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Transport
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Unless you're burdened with luggage or bound for a distant hotel, there's no need to rent a
taxi
or
caleche
(A?E4-5), since Aswan is compact enough to get around on foot. Alternatively,
bicycles
can be rented from shops on Abtal el-Tahrir and Sharia al-Matar for roughly A?E1 an hour, A?E10 per day. However, bikes are virtually useless unless you want to cycle to the Unfinished Obelisk or the High Dam; all the attractions close at hand are reached by river - mostly by felucca.
For better or worse,
feluccas
are inseparable from the Aswan experience. It's wonderfully relaxing to drift downstream while egrets swoop overhead, or tack between rocky islands, but on the downside, it's all too easy to get irked by boatmen who fritter away time before demanding
baksheesh
for an unfulfilled itinerary; or get wearied of the persistent touts along the Corniche. Despite
rates
being fixed by the authorities at A?E18 per boatload for an hour's constant sailing, or A?E40 for a three-hour tour of Elephantine and Kitchener islands and the west bank sites (regardless of the number of passengers), market rules and haggling prevail. If big spenders abound, boatmen will sniff at official rates; if business is slack, they'll undercut each other. Unsurprisingly, prices are highest at the landing stage beneath the luxurious
Old Cataract Hotel. Other useful information
for tourists (each section contains more specific sub-sections): |
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Egypt,
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