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Is Egypt As Dangerous As The Media Makes It Out To Be?

HappyDude20

HappyDude20

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Jul 13, 2008
3,688
1,479
Los Angeles, Ca
I have friends who are getting married this summer and flying from the US to make it happen. Aside from the news, I hear there is lukewarm caution about Americans going to Egypt. Certainly the threat seems to be much higher in say Syria, Iran, etc.

I'm wanting to go to Egypt soon and take my ipad and iPhone (64gb and 16gb, respectively) to capture it all on film, primarily the pyramids and the Egyptian museum. I've never been but thought I'd ask here if it really is that dangerous.

I'm told on numerous sites to heed with caution, while the same sites state to get the hell out of Ukraine, Syria, etc.

I've always wanted to go to Egypt and with life and work ramping up I don't know whow soon I'll be able to make an extensive trip happen.
 
Usually the media sensationalizes things. You can read the state department's travel alert for Egypt here. If you want to go I'd say do it and just be careful and pay attention to what is going on while you are there and be prepared to change plans if needed.Now probably is a decent time to go since things have calmed down a bit but tourists are still scared so prices should be lower. Just stay away from Sinai, and any demonstrations.
 
mrkramer said:
Usually the media sensationalizes things. You can read the state department's travel alert for Egypt here. If you want to go I'd say do it and just be careful and pay attention to what is going on while you are there and be prepared to change plans if needed.Now probably is a decent time to go since things have calmed down a bit but tourists are still scared so prices should be lower. Just stay away from Sinai, and any demonstrations.
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Thank you so much! I do keep hearing Sinai is dangerous however too.

I want this trip to be as fluid as possible but it still doesn't seem like its gonna be a walk In The park.
 
HappyDude20, I'm sending this message from Cairo, Egypt. Just wanted to check if you managed to come Egypt yet, and whether you have enjoyed it or not.
 
Monty1010 said:
HappyDude20, I'm sending this message from Cairo, Egypt. Just wanted to check if you managed to come Egypt yet, and whether you have enjoyed it or not.
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I did indeed make it out to both cairo and giza less than a week after starting this thread. I never felt in any Danger, not even when the power went out in giza at night...

Everyone was friendly. I noticed military tanks guarding the antiquities museum but even the soldiers allowed me to snap picture with them.

I had a blast.

The pyramids area is totally empty with only a few tourists. This meant the camel riders insisted I join them and many were persistent for hours but headphones got the message across.

They, the camel workers told me to "bribe" the doorman guarding the entrance to the big Khufu pyramid (though maybe this is something they tell many tourists) so the doorman can lock the gate of the big pyramid and allow me to roam inside up to the kings chamber big myself. An absolute blast. Upon exiting the guard took me to the queens chamber, though not all the way.

The country has obviously taken a big hit economically which explains the low prices in all of the activities I did. Breakfast was sometimes as low as 15 cents.. But Pizza Hut did cost $12. Lol.
 
HappyDude20 said:
I did indeed make it out to both cairo and giza less than a week after starting this thread. I never felt in any Danger, not even when the power went out in giza at night...

Everyone was friendly. I noticed military tanks guarding the antiquities museum but even the soldiers allowed me to snap picture with them.

I had a blast.

The pyramids area is totally empty with only a few tourists. This meant the camel riders insisted I join them and many were persistent for hours but headphones got the message across.

They, the camel workers told me to "bribe" the doorman guarding the entrance to the big Khufu pyramid (though maybe this is something they tell many tourists) so the doorman can lock the gate of the big pyramid and allow me to roam inside up to the kings chamber big myself. An absolute blast. Upon exiting the guard took me to the queens chamber, though not all the way.

The country has obviously taken a big hit economically which explains the low prices in all of the activities I did. Breakfast was sometimes as low as 15 cents.. But Pizza Hut did cost $12. Lol.
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Awesome! I've found that you can generally take what the media says, scale it back by about 90%, and have an accurate representation of the real danger.
 
I was in Sinai on three different occasions. All were on a live aboard dive boat. We crossed into Egypt from the taba crossing near Eilat. This was 10 years ago. I would not go there today. Nor would I go to non Sinai Egypt. Just too dangerous. And most of the country is a sewer anyway.
 
Egypt is not dangerous for tourists because they are pretty desperate for tourism. It's very dangerous for researchers, Muslim Brotherhood members and supporters, people who don't like the military government, anyone who gets in trouble with the police, women, or anyone the government decides they don't like.
 
556fmjoe said:
Egypt is not dangerous for tourists because they are pretty desperate for tourism. It's very dangerous for researchers, Muslim Brotherhood members and supporters, people who don't like the military government, anyone who gets in trouble with the police, women, or anyone the government decides they don't like.
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That's reassuring :rolleyes:
 
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