Getting from Alexandria to Cairo
 

Hi,

We are taking a HAL cruise which stops in Alexandria, and then has a
ship excursion to Cairo and the pyramids etc. The ship is in Alexandria
for only a day, and the trip to Cairo is 3 hours each way.
We thought we might make our own way into Cairo by rail - the reports of
their trains are very good. Anyway ... we hate cruise excursions - we
prefer independent travel when practicable - you get to see much more
for half the price!

However...... can anyone tell me how easy it is to get to the Alexandria
station from the port, and how safe it is? Anyone done this rail trip by
any chance? How likely is it that we'll find English speakers along the
way, and how safe is the place?

I understand it gets dark at around 5.30 pm so is it safe after dark?

All comments welcome. 8*)

Getting from Alexandria to Cairo
 

We hate cruise excursions too. About 8 years ago, we took the same
trip. We went to Cairo by train. City bus to and from pyramids after
visiting the Cairo Musuem. Came back from Cairo by 12 passenger bus
after dark because we did not want to wait for the next train.

Two mistakes we made:
1. we went to the wrong pyramid gate so we had to ride to the pyramids
by camel as walking was not allowed.

2. We paid the first bus driver that we saw(there were many) and we had
to wait for him to sell the last ten seats.

If you do not like NYC subways, you may not like Cairo Buses.

We were 55yo at the time.

Doug Clark

Getting from Alexandria to Cairo
 

On 21 Jan 2006 07:58:03 -0800, wrote:

We hate cruise excursions too. About 8 years ago, we took the same
trip. We went to Cairo by train. City bus to and from pyramids after
visiting the Cairo Musuem. Came back from Cairo by 12 passenger bus
after dark because we did not want to wait for the next train.

Can you tell me how easy it was to get from the port to the station? I
can't seem to find any info on how easy it is for the independent,
language inhibited tourist to get to the station and buy a ticket etc.

Two mistakes we made:
1. we went to the wrong pyramid gate so we had to ride to the pyramids
by camel as walking was not allowed.
2. We paid the first bus driver that we saw(there were many) and we had
to wait for him to sell the last ten seats.

I figure that if we go by train to Cairo, we'll take a guided tour
from there and avoid all that.

If you do not like NYC subways, you may not like Cairo Buses.

We haven't ever been to NYC - we're in Australia! 8*)

We were 55yo at the time.

Well we're approaching 60 but we've done a bit of independent travel.

Thanks for your comments!

Bob T.

Getting from Alexandria to Cairo
 

Not the safest tour in the world!
"Don Thorne" wrote in message
...
On 21 Jan 2006 07:58:03 -0800, wrote:

We hate cruise excursions too. About 8 years ago, we took the same
trip. We went to Cairo by train. City bus to and from pyramids after
visiting the Cairo Musuem. Came back from Cairo by 12 passenger bus
after dark because we did not want to wait for the next train.

Can you tell me how easy it was to get from the port to the station? I
can't seem to find any info on how easy it is for the independent,
language inhibited tourist to get to the station and buy a ticket etc.

Two mistakes we made:
1. we went to the wrong pyramid gate so we had to ride to the pyramids
by camel as walking was not allowed.
2. We paid the first bus driver that we saw(there were many) and we had
to wait for him to sell the last ten seats.

I figure that if we go by train to Cairo, we'll take a guided tour
from there and avoid all that.

If you do not like NYC subways, you may not like Cairo Buses.

We haven't ever been to NYC - we're in Australia! 8*)

We were 55yo at the time.

Well we're approaching 60 but we've done a bit of independent travel.

Thanks for your comments!

Bob T.

Getting from Alexandria to Cairo
 

"Don Thorne" wrote in message
...

Can you tell me how easy it was to get from the port to the station? I
can't seem to find any info on how easy it is for the independent,
language inhibited tourist to get to the station and buy a ticket etc.

Bob T.

Bob,

Lest you be mislead by the answer submitted by our resident troll Clint.

Because neither football game has been close I have had too much time on my
hands, and since Google is my friend (albeit NOT a stock I own), let me tell
you what they say about Clint.

His first post was May 15, 2003, and with the exception of one question and
answer on alt.graphics.photoshop where he asked for and received help, he
has written over 1500 messages, none that I have ever found that ever
offered anything of value.

He posts on rec.travel.latin-america, alt.animals.ethics.vegetarian,
rec.travel.usa-canada, rec.travel.marketplace, and alt.old-west because he
just had to make a comment about "Brokeback Mountain".

Back in 2003 he managed a post about HAL's Oosterdam where he actually
spelled it correctly.

He claims to have been on cruises that simply don't exist, or on cruises
from ports where his ship of choice has never called.

He claims to be a "senior" but his posts are definitely juvenile.

You asked about Cairo, Egypt and I doubt whether Clint has ever been to
Cairo, IL.

I hope that someone can help you, but I don't think that it was Clint.
--
DG in Cherry Hill, NJ

Getting from Alexandria to Cairo
 

On Sun, 22 Jan 2006 21:03:40 -0500, "Dick G."
dickdotgoldhaber@gmaildotcom wrote:


Lest you be mislead by the answer submitted by our resident troll Clint.

I hope that someone can help you, but I don't think that it was Clint.

Thanks for that ... it's been a while since I've been round the
newsgroups - not since my last (first) cruise actually!

I'm finding very little in the way of actual experiences for
Alexandria/Cairo so i may well have been sucked in by the "troll de
jour" - always handy to have these obstacles pointed out. 8*)

regards,

Bob T.