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Egypt: Still Safe to Travel?

Africa, Middle East, Safety & Security, Videos — on February 7, 2012 5:34 pm
Egypt: Still Safe to Travel?

Egypt has been in the headlines quite a lot lately, but that still doesn’t mean that all of the country is unsafe to visit.

Tourism has always been one of the Egypt’s biggest economic industries, but since the revolution began in early 2010, the industry has suffered — and so has the country’s bottom line.

Recently, Peter Greenberg and his team traveled to Egypt to experience first-hand how the nation has been affected by the drastic drop in income.  Cruises haven’t left the docks in months, the once-crowded pyramids are almost empty, and hotels are, on average, at half occupancy.

Translation?  This is the perfect time to travel to Egypt.

Peter Greenberg travel correspondent Alyssa Caverley reports on how the country is coping and how the few Americans who have made the journey feel about their stay.

  • Goodyclare

    Living in Sharm el Sheikh, I will agree that we have been pretty much untouched by any of the unrest that occurred in other parts of the country. 

    However I will say that the Red Sea Riviera, like the rest of the country has been drastically affected by the drop in tourism, with hotel occupancy down to 30% at best. Hopefully the tourists will return, but not before they feel safe once more. Constant dramatic reports of “unrest” and “lawlessness” in the media will not be doing anything to help the industry. I wouldn’t mind if the Sinai really was a completely lawless section of the world, however in reality, I feel far safer here than I ever felt in London.

    It is also down to the Egyptian government to ensure that areas truly are safe. It is all very well putting up police check points, but they need to make sure that checks are actually made at those points.

  • John Boulding

    Insight Vacations operates a big programme of 9 tours in classical Egypt, including an escorted program featuring River Tosca as highlighted by Peter. We too have only positive things to say about Egypt and tourism and returning guests have been nothing but complimentary about the fantastic and warm reception they received from ordinary Egyptians they met in Cairo, Luxor and Aswan. It is a very good time to travel and a chance to see the antiquities without the pressure of crowds.

  • Anonymous

    I want to visit Egypt from a long time but not visited yet. But as per your post I thing i should sure make a plan to trip there.