Egypt? Anyone been there?
 

Have to make this quick because internet fees are killing me, but has anyone here been to the pyramids in Egypt? I'm studying in London right now and have a week off at the end of October and I'm looking to go to Cairo and Giza for a few days. I'm basically wondering if it is safe these days and whether or not I can show up without any prior tour plans. The tours that can be set up here are pretty pricey and I figure I could maybe just set up flights and a hotel and arrange a bus tour once I get there.
Thanks guys
-T

I went there about twelve or thirteen years ago and it was perfectly safe. That was before a lot of anti-Western sentiment started escalating in the Middle East though (before the Gulf War, before the first suicide bombings started, etc.) It was perfectly safe, we saw the pyramids, Cairo, pretty much every tourist destination there was. It was a fantastic experience, I couldn't recommend it highly enough.

I don't know if you could see enough in only a few days though. I'm 99 per cent sure you could get there, and get around on tours or personal guides (they see you're a tourist and offer you anything, you don't have to hunt for tour guides, they find you, but you have to be careful and make sure they're honest). That said, as fun and exciting as it sounds, going overseas without an infallable plan is probably the worst thing you can do and will only get you into trouble, so I'd say you're better to be safe than sorry, and have a solid itinerary, plan, budget, etc.

I'm sure others here have some more specific advice, since it's been years since I've really travelled overseas, but I hope I've been of some help :)

Egypt is top on my list of countries I'd like to see. I've been fascinated by their culture and country since I was around 11 yrs old.

I would love to see both Egypt and India. There are things in those countries that I could never even dream of experiencing here. A different climate, social system, animals, arhcitecture, food, life. The differences between the USA and Egypt or India are so many that you would have to go there to even begin to comprehend just how different we are.

On the other hand, I would also like to visit Japan for almost the same reason. On the outside, Japan looks a lot like the US, but it is almost the opposite. It would be a huge culture shock to go there.

Basically, I need to be rich so that I can go everywhere.

Heh, that's honestly one of the few reasons that I'm taking real estate classes at my college instead of going all-out with art. I want my kids to be able to travel as much as I have been able to!

i went there about 5 years ago mabey more.. was ok but we had an armed guard (he had an uzi and combat knife).

Went through the Suez canal six times. It gives you a somewhat birdseye view of the country, but the people all waved.