Middle East - Anthony Ham [170]
Two companies have card phones in Egypt. Menatel has booths that are yellow and green, while Nile Tel’s are red and blue. Cards are sold at shops and kiosks and come in units of E£10, E£15, E£20 and E£30. Once you insert the card into the telephone, press the flag in the top left corner to get instructions in English.
There are different rates for peak (8am to 8pm Sunday to Thursday) and off-peak (8pm to 8am Sunday to Thursday and all day Friday and Saturday) calls. Rates average E£3 per minute to the USA and Canada (E£2.25 off-peak); E£3.50 per minute to Europe (E£3 off-peak); and E£4.50 per minute to Australasia (E£3 off-peak).
Telephone Centrales
Alternatively, there are the old telephone offices, known as centrales, where you can book a call at the desk, which must be paid for in advance (there is a three-minute minimum). The operator directs you to a booth when a connection is made.
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TRAVELLERS WITH DISABILITIES
Egypt for All ( 02-311 3988; www.egyptforall.com; 334 Sharia Sudan, Mohandiseen, Cairo) specialises in organising travel arrangements for travellers who are mobility-impaired.
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VISAS
Most foreigners entering Egypt must obtain a visa. The only exceptions are citizens of Guinea, Hong Kong and Macau. There are three ways of getting a visa: in advance from the Egyptian embassy or consulate in your home country; at an Egyptian embassy abroad; or, for certain nationalities, on arrival at the airport. This last option is the cheapest and easiest of the three.
The processing times and the costs for visa applications vary according to your nationality and the country in which you apply. Visas at the airport are available for nationals of all Western European countries, the UK, the USA, Australia, all Arab countries, New Zealand, Japan and Korea. Nationals from other countries must obtain visas in their countries of residence. At Cairo airport the entire process takes only 20 minutes or so and costs US$15 or €15. If you are travelling overland you can get a visa at the port in Aqaba, Jordan, before getting the ferry to Nuweiba, but if you are coming from Israel, you cannot get a visa at the border unless you are guaranteed by an Egyptian travel agency. Instead, you have to get the visa beforehand at either the embassy in Tel Aviv or the consulate in Eilat.
A single-entry visa is valid for three months and entitles the holder to stay in Egypt for one month. Multiple-entry visas (for three visits) are also available, but although good for presentation for six months, they still only entitle the bearer to a total of one month in the country.
Sinai Entry Stamps
It is not necessary to get a full visa if your visit is confined to the area of Sinai between Sharm el-Sheikh and Taba (on the Israeli border), including St Katherine’s Monastery. Instead you are issued with an entry stamp, free of charge, allowing you a 15-day stay. Note that this does not allow you to visit Ras Mohammed National Park. Points of entry where such visa-free stamps are issued are Taba, Nuweiba (port), St Katherine’s (airport) and Sharm el-Sheikh (airport or port).
Travel Permits
Military permits issued by either the Ministry of the Interior or the border police are needed to travel in the Eastern Desert south of Shams Allam (50km south of Marsa Alam), on or around Lake Nasser, off-road in the Western Desert, or on the road between the oases of Bahariya and Siwa. These can be obtained through a safari company or travel agency, usually at least a fortnight in advance of the trip.
Visa Extensions & Re-entry Visas
Extensions of your tourist visa can easily be obtained. These cost E£11 for an extension of less than six months, E£16 for less than one year and E£46 for one year, and are obtained at passport offices. You’ll need one photograph and photocopies of the photo and visa pages of your passport. You have a short period of grace (usually 14 days) to apply for an extension after your visa has expired. If you neglect to do this there’s a fine of approximately E£100 and you