Luxor4u

LovelyLadyLux wrote:@ Bombay - I'm in Canada and logistically closer to Vancouver airport BUT all airfares are higher from there so I always make the trek to Seattle and fly out of SeaTac. When I was coming to Egypt I did fly British Airways or KLM SeaTac to either Heathrow or Schiphol airport to Cairo and would then take the train to Luxor. On departing Luxor I'd always fly Egyptair back to Cairo.

My point was that for those tourists, those people who really do not travel much or often and who are not aware or who need travel to be simple if they simple plug in Seattle to Luxor it is going to give them such a high price tag they'll balk at the trip.

Check out:
http://www.turkishairlines.com/

I found flights Seattle to Cairo around CAD$ 1500. 19h15/ 23h29

Using skyscanner.net, and flying from Vancouver to Luxor (dep Vancouver on Sunday, dep Luxor on Monday) I am getting prices around £1050, depending on the date. There will probably be an overnight stopover in London but the flights are one-stop in each direction. Flights from Seattle are also available. To get this sort of offer you must specify flight days that will catch the non-stop flights between London and Luxor on a Monday.

I and probably Bombay will remember the old 'bucket shops' here in London, where you could go into a place, usually in an office above a shop, where they could get you a flight by changing at a European hub, which very often reduced the price quite dramatically. O.K, you might have to wait an hour for your connecting flight , but that was nothing, when you knew how much you were saving.

I have learnt that the 'hub' system seems to have gone out of the window these days, it more to do with 'alliances' these day, like Star Alliance. For example the whole of that new Terminal 3 at Cairo is given over to this group, with the idea that your luggage will get to your final destination the same time as you,..........really.

Often when staying in Cairo, EgyptAir gave me the choice of their plane or BMI, further more BMI's flights always showed up on their screens at all the sales office, even though at that time BMI had its own shop in Cairo. Perhaps the near future will be more to do with alliances than the old hub system. Will that benefit the passenger though in the future?

I am sure many who live in Britain will remember the old British Rail system of Hubs, being of course Crewe, Derby and Nuneaton, where you were often told to change at these places. These huge stations are now like ghost towns, the reason being that each private operator do not want you to use any other part of the network, that is not run by them.

Any train from London to places such as Birmingham, Manchester, or for that matter even that small provincial town, 100 miles north called Leicester can be got to, for at least half price, and WITHOUT ANY restrictions, by not taking the obvious route, instead by changing at the old hub system. Yes the journey may take half an hour longer, but when the difference in price can be as much as £75, it's worth thinking about,.............Don't you just love privatisation and multi-nationals.

More Teletext for me.

I understood the new Tourist Tax ... erm...Development Fee... was due to star at the beginning of June. It's now the 2nd and a Monday so there should have been a direct flight in to Luxor today. Has anyone got an update on the situation or heard of anyone having to pay the fee. If so how and where was it implemented?

I think Bearded Brian was due to fly today (could be wrong).

Mind you he wouldnt be there yet!

Gaffa?

The problem is that we don't know how it's going to be implemented or where. I, and others, have assumed it will be at point of entry but that needn't actually be the case - though it would seem logical (hmm hang on... Egypt + logic = oh I give in!)

Apparently no tax was levied on passengers arriving from the UK in Hurghada today so maybe it has been delayed, change of decision or simply forgotten about!

I understand it will be included in taxes on the tickets.

Bombay wrote:I understand it will be included in taxes on the tickets.

How would that work then? The airlines we choose to fly on charge the tax to us and then the have to pay a per person flown tax on arrival to the Egyptian government. That still doesn't make sense why Cairo is not included in the list. It may make some sense as to why Sharm is exempt again though.

Sharm is not exempt unless I read a different article. All taxes charged by airlines are paid to the relevant governments otherwise they wouldn't be taxes they would be listed as something else. Cannot understand why its not country wide might be something to do with transit passengers in Cairo.

Bombay wrote:Sharm is not exempt unless I read a different article.

Sorry, that was my mistake. I should have re-read the article instead of relying on my memory. (I blame my mother for using aluminum pans.)

My sister once hit me over the head with an aluminum frying pan so I know what you mean. [this was because I squashed a cream cake into her face, I was about ten]

Tourists to pay $25 when leaving Egypt from Cairo Airport

Tourists returning home after a trip in Egypt will now be required to pay a $25 at Cairo International Airport, a tourism ministry official told Ahram Online.
Both Egyptians and foreigners will pay $4 as they leave Cairo on domestic flights.

The decision was issued by the country's aviation ministry, the source said. Accordingly, the exit fee is in payment for services provided to foreign travellers in the capital's airfield.

Some tourism officials have reacted strongly to the decision.

"The decision is unacceptable, particularly with an ailing tourism sector that seeks recovery," Adel Abdel-Razek, a member of Egypt's tourism chambers federation, told Ahram Online.

Egypt's tourism sector, which represents 11 percent of the country’s gross domestic product, has seen several blows since the 2011 January uprising.

However, Adel Zaki, an owner of a travel agency in Egypt, said he agreed with the decision.

"It's time for Egypt to get an appropriate return from visitors, but I think delaying it to be implemented in October will be better," Zaki said.

Visa fees for tourists coming to Egypt were increased last May to $20 – instead of $15.

According to Tourism Minister Hisham Zaazou, the visa increase is slight and is not expected to affect the flow of tourists to the country as it is still amongst the cheapest worldwide.

The total number of tourists visiting Egypt in the first four months of 2014 reached 2.8 million, a 2.75 percent decline from the same period last year, according to official figure

http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/102840.aspx

Bombay wrote:Tourists to pay $25 when leaving Egypt from Cairo Airport

Tourists returning home after a trip in Egypt will now be required to pay a $25 at Cairo International Airport, a tourism ministry official told Ahram Online.
Both Egyptians and foreigners will pay $4 as they leave Cairo on domestic flights.

The decision was issued by the country's aviation ministry, the source said. Accordingly, the exit fee is in payment for services provided to foreign travellers in the capital's airfield.

Some tourism officials have reacted strongly to the decision.

"The decision is unacceptable, particularly with an ailing tourism sector that seeks recovery," Adel Abdel-Razek, a member of Egypt's tourism chambers federation, told Ahram Online.

Egypt's tourism sector, which represents 11 percent of the country’s gross domestic product, has seen several blows since the 2011 January uprising.

However, Adel Zaki, an owner of a travel agency in Egypt, said he agreed with the decision.

"It's time for Egypt to get an appropriate return from visitors, but I think delaying it to be implemented in October will be better," Zaki said.

Visa fees for tourists coming to Egypt were increased last May to $20 – instead of $15.

According to Tourism Minister Hisham Zaazou, the visa increase is slight and is not expected to affect the flow of tourists to the country as it is still amongst the cheapest worldwide.

The total number of tourists visiting Egypt in the first four months of 2014 reached 2.8 million, a 2.75 percent decline from the same period last year, according to official figure

http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/102840.aspx

At last! its took a while but at last there is another club other than the divorce club that you actually have to pay to get out of.

Dusak's satire of the other day is actually starting to sound more sensible - I would say you couldn't make it up - except you can because Dusak did.

Will this apply if Cairo is only a stop off if you are returning to UK for example, via Luxor or the other way round?

Ouch! Now that tax is a bit of a slap in the face. I don't mind paying a fee to enter a country but I don't find it helpful to have to pay to leave.

Zooropa wrote:Will this apply if Cairo is only a stop off if you are returning to UK for example, via Luxor or the other way round?

I think that comes to $29. $4 to get from Luxor to Cairo and $25 to exit the country.

I arrived in Cairo 9:45 pm on Saturday 31st May and paid $25 for my visa, arrived in Luxor some time after 1am on 1st June - nothing mentioned about an extra tax. That could be because to have caught that flight you must have had your visa on or before 31st May

Bearded Brian wrote:I arrived in Cairo 9:45 pm on Saturday 31st May and paid $25 for my visa, ...

Was it actually new visa with the $25 printed on it or are they using the old $15 ones and charging the new fee?
I ask because it would be useful for folks to know, especially those who are perhaps not so used to interesting ways of Egypt. It could also save a few fisticuffs at the visa booths!

It's the old $15 visa with a $10 'stamp' stuck on.