Egypt

I have travelled the world extensively both independently and with tours and the best trip I ever did was last fall's 17 day Egypt/Jordan adventure with Gap Adventures......I loved Egypt. Its worth doing both countries together even if just to see the fabulous city of Petra in Jordan although there is lots more to see as well.

It's challenging to do Egypt independently. It's best to use an organized tour. If you mostly want to see some pyramids and also save some money, you may want to consider visiting the Teotihuacan Pyramids outside of Meixco City instead. They're every bit as spectacular as the ones in Cairo, but closer and cheaper to visit.

My husband and I visited Egypt and Jordan last October and November. We flew to Amman, then visited Petra, which is less well known than the pyramids, but more spectacular. I used www.tripadvisor.com extensively for information about lodging and transportation, and everything went off without a hitch. We then flew to Cairo, and joined a 2 week tour with Adventures Abroad, a small company from Vancouver, BC. As noted above, it would be difficult and not much fun to travel independently in Egypt. The Egyptians are very experienced at handling groups and deal with large quantities of visitors with grace and efficency I was absolutely thrilled when we walked across the plain at Giza and saw the pyramids; I don't second the idea of going to Mexico instead. The Nile cruise was great, relaxing and informative, and the ship's personnel made it fun. I could go on and on--I highly recommend a trip to Egypt. We finished ours by flying to Sharm el Sheikh, a modern resort on the Red Sea, for a week of R & R. I'd be happy to answer any questions you have, I think there is a way to send a private email. Best regards, Carol

My best friend and I used a small Egypt-based tour company, who arranged a car and driver in three cities & avoided the big tour buses. It was less costly than a big bus tour, also. They provided the meet and greet services at the airports, the train reservations for the overnight from Cairo to Luxor, the day tours, some hotel nights in the older hotels, and arranged the flights to Abu Simbel and more. We booked extra hotel nights at the beginning of the trip, btw, so we could get over the long flight. It was MUCH easier to let them do all the legwork, and we did not have to worry a bit about catching taxis to train stations or how long we wanted to stay at a ruin. Egypt was a dream trip.

I've been to the pyramids near Mexico City & the Yucatan, found them interesting, but they just aren't the same!
From the US, airlines frequently route through Rome Amsterdam or Paris and you can arrange a free stopover before buying your ticket;nice places to get over some jetlag and then continue on to Cairo if you have the time to spend.

Check State Department website to see if there are any warning, if not go! tay in top quality hotels for your safety and health.
I have been and think it was one of the most fasinating trips of my life. Easier to go on an organized tour once you arrive. there are some great fares in general now, so jump in. Have fun!

What is the best way to get to Egypt from Europe?

Danielle...by plane, without a doubt. Go to whichbudget.com, select Egypt under "I want to fly from..." then pick a city (like Cairo), and you'll be able to see all the European cities connected to that Egyptian destination by discount airlines. For Cairo, for example, there are discount airline flights from Belgium, Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, and Italy. The sooner you book, the better deal you will get, but review carefully their luggage restrictions and check-in requirements.