Travel tips

Getting online in Egypt: SIMs, eSIMs and hotel wifi

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AV
Anorya Team · 13 mars 2025 · 1 min read

Data is cheap and easy. There is one restriction that catches people out.

A local SIM is the cheapest option by a wide margin. Vodafone, Orange and Etisalat all have desks in the arrivals hall at Hurghada and Cairo, a tourist package with 20–40 GB costs a few euros, and you need your passport to register — this is a legal requirement, not a formality.

Getting online in Egypt: SIMs, eSIMs and hotel wifi

An eSIM bought before you travel is the convenient alternative, slightly more expensive, and it works the moment you land with no queue and no passport. If your phone supports it, this is the low-friction choice.

Coverage is good along the coast and in the Nile valley, and patchy to non-existent in the deep desert — worth knowing before relying on maps for a safari.

Getting online in Egypt: SIMs, eSIMs and hotel wifiGetting online in Egypt: SIMs, eSIMs and hotel wifi

Coverage is good along the coast and in the Nile valley, and patchy to non-existent in the deep desert — worth knowing before relying on maps for a safari.

The restriction: voice and video calls over WhatsApp, Messenger and FaceTime are blocked on Egyptian networks. Text and voice notes work normally, but a call will fail. A VPN restores it, and most visitors who need to call home install one before arriving. Hotel wifi is often subject to the same block.

Getting online in Egypt: SIMs, eSIMs and hotel wifi
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Good to know

Frequently asked questions

We really have some of the lowest prices that can be offered while keeping the quality of service high. We are an online booking company working directly with large organizers in Egypt, so we can offer very favorable prices thanks to the large flow of tourists. Buying from us, you get quality service and don't overpay intermediaries.
The organizers' fleet has plenty of vehicles - cars, minivans and large comfortable buses. Vehicles for short, medium and long distances are equipped with air conditioning and safety systems, and buses with toilets are provided on long routes. All vehicles are regularly serviced and sanitized, hold the necessary tourist permits, and drivers are inspected before every trip.
We work without prepayment. Group excursions are paid on the bus or during the trip. The exceptions are individual excursions where plane tickets or documents are involved. The organizer comes to you - there is no need to look for anyone to pay. You can pay in cash in dollars or euros, and an alternative payment method can be arranged.
Egypt is heavily regulated when it comes to tourism. For a car or yacht to run a tour, daily permission from the police and military is required, and organizers without a license don't get permits. That is why on some tours we may ask for voucher and passport details (this applies to marine excursions, individual tours and some group tours that leave the city). For other excursions only the number of people is needed.
Some hotel guides wrongly claim insurance does not apply to third-party excursion organizers. That is not true. Your travel insurance is valid throughout Egypt, and once you are on the organizer's ship, bus or transport they carry full insurance responsibility for passengers - otherwise they could not obtain a tour permit at all.
Please check your belongings when you leave the bus or boat at the end of the tour. If something is lost it is hard to recover, as vehicles leave immediately to be cleaned. We will always help you look, but we cannot guarantee a 100% return - so please be careful!
We have a large daily flow of bookings, so most excursions run every day (or on set weekdays per the program's schedule). After booking we send the exact hotel pickup time. Many trips are shared with small hotel groups who bought the same tour from operators - the only difference is that our price is 40–60% lower.
Tour photographers are independent and do not work for the company, so any arrangement with them is your responsibility. We do not recommend paying in advance unless you are sure the photos will be delivered. If you do not want photos, tell the photographers early to avoid any pushiness.