Short answer: On the ground in Egypt, plan on roughly EGP 1,200–2,750 (about $25–55) per person per day on a hostel-and-koshary budget, EGP 3,000–6,350 (about $55–120) in a mid-range hotel shared by two with a couple of big sights a day, and from about EGP 6,200–14,350 (about $120–275) for a five-star hotel, restaurant dinners and premium tickets. A week costs roughly EGP 8,400–19,250 ($160–370) on a budget, EGP 21,000–44,450 ($400–850) mid-range and from about EGP 43,400 ($830) in comfort, before flights, the visa and any Nile cruise.
Egypt is one of the cheapest places in the world to travel, and its greatest sights are priced for foreign visitors at levels that are still modest by world standards. Your money goes furthest on food, local transport and hotels, while monument tickets are the line that adds up fastest. This guide breaks it all down with official prices from Egypt’s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, the Cairo Metro and the visa portal, so you can build a realistic budget for your trip to Egypt. Dollar prices are rounded at about EGP 52.3 to the US dollar, the Central Bank of Egypt’s rate in early October 2026; use our Money exchange tool for today’s rate.
Egypt daily costs at a glance
These example days are built from the sourced prices further down this page: one person, one sightseeing day in Cairo, Giza or Luxor. They leave out flights, the visa, domestic flights, sleeper trains, Nile cruises and shopping.
| Per person, per day | Budget | Mid-range | Comfort |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bed | Hostel dorm or basic room, $10–25: EGP 520–1,310 | Half of a 3- to 4-star double at $40–120: EGP 1,050–3,140 | Half of a five-star room at $80–300: EGP 2,090–7,850 |
| Food | Koshary, street food and one café lunch: EGP 400–600 | Restaurant lunch and dinner, coffee: EGP 1,100–1,400 | Hotel and restaurant dining with drinks: EGP 2,000–3,000 |
| Local transport | Metro and a short ride: EGP 50–150 | Taxis or ride-hailing: EGP 150–300 | Taxis or a driver for the day: EGP 400–800 |
| Sights | One site ticket: EGP 220–700 | Two big tickets: EGP 700–1,500 | Big tickets plus tomb or pyramid interiors: EGP 1,700–2,700 |
| Total | About EGP 1,200–2,750 ($25–55) | About EGP 3,000–6,350 ($55–120) | From about EGP 6,200–14,350 ($120–275) |
Ticket and metro prices are official; hotel and meal prices are typical 2026 figures from travel guides, booking-site rate samples and a price survey, and many Egyptian hotels quote foreigners in US dollars. Treat them as typical ranges, not quotes.
What visitors actually spend in Egypt
Egypt’s government tracks average tourist spending per night. According to official figures reported in the national development plan and the Egyptian press, visitors spent about $93 per tourist night in fiscal year 2024 (across 164.4 million tourist nights), and about $97 per night in fiscal 2024/25, when tourists stayed an average of 10.5 nights. That puts a typical ten-night trip at roughly $1,000 on the ground, flights excluded, close to our mid-range example day. The averages include package holidays at Red Sea resorts such as Hurghada and Sharm El Sheikh, where a lot of the spending is prepaid. Tourism is growing fast: the Central Bank of Egypt reported tourism receipts of about $10.2 billion for July to December 2025, 17.3% more than a year earlier.
On our Travel costs by country scale, Egypt scores 14 for travel prices (hotels, restaurants and transport) against 100 for the United States, one of the lowest scores of any country: in plain words, a day of hotels, meals and rides costs roughly a seventh of what it would at home. Monument tickets for foreigners are the exception, as they are set much higher than local prices.
Accommodation costs
Egypt has rooms for every budget. 2026 travel guides put a hostel dorm bed in central Cairo at roughly $5–25 a night, comfortable 3- and 4-star hotels at about $40–120 for a double, and guesthouses with pyramid views in Giza at around $50–70 with breakfast. At the top end, a September 2026 sample of live rates for Cairo’s ten most in-demand hotels, all five-star and most on the Nile, ranged from $79 to $307 a night for two, taxes included; the most famous riverfront hotels charge more in peak season.
October to April is the main season in Cairo, Luxor and Aswan, so rates are highest then, while the Red Sea resorts are busy for longer. Many travelers between Luxor and Aswan sleep on a Nile cruise boat for three or four nights instead of a hotel; prices vary widely by boat and season, so compare what is included (meals, guided visits, entry tickets).
Food and drink costs
Eating in Egypt is cheap. A bowl of koshary, the national dish of rice, lentils, pasta and fried onions, costs roughly EGP 40–80 at well-known spots, according to 2026 food guides. An October 2026 price survey for Cairo puts a restaurant lunch at about EGP 250, a three-course dinner at about EGP 750 per person, a fast-food meal at about EGP 310, a cappuccino at about EGP 93 and a local beer at about EGP 77.
Restaurant bills often add a service charge and 14% VAT on top of menu prices, especially in tourist restaurants and hotels, so read the menu’s small print. Alcohol is sold in hotels, bars and some restaurants but not everywhere, and it costs much more in hotel bars.
Getting around: metro, taxis, trains and flights
- Cairo Metro: EGP 10 for up to 9 stations, 12 for up to 16, 15 for up to 23 and 20 for up to 39 stations (Lines 1–3, since March 2026). A rechargeable contactless card costs EGP 80.
- Taxis and ride-hailing: the October 2026 price survey puts a Cairo taxi at about EGP 20 to start plus about EGP 10 per kilometer. Ride-hailing apps are popular because the price is agreed in advance.
- Sleeper train: the overnight sleeper from Cairo and Giza reaches Luxor and Aswan the next morning, with dinner and breakfast in two-berth cabins; foreign travelers pay in US dollars, so check the current fare when you book.
- Domestic flights: the fastest way between Cairo, Luxor, Aswan and the Red Sea; fares change with demand.
Our Egypt itinerary shows how to link Cairo, Luxor, Aswan and the coast by train, plane or cruise, and how many nights to give each.
Sightseeing fees: the official ticket prices
Monument tickets are the biggest daily cost for most visitors. Official foreign adult prices on the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities’ ticket platform, as of October 2026:
| Site | Foreign adult ticket |
|---|---|
| Giza Pyramids plateau (area only) | EGP 700 |
| Great Pyramid interior | EGP 1,000 extra |
| Egyptian Museum, Tahrir Square | EGP 550 |
| National Museum of Egyptian Civilization | EGP 550 |
| Saqqara | EGP 600 |
| Karnak Temple, Luxor | EGP 600 |
| Valley of the Kings (usually three tombs) | EGP 750; Tutankhamun’s tomb EGP 700 extra |
| Temple of Hatshepsut | EGP 440 |
| Philae Temple, Aswan | EGP 550 (boat extra) |
| Abu Simbel | EGP 822 (EGP 1,272 on the sun festival days, 22 February and 22 October) |
| Citadel of Qaitbay, Alexandria | EGP 200 |
Students up to 24 with a valid student card get reduced prices at many sites, children under 6 enter free, and phone photography is free. Tickets are sold on the official platform, its app, self-service kiosks and site counters, and Visa and Mastercard are accepted on all channels. The Grand Egyptian Museum near the pyramids sells timed tickets only on its own website, and it has announced a price rise for foreign visitors from 1 November 2026, so check the current price there. For the best order to see the sights, read our top places to visit in Egypt.
Visa and entry fees
- e-Visa: $30 for a single-entry tourist visa and $65 for multiple entry, through the official Egypt e-Visa portal of the Ministry of Interior; apply at least seven days before you travel. Nationalities eligible include the US, Canada, the UK, EU countries and Australia.
- Visa on arrival: $30 in cash at airport kiosks for eligible nationalities; at Cairo airport a digital visa on arrival costs $36 including a $6 fee, paid by card.
- Red Sea only: visitors flying into Sharm El Sheikh and staying up to 15 days in the South Sinai resorts, such as Dahab, can get a free entry stamp instead of a visa; it does not cover Cairo or Luxor.
Tipping in Egypt
Tipping, known as baksheesh, is a normal part of daily life in Egypt. Even where a service charge is on the bill, waiters usually expect around 10% extra, and small tips are customary for guides, drivers, hotel porters, cruise crews and the attendants who open tombs or point out the best photo spot. Carry plenty of small notes for this. Our tip calculator helps you work out restaurant tips in pounds.
Money-saving tips for Egypt
- Plan your ticket list. Choose which interiors are worth it: the Great Pyramid (EGP 1,000) and Tutankhamun’s tomb (EGP 700) are extras on top of the site tickets.
- Bring a student card if you have one; students up to 24 pay reduced prices at many sites.
- Eat local. A koshary lunch costs a fraction of a hotel restaurant meal.
- Use the Cairo Metro for trips across the city; rides cost EGP 10–20.
- Visit in the shoulder months. Hotel rates are highest from October to April; see our best time to visit Egypt guide to balance heat and prices.
- Avoid the sun festival days at Abu Simbel if you only want to see the temples: the ticket costs EGP 1,272 instead of EGP 822.
To compare Egypt with other countries, see Travel costs by country.
Plan your trip: our free trip planner can build a day-by-day plan for Egypt from our guides, including Cairo, Giza, Luxor, Aswan and Hurghada. Then use the Money exchange tool to turn Egyptian pounds into your own currency, and the Destination weather tool to pick your dates.
Frequently asked questions
How much money do I need for a week in Egypt?
Using the example days above, seven days on the ground cost roughly EGP 8,400–19,250 (about $160–370) per person on a tight budget, EGP 21,000–44,450 (about $400–850) mid-range, and from about EGP 43,400–100,450 (about $830–1,920) in comfort, before flights, the $30 visa, domestic flights and any Nile cruise. Official figures put average spending at about $97 per tourist night in 2024/25.
Is Egypt expensive?
No. Egypt scores 14 for travel prices on our scale, against 100 for the US, so hotels, food and transport are very cheap. The main costs are the foreigners’ monument tickets, such as EGP 700 for the Giza plateau and EGP 750 for the Valley of the Kings, plus tips.
Do I need cash in Egypt?
Yes, for tips, street food, small shops and some taxis. Monument tickets can be paid by Visa or Mastercard on every official channel, and hotels and larger restaurants take cards. You can bring up to EGP 5,000 in Egyptian pounds and must declare foreign currency over $10,000.
How much is the Egypt tourist visa?
A single-entry e-Visa costs $30 and a multiple-entry e-Visa $65 on the official portal. Visa on arrival costs $30 in cash at airport kiosks, or $36 by card for the digital visa on arrival at Cairo airport.
What is the cheapest month to visit Egypt?
The hot summer months, roughly May to September, are the low season for Cairo, Luxor and Aswan, so hotels there are cheaper. Sightseeing in the heat is tiring, though, so many travelers choose the edges of the main season instead; monument ticket prices are the same all year, apart from Abu Simbel’s sun festival days.
How much does it cost to see the Pyramids of Giza?
The Giza plateau ticket costs EGP 700 (about $13) for a foreign adult and covers the area around the pyramids and the Sphinx. Going inside the Great Pyramid costs EGP 1,000 extra. The Grand Egyptian Museum nearby has its own timed tickets, sold only on its official website, and a budget traveler can see the plateau and the Egyptian Museum (EGP 550) for EGP 1,250 in total.