Egypt - After the Revolution

Update: August 13, 2019

I returned to Egypt late 2018 for a short visit, however it was not to the main tourist areas such as the Pyramids, Luxor or Aswan. Instead I visited Dahab and found it to be the usual safe place to be in the country. I did end up taking a flight from Sharm El Sheik to Cairo because I learned of the 14 check points now in place from Dahab to Cairo .

From what my local friends related to me, Egypt is still relatively safe but due in most part to the increased security measures now in place (14 check points where there were only 5 before).

The conclusion is this. Random acts of violence are still going to occur, however, there are areas of the country where the problems are more pronounced and any intelligent tourist has no business going into these zones even with military escort.

Update: January 17, 2014

Now that the vote for the new constitution is completed and new elections planned it is a pure guess as to when or if the situation calms down enough for tourism to resume.  This will of course take time for the process to take effect. I do however predict that the pro Morsi factions will still be a cause for continued unrest in the country. That said, if the Egyptians ever wish to see any return of tourist to the country which is a vital part of their economy, then it will be up to the new leaders to find a way to stabilize the country. However, I do not see this happening in the near future unless the pro Morsi groups decide that the stability of their country is more important than the continuation of their activities. I also hope that when a new leadership is installed they do not become like the prior leadership of Mubarak even though under his rule the country was stable and tourism flourished.

Update: December 26, 2013

The political situation in Egypt is still in crisis mode and this has definitely effected tourism in the country. Nearly 12% of Egyptians worked in the tourism sector of their economy and a recent email from good friends in Luxor are painting a picture of a total lack of tourists there. This is also reflected in other reporting however, I still say you can go but must keep in mind that there are risks but these risks can be minimized if you travel smart and go from location to location via air. I do not recommend visiting the Pyramids unless you are staying at a hotel very close to their location. Luxor is safe for the most part and the tourist cities along the Red Sea are still relatively safe, however, you may find yourself there with very few others.

Update: August 20, 2013

At this point in the current events in Egypt, I would recommend that going to Egypt "could" still be safe but only if you are going to the Red Sea resort areas and possibly Luxor. I just recently received an email from a very good Egyptian friend and his Australian wife who operate one of the best mid-range priced backpacker hotels in Luxor. His comments were very clear, the area was safe and his wife and children had returned from Australia to be in Luxor. He did note that their were no flights to Luxor and I believe he was talking about direct international flights from Europe. Also, according to his email, any civil unrest or violence had happened only one time and since that event, everything has been very calm in Luxor.

However, I am reading that many "tour companies" are taking their usual Egyptian tours off their offerings.

If you do go, I also suggest that you avoid the hot spots and take direct flights to either Luxor or the Red Sea resort areas. Additionally the governments of Russia along with other countries are in preparations to evacuate their citizens from the country but do not have seemed to fully implemented these plans.

Also, this most recent story, click here, details some of the problems which now may exist in the Red Sea tourist areas. Read the entire story and you will notice that there are still tourists going to Egypt, however, the situation on the ground could either improve or spiral further out of control which "could" effect the Red Sea tourist areas.

Regardless of the situation unless the entire country erupts into total civil unrest, any decisions to go to Egypt should be made with careful consideration. I can say that if you are going for a beach holiday, there are many other locations available.

Update: July 5th 2013

Earlier I added the update below but now wish to update once again.  If you have not heard or read about the current situation in Egypt, please crawl out from under your rock.

Below I predicted that the ouster of the President would eventually take place.  He and his party had a once in a lifetime opportunity to accomplish something unheard of in the Arab world.  However, the President and his party decided on a path which many Egyptians did not want.  The idea of the Arab Spring was one in which the government was not constructed around one religious system.  Instead they wanted an inclusive government for all people and religious beliefs.  The constitution which the Presidents party ratified was a very bad piece of legislation mainly due to the fact that it was created by one interest group, it was not a constitution that had mass support.  The President also went too far when he declared that no authority in Egypt could over-rule any of his decisions.

How safe is Egypt?  This is a very good question.  However, it is my belief that the Red Sea resorts will be safe, Luxor will experience some protests, Aswan is probably too far away from the epicenter to experience major issues, yet I must state that it is possible to have issues there as well.

Going into Cairo is very problematic but if you stay south of the Nile and close to the Pyramids, then in all likelihood you will avoid the largest of the problems in Cairo.

Road travel in Egypt should probably be avoided as this is unpredictable and even bus travel could present issues, yet I am unclear if these are mostly safety related.

I would say in general that if you were to fly directly Sharm el Shiek, the you should not experience problems, however, with all of that being said, anything can happen, therefore, make sure that before you purchase your ticket(s), you check to see what is actually going on in Egypt at the time.

Update:  December 11, 2012

Since I originally posted the below writing the dynamics here in Egypt have of course undergone their typical change(s) based on what takes place on a daily basis. The new constitution was drafted, voted on under protest from the judiciary and the voter turn out was about 30% which is an historic low for the Egyptians especially given the importance of this vote. The opposition and even some Presidential supporters are not pleased with what is taking place and the continued dynamics of the evolution of Egypt from an autocratic rule to one of democracy will be slow, difficult and at some point, will again produce protests and possible violence. However, this violence will as usual be contained within very specific areas of the country and it is this writers belief that unless the country is in complete and total upheaval then the main tourist areas will be safe and very enjoyable. If the President does not make concessions then he will be overthrown.

Please read the below original post: Date of post 11-24-2012

I have been coming to Egypt for many years, mostly during the time of Mubarak and one of my last visits was just as the revolution was starting.

It has now been over 1 ½ years since then and I have returned to witness first hand what has become of the country as well as tourism.  I had no expectations in mind, yet reading the press reports as well as watching major news media such as Al-Jazeera, I did have an idea that though for the most part the country was in better order than during or after the revolution, I was still unprepared to discover what has transpired.

Cairo is still its manic self, and as I tell travelers who are going to Cairo, it is a good training ground for the day when you travel to India.  But that is Cairo and the Pyramids are still standing but the tourism is so impacted that it is a buyers (negotiators) paradise due mostly to the fact that relatively few people are coming to Egypt and this includes the very popular Nile cruise tourists from Europe.

I have traveled to Aswan, it was so quite I was shocked and the few tourists who were on the boats would rarely venture off the cruise boat.  The Falucca boats were almost void of tourist and the prices these people were accepting would have been unheard of before the revolution but they are hungry for business, any business and this is forcing them to accept prices in the 25le range for any hours ride.  Of course, you will not get that rate unless you have good bargaining skills but in the end, it is highly possible.

There were very few independent travels walking the streets and the train I took from Cairo to Aswan, though it was full, had mostly people who were going to meet their cruise boat in Aswan otherwise, very few independent travelers.

In Luxor it is like a ghost town.  In years past you could not walk 20 meters without seeing a mass of tourists, the cruise boats were all full and there were a lot of them docked during the November-December months.  Now, there are a few and walking the Nile River I met only two western individuals who were actually living in Luxor.  Of course depending on the time of day or day of week in Luxor these numbers rise & fall but in total very few people are visiting Luxor.

As with Aswan, the Faluca boats are empty, the carriage drivers have few passengers, the streets are devoid of tourists, the Souk is almost empty and when you visit the temples it is like having the place all to yourself, which is fantastic for the tourist but terrible for the Egyptians.

I have known the manager at the McDonalds restaurant in Luxor of many years and the other day I asked him how the business was, his answer is down 70% from two years ago, which is very strong indicator of how much the Egyptian tourist economy has been hurt by the revolution.

I have been in Dahab which in times past was an extremely busy place full of tourists from around the world, Europeans, Canadians, Australians, some Americans and I can not forget about the Russians.

As I walk the areas of Dahab I am shocked by the total lack of tourists.  The shop owners do not harass you to buy things, most of the locals here seem to be depressed to an extent and the only real quantity of tourists that I see are the Russians grouped together in their usual location on the north end of the beach near the lighthouse but even their numbers appear to be reduced from my last visit.

Restaurants which were always very busy have little business, the hawkers outside the restaurants do not bother you in the efforts to get you to eat and the mood just seems to be one of resigned desperation because there is nothing the locals can do other than wait and hope that at some point things will improve.

One thing I have noticed even with this lack of tourism is the related costs in each city have continued to increase for hotels and food.  The higher end hotels have resorted to heavy discounting in an attempt to attract guests but even with these efforts it has had little impact to increase the tourism or maybe it has helped to keep things from sinking so low that they must close the doors.

This is but one example of how the revolution has impacted the tourism in Egypt yet the Egyptian people are still the same, the temples have not moved, the Nile River still flows and for the most part, the country is extremely safe.

The sad part is that when a major news reporting organization has a story about Egypt it is one that makes the entire country seem as if the revolution never ended.  Yes, there could be a protest in Cairo or another city but in comparing that to what is going on in Europe now, there are actually more protests in the EU as a whole than in Egypt, especially Greece and now other EU countries where the unions will call a strike and these countries are effected a lot more than here in Egypt.

The governments of many countries issue travel alerts telling people it is unsafe to go somewhere, well, it can be a very justified warning and if I were going to sub-Sahara African countries, I would of course say, be very careful where you go but as far as Egypt is concerned, these warnings are too broad and generalized which in turn effects the way people view this country.

When I talk with local Egyptians I discover that for the most part they are not happy with the current President.  There is a great concern about which direction the leadership will move the country but the predominate concern is that it will move to a more strict Islamic state.

If there are any protests, they will be concentrated mostly in Cairo, Alexandria or Suez but you will not see any of these protests in the tourist locations such as Aswan, Luxor, Sharm el Sheik, Dahab or the other places and even if there is a protest at this point these tend to be peaceful, however, knowing the Egyptian people, they will, if their government attempts to move in a direction which is more strict Islamic, go back to the streets and the peaceful protests will become violent.

The Egyptians do not want this of course, they only want their freedoms, a stable country and economy and the tourism to return and this is especially true for those living in the highly touristic cities in the country where tourism is the main economic force.

To summarize, Egypt is a safe and still inviting country to visit.  The people have not changed but the perception of the outside world is one that believes the country is in constant upheaval (problems, riots, violence) and this is simply not the case.

How Egypt progresses will depend on the government but it is generally viewed as no better than when it was under Mubarak but not quite as repressive so there is a long-term opportunity for this country to come out of this in a positive manner but only time will tell.

In the meantime, I can only write about what I see and hear.  I can only encourage any reader to come visit the country unless it descends into the chaos that was seen during the revolution.  If that occurs again, then use your best judgment but for now, it is a peaceful and safe country in which to travel.

Post Script:  Not too many days after completing this writing the Egyptian President did something that has inflamed the country in his move to take powers which gives him total authority even over their judicial systems and basically the Egyptian President has declared that whatever decisions he makes can not be over ruled by any other governmental power or body.

This of course is a very negative move on his part and even some of his earlier supporters are strongly against what he has done.  As predicted, the protests have begun again but mostly in Cairo and Alexandria and they are yet to become violent as was the case during the initial revolution which toppled Mubarak but the potential is there for violence.

If you are still interested in coming to Egypt I suggest that you can bypass Cairo and fly directly to either Luxor or Sharm el Sheik and then travel around the country from these points and if you want to see the Pyramids, then stay in a hotel closer to the Pyramids even though they are more expensive.

Currently the trains are safe, the buses are safe and the main tourist cities are safe, it is Cairo, Alexandria and Suez that will have the more problems if this gets ugly again.

Travel Safe, Travel Happy