Bad Notes on Budget Holidays
Rich people have a rest in Crimea, and poor people in Egypt.
This pattern, illogical at first glance, I deduced on the basis of calculations of the cost of recreation in these regions. The fact that the service on the Crimean coast has changed little since the collapse of the USSR, I think, is known to many. No, in terms of prices, we have long caught up and surpassed the decaying capitalist countries, but no one has changed the level of service...
Therefore, my wife and I fly to warm and hospitable Egypt every year. It has become a good tradition to spend a week of summer in the middle of winter, while receiving a lot of positive emotions, for relatively little money. I’ll make a reservation right away that we have a budget vacation: a ticket is bought last-minute, excursions are taken from agencies on the street, souvenirs in trusted shops and supermarkets in Hurghada.
Preparation for the holiday begins at the end of December, with an eye to the February flight. Summer things are prepared in advance, creams and medicines are bought. Since the end of January, sites with offers of last-minute trips have been studied twice a day, plus acquaintances in agencies have been notified of our plans. In February, a last-minute ticket costs us for two from 500 to 700 dollars. Since we can find out about the departure two days in advance, we don’t take vacations at work (my and my wife’s), but simply get sick for a week (we take sick leave). The hotel usually turns out 3 * (in Sharm there was “Uni Sharm”, in Hurghada “Hor Palace” or “Princess Palace”) for a week. Meals we always take half board (breakfast-dinner), because we are not at the hotel all day (excursions or walking around Hurghada). We always take with us several sets of erotic (namely, erotic, not pornographic) cards, lighters with girls in bathing suits, or any other erotic tinsel. All this is distributed with successful purchases (or before them) in stores, cleaners, security (in one hotel it was impossible to bring anything edible into the room, I had to decide so). But this is so, for sporting interest. Sometimes they changed the lighter for a couple of kilograms of bananas or pomegranates (the cost of a lighter is about 1 pound). Business ; -).
I continue with the fees. We take with us from 500 to 800 USD. Expenses usually look like this: 30 is a visa for two, about 100 is spent on departure in Egyptian duty free for alcohol (we don’t drink it ourselves, purely for gifts), 150-200 for excursions, 50 for souvenirs, the rest for fruits, sweets, travel on Hurghada. Last time we decided to go to Cairo on our own http://blogs.turpravda.com/mannes/25992.html it cost us $200.
A few personal observations.
Check in hotel. We are probably lucky, but we have never paid for a change of number in five trips. We immediately got rooms where everything worked and a normal view from the window. Maybe someone who has specific requirements for the room (view from the window to the sea, a large bath, etc. ) and it makes sense to finance at the reception.
It makes sense for the cleaner to leave 2-5 pounds, but it's even better to leave something that you brought with you - a pack of cigarettes, a chocolate bar or the like. They are human too and will appreciate it. On vacation, we sometimes had minor problems (a light bulb burned out, a tap leaked, a glass was broken) and they were resolved very quickly. This meager amount left to the cleaner will greatly help you with this.
In a restaurant, as a rule, at the entrance and exit there are small boxes with a slot, this is usually to thank the staff (the amount is then proportionally distributed among the restaurant staff). If you liked the food and service, is it really a pity to leave 5 pounds in this box? By the way, when we put a bill there for the first time, there were no Arabs around, and I thought that no one noticed this. But the next day, the waiter was, at least apply to the wound, when I asked for fresh guava, I was confidentially informed that it was not fresh, but juice from the package, and fresh in their restaurant was only strawberry and orange. He called me to the kitchen and did it in front of me (he showed that he was not deceiving). I love omelettes very much, and always left the Arab who fried them for 1 pound, not because it was NECESSARY, but because I liked his work. And when he saw me in a restaurant, he immediately made an omelet the way I like it. All these little things shape the mood on vacation, and you should not neglect them.
Communication with the guide.
A lot depends on what kind of person you meet. But there are a few general rules. Remember, when he is in a hotel, in serious companies the schedule coincides with his actual appearance at the reception. NEVER tell him that you will buy excursions not from him, but elsewhere. By telling him this, you are guaranteed to ruin your relationship with him, since the income from the sale of excursions from guides is the main form of income. There is nothing terrible in a spoiled relationship, but who knows how fate will turn further, maybe you will need something from him...
A lot has been said here, but here are a few tips.
Coral Islands. We always take a lot of fruit on this trip (while you are swimming, there is nothing to do, and your appetite goes wild), an underwater camera, a large bottle of drinking water and towels. Do not forget that every two or three years you need to change the rubber gaskets in the camera (if it is without a box), we didn’t change it, and in the fifth year of life the camera started leaking, and it was kaput, because sea water is very caustic, and service centers not in Hurghada. Drinking water is naturally needed for drinking and obligatory rinsing of the camera after swimming, because if it is not rinsed, then aggressive sea water corrodes the body and precipitates on the lens in the form of salt. Keep in mind that every underwater camera has a depth limit, so keep that in mind when diving.
Motosafari.
You can drive separately only if your girlfriend/wife has driving skills and strong hands. I'm not joking, the Arabs' equipment is in such a bad state that the steering wheel may not turn well, the brake may be practically absent (we were so “lucky” last time) or there may be any other problems. On the road, no one will change the ATV, because there is nothing. The tour is interesting but exhausting.
I did not like the organized trip, why is described above. Please note that after such a trip, you will have half the next day to rest from the trip. It is better to go on your own, but this is purely an amateur.
For the rest of the excursions, I can not advise anything new.
No, we are not talking about standard sets (papyrus, cartouche, figurine). We took something else. We went to the "METRO" (this is near the El Gunna bus station, taxi drivers know). We bought a lot of various sauces (from three to fifteen pounds per bottle), tea (it is very finely ground, quickly brewed), coffee with spices (that's really a specific thing), small bags of guava juice and other exotic fruits, halva (with various impurities), a couple of cans of exotic canned food. Plus, my wife picked up packaged sweets (there are a lot of godchildren, and everyone needs something tasty). All friends and relatives liked these presents very much. Another good gift is a bottle of sand, where words are written from the middle. For example, we congratulated our brother like that, wrote a text to the Arab on a piece of paper, and he reproduced it. This pleasure costs as much as 1 (!!! ) dollar. The inscription is free, but we took 10 bottles and threw him another two dollars on top for neat work. The bottles must be packed when transporting, they are very fragile.
Communication with annoying merchants.
For many, the problem is to calmly walk around the evening Hurghada because of the dominance of traders of everything and everything, who are very intrusive in offering their services and goods. It is useless to say that there is no money, you are in a hurry, then, etc. Sending directly to the sexual journey is also not effective, and the mood deteriorates. Only one method is guaranteed to help: you immediately say a set of words to the running up Arab, a set of words that you invented right there. Ours usually looked like this:
- Hi brother!!!
- Ahrash firmah hazush!
The elongated face of an Arab:
I have never met Arabs who speak Finnish 8-).
- Speak English?
- Know, spik finland!
- Welcome to Egypt!
- Famahmi harabeh!
- Go to the store. . .
- Ihmi paramesmi barthuzar.
In short, you bring him nonsense with a serious face, and he rolls off - he cannot sell anything to you, and you become uninteresting to him. This is not done to mock the Arabs, but to exercise their right to a quiet walk... Whoever thinks that doing this is wrong - no problem, you can waste time every ten meters explaining with especially annoying Arabs. And so they remember you and do not touch you during the next walks.
I can’t say anything about discos and cafes, because, to my shame, I must say that I have never been there, because we have enough entertainment besides this. Breakfast and dinner at the hotel were enough to satisfy, a daytime break was eaten with fruit and ice cream.
Driving around Hurghada.
On the last trip, one significant difference appeared - the buses disappeared for one pound 8-((((. Instead of them, regular buses appeared (they have an inscription - Hurghada transport) for three pounds and a taxi (from Khor Palace to the center ten pounds). Sometimes taxi drivers you could persuade for a dollar for two. Of course, the cost must be negotiated before the trip. By the way, if you agreed on one amount, and the taxi driver starts insisting on another, just ask to stop the taxi and get out without paying anything. The most interesting thing is that we have a taxi a couple of times I don’t understand what’s the point for a taxi driver to drive half the agreed way, demand a double fare, get nothing and leave empty further??? Mysterious Arab soul… If the debate about the price begins upon arrival, just pay the agreed amount, get out and calmly move on, not paying attention to the indignant squeal of the taxi driver. It's all part of the local color. But for a couple consisting of two or more persons only female this option is probably not suitable. Decide for yourself. . .
The above considerations and opinions are my personal opinion, and the choice of behavior and assessment, of course, is yours.
