Clothing / Climate

Follow all the advice given in the forum & dressed sensibly – Full length bottoms or capris, with modest tops / t-shirts. Half sleeves are not a problem anywhere. In beaches / resorts, you can dress like you would in a beach anywhere else in the world. Sleeveless clothing is quite ok in Cairo….just remember to carry a scarf / stole to throw over your shoulders, for visits to mosques.

All this minimises being stared at or lewd comments being passed. Despite this, you may be stared at, quite openly, everywhere, by both men & women! Don’t take offence……a lot of times, it is just general curiosity.

Check the whether when you go. Even in December, it can be quite hot during the day & cool at night. During the day, use a lot of sun-block, goggles & a cap / hat. You can tan quite a bit despite this. It is cool at night in Aswan, Luxor & Dahab……take something light to cover up. Cairo gets cooler than these places. The desert is the coldest……with temperatures at night hovering around 5 degrees celcius. The wind makes it much colder than 5 degrees in the city.

While climbing Mt.Sinai, layer your clothing. It is freezing at this time of the year, but, a few minutes of climbing & you start to warm up…..layers will allow you to take off warm clothes as you go up. Once you reach the summit, it becomes very cold again. For those planning to climb on a camel, you will feel much colder than the people climbing on foot, as you are not doing anything strenuous….bundle up accordingly.

Sunset, in winter, is at 4.45 or 5 pm….it can be quite disorienting to have the darkness set in so early if you are not used to it.