English
Español
中文
हिन्दी
FrançaisTravel and Tourism
Travel and Tourism in Egypt
Travel alerts, currency, climate, transit, health, and safety information for visitors to Egypt.
Practical Information
Travel alert status, currency, climate, and transit details.
- Travel Alert Status
- Level 3: Reconsider Travel
- Time Difference
- UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
- Currency
- 9.71
- Climate
- From November to April, temperatures range in Cairo from 40° to 65°F, and during the hot period, May to October, from 70° to 110°F. The Mediterranean coast is usually 10° cooler, while Upper Egypt is 10° to 20° warmer. Extreme temperatures during both seasons are moderated by the prevailing northerly winds. The exception is the hot, dry southerly Khamaseen, named for the number 50 because it occurs in a 50-day timeframe from April to June. With winds up to 90 miles an hour, the resulting sandstorms close down airports and roads.
- Language(s) Spoken
- Arabic (official), English, and French widely understood by educated classes
- Ethnic Groups
- Egyptian 99.7%, other 0.3%
- National Holiday
- Revolution Day, 23 July (1952)
- Geographic Coordinates
- 27 00 N, 30 00 E
- Location
- Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Libya and the Gaza Strip, and the Red Sea north of Sudan, and includes the Asian Sinai Peninsula
- Airports
- 84
Destinations
Regions and cities, top sights, national parks, UNESCO sites, and festivals for visitors.
Outdoor Activities and Adventure
Egypt's varied geography -- desert, mountains, river, and two seas -- makes it a destination of greater outdoor activity potential than its reputation as a monuments-and-beaches destination might suggest. The Red Sea and Gulf of Aqaba offer world-class diving and snorkeling, as described in earlier sections, but the marine environment also supports kite-surfing, windsurfing, kayaking, and glass-bottom boat tours for those who prefer to stay on the surface. Soma Bay, a headland near Hurghada, is considered one of the best kite-surfing destinations in the world, with reliable wind patterns and purpose-built infrastructure for the sport. El Gouna's lagoons provide flat water ideal for windsurfing beginners and intermediates. The Dahab area on the Sinai's Gulf of Aqaba coast is the Sinai's windsurfing capital, with strong winds funneled through the Gulf creating conditions that attract dedicated windsurfers from Europe year after year.
Desert adventure is another major category, ranging from the accessible to the genuinely remote. The Western Desert oases route, connecting Bahariya, Farafra, Dakhla, and Kharga in a loop accessible by paved road, can be navigated by independent travelers with a hired driver, while deeper desert exploration requires guided 4WD expeditions with experienced desert operators who carry the GPS equipment, extra fuel, food, and water that responsible desert travel demands.
Health and Safety
Medical facilities, vaccinations, disease risk, and sanitation conditions.
Medical care in Egypt falls short of U.S. standards. The U.S. Embassy in Cairo can provide a list of local hospitals and English-speaking physicians. Emergency and intensive care facilities are limited. Most Nile cruise boats do not have a ship's doctor, but some employ a medical practitioner of uncertain qualification. Hospital facilities in Luxor and Aswan are inadequate, and they are nonexistent at most other ports-of-call. The Egyptian ambulance service hotline is 123, but Egyptian ambulance service is not reliable.