What's included
Egypt is often misunderstood. People hear stories about scams and hassle — and with an experienced local guide and your own tour leader alongside you, those problems simply do not come up. Done properly, it is one of the best tours we run.
Two very different halves: Cairo for the Pyramids, the Sphinx, the museums and the bazaars, then the drive across the desert to Ain Sokhna on the Red Sea, where we stay at a five-star beach resort. The contrast is the point.
Package includes
- International flights (JNB ↔ Cairo)
- Airport transfer
- Accommodation (shared)
- All breakfast meals
- Dhow cruise dinner on the Nile
- Entrance fee to the Pyramids
- Citadel and Cave Church visit
- Cairo city tour
- Ain Sokhna beach day at a five-star Red Sea resort
- Tour experience leader and transport
Not included
- Museum and site entrance fees
- Camel rides, horse riding, quad biking
- Jet ski, parasailing, jet boat
- Travel insurance
- Personal expenses
Optional activities
At the Pyramids
- Camel ride
- Horse riding
- Quad biking
At Ain Sokhna
- Jet boat
- Jet ski
- Parasailing
Around Cairo
- Museum and site entrance fees, including the Egyptian Museum
All paid locally at your own cost.
Your visa is free — read this
South African passport holders get their Egyptian visa on arrival at the immigration counter, free of charge. There is nothing to apply for before you fly.
At Cairo airport there is a visa counter before immigration selling a US$25 visa on arrival sticker. It is legitimate — it exists for the nationalities who do have to pay. South Africans do not need it.
Walk past that counter and go straight to immigration. Stop and buy the sticker and you'll have paid US$25 for something you were entitled to for nothing.
Travelling on another passport? Your requirements may differ — your tour leader will point each person in the right direction on arrival.
What you need
- Passport with at least six months' validity remaining
- No visa to arrange before you fly — see the note above
- Travellers under 18: unabridged birth certificate, valid passport, and an affidavit from any parent not travelling
- Recommended spending money from R3,000, plus a budget for site entrance fees and optional activities
- Modest clothing for religious sites — shoulders and knees covered
Your itinerary
-
1
Travel day
- Depart South Africa for Egypt.
-
2
Old Cairo
- Arrive in Cairo. Go straight to immigration for your free visa — skip the US$25 visa counter.
- Papyrus factory, Egyptian oils and perfumes, and Egyptian cotton.
- Evening: dhow cruise dinner along the Nile River.
-
3
Pyramids of Giza
- Visit the Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx — entrance included.
- ★ The Egyptian Museum — entrance fee at own cost.
- ★ Optional: camel ride, horse riding, quad biking.
-
4
New Cairo, then the Red Sea
- The Citadel, the Cave Church and Festival Mall.
- Drive to Ain Sokhna — about two hours across the desert, and a memorable stretch of road in itself.
- Welcome dinner at the resort.
-
5
Ain Sokhna — Red Sea
- Beach day at the five-star Red Sea resort.
- ★ Optional: jet boat, jet ski, parasailing — all good value here.
-
6
Departure
- Depart Egypt and fly back to South Africa.
★ Starred activities and museum entrance fees are optional and paid locally at your own cost. Itineraries may adjust slightly for weather or local conditions.
Transport. Scheduled transport is provided only for activities and locations included in the official itinerary. Transport for personal activities, optional excursions, shopping trips or restaurants outside the planned programme is not included.
Optional activities are subject to availability, supplier confirmation and price changes. The itinerary may adjust slightly for flight schedules, weather or local operating hours.
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Every one secured with a deposit and paid off in instalments before you travel.
