Quick Summary
- Pay in EGP for almost everything under 500 EGP: tips, taxis, beach snacks, markets (Travelex, 2025)
- Use Visa/Mastercard for hotels, marinas, dive centers; keep cash as the default backup (Wise, 2024)
- Withdraw from bank ATMs and decline DCC; always choose to be charged in EGP (Wise, 2024)
- Plan withdrawals around Egypt's common per-transaction limits of 2,000–3,000 EGP (Wise, 2024)
- Tip modestly but consistently: 10–50 EGP for quick help, 100–300 EGP for half-day crews/guides depending on service and group size (based on 2,300+ verified reviews on Routri, March 2026)
Currency Basics for the Red Sea
Egypt's currency is the Egyptian pound, abbreviated EGP (also written E£; Arabic ج.م) (Travelex, 2025). For travel days in Hurghada, El Gouna, Sharm El Sheikh, and Dahab, EGP is the only currency that reliably works for tips and small transactions without negotiation.
Notes and coins you'll actually use
EGP banknotes run from 25 piastres up to 200 EGP, and coins include 1 EGP plus piastre coins (Travelex, 2025). In practice, the most useful notes for a Red Sea week are 10, 20, 50, 100, and 200 EGP because they match taxi rounding, café bills, and boat gratuity patterns.
Cash vs Card in Hurghada, Sharm El Sheikh, and Dahab
Use cards for high-ticket, trackable spends: hotel folios, dive packages, upscale dining. Use cash for everything with human-to-human service: porters, boat crews, drivers, beach attendants, and small shops.
What usually requires cash
- Taxis and informal drivers, especially short hops
- Beach kiosks, small grocery shops, souks
- Gratuities—tipping is operationally important in Egypt's tourism economy (Egypt Adventures Travel, 2024)
What usually accepts card
- Resort hotels and large restaurants in tourist hubs (Travelex, 2025)
- Dive centers and marinas in Hurghada, Sharm El Sheikh, and Dahab
- Most ATMs accept Visa and Mastercard; American Express and Discover acceptance can be limited (Wise, 2024)
ATMs on the Red Sea Coast
ATMs are easy to find in tourist centers—banks, shopping centres, airports—but plan cash before remote days like long boat trips or desert safaris (Wise, 2024). Bank-branded ATMs near branches have lower failure risk and better cash stocking than standalone machines.
The 4 rules that prevent 90% of money problems
1) Withdraw at bank ATMs near branches, not isolated machines 2) Decline DCC and withdraw in EGP for better rates (Wise, 2024) 3) Expect per-transaction caps of 2,000–3,000 EGP and plan accordingly (Wise, 2024) 4) Avoid airport ATMs unless it's an emergency; they often charge higher fees
ATM fees and what cheap looks like
Some Egyptian ATMs charge a small local fee, typically around 5 EGP, shown before you confirm (Wise, 2024). Your bigger cost is usually your home bank's foreign withdrawal fees, so reduce the number of withdrawals by hitting the 3,000 EGP cap when you can (Wise, 2024).
DCC Explained in One Line
If an ATM or card terminal asks "Charge in GBP/EUR/USD or EGP?", choose EGP and press "No" to currency conversion. That avoids DCC, which typically applies an unfavourable exchange rate (Wise, 2024).
Red Sea Tipping: Practical Amounts That Match Real Service
Tipping in Egypt is part of daily life and a meaningful component of tourism income, so the goal is consistency, not huge single tips (Egypt Adventures Travel, 2024). In the Red Sea, tipping also keeps logistics smooth: boat crews move faster, gear handling is more careful, and transfers run on time.
Tipping currency rules that locals care about
- Tip in EGP whenever possible for usability in daily life (Travelex, 2025; Egypt Adventures Travel, 2024)
- Never tip foreign coins; they can't be exchanged and create friction (Egypt Adventures Travel, 2024)
- Avoid USD $1 bills for tips because they may not be exchangeable locally (Egypt Adventures Travel, 2024)
Tip Menu for Red Sea Trips
Use these as default settings for Hurghada, El Gouna, Sharm El Sheikh, and Dahab. Increase by 50% when service is exceptional, your group is 6+ people, or staff are handling heavy gear like diving equipment or kiteboarding gear.
| Service situation | Standard tip (EGP) | Premium service (EGP) | When to pay | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hotel porter | 50 | 100 | On delivery | Match bag count: +20 EGP per extra heavy bag |
| Housekeeping | 50 | 100 | Daily | Daily beats end-of-stay due to different staff shifts |
| Restaurant server (no service charge) | 10% of bill | 15% of bill | With bill | Cash is clearer than card add-ons |
| Restaurant server (service charge added) | 5% of bill | 10% of bill | With bill | Service charge is often 10–15% (Egypt Adventures Travel, 2024) |
| Boat day crew (snorkel/diving, per guest) | 150 | 300 | End of day | Hand to crew lead or use tip box if provided |
| Private driver (half-day, per car) | 200 | 400 | End of service | Group tip, not per person |
| Guide (half-day, per group up to 5) | 300 | 600 | End of tour | Scaled to Red Sea half-day norms |
Cash Planning for Common Red Sea Day Types
This is the "how much cash should I carry today?" section, calibrated for 2 adults, excluding hotel bills.
| Day type | Cash to carry (EGP) | Tips included (EGP) | Typical cash-only purchases (EGP) | ATM needed? | Why this amount works |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Resort + marina dinner | 800 | 150 | 650 | No | Covers porters, small drinks, taxi rounding |
| Full-day boat trip | 1,800 | 600 | 1,200 | No | Crew tips + onboard extras + marina snacks |
| 2-tank dive day | 2,200 | 700 | 1,500 | No | Higher tip intensity + gear handling |
| Dahab town + Blue Hole day | 1,600 | 500 | 1,100 | Sometimes | Cash-heavy cafés, entry logistics, local transfers |
| Desert safari (quad/jeep) | 1,500 | 400 | 1,100 | No | Guides/drivers + scarf/water + photo add-ons |
| Transfer day (airport + hotel check-in) | 1,200 | 300 | 900 | No | Porters, small meals, SIM/top-ups if needed |
Local Insights from Red Sea Operators
On Red Sea boat days, the crew tip is operational: it impacts how quickly tanks are swapped, gear is rinsed, and wet towels appear when the wind picks up. Put 50 EGP notes in a separate zip pouch so you can tip without flashing a 200 EGP stack on a moving deck (Routri operator workflow, March 2026).
In Dahab, many small cafés and beachfront spots are cash-first even when they display a card sticker; network outages happen and terminals get "temporarily offline" at peak dinner time. Carry 300 EGP specifically earmarked for dinner so you don't burn your tip money (Routri operator observation, March 2026).
At Abu Dabbab near Marsa Alam, the dugong feeds closest to shore before 9am, so early boat departures mean smaller crowds and better sightings—but also mean you need cash ready the night before for early crew tips and marina kiosk breakfast (Routri dive operator insight, March 2026).
In Sharm El Sheikh and Hurghada, ATMs can run out of lower denominations, so you often receive 200 EGP notes. Break them at a supermarket checkout by paying a 40–80 EGP basket with a 200 and requesting change, then re-sort into 10/20/50 bundles for the next 48 hours.
Safety and Money Friction
Use indoor bank ATMs where possible and cover the keypad; this is about avoiding card skimmers anywhere in the world, not Egypt-specific risk. If an ATM offers to do conversion for you, that is DCC—decline and proceed in EGP (Wise, 2024).
Don't use credit cards for cash withdrawals unless you understand cash-advance fees and immediate interest; Wise explicitly warns it's usually more expensive than debit withdrawals (Wise, 2024).
What to Carry: The Red Sea Two-Wallet System
Carry one "spend wallet" for the day and keep the rest locked at the hotel. This prevents over-tipping because you ran out of small notes and only have 200s left.
Day wallet target (solo traveler):
- 6 × 50 EGP = 300 EGP
- 10 × 20 EGP = 200 EGP
- 10 × 10 EGP = 100 EGP
- Total: 600 EGP
- 10 × 50 EGP = 500 EGP
- 10 × 20 EGP = 200 EGP
- 10 × 10 EGP = 100 EGP
- Total: 800 EGP
Sustainable, Fair Tipping
Tip the person who performed the service, in EGP, at the moment the service ends. This is the simplest way to avoid tip pooling confusion and ensures the gratuity reaches staff who are often not visible: deckhands, cleaners, baggage handlers (Egypt Adventures Travel, 2024).
Avoid foreign coins entirely and don't offload leftover change from home currencies; it's not useful locally and creates disposal problems (Egypt Adventures Travel, 2024).
Booking and Logistics
Bring 2 cards, ideally different networks, because ATMs in Egypt generally accept Visa and Mastercard, while other networks may be hit-or-miss (Wise, 2024). For guided days, pre-split tips before pickup: driver tip in one envelope, guide tip in another, and small help notes loose (10/20/50 EGP) so you never need to ask for change mid-tour.
