Getting to Egypt: Hurghada, Sharm el-Sheikh, Cairo and charter flights

Which airport for the beach and which for the museums, how to compare a charter with a scheduled flight and what to check about entry.

For a Red Sea beach holiday people fly to Hurghada (HRG), Sharm el-Sheikh (SSH) or Marsa Alam (RMF). For Cairo, the pyramids and the Nile, they fly to Cairo (CAI). The choice of airport shapes the whole trip: getting from the Red Sea resorts to Cairo takes a long time, and some routes are done by plane or excursion coach.

Charter or scheduled flight

In season many charters fly to Egyptian resorts, selling seats in packages with a hotel, and some flights are scheduled. A charter can be cheaper, but the timetable and refund terms are stricter. A scheduled flight is more flexible on dates and baggage. Compare the final price with baggage, not the fare, and for a package tour ask what is included.

Route and connections

With a connection via Istanbul, Dubai, Doha or other hubs a ticket is sometimes cheaper than a direct one, especially out of season. If the legs are bought separately and the first flight is late, the second airline owes you nothing, so allow a time margin or buy a single ticket. A night arrival can add the cost of a transfer and a hotel.

Before you buy

Entry rules and the visa fee depend on citizenship and change: check on official government sites whether a visa is needed in advance or issued on arrival, not on intermediary sites that add a mark-up. Below is a partner flight card (advertising), and our converter makes it easy to work out the total costs.