Is it safe to go to Egypt 2022?

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Safety in Egypt

17 happy people waving and smiling

"Egypt is as safe as any country in the world and safer than most - and it has always been so for tourists" 

I don't ask you to take my word for it that Egypt is as safe as anywhere else.  But I do ask you to do some research into the recent history of Egypt.  Find out how many tourists have been killed or injured.  You will discover that fewer foreigners or Egyptians have met with harm from terror attacks in Egypt than in any other countries of the Western World.  To put it in perspective... there were 47,000 gun shootings in the USA in 2017!

Internationally designated safe areas

Cairo, Luxor, Aswan, cruising and driving between Luxor and Aswan is deemed safe by all countries (as far as I am aware).  As is driving between Luxor and Hurghada, Sharm El Sheikh on the Red Sea, and the road between Aswan and Abu Simbel, as well as Lake Nasser and the villages south of Aswan

Areas to which travel is not advised

However, I would not travel in the Sinai or the Western Desert personally, nor overland to Israel.  I believe most international travel warnings advise the same, as does the Egyptian Government.

Travel Agents who advise you against travel to Egypt

Dig a little deeper when you get this advice.  I am guessing that those travel agents have no contracts in place with hotels, transport companies or travel agents inside Egypt.  Hence they actually don't have anything in Egypt to sell you.  BUT, they do have contracts with lots of other places so, of course, that is what they want to sell you.  Please remember everyone in business has their own products and their own agendas - and your agenda may not coincide with their priority.

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Do check out the following

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Get the right perspective on safety

In comparison to the risk of street muggings or violence in Chicago, to the risk of the continuous earthquakes in China, or even the risk of the common floods in Gt. Britain, the risk in Egypt is minimal. You are more likely to be run over crossing the street at home than you are to be involved in anything life-threatening in Egypt - as long as you follow good advice 🙂

Group Travel is a good option - if you are nervous about Egypt

Traveling with a group can feel comforting both for the traveler and their families back home.  You will find our group info and dates for 2020 here if you are looking for a nice group to go with.

Most Common Questions Asked About Egypt

Come to Egypt and have a wonderful time! - Mara.

Community Life Winding Down in Egypt

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EGYPT - in times of COVID-19

There seems to be a statement from the Egyptian Cabinet almost every hour on something or other.  Definitely doing their best to keep on top of the situation, keep people informed without causing total panic.  Seems to be working.  If I learned anything from 2011 – 2018 here in Egypt it’s that if you have patience, faith and keep your head – every crisis comes to an end.  Fear and panic are our worst enemy.  Yes, make all preparations to have food in the house etc – but don’t go overboard.   Following are some of the statements released today.

As of today all mosques and churches are officially closed.  The muslim call to prayer is reminding people simply to pray in their homes.

Workers in the tourism industry coming home from Hurghada are to be quarantined – not sure exactly what the details on that are, I had a link to the statement but can’t find it now.

Workers are deployed to sanitize the metro stations in Cairo round the clock

All Museums & Archeological Sites closed

Statement:  “In continuing the application of preventive and preventive measures to combat the new virus, Dr. Mostafa Minister of the high council of Antiquities announces the closure of all museums and archaeological sites in the Arab Republic of Egypt on Monday, 23 March and Until 31 March 2020 * for sterilization, cleansing and implementation of safety and prevention procedures in cooperation with the ministry of health and population and in accordance with global standards.
During this period, awareness sessions will also be held for museum and district workers on ways to prevent and protect against the virus.”

Council of ministers: donation to face the new corona virus at the expense of viva Egypt 037037-facing disasters and crises

In the past few days, Chancellor Nader Saad said that during the past few days several queries have been received from businessmen, civil society organizations, and citizens about ways and mechanisms of donation to tackle the new corona virus, so we would like to report that There is a special account to face disasters and crises, follow the “Viva Egypt” Fund. Receives all contributions and donations, and those who wish to donate to the disaster account in the Egyptian Pound, in all Egyptian Banks,

Swift code:

Cbegegcxxxx

Account Name:

Long live Egypt 037037-facing disasters and crises

The Council of ministers paid tribute to these national initiatives from a number of entrepreneurs and civil society organizations to bring together government institutions in the face of this global crisis.

Gvt. Statement on Building Sanitization

“Under the guidance of the minister of commerce and industry

Completion of cleaning and sterilization of trade and industry headquarters as a necessary measure to counter the new corona virus

The Ministry of commerce and industry has completed the cleansing and sterilization of the ministry’s headquarters in Jordan City, nasr city and shobra, as part of the measures taken by the Egyptian government to address the consequences of the new corona virus.

This procedure came under the guidance of Mrs. Nevin Collector, minister of trade and industry, who established a crisis management committee in the ministry that will follow up on a daily basis with a view to maintaining health and safety. Employees at the ministry and affiliate, where employees at headquarters have been required to wear face clamp and gloves, with clean teams to perform regular hygiene and to use the necessary cleansers for cleansing.

In this context, the ministry has implemented the decision of the prime minister to reduce the number of workers at the workplace, ensuring that there are no large groups of workers in the offices, and the presence of employees is limited to a few numbers to ensure regular work and no stop Service provided to the business community.”

The Higher Council of universities met on 21-3-2020,

The council reviewed future plans for study at universities in the framework of the evolution of the global situation of the new vero will and the need to take the necessary measures to prevent The spread of the disease and in the light of the decision of the president of the republic to disable the study for two weeks At the beginning of the meeting, the council price the decisions of the Egyptian State to maintain the health of Egyptians and all the efforts of different ministries and sectors of the state to achieve this.
The Council also called on citizens to commit themselves to the resolutions of the state to reduce the spread of infection, and thanks to all faculty, aid staff and all university staff for their quick and outstanding support to the system. Distance Education and appreciation and appreciation to all health service providers from doctors, nursing, technicians and administrative staff for the heroic role they play during this delicate period of the nation’s life.
The Council stressed that attention to the health of students, faculty and all staff at universities and university hospitals is its first priority and that all necessary measures are taken to preserve them.
The Council therefore decided that:
To stress the completion of the declared emergency plan to address the new corona virus within university facilities and facilities, including attention to sterilization and ongoing cleansing.
Confirmation of the decisions of the Supreme Council of hospitals held at its emergency meeting on 19/3/2020.
Continue to activate the remote education system throughout the period of the suspension of the study according to procedures to ensure that the second semester education process continues with the most effective and quality of the theoretical content of all colleges, and the practical application of the practical colleges will leave after este School or summer vacation as decided by each university.
Continuing coordination with the ministry of communications and information technology to provide free access and use of e-learning platforms.
If the study continues to be disrupted after the previously announced dates, the mid-term exams will be cancelled and their grades are included on the end of the second semester exams.
The end of the second semester exams shall be postponed but not to be held before Saturday 30/5/2020 according to the schedules to be announced from each university or on a date to be announced later according to the updates.
For Postgraduate Students, each university is left to schedule its exams according to the view that the duration of the study should not be counted within the duration of the study required to obtain the degree.
The Council decided that in a permanent session to follow up on all developments and to take the necessary action in a timely manner, in compliance with the state plan to preserve the health of Egyptians and prevent the spread of the virus

No local news other than I overslept this morning and lost my window of opportunity for my cycle.  Still the streets are so quiet outside I might venture out for half an hour later – ONLY if the streets are empty, I am still being responsible 🙂

NOTE:  I have found in the past that simply putting a link to a newspaper or article online can result in a broken link when the article etc is archived by the owner site – that is why I also copy and paste the full article sometimes.  I have spent hours in the past having to go back and delete some posts as well are edit them because of broken links and deleted articles I had linked to.

Egypt March 2020 – Coronavirus (COVID-9)

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EGYPT - in times of COVID-19

Maybe when I’m dead some people will say I was an entrepreneur.  What’s that?  Dictionary definition “a person who sets up a business or businesses, taking on financial risks in the hope of profit.”  Yes, I been trying to do that since about the age of 21.  Never succeeded until Mara House, but I sure learned a lot along the way.

This is the second time in my life I thought I had it made – only to have it all disappear overnight.  First was the revolution of 2011, second was 2013 when the Army (rightly so) took over and all tourism completely stopped, and now 2020 it’s Coronavirus.  Can I take comfort in the fact I am not alone?  Not really, but I can take comfort in the thought that once this is all over, we may have a better world.  Everyone will have to strive to be an entrepreneur now.

Each of us has a choice to make now

  1. We join the pessimists, fear-mongers and frightened segment of society OR
  2. We join the people who say “It is what it is – now where do we go from here?”

Personally, I am going for Option no. 2.  This means

  • I am going to accept whatever safety measures we are advised to take
  • I am going to take some time out and focus on my personal mental, emotional and physical health a lot more than I have in the past (hey – I’m 63 so more or less in the ‘group more at risk’ segment of the population).
  • I’m buying a bike today – I know some who know me are laughing at this 🙂 but I have decided that if this is going to go on as long as is currently predicted I need some real way of getting proper exercise.  This is an expense but since I have some health issues that include super high “bad” cholesterol, I regard this as a necessary investment in myself lol!  So, (my plan is) that every morning around 6 – 7 am I am going to cycle out towards the countryside with Amr, my Mara House manager.  He is big into healthy living and already missing his gym work outs.  We won’t be seeing many, if any, people out and about at that hour so our “social distancing” will remain intact.
  • My facebook, twitter and instagram pages are only going to contain stuff I consider happy, positive, hopeful and uplifting – hopefully even a bit of humour when I can find it.
  • I’m going to put more time and effort into my daily meditations (I use Dr. Joe Dispenza ones)
  • I’m going to write more posts on my blog here on whatever I see happening in Egypt and particularly in Luxor.

I originally began writing in 2011 on the revolution as I experienced it and then I progressed to writing about my thoughts, personal experiences etc…. I like writing.

In order not to lose sight of the business side of things, my plan is to keep my posts for the Mara House Luxor blog focused on what is going on in Egypt.

EGYPT, LUXOR, MARA HOUSE

My last guests left for home (USA) yesterday and are probably still in transit – my thoughts go with them and I hope the airports there have cleared somewhat and are not so frightening as they appeared a few days ago.

Amr is taking down all the soft furnishings such as curtains etc all over the house, rolling up the carpets and giving the entire house a full clean from top to bottom.  I am washing all these and then we will wrap them all up in plastic for the time being and put them away.  It’s not as big a job as it sounds because long before there was any sign of coronavirus, our cleaning routine for years has been to spray and wipe down all door handles, light switches, toilet flushes, glass, metal, tiles and floors with undiluted vinegar anyway.  Vinegar is stronger than Chlor when it comes to sanitation.  So the only new precaution for us is the regular hand spraying.

Cash and cash flow could become a problem but we are not alone in that – I think, one way or another most of us are going to experience this at some stage in the coming months.  I have to express my thanks to the majority of people who had to cancel their bookings with us.  With one exception every single person has said they don’t expect refunds and just want to let what is paid stand until they can take advantage of it when this is all over.   I am more than happy with this and thankful to these lovely people

For our friends who don’t already know – Amr’s wife gave birth to his second son a few weeks ago.  His big brother, Moaz aged 4, is not that pleased about it but slowly coming to terms with not being the center of attention any more 🙁

 

I admit I am surprised at the level of awareness everyone I personally know, has about the virus and all are carrying their own hand sprays – the electrician and the air-con guy surprised me when they whipped out theirs before I produced ours 🙂

Government has sent all non-essential office workers home, flights are suspended til the end of March, except cargo flights.  I had to go to the bank and all were wearing gloves and one man told me they have to wash their hands every two hours and keep using the hand spray in between as they are passing papers back and forth to clients for signatures etc.

When I arrived at Cairo Airport it was the only airport where I had to fill out a form before getting off the plane detailing what countries I had been to over the last 3 weeks and my address plus a contact number for the next 3 weeks.  I also had to put a tick or an x next to questions asking if I experienced any coronavirus symptom such as fever, headache etc.  Then we were temperature screened before going though visa and customs.  Over the last 3 weeks I have been through Cork, Dublin, New Orleans, Heathrow and Amsterdam airports without a check, question or temp screening.  So, am I impressed with precautions being taken here?  YES!

Schools are closed, some kind of disinfectant was dropped from helicopters over Luxor around 3am this morning and trucks went through the streets doing the same.  Coffee shops, if still open have to use disposable cups.  Shopping Malls, clubs, pubs etc all ordered to close from 6pm to 7am.

Any tourists still in Egypt after today must let the authorities know they are here.

QUARANTINED IN EGYPT

This is a post on Facebook from (I think) a Swedish lady who was in quarantine hospital in Cairo

RECOVERY STATISTICS TODAY

Finally – all the media is keeping us up to date with new cases, deaths etc.  I haven’t come across any site giving us the survival and recovery statistics which are HUGE – so, before you go to bed tonight, click here and go to sleep with more hope 🙂