I just got back from this trip. Many of the women were very surprised with the atmosphere of Egypt. We were constantly being verbally harassed and some of the females were groped. We were all dressed modestly, but that didn't seem to matter. Other women from my trip will testify to experiencing the same thing.

My advise is to wear a hat and sunglasses, especially if you're blond. Also, you should ALWAYS have a man with your group. Contiki does not warn you enough about how the culture is. The men have no respect for you and will show it through comments and actions.

While I was very disappointed with the way the men acted, it was worth going to see all the amazing sites! Just prepare yourself mentally for what you will experience.

Thanks for the advice. FYI - Men in general try to grope women constantly, try to hit on them constantly and are very persistent! Perhaps you should post this on every trip forum here since I can tell you as a female who has been all over Europe and Latin America and many other places in this world that the men’s actions you’ve described are basically the same for all men regardless of geographic location. I must say though that in my book Latinos have won the prize for being the most perverted, pesty and invasive, but I have yet to go to Egypt. I go to Egypt in September and I am eager to see if the Egyptians can trump the Latinos!!


!!!WOMAN – BEWARE OF MEN EVERYWHERE!!!

I went to Egypt just over two years ago... and it's not that bad! When you're in the markets, the shopkeepers come on strong, but they did this to men and women trying to get them to buy something. And while it is annoying, it's how the shopkeepers seem to do business. But I will admit that I hated walking through the markets, and as a women it was easier to walk through them with a 'husband' if possible.

At the same time, I never felt disrespected, nor did I hear anyone say anything worse than I've heard at home. It was just like walking past a construction site and getting whistled at... although it happens constantly! I went with a friend who has long blonde hair, I have long red hair, and both of us have fair complextions. We both attracted a lot of attention, but we were never groped, and we never had anyone disrespect us. And our first day in Cairo we walked downtown on our own and didn't have any problems.

Yes, the culture is diffent, and you will be treated differently. But if you go there expecting to be offended, you probably will be.

I came back from Egypt about two months ago, and I had an awesome time. I don't think it's Contiki's job to inform you about the culture of the place you're going to, but I am surprised you hadn't come across warnings anywhere on the net before you went. I went fully expecting to have this kind of treatment, but it was far upfront less than I was expecting. It is easier to travel with a man (don't worry solo's, you'll hang with the group pretty much the whole time anyway).

Before I went I learnt basic Arabic and my teacher was Egyptian. He explained to me that all Egyptians see of our culture is shows like The Bold and the Beautiful. If you think about it, these shows do make us look like we're easy. You're talking about a culture that don't even kiss outside of marriage here. It's natural that they would see us and automatically assume this, especially the way we interact with our male buddies and tourmates (hugging, laughing etc).

Just try to dress modestly, avoid too much eye contact where you can and a couple of words of the language will also help. But essentially you just have to understand that to the Arab world, we do look easy.

Have a great time there, I loved it so much I'm going back to work there at the end of this year! Travel safe

When you say, "dress modestly," what would you suggest women wear in the summer on this tour?

I have to disagree. I went in Nov 2007 and the biggest issue I had was men trying to buy me for camels. I did not see or hear of any men groping any women and they were actually "over nice" with their attempts to get us to buy stuff by flirting, etc. As long as you stay in a group and don't wander off you will be fine.

I just got back from this trip and it was awesome! I hope that one person's experience in Egypt doesn't persuade others not to go. Of course, you should always be mindful about your surroundings, but honestly the men in Egypt were no different from men in the rest of the world. Egypt is crawling with tourists and the people are very used to Westerners. Don't worry too much about being covered either. There are times when you may want to have on a jacket or long pants, but for the most part you shouldn't feel afraid to wear what you are comfortable in. Be mindful, but don't be afraid. My experience in Egypt was nothing less than wonderful!

hm, i went last september and thought it was fine. the only time you're going to have any trouble is when you're in the bazaar's and even there, just give them a firm 'NO' and they will leave you alone.

and i'm sorry, but a MAN is not going to help stop the comments. if anything, you might get MORE as they will think the group of women surrounding him are his wives. and they will think that he is a pretty cool guy. this can be pretty humorous, too.

but groping? i never heard of ANY of the girls on my tour being groped. maybe TOUCHED slightly, but never in an inappropriate place. sheesh. give the egyptian men SOME credit.

I did the "Egypt and the Nile" tour in June. It is important to be cautious and the best way to avoid any kind of problems is to stay with the group. It's as simple as that. The locals will approach you or persuade you to buy something but won't physically harrass. Be firm, tell them "no" and keep walking and ignore any comments. It works!
The tour is well organized and the sites are incredible so don't let these factors stop you from enjoying Egypt, it's awesome!

I went a year and a half ago and had no problems. A couple times you would hear guys say you're beautiful or I want to marry you. But it hindsite I think the things they say are a big part of not culturally knowing how to express the compliment of you're beautiful and it comes off creepy. One girl wasn't dressed modestly at all and some of the guys were saying things to each other, but nothing to the girl. No one on my trip was touched or groped. By the end 2 girls and I walked around the Bazaar by ourselves with no problems. One guy did offer to buy me for a millions camels, but it was obviously a joke.

As for dress in the summer, I would go with Capris pants and 1 pair of shorts. t-shirts, but nothing low cut.

I just completed this tour on Saturday. It's not that bad. Mainly the men in the markets (this is where it commonly occurs) will shout things like "Wow, wow, wow", "Sophia, Sopahia", "You have beautiful eyes.", "I Love You. Mary Me."

I did notice they do tend to give more attention to blondes - so they get more of the comments.

I also wasn't groped anywhere that I went. It is a good idea to never walk through anywhere (even tourist things like the temples) by yourself. Always be with at least one other person if your female. Never go on a "private tour" from the locals that work at the tourist sites. They'll try to take you to a back room and show you something special and this is probably where they'll try to touch you, and then they'll ask you for a tip. And there's nothing special back there that they will show you.

Women who are thinking of going to eygpt should read Dave's Blog, it has alot of good info on it,especially some info about how women are treated. http://www.davechallenger.com/day29-cairo.html