Hurghada holiday

went to Sharm el-Sheikh last year. what can I tell you:
- book a decent hotel. mine was a 4 star hotel when booking online, turned out to be a 3 star. Conditions were not bad but food was very limited.
- they had ATMs that also converted other currencies into their own currency. But if you have a free withdrawal card as I do, I would just withdraw money in their own currency. There were ATM's in the airport and at the hotel lobby.
- for activities I bought online from either getyourguide.co.uk/ or tripadvisor.co.uk/ but there are also travel agents in the hotel lobby or walking on the beach which have similar prices. Expect to be a bit pushy.
- for tips, again, withdraw in their own currency and leave them notes. They can't change coins if you leave them euros or british pounds. At the moment 1 GBP is 37 Egyptian pounds so I used to leave them 50-60 Egyptian pounds in the room for room service or after we ate at the restaurant.
- don't drink tap water, don't even brush your teeth with it.
- luckily my hotel had free wifi, wasn't amazing, but at least it was free in the room.
- at the airport expect to pay a visa which if I remember right was 25 dollars per person.
- everyone will expect a tip, tour guides, hotel, restaurant, etc. Don't get pushed as they will try to sell you a lot of crap for a lot of money. A couple paid 10 euros for a a4 picture printed on a inkjet printer on regular paper.
- i went in the desert with the quad bikes twice... very fun... but be careful as the bikes were not in good condition, mine was steering constantly left. I almost tipped a couple of times when I hit the accelerator. Had to hold the handle bars to a side to go in a straight line.
- went parasailing ..was fun..paid for pictures. went camel ride... hold tight if you don't want to fall down... paid the guy with the camel a 5er as tip. went in the desert and had tea and smoked shisha ...they charged me equivalent to 20 gbp which was a rip off. Went on the glass boat and saw the reef ..very nice.. didn't go diving or other activities
- overall was a good experience... weather was amazing.. don't forget high SPF sunscream and don't forget to use it everywhere. I got my feet burnt in the first 2 days by the sun.
- bring anti diarrhoea medicine with you, you might need it. Mosquito repellent.
- expect long ques at the airport... when we left they checked us and our baggage around 4 times.
- you'll be amazed by the highways they have and the way they drive

ooh.. regarding cairo... we didn't go but we talked with a couple that went visiting Cairo and they said it looked so dirty ....poverty everywhere.. rubbish flying everywhere. looked like a warzone (edited)

I always take US $ (singles and fives) for tips, you used to have to order them in but last few years they seem to carry them in stock.
The shops are happy to take £, € and $.
In regard to pound coins you'll often get asked to swap them for notes at the end of your holiday especially if you've been polite and talked to your room attendant or barman. I usually take £50 in notes to swap at the end to help them out.
Tip little and often to get best service, don't wait till end.
You can easily fly up to Cairo and back to visit for the day. You can book before you go or when you get there.
You can also do overnight on coach but you're looking at a 36 hour round-trip and takes a massive chunk out of your holiday.
Visa you can do online before you go or at airport when you get there. You need one for Hurghada, it's Sharm that's excempt. visa2egypt.gov.eg/eVi…CFV