:

• Alexandria and the immediate area around the City and extending to Marsa Matruh on the coast to the west. The area has a Mediterranean feel about it and the attraction is the Mediterranean Sea, and – to the people of Cairo – a somewhat cooler climate.
• Cairo and the immediate area around the City. Cairo, the entry point for most visitors, has everything: great hotels, entertainment, restaurants and monuments enough for even the most diehard amateur Egyptologist. But it also has bowling allies and several golf courses to chose from.
• Luxor and the surrounding area. Luxor is a living museum with vast numbers of ancient Egyptian monuments. It is also highly oriented to tourists and might be thought of in the same regard as a theme park, where the attractions just happen to be real monuments.
• Aswan and the surrounding area. Aswan has great hotels, along with the huge Lake Nasser to the south.
• Hurghada and the surrounding area, particularly El Gouna. Not too far apart are El Gouna, Hurghada and Safaga with just about everything a tourist wants – with the exception of ancient monuments. They make up for that with every variety of water sports, several golf courses, casinos and more. The Red Sea area has less of an Egyptian feel but is not as‘European’ as the Sinai.
• Sharm El Sheik, and the surrounding area including Sharks Bay. This is the Sinai super-site with an abundance of tourist appeal and even some Christian monuments nearby.

 

Welcome to the most beautiful diving spots in the world…

 

Boasting over a thousand diving sites, including some of the world’s most famous spots, Egypt is undoubtedly the dream destination for divers from all over the world. The Red Sea offers an idyllic setting for exploring underwater landscapes. You’ll be entranced by the multifarious flora and fauna, amazed by the abundant tropical coral reefs and enthralled by the impressive array of ancient shipwrecks.

The water that ripples throughout this aquatic paradise is clear and warm, which – combined with high saline levels – makes it an ideal environment for over a thousand different types of coral reef, not to mention 300 species of shark. In this fascinating underwater realm, colourful fish will happily swim alongside you as you dive, sharing in the wonders of this silent deep-sea world.

Diving in the Red Sea is an amazing experience contrasting the arid desert
landscape with the diversity of the sea-beds of the Red Sea, 2,300 km long and
350 km wide, on the African coast and the Southern point of Sinai. The Red Sea is easily accessible to experienced divers and beginners, with calm, clear, warm water (21 to 30°C), well-preserved coral reefs and many fish. It boasts some exceptional diving sites such as the Tiran islands, the underwater walls at Ras
Mohammed and Samadai, Elphinstone, the Dahab canyons, Safaga, Mersa Alam.

The sport and supervision: all year round, professional diving clubs led by instructors with PADI or CMAS certification offer dives in search of parrot, angel and clown fish, sharks, barracudas and also lead dives to wrecks. Underwater trails with mask and snorkel on coral reefs, initiation or sport diving (limited to 30 m deep), from a boat or from the beach, at numerous points along the coast. A medical certificate might be required. Clubs on the Red Sea: Aquarius Diving Centre at Hurghada. Canyon Dive Club at Dahab. Divers' Lodge, Sinai Divers, the Camel Dive Club (accessible to disabled divers)… Equipment for rent on site. Many of the Red Sea coastal resort hotels offer diving vacations.

 

ALEXANDRIA AND THE NORTHERN COAST:

The major towns and cities are Abusir, Agami, Alexandria, El Alamein, El-Dikheila, Mersa Matruh, Ras el-Hikma, Rosseta (Rashid), Sallum, Sidi Abdel Rahman and Sid Barani. The Northern Coast stretches 525 km along the Mediterranean east to Sallum on the Libyan boarder. Although tourism development started as long ago as 1978, and in spite of its miles of white sand beaches and azure sea, Egypt's Med is still undeveloped and relatively unpopulated. The emphasis is on luxurious resorts. There are fine beaches all along the coast from Alexandria to Mersa Matrouh, including the resort of Sidi Abdel Rahman, a secluded bay with clear waters and a selection of villas and hotels.

 

EGYPT FACTFILE

• POPULATION & PEOPLE 76 million – Eastern Hamitic stock (Egyptians, Bedouins, and Berbers) 99 per cent. Greek, Nubian, Armenian and other European (primarily Italian and French) 1 per cent.

• Egyptians are “warm, funny, kind, and hospitable”, according Jeanne Eck’s “I Am Happier to Know You", a useful book full of inside information on Egypt, [www.jeannemeck.com]

• LANGUAGES: Arabic (official), English and, to a lesser extent French, widely understood.

• RELIGION: Muslim (mostly Sunni) 94 per cent, Coptic Christian and other 6 per cent.
• GEOGRAPHY & CLIMATE Egypt covers 95,450 sq km and is basically a vast desert plateau interrupted by the Nile valley and delta. Natural hazards can include periodic droughts, occasional earthquakes, flash floods and a hot, driving windstorm called khamsin which occurs in the spring. Egypt has hot, dry summers with moderate winters.
• GETTING THERE, GETTING AROUND There is a variety of good options for getting to Egypt, with good connections between Cairo and many European cities. Egypt's national carrier is EgyptAir, and Air Sinai also has connections in Egypt. Most travellers come into Egypt through Cairo, although visitors are increasingly disembarking at Alexandria, Luxor, Aswan, Hurghada (Al-Ghardaka) and Sharm el-Sheikh. These airports are serviced by a number of smaller carriers and charter companies with direct connections to Europe.
• Rail: The Egyptian State Railway services the entire Nile Valley down to Aswan, the Red Sea cities of Suez and Port Said, the Delta and Northern Coast cities of Alexandria (two stops) and Mersa Matruh. There are at least half a dozen through trains a day on major routes. There is another, privately-owned train, the Wagon Lits sleeper with first, second and third class compartments which travels overnight from Cairo to Aswan and back.
• Bus: Air-conditioned buses link most parts of Egypt to Cairo and Alexandria. Seats may be reserved up to two days in advance.
• Metro and tram: Both Alexandria and Cairo have tram or metro systems that run through at least part of the city. In Cairo the metro system is identified by circular signs with a big red M.
• Taxi: Take an Egyptian taxi for one of the experiences of your life. Sharing is not unusual. Most taxi drivers are honest, but few try to cheat unwary foreigners. Meters should be used.
• Taxis in Luxor, Aswan, Hurghada, Esaphagas and Sinai are easier to find (they line up at all hotels) but for the distance travelled they are more expensive than those in Cairo.
• Car rental: Car rental agencies exist at most major hotels. Foreigners must have an international driver's license. The roads from Cairo to Upper Egypt are the longest, most congested, and most dangerous in Egypt. It is not advisable to drive at night; vehicles stop dead on the road and turn out their lights; unlit donkey carts move at a snail's pace and are usually not seen until it is too late. Driving is on the right.

Distances between Cairo and other cities City Miles Km

• Alexandria (Delta Road) 140 225
• Alexandria (Desert Road) 138 221
• Damietta 119 191
• Barrages 15 25
• Minya 151 236
• Asyut 224 359
• Luxor 415 664
• Esna 449 719
• Edfu 484 775

 

Tourism is set to soar

When it comes to historic monuments, Egypt is the richest country in the world, the guardian of up to two-thirds of the world’s historic
treasures. This stunning heritage and the country’s Mediterranean climate are just two of the reasons that Egypt will, in future, get a far greater share of world tourism, says Tourism Minister Ahmed El-Magarabi.

 

He believes the successful development of tourism relies on close cooperation between the government and the private sector. Project owners and investors need to initiate substantial marketing campaigns while – to create a unified theme – his Ministry plays its part by participating in a worldwide campaign targeting suitable market. The Ministry has allocated a $60 million budget to support a campaign
through the DDB Worldwide Communications Group.

The Minister said a national public awareness campaign will be launched soon with the purpose of increasing public knowledge about
the importance of tourism and its impact on economy.” Asked about ‘residential tourism’, Minister El-Magarabi said:“Residential tourism is a well-known touristic trend all over the world. It evolves around individuals owning homes in other countries and using them during vacations or trips as a replacement to hotels.“In Spain for instance 90 per cent of tourists are owners of homes. We studied this trend and discovered that we have excellent potential for implementing it in Egypt.”

The Minister said Europe, and particularly the UK, was the first prime market identified.“The English spend approximately five billion pounds annually on purchasing homes outside the UK to use as vacation homes or retirement homes. There has been a lot of interest
has been expressed.“Add to this the fact that the price of these homes is relatively cheap.“Residential tourism is very new in Egypt and we have to move with great caution and try to avoid as many mistakes as possible.”

As the negative impact of the recent terrorism attacks in Sharm El- Sheikh, he said: “The entire world is subject to similar occurrences. In July 2005 alone there were attacks on Spain, London, Turkey and Lebanon, all in one month.“People refuse to surrender to such acts of terrorism.” On the subject of improving the tourism infrastructure, the Minister said renovations were taking place in several airports, including those in Cairo and Al-Alamein that will help facilitate tourist movement.