How it works:
- Version 1: unofficial guides will ask to check your ticket, not return it and then proclaim themselves as your guide. You will be brought on a low quality tour (little information, not to all places promised) and an inflated fee will be demanded.
- Version 2: some also offer simple, unsolicited help, like pointing to a direction or offering to take a photo then ask for a tip (baksheesh in Arabic).
- Version 3: there are also fake guards who ask to check your ticket, accuse you of an offence and not return it until you pay a fine.
- Version 4: some fake guards will hold keys pretending to unlock an already opened tomb or allowing you to access a supposedly private path and then ask for a tip.
- Version 5: price quote scams.
Places to beware:
- Cairo: Citadel, Egyptian Antiquities Museum, Gizeh Plateau
- Giza: Pyramids of Giza, Great Sphinx, Pyramid of Djoser, Saqqara (Sakkara) Pyramids, The Grand Egyptian Museum, Khafre’s Pyramid, Great Pyramid of Cheops (Khufu)
- Luxor: Temple of Karnak, Luxor Temple, Valley of the Kings, Temple of Medinat Habu, Valley of the Nobles
What to do:
- Only show your ticket at official checkpoints and do not let go while doing so. Also, get a licensed, reputable guide:
- Offline operators: ask – is the operator licensed? Is there a website, office and working phone number? Are there real online reviews? What does the price cover – is it too cheap?
- Online platforms: GetYourGuide (leading day tour platform globally) also has many popular tours (e.g. Hurghada swimming with dolphins, desert safari by quad bike, Valley of the Kings day trip, etc), or check out this page for the best tours in Egypt.