Some travellers expect to get the cheapest price as a matter of right, never considering things from the locals' standpoint . Hoteliers, felucca captains and salesmen earn good money one day, then little or nothing for ages - even in high season. The children who try to sell you The Egyptian Gazette for ten times its cover price are family breadwinners who tramp the streets till late at night. The hotel touts who swear that your place of choice is closed or dirty know that most hotels in Luxor are half empty - so every guest counts. At no-star hotels , the price depends on how full they are, how many there are of you, and at what time you arrive - the cost per person is negotiable. Be fair and realistic, even if you're on a tight budget. To get a room with a private bath for A?E7-10 per person is a good deal by any standards; trying to force them to go any lower is really taking advantage.

Where such hotels make their money is by charging exorbitant sums for taxi , caleche or donkey tours . Although it's wise not to take the first deal offered, also bear in mind that the lowest price may not necessarily be a good deal: you could end up with someone who's so bad that they have to undercut better guides in order to get any work. The easiest way to spoil your day is to ask what someone else paid; if you're happy with what you've done and can afford it, why worry about what amounts to the price of a cup of tea or coffee back home?

That said, it's best to be forewarned about a few scams. Shopkeepers often ask tourists to read a letter from abroad, which is invariably a pretext to lure you into their shop. Another trick is to ask you to buy duty-free alcohol for their "brother's wedding" - a way of acquiring cheap booze for resale to hotels. If you want to go ahead, fine, but you're entitled to a commission on the deal. Taking commissions is universal practice; tour guides get a percentage of every transaction they facilitate. Finally, foreign women should be wary about holiday romances: gigolos abound in Luxor.

Hissed invitations and whiffs of smoke by the Nile attest to a smoking sub-culture that's stronger in Luxor than anywhere else in Egypt except Dahab. Bango (marijuana) is easy to obtain if you know where to ask, and smoking shouldn't cause any problems if it's done discreetly; several low-budget hotels have a liberal atmosphere in this respect. A packet ( talga) costs A?E15-20, or less if one buys several. Hashish is costlier and usually adulterated with henna. Bango, too, may be cut with molukhiyya (a vegetable), so it's better to buy whole buds, not broken stuff. Caleche drivers are likeliest to sell you rubbish.