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Caches in EGYPT


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Try the following link

 

http://www.geocaching.com/map/

 

Then type in the destination e.g. Cairo in the "zoom to address" box

 

If you are going to the pyramids there seems to be a great virtal there

 

http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?wp=GCJG9J

 

This is a great little known facility that will help many people I am sure

Edited by harrogate hunters
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One of my caching pals, AC-P has cached in Egypt, and found it to be quite difficult...

 

One cache was supposed to be about a 3 or 4 terrain he said - yet it took him all day to reach it up a mountain, in the heat etc....

 

Then another was guarded by locals, and, from what I remember from the conversation, he felt quite intimidated in retrieving it...

 

He said they were the only 2 he did - he didn't go to the Pyramiddy bit - think he went to Cairo... or was it Sharm el sheik? I don't remember!!

 

Sorry - I'm nt much use - other than to say, he's a very experiencd cacher, who caches all over the world, but founf egypt hard!!

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I'm very much a newbie and will be going to egypt in aug on holiday. Do they have caches there and how do I google earth caches. Thanks :lol:

 

I was in Sharm last December [and what a truly horrible place it was !] and also down the road at Naam bay where the bomb went off a few years ago. I have to say that despite my best attempts, between the locals [who kept harrassing the tourists] and my wife [who did'nt want me to leave her side for one minute [above reasons] -despite being only 200m away from the cache it was a csae of DNA [did not attempt]

Don't let my comments put you off the reason however as the diving was spactacular and the Hyatt hotel beach complex great as well. I especially appreciated the pool butler who would straighten out my towel after every swim !!

:lol::P:P:D:D:D

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Been there, done that, and (got sold) a t-shirt and yes, there are less than 100 caches in the whole country.

 

You will probably find that if you are on holiday and go on an organised excursion then you will be escorted everywhere by armed police (and the security services) as tourists are often viewed as terrorist targets.

 

Beware also as there are lots of scams going on and don't be surprised when a policeman appears to be friendly and sugests taking your picture with your camera then you may be asked to pay to get the camera back. Camel rides in to the desert can also be 'interesting' since the price does not always includes the return trip. Of course, once you are miles in the middle of knowhere then any price back may seem reasonable! There are loads of other interesting local customs as well but as The Blorenges, indicated take care when and where you use your GPS.

Edited by Big Wolf
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We went there last year on a cruise and had a wonderful time NO problems what so ever. One policeman did take our photo (see my profile) and did NOT ask for any money so we gave him 1 dollar (1 dollar notes are accepted as tips thay hate £1 coins).

Back on thread we did not take our gps as they can be a bit funny, but we did do the Earth Caches that were on our visits and took all the necessary photos and answered some very hard questions, do the research on the questions before you go and and fill in the rest out there. We were unable to do proper caches as they were not where the tour took us.

All I can say is go and have a WONDERFUL time we did and would go back tomorrow if the purse allowed it.

If you have any questions you can always pm me, and I will try to answer them

Edited by susiemerlin1
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We did the Pyramid virtual back in 2005. The photo was taken by the policemen, who did want a tip but were distressed because we gave them too much (due to lack of change!). Cairo Kid's Cache is a large metal box out in the desert, but takes a bit of getting to (although only a short walk from the road). Generally, people are very friendly with tourists (just be sensible and don't wander around in obvious touristy shorts).

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My wife and I did the Giza thing a few years ago, pre-caching I'm afraid. We docked at Port Said and 'our party' was escorted to a line of 5 waiting coaches. Four were filled with us tourists and the fifth remained empty (to be used in case one of the other four broke down en-route). We had an armed police escort Land Rover in front leading the way and another bringing up the rear. The whole circus headed off through the desert to Cairo (what a sh*t hole that place is!). The whole of the Giza plateau was a heaving throng of hawkers, vagrants, whatever, all crowding round, grabbing your arm, handbag or anything else they could to attract your attention in the hope of selling you some bit of ol' tat or another. One young couple had somewhat ill advisedly let their youngster be placed on a camel to have his photo taken and the camel owner(?) was now demanding a lot of wedge to let him off again. Fortunately, in this instance, an armed, camel mounted policeman came to their rescue and the offending camel owner was led off in handcuffs, presumably to be castrated, hand chopped, flogged or whatever else they do to persistent offenders in the civilised middle east. Having said all that, I had a great time but you really do need to be a bit 'street-wise' and if you're at all nervous or intimidated in situations like that, be very careful 'cos like dogs.... they can smell fear and home in on it :lol:

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Just been discussing this with my sister - she told me one story I'd not heard before - about how her and my brother in law (who are quite adventurous) and had gone off the complex "shopping."

 

They went into one shop, and the door shut behind them, and locked....

They were not "released" until they had bought several bottles of very obviously fake perfume for serious amounts of cash... My sister said she was VERY frightened, and had an asthma attack there, and they woudn't let her into her bag to get her inhaler.

 

They told the rep when they got back to the hotel, but because they went off on their own, there was nothing they could do... My Sister suggested calling the police, but the locals working in the hotel laughed.... Obviously its an every day occurance... be careful!

 

Edited cos I have fat fingers and can't type!

Edited by HazelS
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To be honest I'm finding this all a bit sad :lol: . Me & the missus did a week in Cairo about 17 years ago and found it a fascinating place, we did organised touristy trips but also went walkabout in the city, did some bazzars and the Museum of Antiquities on foot on our own. Yes everyone wanted to sell us stuff but they were all polite and friendly and we never felt threatened, everyone expected Baksheesh, including the armed copper in the museum who said we could ignore the no photography signs and take pictures of the papyrus! but that's just the way of life and it just boiled down to less than a quid a time to oil the wheels.

 

It's a shame the place has changed for the worse, I guess we won't be taking the kids to see the pyramids :lol:

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To be honest I'm finding this all a bit sad :lol: . Me & the missus did a week in Cairo about 17 years ago and found it a fascinating place, we did organised touristy trips but also went walkabout in the city, did some bazzars and the Museum of Antiquities on foot on our own. Yes everyone wanted to sell us stuff but they were all polite and friendly and we never felt threatened, everyone expected Baksheesh, including the armed copper in the museum who said we could ignore the no photography signs and take pictures of the papyrus! but that's just the way of life and it just boiled down to less than a quid a time to oil the wheels.

 

It's a shame the place has changed for the worse, I guess we won't be taking the kids to see the pyramids :lol:

 

If Egyptian relics interest you then a visit to the Museum is well worth any aggro you get elsewhere. It's a truly fascinating place and I could have spent a lot more time in there than we were actually allotted.

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To be honest I'm finding this all a bit sad :lol: . Me & the missus did a week in Cairo about 17 years ago and found it a fascinating place, we did organised touristy trips but also went walkabout in the city, did some bazzars and the Museum of Antiquities on foot on our own. Yes everyone wanted to sell us stuff but they were all polite and friendly and we never felt threatened, everyone expected Baksheesh, including the armed copper in the museum who said we could ignore the no photography signs and take pictures of the papyrus! but that's just the way of life and it just boiled down to less than a quid a time to oil the wheels.

 

It's a shame the place has changed for the worse, I guess we won't be taking the kids to see the pyramids :lol:

It was all just like that when we went, and that was only less than four years ago. The Cairenes are a friendly lot, and the local off-licence delivers to your door if you don't want to go out in the evening. Yes, they get over-enthusiastic about selling you stuff and this can be bothersome, but it's rarely threatening. It was very cheap as well. It only gets dangerous if you try and mimic the locals' technique of crossing the busy roads.

 

We just got a taxi to the Pyramids. If you get there early, there's no hassle and crowds.

Edited by Happy Humphrey
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I went to Egypt in January 2008 and found it a fantastic place to visit. :lol:

There again I was near the relatively new resort of Marsa Alam,

 

I found time to do GCRJFH while I was there which didn't even need a GPS as it is in a dive complex at one of the hotels.

 

As for the locals I found them very friendly and not at all threatening. Yes, the shopkeepers do have the habit of closing the doors of their shops once you are in but I found a firm " Not Today " or even better " La Shokran ( sp ? ) and the door was open once more. The same goes for the "street hawkers ", be firm and they'll leave you for a softer target ( after all there are plenty of tourists to go round)

 

I have to say that I would have felt safer walking the streets of Luxor after dark than in some of the UK cities and the only reason I didn't wass due to the 4 am start from my hotel to get there and the fact by the time I had chance after all the sightseeing it was nearly 11.00pm ... long 2 days but highly recommended

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We did a trip to Egypt last year and did about 7 earth caches all at sites we were visiting any way. Made us pay more attention to what the guide was saying. Enjoy your trip.

 

We came unstuck with not having enough cash to pay for trips as I had e=assumed we'd pay by credit card, but managed to get some cash from a cashpoint at Luxor airport and at the WinterPalace Hotel to pay for things. We went shopping in the outskirts of Cairo and had no problems.

 

Sue

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The wife and I spent three days in Cairo 5 years ago.

We went to the evening "show" at the Sphinx one evening and on return to the hotel I discovered I had lost my hotel room key. Borrowed one from hotel reception and went back to the site the following morning. I was searching amongst the seats where we had been sat the previous evening when a "local" asked what I was doing. I explained I had lost my room key and he offered to take me to the local police station. Although slightly wary I decided to go with him, (a "lost" key was going to cost me $45). He took me through some dodgy side streets until we finally came to the police station. I explained to a police officer what had happened, he opened his desk, rummaged around, and came up with my keys! On the way back my "friend" suggested some recompense - he happily took a Hamlet cigar!

Another day we went to the Cairo museum, an ABSOLUTE MUST, and stayed too long and missed our bus back to the hotel. We "negotiated" a price for a taxi to take us back to the hotel and when in the taxi asked the driver if he could take us somewhere where we could buy some Diet Coke and Tonic for our "aperitifs" back at the hotel. He took us through the centre of local Cairo - streets one car wide, meat hanging on hooks in the street, strange smells and millions of people, and stopped at a local shop selling what we needed for less than half what the hotel were charging. On the way back to the hotel we had a good chat with him and he made an impromptu stop to buy some local bread to take home to his family. On arrival at the hotel we paid him the pre-arranged price and he gave us some of his bread, "to try"!!

 

Yes there are street "vendors" wherever you go, (just like in London), but if you treat them with a smile whilst being positive about your intentions they will smile back and let you go.

 

One thing to remember if someone tries to get you to take a camel ride - NEVER accept the riding crop - if you do then you are hooked................. :rolleyes:

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I've been to Egypt literally dozens of times, so I don't get intimidated by the locals. (It helps if you speak a bit of Arabic!).

 

However, caching is not easy. There's one cache up above Hatchepsut's Temple that is very difficult because it's on the side of the mountain - and you can be within a few feet horizontally, but it's still high above you...

 

If you're on an organised tour on the West Bank of Luxor, there is one actually within Hatchepsut's Temple which should be possible in the time available, but don't miss out on exploring the temple itself!

 

I've also found one way out in the middle of the Libyan (or Western, as the Egyptians call it) Desert. It's in the White Desert area near to Farafra - but you'll need to be independant with a 4x4 to get to that one!

 

Oh, and the need to go everywhere outside Cairo/Luxor/Aswan in a convoy has been relaxed now, so you can hire a taxi and just go if you want now.

 

Good luck on your trip!

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Well, I've been to Hurghada about 6 times now kitesurfing and diving, and although I agree with some of the comments about hawkers and people on the make, it all adds to the local colour. I suppose Hurghada is a special case in that as well as the ordinary police there are tourist police who will generally take your side in any dispute.

 

Anyway, the last time I went May 07, there was only one cache in the area and after reading the logs about security guards and other stuff I satisfied myself by doing a drive by and not even logging it. But I have just been to the search page and there are now three in the vicinity of the town and all are being actively found and logged and even have trackables in them.

 

So it depends where you go, I have never had a problem using a GPS in Egypt - although I would hardly stand in front of a check point to waymark it. Have fun, but just don't forget to pack the one thing most tourists leave at home - common sense.

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Hello.

I just came back from a week in Egypt staying in Dahab. I completed three traditional caches and one Earthcache. I think you will be OK if you are sensible. Some of the more remote caches it may be wise to take a guide, or go in a group. Take plenty of water and I think it would be wise to let someone know where you are going. I found some trackables in the caches, and all of them were present at the right location. I found Geocaching in Egypt fun and a great experience. I reccomend Mount Sinai, two caches and a fantastic place.

Kriyacacher

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