Telephones
The simple rule is, find out how much before making the call, any call. For many hotels in Egypt, even local calls will have a charge, and long distance charges back home may vary extensively between different hotels. For three or four star hotels, most of the time everything, including food, drinks in the hotel bar, taxis, will be less expensive then a five star hotel, but telephone charges may be an exception. Some of the budget hotels lack the new, direct dial international phone systems. In fact, of all the three and four star hotels we have visited, only the Hotel Longchamps currently has a modern phone system. Hence, making a direct call to Europe or the Americas may cost two or three times the normal direct dial rate.
These prices, however, have been improved due to the exchange rate. Today, international phone calls are still expensive from Egypt, but not as bad as before, particularly if one uses certain available devices. These include the telephone cards from Telecard Egypt, available in various shops throughout Egypt. Another is a card from Egypt Telecom, which is available only in Egypt Telecom centers. Another good solution is the MENATEL public telephones, which are everywhere in the country For these, one may buy a green telephone card. Of course, there are also many, many internet cafes where one will find set ups for making free (for the cost of an internet session, which is usually very reasonable outside of five star hotels) internet calls. All of these methods will certainly result in much lower pricing for international calls.
However, many long distance carriers have local access numbers that can be dialed. These include AT&T and Sprint among others. These vary and the number is subject to change, so we will not attempt to list the access numbers here. Most hotels will have these numbers and will supply them if asked. If not, call one of the five star hotels such as a Sheraton and ask.
When making these calls, one must either have a calling card with the company, or make a collect call. However, these lines are frequently busy for any specific carrier, so carrying multiple calling cards is not a bad idea. In fact, most of these lines are busy throughout the day. If international phone communications is important, we highly recommend finding a hotel with a direct dial international phone system.
Hotels with direct dial international phone systems are fairly reasonable, though one must remember that calling anywhere from Egypt is inherently costly.
The simple rule is, find out how much before making the call, any call. For many hotels in Egypt, even local calls will have a charge, and long distance charges back home may vary extensively between different hotels. For three or four star hotels, most of the time everything, including food, drinks in the hotel bar, taxis, will be less expensive then a five star hotel, but telephone charges may be an exception. Some of the budget hotels lack the new, direct dial international phone systems. In fact, of all the three and four star hotels we have visited, only the Hotel Longchamps currently has a modern phone system. Hence, making a direct call to Europe or the Americas may cost two or three times the normal direct dial rate.
These prices, however, have been improved due to the exchange rate. Today, international phone calls are still expensive from Egypt, but not as bad as before, particularly if one uses certain available devices. These include the telephone cards from Telecard Egypt, available in various shops throughout Egypt. Another is a card from Egypt Telecom, which is available only in Egypt Telecom centers. Another good solution is the MENATEL public telephones, which are everywhere in the country For these, one may buy a green telephone card. Of course, there are also many, many internet cafes where one will find set ups for making free (for the cost of an internet session, which is usually very reasonable outside of five star hotels) internet calls. All of these methods will certainly result in much lower pricing for international calls.
However, many long distance carriers have local access numbers that can be dialed. These include AT&T and Sprint among others. These vary and the number is subject to change, so we will not attempt to list the access numbers here. Most hotels will have these numbers and will supply them if asked. If not, call one of the five star hotels such as a Sheraton and ask.
When making these calls, one must either have a calling card with the company, or make a collect call. However, these lines are frequently busy for any specific carrier, so carrying multiple calling cards is not a bad idea. In fact, most of these lines are busy throughout the day. If international phone communications is important, we highly recommend finding a hotel with a direct dial international phone system.
Hotels with direct dial international phone systems are fairly reasonable, though one must remember that calling anywhere from Egypt is inherently costly.
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