The capital of the country of Pharaoh - Cairo is a noisy megapolis, which is rich in various attractions and interesting places mandatory for visiting. And if in the resort areas where most hotels work on the "All Inclusive" system, you can not spend a penny, then in Cairo to avoid spending it will be impossible.
Egypt's official currency is an Egyptian pound. One pound consists of a hundred piras. Everything is simple here: as we have 1 ruble - it is 100 kopecks. In the go, both paper bills and coins.
You can enter the country with US dollars, and from the euro. You can exchange rubles, but it is quite a problematic lesson, and the course is likely to be low.
Do not forget that the visa to Egypt is put on arrival and it costs $ 25 per person. So just be sure to have the necessary cash!
By tradition, the airport is the latest place where money can be changed - there is always the lowest exchange rate. Therefore, coming, you can exchange quite a little bit to get to the hotel, and then calmly exchange in the bank or changeable office.
In principle, in most traditional tourist places you can pay and dollars, but the price will be unambiguously higher, and you will never wait.
Banks
Cairo is a huge city and there are absolutely no problems here with banks. The most popular and reliable banks: National Bank of Egypt, Banque Misr, Banque du Caire.
Keep in mind that in almost every major city of Egypt, you can find representative offices of these banks. Offices of famous international banks will not be difficult to find in the capital of Egypt.
Banks work not as with us. Often they are open only in the first half of the day, but you can make exchange operations until midnight. Changing money can also be exchanged in different street offices, after selecting the course boost. But be careful and attentive. Carefully recount money and do not forget that 50 piano bills and 50 pounds are similar, especially in the old underwent state. The exchange commission is not charged. Passport in banks is required, in some exchangers on the street it may not be useful.
Bank cards
Egypt takes one of the very first places for fraud with bank cards. Try to make money only in ATMs with large banks. Often, the situation when an ATM shoves a map, and the problem is supported by telephone and in our country, and there is no abroad and talk.
In no case do not release the card from the hands. For a clever and unclean on the hand of the waiter, make a cast from the card will not be no difficulty, and is the rest of the time. Therefore, cash is better to get in advance before you gathered to spend money.
The exceptions are large international offices for car rental, the sale of air tickets and large hotels. All of them are too much in their reputation to be mixed in fraud with bank cards.
Be sure to warn your bank before the trip, otherwise the chance of blocking a security system card is great. Also find out the size of the commission as it has different banks. Ideally, it is better to have several plastic cards of various banks.
Duty Free.
In the Cairo airport, as in all major international airports, duty-free shops are located. The presentation of the passport when buying must since there is a special mark.
ISIC
- This is a real help for those who want to explore Cairo to the maximum and at the same time save money. "ISIC" - International Student Certificate . Card price in Russia about 500 rubles, but it can be issued in Egypt.
This piece of plastic will allow you to get a discount on tickets to most museums and architectural monuments. Tickets for transport (bus, railway, aircraft) on the same certificate can be purchased, saving about 30% of the cost. In addition, some cheap hotels in students also provide discounts for accommodation.
It is worth noting that there is also International teaching certificate (ITIC) and international youth certificate (IYTC) - For tourists and travelers whose age has not reached 26 years. According to these certificates, the same discounts are provided as on the student map.
Cairo is a magnificent city, this is the largest city of Africa, a variety of attractions. This is the city of Shopping, where small shops and noisy oriental bazaars are adjacent to the huge modern shopping centers.
There is where to spend money, so you always have cash pounds and necessarily small coins. Well, of course, do not forget about Bakshish - tips as gratitude for the service provided.