For the next couple of posts (weeks?) I’m going to be posting a series about our trip to Egypt. I’m going to be a writing a full trip report with photos and helpful information for you to plan your trip to Egypt as well! It’s a once in a lifetime destination and shouldn’t be missed. I like to visit all types of locations and different modes of travel, and taking the opportunity to visit the country of Egypt was definitely a highlight!
Way back in September of 2021, my husband and I took a 15 day trip around Egypt (plus travel days!) It was during pandemic times, so you may see us wearing masks (as was required in certain places at the time) and other times you won’t. We also had to follow local testing requirements (I will go into more detail about that later).
Our trip took us to Cairo, Alexandria, Hurghada and the Red Sea, Luxor, Aswan, and the Nile in-between! You can also follow @NowViewingTheWorld on Instagram for even more photos from the trip.
We used the tour company Egypt Tours Portal and I highly recommend them. Our tour guides Mahmoud (tour guide for Cairo) and Omar (tour guide for Luxor/Nile River) were awesome and I would request them if you can.
We flew Qatar Airways, which was quite enjoyable. As it was still during the pandemic, our flight was almost empty, as you can see by the photo. My husband and I each had an entire row to ourselves to stretch out! That was nice because it was a 14 hour flight from JFK to Doha, for our layover.
We had a “quick” 12 hour, overnight layover in Doha, where we found a couple tiny rooms for sleeping and we got about 6 hours of sleep. That was insanely helpful. It’s in a back hallway behind all the high end designer stores (think Bvlgari, Dolce and Gabbana, Armani, etc). It kinda looks like you are going to an off limits area, but it’s just in a quiet hallway so you can actually sleep. You pay by the hour, but worth it if you have long travel days.
In the morning, we had a short 3.5 hour flight to Cairo at 11:00 AM. Even though it was a short haul flight, Qatar Airways still serves breakfast! And it was one of the best meals I’ve had in economy.
We landed in Cairo and it was a madhouse. At the time, we needed a PCR test to enter Egypt (which we did at the JFK airport). We had to stand in “line” to show someone our test results before baggage claim or passport control.
PRO TIP
In Egypt, lines aren’t really a thing. It’s more like a crowd, and if you don’t move forward or squeeze to the front, someone will get in front of you. It isn’t rude; it’s just normal. So when in Rome (or Egypt)…
After we finally showed our tests, we were able to get our visas. As a United States citizen, we can get our visa at the airport in Egypt. Our tour company had a representative waiting for us who helped us through the process. It was pretty straightforward. $25 each in USD cash. They give you the visa (a sticker) and they put it in your passport. After receiving your visa, you will go through passport control. We didn’t have any bags as we were carry-on only for our whole trip so we were able to skip baggage claim.
The tour company rep waited with us until our driver got there. The driver took us to our hotel, which was the Ramses Hilton in Cairo. We were able to rest and freshen up before he picked us back up that night for dinner and a light show at the Giza Plateau!
Be sure to check back for the rest of Day 2 – where we get our first glimpse of the pyramids!
Leave a Comment