Cairo

For more information on visa requirements, see the Egypt article.

By plane

Cairo International Airport IATA: CAI, (http://www.cairo-airport.com/) is the second biggest airport in Africa with more than 16 million passengers a year. It is well served by Egyptair (http://www.egyptair.com/) the national carrier and its Star Alliance partners Singapore Airlines (http://www.singaporeair.com/, Lufthansa (http://www.lufthansa.com/), Swiss (http://www.swiss.com)], Austrian, BMI (http://www.flybmi.com), LOT and starting may 2011 Continental), Sky Team Air France (http://www.airfrance.fr/, KLM (http://www.klm.com), Delta (http://www.delta.com), Alitalia), Oneworld British Airways (http://www.ba.com/), Gulf Carriers Emirates (http://www.flyemirates.com, Etihad (http://www.etihad.com)) as well as budget carriers TUI-fly (http://www.tuifly.com/) and Jet-Air-Fly (http://www.jetairfly.com/).

By train

Cairo's main railway station - Ramses Station Mahattat Ramses - is on Midan Ramses, which is also the location of the Martyrs Metro Station. Trains run to Cairo from most other regions and cities within Egypt. Trains in Egypt rarely run on schedule and are almost always at least 15 min late, if not later. Train service is available from Ramses Station to Alexandria, while service to Luxor and Aswan is available at the Giza Railway Station. Visitors wishing to connect with trains to Luxor , Aswan , and the rest of upper Egypt should take the Metro from Midan Ramses Mubarak Metro Station , on line one to Giza Metro-Train Station which should take approximately twenty minutes.

Trains also depart to the canal cities, but buses are much faster.

It is best to purchase tickets in advance to be assured of a seat. It is also important for travellers to ensure with the ticket office that the train is not a local train used by Egyptians to visit all of the small destinations south wards in the Nile Valley , but only the major cities. For comfort visitors should also preferably insist on a first class seat but nothing less than a second class . Online ticket purchases are now available from here, learn more about the system from Seat 61 - see the "how to buy tickets" section. Note that tickets bought online are entirely in English, which can make it a bit tricky to match your train to the Arabic information on the departure board - allow plenty of time! Especially in the summer months, trains running between Cairo and Alexandria sell out, so advance purchase is advised. Sometimes it is possible to buy train tickets in the morning, for a train later the same day, or if it is not busy, you might get on the next train. There are multiple windows for different classes and destinations, so check that you are in the correct line.

There is no longer a left luggage facility.

Alexandria is served by a large number of departures through the day. Among the best trains are El-Espani Spanish which has a morning service from Cairo at 9AM. El-Espani and Turbine Turbo are the best services, going non-stop to Alexandria and taking 2 hours and 40 min. The next best service is Al-Fransawi French, which stops at the major Delta cities on the road. The Express French and Turbo trains to Alexandria have first and second class, all air conditioned. Refreshments are available for purchase on the train. First class is recommended, but second class is also reasonably comfortable.

Trains heading to Luxor, Aswan, and other Upper Egypt destinations also depart from the rail station in Giza. The Sleeping Trains Abela Egypt (http://www.sleepingtrains.com/) leave Cairo 8PM and arriving in Luxor 5.05AM and Aswan 8.15AM. There also is a 9:10PM departure from Cairo. Check the website for more departures, including one three days a week from Alexandria. It's relatively expensive at 60 USD for a bed in a double-person cabin one way. Tickets are bought at the office to your left as you enter the train station from the Metro and taxi station. The tickets are payable in US dollars, euros, or British pounds only. There are no exchange offices at the train station itself. It is also possible to make reservations in advance, by calling or faxing your request to Abela, and then pay for and pick up your tickets at the station. Since these trains are designated for tourists, you will stay in special cars guarded by armed plainclothes policemen.

Going to Upper Egypt, the alternative to the expensive sleeper or flying is the ordinary trains. One of these departs at 00.30 to Luxor and Aswan and is supposed to take 10 hours to Luxor and 13 hours to Aswan. There is also a night train leaving Ramses Station at 21:00 with both first and second class carriages. First class costs approximately 110 Egyptian pounds and has 3 large, business class style seats per row and air conditioning. There is plenty of leg room and the seats recline for a good sleep. However, the lights are on all night and you'll probably be woken several times for ticket checks.

Allow plenty of time to find your platform. There is very limited English signage and you'll need to rely on station staff to point you to the correct platform. It is advisable to check with several people as you may be given contradictory information.

Ramsis Station, ☎ +202 25753555

By bus

See also: Cairo to Jerusalem by bus

Buses arrive to Cairo from virtually all over the country. The two main destinations are Midan Ramsis and Cairo Gateway, formerly known as Turgoman, but vehicles also sometimes stop at other destinations, notably Abbasiya. From Midan Ramses and Cairo Gateway it's a quick 5 LE taxi cab ride to downtown, 7-10 LE to Zamalek. Cairo Gateway is a new, modern indoor station located approximately 500m from the Orabi Metro Station, within the new Cairo Gateway Plaza.

Destinations:

Port Said, Ismailiya, and Suez - hourly services from Cairo Gateway 2 hrs; 20-30 LE

Sharm el-Sheikh - East Delta buses take approximately 8 hrs 80 LE while Super-jet buses take 6 hrs. Some East Delta services continue to Dahab. When taking the bus to Sharm, keep your bus ticket and passport handy, as you will pass through a number of checkpoints, which require passengers to present identification and ticket. A cheaper option to get to Sharm by bus is to take a bus, a train, or a minibus to Suez 10LE and from the main bus station there, take the 11AM or the 13:20 bus to Sharm for only 31 LE.

Taba and Nuweiba - Buses leave Cairo Gateway four times daily 06.00 hrs, 09.30 hrs 22.00 hrs and 23.00 hrs with prices 70 LE for the morning buses and 80LE for the overnight ones. It takes around 6 hrs to get to Nuweiba.

Siwa - Direct buses leave Cairo Gateway Sunday and Wednesday nights at 7:45PM 60 LE

Uncomfortable, but cheap, micro-buses leave from Cairo to a large number of destinations. The main garages are Midan Ramsis For Alexandria, 22LE, and to the delta valley and Al-Marg metro station for the north-east and Sinai. They are faster and might as such be an option for shorter trips, but have a terrible toll of accidents. There are also other places these buses leave from depending on your destination, ask locals. Be aware that at least for the Sinai, foreigners are prohibited to use the micro-bus system.

Super-jet bus to Alexandria, Hurghada and Sinai, ☎ +202 2266-0212.

East Delta bus to Sharm El-Sheikh , Arish and Rafah, ☎ +202 2576-2293.

By car

Driving in Cairo is not recommended or necessary. The traffic is, at the least, overwhelming for the common traveler. The driving has a consistency, but not in any official way. Road signs, lanes, right-of-ways, etc. are not adhered to, and there are a large number of junctions and flyovers. Traffic signals exist in only a few locations and are routinely ignored. However, sometimes police officers are directing traffic at busy intersections. In downtown Cairo, drivers will sometimes bump other cars that are blocking their way. Also, do not be upset if your side-view mirror gets hit. At night, many drivers do not use headlights, so use extra caution or avoid driving at night. In Egypt, vehicles travel on the right side of the road. Instead of making a left turn, you will often need to make a U-turn and backtrack, or you can make three right turns.

Parking houses or official parking spots are rare. Cars may be parked two or three deep on the side of the road, and will often be left unlocked, and out-of-gear, so they can be moved. In many places, people work to look after parked cars. A small tip is expected for this service. You can also use valet parking.

To get to Alexandria, The North Coast, The Delta and The Western Desert drivers should take the Cairo - Alexandria Desert Road from The Mewhwar Road- 26th July corridor from Down Town Cairo.

To get to Beni Sueif, Fayoum, Assyut, Luxor, and Aswan, drivers from Downtown should take the The Sixth Of October-Fayoum exit at the Remaya Roundabout beside The Giza Pyramids at Le Meridian Hotel,to the Fayoum turn off at the Fayoum - Sixth Of October junction, 6 KM from Remaya Roundabout.

To get to Suez, Port Said, and Ismailia, drivers from Downtown should take the Ring Road to the Suez Road junction for Suez, and The Ismailia junction off the Ring Road for Ismailia and Port Said.

To get to Hurghada, and Ain Sukhna, drivers from Downtown, should take the Ring Road to the New Ain Sukhna Toll Road at Kattamaya.

To get to Sharm el-Sheikh, Dahab, Nuweiba, Ras Sidr, Al-Arish, and Rafah on the Sinai Peninsula, drivers from Downtown, should take the Ring Road to the Suez Road junction at the J.W. Marriot Hotel, through the Ahmed Hamdy Tunnel, on to the Sinai Peninsula.