You Need a Guide in Egypt

There are plenty of places you can simply show up, walk around, and vibe - New York, Paris, Copenhagen, even Cartagena come to mind. Egypt is not one of those places though lol.

I spent two days exploring Cairo and the surrounding area on my own and two days with a guide. I can say with complete confidence that having a guide makes all the difference. Especially a private guide and Egyptologist.

Egypt isn't difficult, but it is layered and can be intense. A good guide helps move past the noise and actually experience the magic. You get to understand all you're looking at, navigate the pace and energy of the city/country and fully take it all in instead of feeling overwhelmed. Practically speaking, I found it nice for translation, bartering, and minimizing hustling and scams. And having a driver? Omg.. invaluable! Simply crossing the street in Cairo is like an Olympic sport and driving is its whole own thing. There are no surprises at the end for the price of the ride either.

I had the pleasure of working with a wonderful guide named Ayat and driver named Amr. I hired them through Look at Egypt Tours and highly recommend using them while in Egypt. They truly made my experience. Ayat and I clicked immediately, bonding over her cute earrings and from there we were like two peas in a pod. Amr couldn't have been more of a gentleman. They took me all around to the places I hired them to, plus added in some extras and tweaked the timing of things based on my priorities so I could get the most out of our time together. The gave me tips and recommendations for my time alone too which I appreciated!

Is it possible to do Egypt yourself? Of course. Is it better if you don't? Having done it both ways, I think so.