Currency, Tipping & Souvenir Guidelines
Currency
The currency of Egypt is the Egyptian pound (EGP).
We recommend taking $300-500 cash for currency exchanges, souvenirs, tipping & extra excursions (ex. The Sakkara Pyramid).
As in most destinations, we recommend that travelers pull local currency out of the ATM upon arrival. You can know your exchange rate beforehand by visiting xe.com
*Note: ATM's are easily accessible in Cairo but not so much in the smaller towns, also they go down frequently due to internet issues and glitches.
*Note: If bringing cash, bring crisp fresh bills, old ones with any markings/tears will be rejected.
Souvenirs
We know you will want to bring at least 1 souvenir back from your trip to Egypt. However we highly recommend holding off buying any type of souvenirs on the first day of the trip or until the guide is around to explain how things work. Walking around Cairo doesn't necessarily feel unsafe but you will be harassed by salesmen, and it is easy to get taken advantage of. Your Discover Corps guides will however give you a lesson on how to handle these situations and also educate you on cheap Made-in-China products being marketed as authentic Egyptian products by street vendors.
Tipping
Our Discover Corps guides are some of the best! To show your appreciation, tips are highly encouraged. You can tip in US Dollars. We suggest $10-20 USD per day (per person) for our guides and $10 USD per day (per person) for the step-on Egyptologist guides. All other tipping for restaurants, and drivers is taken care of. Feel free to bring them any gifts from home or write them a note to remember you by.
*Note: You may tip more or less depending on your preference.*