Egypt is a magical place; land of the pyramids, pharaohs, the Nile, minarets and the first powerful, well-known civilizations. It is almost impossible to believe that it is easy to see all that it has to present when you choose your egypt vacations, but it is absolutely really worth a try.
The formal name of Egypt is the Arab Republic of Egypt. This wonderful nation is situated in north-eastern Africa and is bordered by Jordan, Libya, Israel, Sudan and the Gaza Strip. Its largest city and capital is Cairo. Egypt covers over 997,000 sq kilometers of the African continent and has an estimated number of 81 million inhabitants.
Going There
Going to Egypt is very easy. A huge component of their economy is tourism and making it difficult to enter the country would certainly have an impact on their tourism. Probable guests that are considering to egypt vacations should understand that visas can be acquired upon arrival at the airport or bank office.
Dialect
The formal language of Egypt is Arabic. Most natives, though, speak what is known as as “Egyptian Arabic”; Egyptian Arabic is the native dialect. However, in schools and in various formal settings, the acknowledged form of Arabic is the Regular Arabic.
Egyptians are famous for their curiosity of foreign languages. There are many Egyptians that converse in English in addition to Arabic. Additionally, owing to the overwhelming number of visitors that arrive in Egypt from Europe, you may discover that a lot of Egyptians also communicate in French, German, Italian and Spanish. Russian has also become an increasingly popular language to practice because, again, there are a huge number of Russian travelers visiting Egypt- particularly in Hurghada and Sharm El Sheikh.
Money
The currency in Egypt is the Egyptian pound, written as LE- which is French for “livre egyptienne” (Egyptian pound). When published in numbers, the Egyptian pound sign can be found in front of the numerals £. Many big lodging places receive U.S. dollars. There are also a lot of various ATM’s available for use to receive Egyptian money.
Shopping
When shopping in Egypt, if you are at a marketplace or buying items from a street vendor, bartering is completely acceptable; it is even encouraged. The reason for this is that costs are typically marked up for visitors. Egypt’s products are thought of to be very reasonably priced and depending on the kinds of accommodations which you desire to stay into, you may be able to get by in Egypt for just $20 USD per day.
No matter what you plan to shop for, whether it be souvenirs or trinkets… Whether you are in the market for bargains or higher-end merchandise- there is surely options for you to buy once you choose your egypt vacations. There are a great deal of souvenirs and items available for shoppers in Egypt. There are also a huge variety of designer label shops available to shoppers at some of the malls in Cairo. Some of these brands include Giorgio Armani, Calvin Klein, Guess among others.
Weather
You can’t shop without excellent weather, right? Normally, winters are relatively temperate and summers are of course) hot and very dry. The best part? You would pretty much never carry around a raincoat as it hardly rains.
Ramadan
True to the Islamic calendar, Ramadan is a important Muslim holiday. During Ramadan, Muslims fast every day, for 30 days. Even if you may not be a Muslim yourself, it would very much appreciated if tourists do not eat, consume liquid or smoke a cigarette in public.
Places to Visit
Deserts Galore
It has been said that Egypt is a “gift of the Nile,” as the areas around the Nile are quite fertile and conducive to the development of crops. Once you plan to choose your egypt vacations, it is important to understand that Egypt, in its entirety, is not fertile. As a matter of fact, Egypt is made up of 95% desert and is a continuation of the Sahara Desert.
Do not be deterred, however, since the desert land is actually spectacular in itself and its vastness may in fact overwhelm you when you are able to see it in person.
Fun fact: The Desert is one of the cleanest places you would actually visit. There are no bugs and the sand is so clean it may be used as an antiseptic! The sand in the desert is clean and bacteria free.
Quite a few people go on desert tours once they choose their egypt vacations. Desert tours are available in different increments-
- brief tours, which can last up to 3 days
- lengthy tours, that can last in between 4 days to a full week
- and Desert excursions. Desert excursions are the best bet if you are into checking out everything the desert has to offer. These can last anywhere between 10 to 21 days.
And there is plenty to enjoy in the desert including sand dunes- excellent for sand sailing, sand surfing and going to caves.
By Sea
One can take Egypt by land and also by sea! No egypt vacations are complete if you don’t check out the sea…and there are countless possibilities! The Red Sea has beautiful, clear water and an wonderful coral reef for you to check out. If you are into snorkeling, there is a plethora of animals under the sea to explore such as: putter fish, barracuda, tuna, unicorn fish, trunkfish and more! Oh and yes, there are sharks too! There are 44 different documented varieties of sharks which can be found in the Red Sea.
Oases
Situated in then remote regions of Egypt, there are seven oases in the Western Desert Land that you can choose to check out when you choose your egypt vacations. An oasis is a confined region in the desert area where there is vegetation, that is able to exist because of the oasis’ proximity to a water source (either a spring or other supply of water). An oasis may be inhabited by wildlife and in the case of the Egytian oases, humans.
These oases include:
- Siwa Oasis
- Bahariya Oasis
- Karga Oasis
- Dakhla Oasis and
- Farafra Oasis
Luxor
When you choose your egypt vacations, you will absolutely want to go to Luxor. Populated by around 480,000 people, Luxor houses burial chambers, monuments and various pieces of Egyptian history.
Squeezing all there is to know regarding Egypt into one piece is pretty much impossible. Do your research, choose a time to visit and Go! You will surely not be disappointed.