Do they really ride camels in Cairo? A guide on transport in the busy capital!

To answer that question simply- No. Egyptians don't ride camels despite what Hollywood feeds us. It's just a regular country that happens to have camels in it that people can ride. But as a means of transportation in modern Cairo? Probably not-haha!

*Man on a Camel in the Red Sea-Click here to view image source.

But transport in Egypt, although cheap, is quite confusing for a newcomer! That's why I decided to compile this little concise guide for any of you who are planning a trip to Egypt and were asking all the questions I was asking!

There are buses, taxis, uber (and Careem-the middle eastern version of Uber), metro (in some areas of cairo only) and even a tram in Alexandria!

Cairo Bus- click on image to view source.

Now Cairo is a very eccentric city as I've stated before. Let me elaborate on that! Cairo is the 15th largest city in the world by population and the 49th by area It’s enormous and includes several provinces like Giza, Helwan and obviously, Cairo! It’s also full of social class differences; much like London, there are the poor, rugged areas, the middle-class areas and the posher areas of Cairo.

The following is a simply-put summary of the city's most popular areas.

*Disclaimer: I’m not an expert on this and what I am writing is based on asking other Egyptians I have visited on my trip so please excuse me if you’re Egyptian and I have described things differently*

*Districts of Cairo - click here to view image source.

• Poor, rugged areas, slums: Matariya and other suburban slums (usually on the far outskirts of Cairo)

I haven’t really visited these areas. Mainly because they don't have any monuments and because I was strongly advised not to.

*Cairo Ghettos- click here to view image source.

• Historical but poor areas: Downtown Cairo, Shubra, Abbaseya, Giza

Downtown Cairo. Image Credit: Manar Gad Timounna. Click on image to view source.

These aren’t necessarily unsafe but I would say as a female, make sure you've got your knees and shoulders covered and that no cleavage is showing to avoid unwanted attention. They actually have a lot of touristy bazaars here and Giza houses the famous pyramids. Thus, youll find lots of bazaars and boutiques where the owners can speak English.

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• Middle-class/posh areas with history: Heliopolis, Garden City, Zamalek, Dokki, Mohandessein, Maadi

*Mohandessin- click here to view image source.

I stayed in Maadi, one of the areas mentioned. These are generally safe areas, where its likely you’re gonna find people who speak English. They’re also centrally located and close to various amenities. I’d recommend staying here, as it’s close to everything, generally safe and the architecture and views are just amazing!

• Posh areas, newly-built: Tagamoo’ al khames (5th settlement), Katameya, New Cairo

This is where all the rich people live! It’s full of humungous malls, there’s no trash, and it just looks completely not-Cairo! So I wouldn’t personally recommend staying here, unless you’re not very much into history and are just here for shopping and a good time!

I pretty much used a combination of taxis and Uber/Careem while I was there. They’re both of very similar prices and extremely inexpensive in contrast to the UK or anywhere in Europe. As for the prices, expect to pay around 25-30 EGP (that’s about £1.20) for a 10 minute ride and maybe 60-80 EGP (£2.40-£2.80) if you’re going from Zamalek to Heliopolis (about 20-30 minutes).

Cairo Festival City mall in New Cairo-click here to view images' source.

I would recommend you use Uber or Careem if you are unsure of your destination as they have a GPS while local taxi drivers don’t.

What's super cool about Egypt is that the cab colours are different based on the city you're in! In Cairo they're black and white, in Alexandria they're black and yellow and in Marsa Matrouh they're blue and white- so cool!

Alexandria Taxi- click on image to view its source.

Cairo Taxi- click on image to view its source.

As for the metro, it didn’t cover El maadi, and I went to Zamalek and Heliopolis a lot- both areas for which metro lines are still under construction and so not covered by the current underground lines.

*Map of underground lines in Cairo- click here to view image source.

For those of you heading to Alexandria, don't worry there's also taxis there and one thing that’s not in Cairo- a tram! I didn’t get to use it though as taxis were easier to just hail and get in!

*Alexandria Tram-click here to view image source.

Now for those of you who are very DIY and are thinking of driving in Egypt, I have one piece of advice- DON’T! I mean I wouldn’t really recommend it; as roads are very hectic and drivers don’t necessarily stick into their lanes! So it’s quite the challenge for a tourist to do.

Photo credit: Dave W. Easton.

*Cairo Traffic- click here to view image source.

If you have any questions or further tips about transport in Cairo leave them down below to help other readers! I hope this has helped any of you understand more about the city and answered questions you may have had before you head there!