Leaving for Egypt in one week, so excited! I am trying to be culturally sensitive but am having a hard time packing! I understand while in Cairo that women should wear long pants and long sleeves. However, I would like to wear sandals in the evenings....at which point my ankles will be showing. Is this something I need to be concerned with?

On a Nile cruise I understand that more "touristy" attire is acceptable. Does that mean while touring the temples and sites when the boat docks as well? Are capri pants and t-shits acceptable? Can my husband wear shorts while on the cruise portion of our journey?

Thanks!

You do not need to wear long pants and long sleeves. Skirts are fine and any shirt is fine if it covers the shoulders/upper arm.

Sandals are fine. It's Egypt, not Saudi.

On the cruise, capris and t-shirts are fine and shorts for your husband are also okay.'

Have a great trip!

Ankles! Goodness! Yeh, at Grcxx3, this isn't Saudi!

You don't have to be covered head-to-toe, skirt, capris, shirt with sleeves are fine in Cairo. Same while on cruise, where even long walking shorts are fine... it does get quite hot in Upper Egypt (Luxor, Aswan, Abu Simbel).

So too are sandals okay at night, but know that if not eating at your hotel, the streets are uneven, as well as dirty... something to consider. Do have comfy shoes for daytime touring.

Remember sun protection for any exposed skin, a wide brimmed hat and have water with all the time while sightseeing; available at reasonable rates.

As I was instructed here, "no shoulders, no breasts, no knees", so I wore capris or long skirts, short-sleeve shirts, and yes, sandals.

no butts (cheeks or cracks), no tummies, no thighs, no underwear straps - bra or thong

It amazed me the number of women who did not do a bit of "research" prior to their Egyptian trip. I dressed conservatively in 3/4 cotton pants and short sleeve shirts. They were just fine. I wore sandals or thongs, except at sandy sights (pyramids, valley of the kings etc) where I wore runners. There were large numbers of women in very short skirts, see though or tight fitting shirts and skimpy shorts that, if one bent over in, would show a hint of butt cheek.

MissGreen - use the word THONG carefully. We assume you meant the kind you use on your feet, but you might want to clarify.

<<It amazed me the number of women who did not do a bit of "research" prior to their Egyptian trip.>>

Or...simply didn't care.

I've also heard some say such things as "I paid a lot of money to come on this trip. I'll dress the way I want to dress."

How sensitive, ey?

I've mentioned before that I saw a woman at the Great Pyramids in a see-through bathing suit coverup with a bathing suit underneath.

My own 20-something kids did not follow the "rules" as closely as I did --- the girls wore tank tops with longish skirts.

None of this is about "can't" (in fact, our Lady Egypt tour rep outright told us we can wear whatever we want, because we're tourists), to me it's about respect.

Yep.. thongs on your feet!! Why doesn't everyone call them thongs. Is it only Aussies that call them thongs... does everyone else call them flip flops?

I called them thongs when I was a kid. Then the "thong" got coopted by the underwear industry. So now those foot thingies are forever "flip flops" (trust me, that's the only kind of thong I'm wearing )

Yes, you can probably wear anything you want, but respect is the key. Also if you care if other people respect YOU, YOU might want to wear something a little less risque.

I think LE guides and other company guides (particularly the male guides) are 1) shy to tell a woman to go put on more cloths, 2) don't mind looking at her themselves if she is wearing something skimpy and 3) wouldn't want to have an unhappy customer on their hand when it comes to tip time.... ergo - wear whatever you like. LOL

<<if you care if other people respect YOU, YOU might want to wear something a little less risque.>>

Agreed. Women who choose NOT to follow "Debbie's Rule" (no shoulders, no breasts, no knees) have a hard time earning the respect of the Egyptian people. The men might stare, and smile, and say it's okay - but it will just continue the "belief" that western women are immoral.

<<<Why doesn't everyone call them thongs. Is it only Aussies that call them thongs... does everyone else call them flip flops?>>>

Because thongs are skimpy underwear. To avoid confusion, thongs became flip flops.


Kch, no worries. It's excellent that you're concerned and wish to be respectful, but you'll be fine with capris and short sleeve shirts. I was there last December and generally wore jeans and t shirts and was fine. Many women wore capris and didn't get any odd looks from the locals. I often wore a very lightweight long sleeve shirt over, but that was simply to block the sun and not for modesty.

Iowa.. us aussies call thong underwear G-String... Thongs are not skimpy underwear to us! lol

This may sound like an odd question, but are there any specific colors of clothing that would be considered offensive or disrespectful to wear in Egypt?

No problem with colors....you'll see them all!!!!

As you can see from this picture, color is not an issue!

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo...eat=directlink

Capri's were fine. But---on our cruise ship my husband could not wear shorts to dinner. Luckily I had packed a few pair of long pants. During the day shorts were fine for him & sandles fine for me.