I am getting blasted over on the Europe board.

A poster (posting to the wrong board) asked if it was safe for an American family to travel to Egypt. I, of course, responded that I felt it was perfectly safe. Of course, the original poster has not come back with a reply - probably scared off by the comments!!!!!

As some of you know, I lived in Egypt for 4 years with my family and we all LOVED it. We moved there when my boys were 8 and 9. My younger son and I were back there for a week last fall for a visit - and I had a great lunch with Debbie (Casual Cairo) and Sunshine007!!!

Percy - sorry you couldn't make it - but we drank a toast to you!!!!

I admitted that there have been problems in the past, but "Americans" were not the targets and, sadly, far more Egyptians died in the attacks than tourists. Also, the majority of the attacks in the past few years have been on the Sinai peninsula - which is geographically much more vulnerable than the rest of Egypt.

But - there are evidently those who feel that Egypt is incredibly unsafe (as evidenced by the numerous armed guards at tourist sites, hotels, etc). So, my "positive" response/opinion has not been very well-received!

Maybe I'm crazy (quite possible!!! ) but now I'm curious. SO, for those who have been or are considering going........

1. Do you consider Egypt to be an "safe" destination?

2. Would you be comfortable taking your children to Egypt on holiday?

3. Do the guards at the sites, hotels, and with tour groups frighten you or comfort you or do you just "accept" them and not worry about it?

4. Have you ever had a guard "aim" a gun at you or have you ever felt "threatened" by an Egyptian guard?

5. Do feel that people who travel to Egypt or take their families to Egypt are being irresponsible?

6. Do the roadblocks/checkpoints that exist on some of the major roads in Egypt bother you?

7. If you've been - would you have any qualms about going back?

I was accused of being "defensive" and that maybe I was not comfortable with the decisions my family had made. For those who know me (even just from this board)......that is definitely NOT the case!!! While there are things about Egypt that BUG the daylights out of me - they are things that residents - NOT tourists - must deal with and would never stop me from visiting or living there again!

To me - the Egyptian people I met and got to know are some of the warmest, friendliest, most welcoming people I have ever met. Yes - there were a few "jerks" - but those exist everywhere!!!!

SO - whatcha think????????

1. Do you consider Egypt to be an "safe" destination? Yes

2. Would you be comfortable taking your children to Egypt on holiday? Yes (if I had any)

3. Do the guards at the sites, hotels, and with tour groups frighten you or comfort you or do you just "accept" them and not worry about it? They blend into the background, and view them no differently than I do police that I see on the street of NY.

4. Have you ever had a guard "aim" a gun at you or have you ever felt "threatened" by an Egyptian guard? No

5. Do feel that people who travel to Egypt or take their families to Egypt are being irresponsible? No

6. Do the roadblocks/checkpoints that exist on some of the major roads in Egypt bother you? No. I have encountered roadblocks in lots of countries, including a dozen on a 100 mile stretch in Turkmenistan.

7. If you've been - would you have any qualms about going back? None whatsoever (and I have been three times, so I've been back twice).

My guess is that those who are frightened have not been and will not go, no matter what. Now, I do take safety into account when planning a trip, and there are certain African countries (mostly in West Africa, like Liberia and Sierra Leone) that I'd like to visit, but won't at this time.

As you know, I am leaving for Baku in August, and then traveling to Tbilisi and on to Yerevan, and almost everyone I've told has asked me if its safe -- and they know nothing about those countries or where they are.

I am also visiting the southern Philippines in December, and there have been incidents, but I have done a lot of research and believe it will be safe (but I won't know until I'm there).

Egypt (and Azerbaijan and the Philippines) are less safe, I would think, than Iceland (which, for some reason, I generally consider the world's safest country), but I would put them on par with Asia, Europe and North America.

Thanks Michael!!!! I was beginning to think that I was crazy.

I hate to say - but I will miss you when you hit Baku in August. We will be moving this summer and (hopefully) heading to Moscow!!!

I'm with Michael on this.

Sadly these days, there are far too many destinations that can be considered unsafe to travel or live. Egypt can be considered one, but then so too (for us Africaphiles), Kenya after recent upheaval, that was more media than reality. Yet, many of us would love to find a way to not only visit but actually live here.

That's not to take away from the 1,000 who died, those displaced and their lives turned upside-down. We know from those who did visit during this period, that they never felt unsafe or saw any indication of the horrors.

The same people who ranted on you, probably wouldn't notice a policeman with guns drawn in their home town, but notice the military in countries as Egypt, Turkey, Israel, etc. I greatly appreciated the military presence when in Egypt, especially in the hills above the Hatshepsut Temple where the massacre took place a few years earlier.

I've been to France in '86, after terror bombings; Kenya/Tanzania after the'98 bombings; travelled right after 9/11 to SA/Bots/Zim; returning to Kenya again this year. Friends have been in London many times during the time of the IRA bombings, often having left an area that was bombed a few minutes later... and still return to London.

These folks who rant, are probably affraid of their own shadows and panic at a car backfire. Again, no place is completely safe anywhere - NYC, WashDC, Madrid, London, Paris, Bali, Morocco, Egypt, Israel, Lebanon; lest we forget Afghanistan and Iraq, which when the UK issued their "no-non-essential" travel to Kenya, felt the last two countries were safer! Duh!

Don't see many cancelling their visits to London and Paris or Bali!

We know there are all kinds of travelers, for whatever reason, choice of destinations, etc. I wouldn't let their comments weight on me or keep me awake.

Egypt is wonderful.

Grcxx3 -
I'd just chalk it up to there being many people out there (and I'm not criticizing, just making an observation) that will never feel anything is safe if it differs too much from their life at home. and hey, that's fine- to each their own, and I can understand it and certainly think it's a waste of money for someone to travel somewhere if they will be on edge the entire time. We're never going to change their mind. For me, a trip to Africa or the Middle East is more up my alley than sitting in a cafe in Paris, but that is just my personal preference and I can understand why some of my friends will always prefer the latter. I hear comments all the time about my travel destination from friends of mine that are similar to some posted on your other thread.

So to me, yes, Egypt is safe (although I'd probably avoid the resorts on the Sinai around holidays), Syria is safe, Israel is safe, Jordan is safe, and on and on....but most of my friends will never agree with me. I've given up trying to change their mind and have just asked that they not lecture me about places they have never been!

(I actually wouldn't go back to Egypt anytime soon, but this is solely because I was followed/propositioned/etc etc the entire time I was there even though dressed very conservatively, etc and am still a little peeved about how I was treated as a single woman- but that issue is very different than safety in my mind.) If I were married and had a family trip to take - I would definitely have no problem taking my kids there though.

1. Do you consider Egypt to be an "safe" destination? ABSOLUTELY. AT LEAST AS SAFE AS ANY AMERICAN OR EUROPEAN CITY OF EVEN A FRACTION OF THE SIZE.

2. Would you be comfortable taking your children to Egypt on holiday?
IF I HAD SOME I WOULD

3. Do the guards at the sites, hotels, and with tour groups frighten you or comfort you or do you just "accept" them and not worry about it?
I ACCEPT THEM. THEY ARE USUALLY FINE. SOMETIMES ANNOYING, BUT NEVER FRIGHTENING.

4. Have you ever had a guard "aim" a gun at you or have you ever felt "threatened" by an Egyptian guard?
HA! YOU'RE KIDDING? RIGHT? NO! WELL MAYBE BACK WHEN I WAS NEW AND DIDN'T UNDERSTAND THE STRUCTURE OF POWER HERE. THEY HAVE NEVER AIMED A GUN AT ME THOUGH, NO.

5. Do feel that people who travel to Egypt or take their families to Egypt are being irresponsible?
ABSOLUTELY NOT. THEY ARE TRYING TO INTRODUCE THEIR CHILDREN TO MORE THAN THE 4 WALLS OF THEIR BEDROOMS AND A TV SCREEN.

6. Do the roadblocks/checkpoints that exist on some of the major roads in Egypt bother you?
BOTHER = ANNOY? YES. BOTHER = FRIGHTEN? NO.

7. If you've been - would you have any qualms about going back?
MY CATS ARE HERE, WHEN EVER I GO, I HAVE TO COME BACK.

I'm sorry you won't be there -- you're about as close to someone I know in Baku as anyone!

Anyway, the Lonely Planet to Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia doesn't come out until May, so I'm not going to do a lot of research. But, I'd welcome any recommendations on restaurants featuring Azeri cuisine. Also, do you know anything about the gas flames that are on fire outside Baku (something like a temple that has naturally fed gas flames). I saw it on a TV show (maybe one of Michael Palin's shows) and it looks interesting.

PS -- The Old City Inn is terrible in responding to emails (much worse than hotels in Easter Island and Bora Bora, who are in the middle of the ocean and respond in one day).

Michael - I need to check my files - but I think Dh has GPS points for the eternal fires. Would that help? We probably also have directions/GPS points for the mud volcanoes south of Baku (really cool) and some of the other neat spots north of here in the mountains.

I am also sorry that I won't be here!!! I had such a great time meeting the ladies in Cairo - I was really looking forward to showing you around Baku. I will check into good places for Azeri cuisine (not my fav - so I have to ask!) and next time I am in the Old City, I will go by the hotel and check on your reservation. What are your dates?

To everyone who has responded -thank you!!! I love Egypt and I just hate to see people "trashing" it!!!!

People trash that which they do not know -- my hunch is that most of those who have an unfavorable view of Egypt's safety situation have not visited and will never visit.

One of the people "trashing" it the most was someone who has spent a long (and "cheap&quot holiday at a hotel in Safaga. Evidently it was a very bad experience, but the poster never went anywhere else (having been to Egypt many years before) and is basing his whole opinion on this one bad experience.

For me - Safaga is NOT a major tourist/expat destination, so I just don't think it is representative of the rest of the country.

Well, I wouldn't ask someone who only visited Tijuana to comment on Mexico, nor someone who only visited Orlando to comment on the US, so I wouldn't place much value on the opinion of someone who's only visited Safaga (I'm fairly well traveled, including three visits to Egypt, and I had not heard of Safaga, nor seen its name in print, until I read your post).

Safaga is south of Hurghada and north of Al Quesir. From what I know - it is a stop of some of the Red Sea cruises - which use it as a stop to take people on a day trip to Luxor.

Personally -I don't know anyone who has gone.

Grcxx3 - Egypt has been a dream of mine all my life. I just can't talk my husband into going, so we are going to Tanzania & Kenya in Sept. instead. (please don't laugh - I refuse to cancel or worry) I will certainly show this post to my husband, maybe, just maybe... I'll just go with a tour group and they will match me up with a roomy!

Thank you all for posting your experiences, it is encouraging.

SD

SD -

We went to Tanz/Kenya year ago. LOVED IT!!! Sent my older son there on a school trip in September and he had a blast.

ENJOY!!!

sandi - you're a gem!!!! Thanks!

Oh, gee! I'm so sorry you're getting blasted for being so RIGHT!

"To me - the Egyptian people I met and got to know are some of the warmest, friendliest, most welcoming people I have ever met. Yes - there were a few "jerks" - but those exist everywhere!!!! "

I agree with you completely. I've been to Egypt 7 times, all of the time spent at small towns on the Sinai and at St. Catherine's and in Cairo. I wouldn't keep going back if I didn't feel safe or so warmly welcomed. As much as I love Paris, my favorite haunts are in the Middle East so far. Perhaps it's the hospitality thing that is such a big part of the culture.

I, too, know so many people who shake in their skin at anything ever-so-slightly different than what they've grown up with and known all their lives. It's sad really. But these are also the folks who vote. That's really scary!

-doo

it's late here ...in the middle of nowhere....so I"m going to bed.

Thanks to everyone for adding support to my beliefs!!!

I've been glad to read this exchange as well as the other that was wrongly posted in the Europe forum. My best friend is going to Egypt on her honeymoon and I've been lurking on Egypt threads to help her gather information. Anyway, just wanted to say thanks to everyone for participating and sharing your honest thoughts and experiences.

I agree 100 % with Grcxx3.

I would go back to Egypt in a heartbeat.

In fact when I did my Trip Report, I specifically mentioned how safe it was in Egypt.

I have two lady friends going in mid April and they are coming two days earlier before their tour , so that Debbie can take them to Alexandria and tour them about Cairo.

I keep telling them that it is very safe so that if you want to walk along the Nile Corniche ( at night)then go right ahead.

There was not one place or area that I went to in Egypt ,where I ever felt unsafe.

Yes, at Queen Hatshepsut's Temple I did know about what happened in 1997....it never bothered me in the least.

You are correct in everything you say about Egypt Grcxx3.

Yes,sorry that I was not able to meet you three ladies .!
Thanks for drinking the toast to me AND for sending me the bill

Did you have to drink the most expensive stuff.!!!

Percy

My current response to people who are scared for me is to tell them to count up the number of dead/injured in US mass killings at schools, work places, & malls and compare to # of people killed in Egyptian bombings over an equivalent period.