You’ve booked your flight (and hopefully tour!) Now it’s a matter of what to bring with you and how much you can expect to spend once you’re there!
What to Pack:
- Conditioner – most hotels will provide shampoo but not conditioner
- Dry Shampoo – for early morning excursions!
- Hat/sunscreen/sunglasses – the heat is intense and the sun beats down most of the day so you’ll want all three
- Books – there’s a lot of travel time between cities, whether via train, plane, car or felucca, and reading material will help pass the time
- Shorts – yes, shorts are completely appropriate at most of the landmarks
- Breathable pants – if you chose to wear pants, don’t wear anything too heavy. I love options like these.
- Sneakers – for the desert and bigger sites with cobbled floors
- Layers – that include one jacket or sweater for cooler nights or hotels with A.C.
- Bathing suits – most hotels have pools and hopefully your itinerary includes a dip in the Nile!
- Scarf – for Mosques or religious sites
- Portable charger – for longer days on the go. Also it’s good to be prepared in case of defective power outlets or outages
- Medication- specifically Imodium based meds. Every. single. person. I met in the two weeks of traveling dealt with diarrhea. It was a common topic of conversation and some people even had to miss tours because of it, so best to be prepared!
Hand carving alabaster vases 
Perfume factory shop
What to Buy:
- Cartouche – typically an oval shaped gold necklace with a hieroglyphic name plate. Traditionally, a cartouche was written on temples or tombs to identify the person, pharaoh or god. Locals wear cartouche necklaces so it is an authentic souvenir or gift
- Papyrus scrolls – ancient Egyptian paper created from the papyrus plant with drawings of Egyptian daily life, afterlife or customized with names, dates or calendars
- Egypt essences at a perfumier – a more unique gift than perfume is buying the undiluted essence from just the oils of the plant. For example, eucalyptus has additional healing powers
- Gallibaya – traditional cotton dresses for men and women. They can be simple or blinged out but always light, loose fabric for the heat
- Hand Carved Alabaster- vases or stone items that depict Egyptian landmarks
- Scarab – or beetle stone is a small and easy souvenir that symbolizes good luck and is unique to Egypt
- Spices – to replicate dishes you’ve had on your journey. It’s easy to transport and colorful. Smell is the strongest sense after all!
Tips: You can find cheaper souvenirs at any of the markets. However there is a much higher chance of it being fake/produced in China. Our tour guide took us to an perfumery and cotton market in Aswan, as well as a papyrus store, jewelry shop and alabaster/stone factory in Luxor, for a chance to purchase the real deal.
Costs:
This is the trip I took! Depending on the time of year and how long you wait to book (it’s risky but usually trips that leave in that same month are on sale). Beyond that, I spent the following in US Dollars: ,
- Breakfast: free with hotel, train or felucca stay
- Lunch: average of $4, mostly sandwiches
- Dinners: Between $6 and $8
- Waters: $10 total
- Tea at the cataract hotel: $18
- Snacks and bottle of wine at local convenience stores: $33
- Beverages on felucca $8
- Philae temple: $5
- Abu Simbal $110
- Extra temples at Valley of the Kings (King Tut and Ramesses VI): $21
- Tip for tour guide: $25
- Souvenirs (a gold cartouche, alabaster vase and stone scarab beetles): $700
- Total tips: ~$40 total
- These were included in the tour:
- Pyramids $10
- Cairo Museum $10
- Karnak $9
- Valley of the Kings $12
- Tips: Try to keep smaller bills handy. Staying hydrated is key and you can find smaller and larger water bottles everywhere for about $.50, though they are more money at the attractions. Alcohol is pricier, relatively speaking, with beers coming out to about $5 and wine $10 per glass, or $10-$15 per bottle at the liquor stores. The snacks I got before our first train ride (nuts and cookies) were surprisingly expensive so it may just be better getting takeaway from a vendor.
Click here for additional tips or follow my Egyptian journey with Intrepid!
