Getting Around Egypt

The quick answer

Fly or take the sleeper train for the long north–south hops, move on the river between Luxor and Aswan, and use the Metro and ride-hailing apps inside Cairo. Egypt’s classic itinerary is strung along the Nile, so most of your traveling is one axis, and that axis is well served.

Between cities

Internal flights

EgyptAir connects Cairo with Luxor, Aswan, Abu Simbel, Sharm el-Sheikh and Hurghada. Cairo to Luxor is about an hour in the air against roughly ten by road, so for anyone on a fixed week the flight usually buys a day. Abu Simbel in particular is normally reached by air from Aswan, and the flight schedule is built around getting visitors there and back within a morning.

The sleeper train

Egyptian National Railways runs the Cairo–Luxor–Aswan line, including overnight sleeper services. It is a genuinely good way to cover the distance: you lose no daylight, you arrive into the middle of a city rather than an airport on its edge, and the Nile valley at dawn out of a train window is one of the better things a journey here offers. Book well ahead in the high season. Day trains on the same line are slower and much cheaper, and are used mostly by Egyptians.

Roads and coaches

Long-distance coaches connect the major centers and the Red Sea coast. Driving yourself is legal but is not something we would recommend to a first-time visitor: Cairo traffic operates on conventions that are learned rather than signposted, and some desert routes have convoy or permit arrangements that change.

On the river

Between Luxor and Aswan the Nile is a transport corridor as much as a view. Cruise vessels work that stretch on a standard rhythm, tying up at the temple towns along the way — the reason a river journey covers Edfu and Kom Ombo without a bus day. A felucca, the traditional lateen-rigged sailing boat, is the small-scale version: an hour or an afternoon on the water at Aswan, entirely dependent on wind, and the best way to see the river at its own pace. Motor launches cross to the west bank at Luxor all day.

Inside Cairo

The Cairo Metro is fast, cheap and by far the most reliable way to cross the city at rush hour, which in Cairo is a large part of the day. Certain carriages are designated for women; they are well used and worth knowing about. Ride-hailing apps operate in Cairo and Alexandria and solve the two hardest parts of a taxi ride — agreeing the fare and explaining the destination. Street taxis work too; agree the fare before you get in, or insist on the meter.

Traffic is the real constraint on a Cairo day. The distance between the Egyptian Museum and the Giza plateau is small and the journey is not. Build itineraries around a small number of areas rather than criss-crossing the city, and treat any timing given to you in minutes as optimistic.

At the sites

The Giza plateau, the Valley of the Kings and Karnak all involve significant walking on sand and uneven stone, with internal shuttles at some sites and none at others. Horse and camel rides are offered constantly at Giza; if you want one, agree the price and the duration before you get on, and be clear that the return is included. Every year visitors find that the agreed price covered the ride out only.

Common questions

Train or plane to Luxor?

The train if you value the experience and want to arrive rested into the city center; the plane if your days are tight. Both are normal.

Is the Metro suitable for visitors?

Yes. It is signed in Arabic and English on the main lines, and it is the one part of Cairo transport that is immune to traffic.

Do I need to book internal transport before I arrive?

For sleeper trains and for flights in the high season, yes. For city transport, no.

Seeing it on a LABUSA Travel journey

Internal flights, transfers, the river vessel and every site transfer are arranged as part of our Egypt journeys, which removes the two things that most often cost visitors a day here: Cairo traffic and a high-season train that was full. The river stretch is done the way it should be — from the water.