Quote:
Originally Posted by wayne_harris
Hi Alison, After reading some of these threads, Im a bit worried about going out to egypt on me own with just me kids. Because of maybe getting ripped off by taxi's and shops and getting hassled. I have never been abroad on me own before with out Wayne. It sounds like hard work! I probaly sound a bit of a wimp.
Dawn
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Hi Dawn you will be fine. Amy and I went to Sharm last Easter. It was our 1st visit to Egypt without Paul and we were perfectly safe. You will get hassled whether you are on you own or if Wayne is with you anyway. Just be polite and firm. Avoid eye contact and say no thankyou and walk away. Dont fall into the trap of ' come and sign my book ' because they will get you into their shop and not let you leave without buying anything. Try to stick to the ' fixed price ' stores. There is ( was ) a large one spread over two floors in Hurghada. Once you have an idea of prices you can avoid getting ripped off. With regards to taxis I would use a reputable company for airport transfers such as gotohurghada ( website on taxi in Hurgh thread I think ) and use someone such as the Limo service ( also in that thread ) for getting about in resorts. Their concept is brilliant as your fares are pre paid and no need for the hassle of haggling everytime you need a taxi. In Sharm I normally use an English lady taxi driver and use the minibuses for 2le when I can. You will get used to it. In Hurghada you can make sure they turn on the meter if not always agree a price before and make sure they are aware the price you have agreed is in LE and not £ and is per car and not per person as they will try it on. Also watch the money scam. They will try and say you have given them 5LE when you have given them 50le. There is also the scam at the airport where they will try and rip you off with the visa price. It is $15 per passport and it is now clearly marked on the new visa. They will try and charge £15. Stick to your guns. Before I got my multi entry visa I used to take $ just for this purpose and then they cant over charge. If not give then a tenner and make sure they give you at least 20le change. They are also trying it on at check in as well. They will try and say your cases are overweight. If you know they are not DO NOT pay excess baggage charges and insist they call the manager and if the dont then tell them you will go and get the tourist police. If you have any problems anywhere just threaten to call the tourist police and this is enough to bring them back down to earth. Also when eating out be aware as the prices on the menu might not be the price on your bill. The menu should state whether service and tax is included or not. If it isnt you need to add 22% to the prices. NB though as they have already added the 10% service charge you do not have to tip again unless of course you have had exceptional service / food.