Egypt - would this trip be unsafe with kids?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We visited Egypt a couple of summers ago. We didn't visit Sharm or Luxor but we hired Abercrombie and Kent for the entire duration. Our guide and driver met us at the plane and we drove straight to Alexandria. We also had an armed off duty officer with us as well (the government typically provides this for US tourists that book their travel with a company like A&K). Stayed at FS Alexandria in a villa right on the Med and it was stunning. Amazing catacombs and history. Drove back to FS Cairo Nile Plaza and toured there for a few days. You can cater as little as much of your day with A&K. We split days both touring and by the pool/beach so it wasn't nonstop sightseeing.

Amazing, memorable trip! Definitely recommend.

Yes definitely want to visit somewhere where you need a personal ARMED GUARD

Stay scared. We love the Middle East. It is a beautiful part of the world with beautiful people. Narrow minded people like you aren’t needed there.

NP. I don’t understand. Didn’t you have an armed guard because you were scared? If you weren’t scared, why did you need an armed guard?

Didn’t ask for one nor we ever scared. Never once. They assigned someone to us, which our guide explained is a common occurrence the government does with certain companies. We have travelled to Israel, Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon and the UAE. These are amazing countries that many of you are missing out on experiencing. You live in the USA. You certainly don’t need to be scared visiting most other countries.

Yeah, I know. I’ve been to Israel, Palestine, Jordan, and UAE. Never had an armed guard. Seems like terrified rich white people bullshit.

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Not sure why you’re mad at me? The op asked about security and safety and I’m giving my experience. Be mad at the Egyptian government?

Plenty of people travel to Egypt without securing personal guards. This helpless act is the afore-referenced BS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We visited Egypt a couple of summers ago. We didn't visit Sharm or Luxor but we hired Abercrombie and Kent for the entire duration. Our guide and driver met us at the plane and we drove straight to Alexandria. We also had an armed off duty officer with us as well (the government typically provides this for US tourists that book their travel with a company like A&K). Stayed at FS Alexandria in a villa right on the Med and it was stunning. Amazing catacombs and history. Drove back to FS Cairo Nile Plaza and toured there for a few days. You can cater as little as much of your day with A&K. We split days both touring and by the pool/beach so it wasn't nonstop sightseeing.

Amazing, memorable trip! Definitely recommend.

Yes definitely want to visit somewhere where you need a personal ARMED GUARD

Stay scared. We love the Middle East. It is a beautiful part of the world with beautiful people. Narrow minded people like you aren’t needed there.

NP. I don’t understand. Didn’t you have an armed guard because you were scared? If you weren’t scared, why did you need an armed guard?

Didn’t ask for one nor we ever scared. Never once. They assigned someone to us, which our guide explained is a common occurrence the government does with certain companies. We have travelled to Israel, Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon and the UAE. These are amazing countries that many of you are missing out on experiencing. You live in the USA. You certainly don’t need to be scared visiting most other countries.

Yeah, I know. I’ve been to Israel, Palestine, Jordan, and UAE. Never had an armed guard. Seems like terrified rich white people bullshit.

.

Not sure why you’re mad at me? The op asked about security and safety and I’m giving my experience. Be mad at the Egyptian government?

Plenty of people travel to Egypt without securing personal guards. This helpless act is the afore-referenced BS.

.

Not once did I say people don’t travel there without it. However, it is extremely common to be assigned with tour groups. Not sure what else to tell you.

https://www.inside-egypt.com/resources/travel-safety.html

https://robinshriftman.wordpress.com/2019/11/26/egypt-the-nile-with-abercrombie-kent/

[Anonymous]

I am the poster above who noted Egypt is a military government. In 2022 I didn’t have an armed guard, but driving around you go through several checkpoints and all the tourist sites have armed guards. So do hotels. I felt perfectly safe, but it IS highly militaristic. They do NOT want incidents. They also close things off if there are issues (Res Sea dive boats were recently shut down for a bit after a fire on one, and the operators absolutely obey when they are told to close).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sounds fine. My main worry with traveling with kids is illness just because it can be so hard to deal with in a foreign place. I’m really focused on handwashing/cleanliness for them.

I used to live in Egypt. It’s really a have and have not place. If you have money, the medical care is top notch and excellent. There are still remnants of the British system.
As far as Cairo, the nice parts of Cairo are incredibly nice. It’s much nicer than Luxor. I’d stay in Cairo longer. Sharm is fine but you could be in a high end resort anywhere. I’d maybe skip that but at the very least take days from Luxor and move them to Cairo.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We would love to do that trip but the germs thing is a worry.

Well, that is really going to limit you.

Just get educated about how to travel safely, from a food hygiene perspective.

(Only drink bottled water you open yourself, no ice cubes, no raw vegetables/salads or fruit that you do but peel yourself, no street food, only cooked food basically. Pasteurized dairy products. ) Beer and wine are fine, not drinks mixed with water such as iced tea or lemonade. Put a reminder on your hotel tap, so you do not brush your teeth with tap water by accident.

The water, fruit and vegetables are fine in your good hotel.

[Anonymous]

Do it. We have gone there recently with our children for holiday. It was great. I agree with those who mention booking ahead thought a tour operator like A and K or something. I don’t recommend the Nile cruise. We did it all on land with cars (and drivers, guides) and was happy with our experience.

[Anonymous]

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Erv9JKbQeBE

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/travel/article-12477201/amp/I-visited-Egypt-dream-holiday-turned-worst-trip-Ive-never-felt-uncomfortable.html

[Anonymous]

Two of my aunts (70 years old; one in good health and one with some mobility issues) just did a big trip to Egypt. They went through a tour company. They absolutely loved it.

[Anonymous]

Nothing here sounds risky to me. Just be careful what you eat/drink, the water is in't safe. People are also very pushy about tips some shadiness, but overall sound great. Luxor is amazing.

[Anonymous]

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/Egypt.html

Why take the risk?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We visited Egypt a couple of summers ago. We didn't visit Sharm or Luxor but we hired Abercrombie and Kent for the entire duration. Our guide and driver met us at the plane and we drove straight to Alexandria. We also had an armed off duty officer with us as well (the government typically provides this for US tourists that book their travel with a company like A&K). Stayed at FS Alexandria in a villa right on the Med and it was stunning. Amazing catacombs and history. Drove back to FS Cairo Nile Plaza and toured there for a few days. You can cater as little as much of your day with A&K. We split days both touring and by the pool/beach so it wasn't nonstop sightseeing.

Amazing, memorable trip! Definitely recommend.

Yes definitely want to visit somewhere where you need a personal ARMED GUARD

Stay scared. We love the Middle East. It is a beautiful part of the world with beautiful people. Narrow minded people like you aren’t needed there.

NP. I don’t understand. Didn’t you have an armed guard because you were scared? If you weren’t scared, why did you need an armed guard?

Didn’t ask for one nor we ever scared. Never once. They assigned someone to us, which our guide explained is a common occurrence the government does with certain companies. We have travelled to Israel, Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon and the UAE. These are amazing countries that many of you are missing out on experiencing. You live in the USA. You certainly don’t need to be scared visiting most other countries.

Yeah, I know. I’ve been to Israel, Palestine, Jordan, and UAE. Never had an armed guard. Seems like terrified rich white people bullshit.

Old city tunnel tour in 2000. Exited in the Arab quarter. Armed guard escorted us back to the Jewish quarter. Same trip, drove in to Bethlehem with my aunt. She was not an armed guard. Things are dramatically different now. Don’t pretend that there aren’t significant security issues in Israel and “Palestine.”

[Anonymous]

Do A&K tours start at 17K pp? They look so awesome, but sadly too rich for my blood.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do A&K tours start at 17K pp? They look so awesome, but sadly too rich for my blood.

Not PP but you can get good tours for very inexpensive. You don’t need A&K, etc. I went with my 70 year old mother and stayed at a Marriott. The concierge was amazing and they arranged tours for us with preferred providers. It was about $100/night 2 years ago. Super easy and comfortable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do A&K tours start at 17K pp? They look so awesome, but sadly too rich for my blood.

Not PP but you can get good tours for very inexpensive. You don’t need A&K, etc. I went with my 70 year old mother and stayed at a Marriott. The concierge was amazing and they arranged tours for us with preferred providers. It was about $100/night 2 years ago. Super easy and comfortable.

Ha, that is good. I assumed there were less fancy ones out there. Be cool to do a super lux tour once in my life though! Maybe once the kids are off and out of college and I have my own money again

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do A&K tours start at 17K pp? They look so awesome, but sadly too rich for my blood.

Not PP but you can get good tours for very inexpensive. You don’t need A&K, etc. I went with my 70 year old mother and stayed at a Marriott. The concierge was amazing and they arranged tours for us with preferred providers. It was about $100/night 2 years ago. Super easy and comfortable.

We used a company called Memphis Tours. They are a big player and very established. They'll create a custom tour for you. You can pay more for an upper end, exclusive tour or less for a group tour with less nice accommodations. Just tell them what you want and get a very specific quote. Have them put in all the details including flight times, hotels, and whether transfers will be private or shared. Look at a map to make sure the hotel locations make sense. Cairo, in particular, is a huge city with lots of traffic and you don't want to stay on the other side of town from your destination.

Note that all tour guides use government-approved scripts, so the "history" presented is all very favorable to the Egyptian govt. Most of it is ancient enough that it doesn't have much impact, but for anything modern-ish you'll be hearing the party position.