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Al-Ahram Weekly 30 Sep. - 6 Oct. 1999 Issue No. 449 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 30 Sep. - 6 Oct. 1999 Issue No. 449
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Focus Features Profile Travel Living Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters A taste of Egypt on a shoestring budget
By Zeinab Abul-GheitEgypt has masses to offer tourists and some are finding it can be done very cheaply. Travellers on a tight budget, with an appetite for the "oriental" and a willingness to rough it are increasingly heading for Egypt. Carrying little more than a backpack or a piece of hand luggage, they can be seen at tourist sites all over the country. They don't spend much money; they don't have to.
"I intend to stay for two months in Egypt," said Yo Ishihara, a law student from Japan who finds fuul and tamiya sandwiches tasty and nourishing. He spends no more than LE1 a day on local transportation because he prefers to walk. He even enthusiastically made his way by public bus as far as Siwa Oasis.
Low-budget travellers usually make Cairo their departure point and look for inexpensive hotels near tourist sites. Many no-star hotels in central Cairo meet hotel authority standards for cleanliness and provision of hot and cold water. Their reputations are acquired by trial and error and passed on by word of mouth. These hotels may not boast lifts or TVs, may serve only the simplest of meals (on request) and have no Nile views, but they do meet the need for a good night's rest between clean sheets and offer the chance to meet other travellers.
The Sultan Hotel in Al-Tawfiqiya Street is typical. Despite its gloomy entrance, it is recommended by The Lonely Planet guide. And judging by the number of foreign youths going up and down the stairs of the three-floor building at all times of day there is some basis to this recommendation. Rooms are communal: "Groups sleep in dormitories containing five beds," said Mohamed Mustafa, the hotel's director of public relations.
"It doesn't matter if I sleep in an overcrowded room as I only pay LE6 per night," said Mary Michael, an English student. "What concerns me more is seeing the tourist sites and travelling around the country and sharing the culture of the ordinary people." American copy-editor Tim Deven likewise commented that he was satisfied with the accommodation and had spent a mere LE400 over a period of two weeks in Egypt. "The fruit and vegetable markets, the sidewalks, listening to Umm Kulthoum's voice echoing from cassette shops, such things reflect the true spirit of the capital, and that is what I like most," Deven said.
"Spend your vacation and save money" reads the sign at the entrance to Hotel Venice, also on Al-Tawfiqiya Street. The chintz sofa and armchairs in the foyer come straight out of another era. Rooms contain four to six beds. Basic non-automatic washing machines are provided.
"Most of the guests are European and East Asian students," said El-Abbasi, the manager. Others accommodated include Canadians and Australians. "Japanese come to Egypt from January to March during their vacations; Europeans come later in the year, from August," he said.
Many budget travellers are students and they benefit from a 50 per cent reduction on museum admission fees and on train and air fares. An appropriate student card is of course required.
Transportation costs can be kept down by using the metro, buses, minibuses and microbuses. A leisurely Nile cruise can be had on the river taxi from downtown to Old Cairo. Taxis can be kept in reserve for a special occasion. For those on a really tight budget, hitchhiking is possible. Lorries are more likely to stop than cars.
Budget travellers don't waste money. They rarely sit at expensive cafés, often preferring to buy mineral water or drink a coke on-the-run. Some enjoy tea and shisha at the local coffee-house "to get the full flavour of an oriental city".
Eating fuul and tamiya in a market square, enjoying
a traditional ahwa in the Khan Al-Khalili,
and travelling by metro across the Nile are inexpensive pleasures
for the budget-traveller in Cairo photos:Mohamed El-Qui'i and Khaled El-Fiqi
Apart from archaeological sites and museums most low-budget tourists are anxious to include Cairo's Camel Market, Alexandria's Attarine Market and local bazaars on their itineraries. A taste for the offbeat is reflected in favourite destinations such as Al-Madbah (Cairo's old slaughter house, recently demolished) and Al-Zabaleen, the refuse collectors' village near the Moqattam Hills whose recycling endeavours result in many attractive and inexpensive products.
"Students are interested in all aspects of life, ancient and modern, and are curious travellers," commented Mustafa. They frequently accept the hospitality of villagers, set up a camp site on the outskirts of village communities and partake of their hospitality in the form of traditional coffee mixed with herbs.
If you prefer more of a semblance of comfort, the Dahab Hotel in Mahmoud Bassyouni Street meets the bill. The hotel occupies a majestic six-floor converted building in central Cairo. Three of the 45 rooms comprise en-suite bathrooms. It has a roof garden decorated in simple Bedouin style. Chairs and tables are made of palm trunks and fronds, garish yellow barrels serve as plant-pots and each room has a gaudy door.
"Depending on size and whether or not they have a fan and easy access to the bathroom, prices range from LE15-25 per night," said Ibrahim Khayri, the manager, who was proud to add that students from all over the world socialise on the roof garden which has become a sort of informal club.
"Not all the guests are students," Khayri added. "Some elderly couples who like the simple and the natural come here too. For instance an Australian who is studying Islam has been living in the hotel for 18 months."
It is widely felt among the proprietors of no-star hotels that more should be done to encourage this kind of tourism. Hassan Fattouh, a receptionist at the Sultan Hotel, said, "If we had a bigger clientele our own standards would improve."
