Banks and Credit Cards
Egyptian banks open Monday to Thursday from 8:30am to 2:00pm and then at night from 5–8pm in winter
and 6–9pm in summer - and some banks will open for a few hours on Saturdays and Sundays. The
foreign banks open Monday to Thursday from 8:30am to 1:00pm and sometimes on Sunday. Almost
invariably government and big business offices are closed on Fridays, although banks at Cairo
airport, the tourist seaports and border crossings from Israel are open 24 hours a day (or
whenever an Egypt tour ship arrives).
Some Egyptian banks have branches in hotels expressly intended to do business with tourists, and also
there are several agencies for American Express and Thomas Cook - it's often quicker for
tourists to do business at these.
US dollars, euros and English sterling notes are easy to exchange almost anywhere - although
again due to forgeries the banks are unhappy about US$100 notes issued before 1992 - and if
they do consider them they must be in mint condition.
There are black market street money changers who will offer rates significantly better than
the banks, but they are probably best avoided as they are very likely to be tricksters with
some downside to the deal that you will not become aware of until after the deal. It is a
good idea to keep all exchange receipts until you are leaving Egypt, just in case of
problems with the legality of your exchanges.
American Express has offices in Cairo and several other cities such as Alexandria, Aswan and
Luxor. They offer the normal services including receiving mail, buying and selling
traveller's cheques in Egyptian pounds, wiring money and cashing personal cheques. Thomas
Cook has offices in several cities also and offers generally the same services.
The well known traveller's cheques will be accepted just about everywhere, especially if the
currency is US dollars or UK pounds. American Express, Visa, MasterCard, JCB and Eurocards
are accepted at various stores and hotels which usually display their preferences.
Credit Cards
Credit cards are accepted at major hotels, restaurants, bigger shops in tourist areas and
airline offices, but not many other places. American Express, MasterCard and Visa are the
likeliest to be accepted. Cash advances on Visa and MasterCard can be obtained at some of
the banks for a 1.5% commission and some other cards charge an international withdrawal fee
– check with your bank before leaving home.
There is a product called Visa TravelMoney, which is a disposable pre-paid debit card that
works in ATMs that accept Visa cards. You set up an account before leaving home and use the
card to draw down funds as required - one of the interesting things about this product is
that you can have multiple cards - get a couple of extra ones in case of loss or theft. For
more information, check the Visa TravelMoney website.
Revised: 8th October 2004
©2004
Other Resources