is alcohol expensive in egypt ?

Question

hi,i am going on holiday to egypt in january and wondered if it is worth going all exclusive.i will be staying in sharm.also any hotels that you would recommend or to stay away from.thanks

Answer 1

As soon as you arrive in Egypt, MAKE SURE not to convert all your money into Egyptian Pounds -- the duty-free shop does not accept Egyptian Pounds (and trust me, you will not find a place to convert Egyptian Pounds back into another currency!).

At the duty-free, show your airline ticket and you can buy 4 large bottles of any alcohol (or cases of beer) in the store for a very decent (duty-free) price. That's 4 for every airline ticket. There's a large selection there too.

I flew in and out of Egypt several times. I collected a nice stash of alcohol during my stay.

Have fun in Sharm!

Answer 2

Depends where you are buying; if you are in a hotel pub or one of the fancy pubs expect to pay a lot. A single regular whisky or Vodka sells on average for as much as L.E 75 - $ 15. A special can sell for as much as $25.

Beer is not as expensive, even in the fancy pubs. Expect to pay around L.E 20 - $4, if you buy them retail, then you can get a beer for L.E 5 - $1. There are several beer brands, the only international brand available here is Heineken, there are several great local brands such as Luxor (Classic, Weizen & XXX), Sakara & Stells. I strongly recommend you try the local brands if you are into beer.

You can buy alcoholic beverages in retail stores in Sharm, look for a shop called Drinkies as well as regular grocery stores. Sharm is a tourist destination, nothing is taboo there. Alcohol is widely sold.


Sharm is heaven, I honestly can not remember staying in any bad hotels. Of course the more expensive, the higher the level of luxury. Just try to find a hotel in Naema bay, that is where the action is and u get to save on all the taxi fares.

I would go for an all inclusive, should save you some cash if you are a heavy drinker.

Enjoy Sharm

Answer 3

I spent a few weeks on April in Egypt. You cant find alcoholic beverages in places other than hotel bars and restaurants, cruise ships and some restaurants belonging to international chains (like the Hard Rock Cafe). I never went to Sharm, but I took an all-inclusive Cruise ship in the Nile and the alcoholic beverages were not included. What me and my friends did was take a few bottles of alcoholic beverages and only buy sodas. Not that expensive that way! In the other hand, Egypt is one of the cheapest countries of the world. So, if you are charged for alcoholic beverages it would be a relatively lower price that of those countries like the US or in Europe.

Answer 4

I stayed in the most amazing hotel, it was beautiful - it was called Naama Bay or something like that, though I don't know how it is since the explosion there.The swimming pool (outdoors) was heated with actual hot water and everything, and there was a bar in the middle of it.
I don't remember alcohol being particularly expensive, but I found food around Sharm to be a bit tricky, especially as I am vegetarian - they're not big on veggies out there!
There is also a sort of cafe that is set up the side of the mountain, you can sit out there on the outdoor sofas, looking out across the bay. Fab!
Have a great time!

Answer 5

Cairo may be the capital of Egypt and among the largest towns in Africa and the Middle East and a good place to see; find more with hotelbye . On the Nile stream, Cairo is well-known for its own history, maintained in the fabulous medieval Islamic city and Coptic web sites in Old Cairo. The Egyptian Museum in the hub of area is a must see, with its countless Historical Egyptian artefacts because no visit to Cairo will be complete with out a visit to the Giza Pyramids, and to the regional Saqqara Pyramid Complex. In Cairo you will see: The Pyramid of Cheops (also called the Great Pyramid or Pyramid of Khufu), the biggest chart of the Giza group, and their interior of thin articles could be investigated, though there is not significantly to see, except a plain tomb chamber with an bare sarcophagus. Immediately behind the Great Pyramid could be the Solar Boat Museum, which displays one of many ceremonial solar barques unearthed in your community that has been painstakingly repaired to its unique glory. Further south on the plateau may be the Pyramid of Chephren (also known as the Pyramid of Khefre), which includes an inside tube place that may be entered.

Answer 6

A glass of beer costs between £1.50 and £2.25 and a bottle of wine costs between 10 and 15 pounds so that is alot.

Don't know what class of hotel you want. here are some.
Coral Sea Resort-4* on the beach, all amenities,lively
Falcon Hills Hotel-3*,small and quiet, for relaxing calm holiday

Hope this helps. Have a good time.

Answer 7

Hi .. been to Sharm -el -Sheik twice now, and would definately go again. I can thoroughly recommend 'all-inclusive' - they don't seem to have any concept of pub measures over there, so a vodka or gin will probably be equivalent of about 4 pub measures, so you certainly get your money's worth.
Spirits are expensive over there .. another alternative is to buy some duty free at the airport before you go and keep it in your room .. buy 'hey' this is a holiday ... go on spoil yourself ... go all inclusive.

Answer 8

i recommend staying in coral bay,sheik cost something like that its beautiful there and don't worry about expenses u ll sure find Egypt cheap as long as u re paid ur salary in dollars or euro its nearly 8 times the Egyptian pound which is a shame but take care that because u re tourist they ll charge u much more for things i mean way much more so never settle for the first price

Answer 9

no.. things are there are cheap especially if you stick to their brands.. but I am sorry you are going to Egypt. I went there last year and hated it. so did most of the other people I met along the way and peopel I have met since.

You will get hassled.. and I mean HASSLED. People will not take no for an answer. They will follow you for money and everyone will ask you for money. They even tried to get my young son to buy aftershave and t-shirts and would not leave him alone despite my requests.

More examples of the problems in that country: I stayed in 3 five star hotels in Cairo,Aswan and Hurghada. Hotel Managers told me to give money to their security guards. I was bullied into taking excursions I did not want to go on by the hotel and when I did go, the driver of the car/minibus would take me to his family and/or friends to coerce me into buying things. I would go to a cash point machine and there would be a guard sitting on a chair and he would ask for money before I could take my cash out. I went on a boat ride and was asked for money by the guy to fix his boat. I went to some Botanical Gardens and this guy handed a flower to my son and then demanded money.I could go on an on... I met a Canadian couple who were really upset and left early as their honeymoon was ruined.

My only advice to you is that when you get hectored to hand over your cash.. reply in a made up/jumbled up language.. the reason being is that Egyptian people can ask you for money in 50 different languages... if you make up a language [as we did].. they won't know what you are talking about and will leave you alone.. that is the only thing which worked for us...
Whist i appreicate that the country is poor, I have been to plenty of impoverished countries - I came back from Mauritius two months ago and people there earn on average £75 a month... No one hassled us there and they were not aggressive like Egtptian people are. These are the sorts of people I would rather give money to!
Good Luck.. you will need the alcohol when you get there!!

Answer 10

i went to egypt last year in june i stayed in the radisson hotel in taba. hotel was gorgouse, food wasnt bad ,sea and beaches were gorgouse . the alcohol wasnt very nice. as we were in the middle of no where we couldnt venture out at night. but the alcohol wasnt that nice.
we were all exclusive.definately worthwhile. no hassle in worrying about food. if you go on any day trips we were given a lunch to tkae out with us. or a dinner was seved if we got back late.