For those who enjoy tippling in their room or want a cache for consumption in "dry" parts of Egypt, there are several places which sell alcohol.

 

Downtown liquor stores , run by Greek or Maronite Christians, maintain a low profile; furtive Muslim customers are served at once, with hardly a word exchanged. You'll find Orphanides, opposite the High Court on 26th July Street, and a small shop on the same block, 20m west of Sharia Talaat Harb; Nicolakis, on the corner of Sharia Talaat Harb and Sharia Suq al-Tawfiqia; Gianacus, below the Hotel Claridge at 41 Sharia Talaat Harb; Cava Kasr el-Nil at 24 Sharia Bassiouni. All stock Egyptian beer, wine, zibib, raki, brandy and dubious lookalike brands such as Johnny Wadie Whisky (Red and Black labels) and Gardan's Gin : checking out the windows can be fun. Most are open from mid-afternoon till 8pm, Monday to Friday, and close down entirely during Ramadan and other major Muslim festivals.

Liquor regulations entitle foreigners to buy up to four litres of imported alcohol at duty-free prices within 24 hours of arrival in Egypt, and a further three litres within the next month. To take advantage of this, bring your passport - you'll get a stamp in it saying what you've bought - along to the well-stocked Diplomatic Section of the Egypt Free Store, 500m beyond the Atlas-Zamalek Hotel on Arab League Street in Mohandiseen (daily 10am-3pm), or to the Sheraton in Dokki, or you can save about US$1 on a bottle by going to the shop at the airport.

Beware of Egyptians who accost you in the street asking if you'll buy them some duty-free booze "for my sister's wedding". Buying alcohol for someone else is fine, but under no circumstances should you allow a stranger to be involved in the actual transaction inside the store. The paperwork for any duty-free purchase is filled out in Arabic, and some travellers have discovered on leaving Egypt that a TV or video has been bought duty-free with their passport. Being unable to produce the item for customs officials, they've had to pay duty on it, just as if they'd purchased and then sold it while in Egypt.

With cigarettes available on every corner, only smokers addicted to certain foreign brands need hunt down specialist outlets. Try Carvellis Frères (32 Sharia Talaat Harb), which also sells pipe tobacco, rolling tobacco (100g Drum £E25, 50g Samson £E15) and cigarette papers, and never overcharges. Refilling stalls all over the city can recharge your lighter (even if it's "non-refillable") for 35-50pt, or change flints for 25pt.