Trains
Virtually all trains depart from Ramses Station ( Mahatat Ramses), a cavernous beehive seemingly designed to bemuse. Almost all trains to points south halt at Giza Station 15min after leaving Ramses.

Inter-city buses
Inter-city buses reach most parts of Egypt, making equal or better time than trains. Vehicles range from sleek A/C Superjet buses serving overpriced snacks to battered rattletraps missing panes of glass; a lot of nominally A/C services are actually ventilated by ill-fitting rear doors. Services depart from several terminals, none of which will take bookings over the phone; tickets must be purchased in person. Unless stated otherwise, all services below run daily; however, schedules change, so you shouldn't rely on our timings. Since Cairo's bus terminals are undergoing major re-structuring, don't rely on them staying in the same place either - ask as many people as possible, and take the majority decision. If in doubt, the Turgoman Garage should be the first place to enquire, although the least expensive (and least comfortable) buses start from the Ahmed Helmi Terminal . You can usually only get information on the spot, but wherever possible we've listed telephone numbers; whether you can get hold of someone who speaks English is of course another matter. As with most things in Egypt, persevere and you'll get there in the end.

International buses
International buses are highly vulnerable to political upheavals, so none of the schedules and fares mentioned below can be taken for granted - double-check everything, including the availability of foreign visas.

Of most interest to tourists are the services to Tel Aviv and Jerusalem - an 11-12hr journey via El-Arish and Rafah, skirting most of the Gaza Strip. Travco (13 Sharia Mahmoud Azmi, near the Marriott Hotel, Zamalek; daily 9am-4pm; Ramadan 9am-3.30pm; tel 340-4493) runs a service to both cities, departing from the Cairo Sheraton in Dokki at 5.30am (daily except Sat; £E120 one-way, £E160 return). Tickets are also available from Spring Tours (11 Sharia Talaat Harb; tel 393-2573) and Misr Travel (7 Sharia Talaat Harb; tel 393-0201). Note that at the border you'll be stung for £E17 departure tax as well as £E10 for the shuttle bus from the Egyptian immigration hall to the Israeli one.

Less well known are the Superjet services to Jordan , Syria , Saudi Arabia and Libya from Midan Almaza in Heliopolis (take minibus #39 to the end of the line). Tickets can be bought from their office here (tel 290-9017). There are departures for Amman (3 weekly; 20hr; US$67 including ferry crossing), Damascus (1 weekly service; 20hr; US$80), and Tripoli (daily; 30hr; US$86) via Benghazi (18hr; US$68). Note that these services may run from Turgoman Garage in the future.

Various destinations in the Gulf and Libya can be reached from Sinai Bus Terminal via Nuweiba-Aqaba: for Kuwait , Jeddah and Riyadh , contact the East Delta Bus Co (tel 419-8503), who also run daily services to Benghazi and Tripoli (£E100 & £E180). There are also plusher A/C buses to Benghazi (daily; 16hr; £E120), leaving from Midan Ataba. Buy tickets from Hebton Misr Travel (tel 590-0963), which also runs cheaper service taxis to the same destinations.

 

Inter-city service taxis
If you don't mind a slightly cramped and definitely hair-raising journey, service taxis (and their slightly cheaper relatives the service minibuses) are usually the fastest way to reach a host of destinations. Their biggest advantage is that they leave as soon as they're full; just turn up, and you'll probably be away in 15min (morning and late afternoon are prime times).

Drivers drum up custom by shouting out their destinations; anybody can point you towards the right taxi(s) for your destination. Prices are posted in Arabic on the windscreen; fares to specific destinations are detailed in subsequent chapters, but generally work out 20-30 percent above the bus fare. Watch what Egyptians pay and you can hardly go wrong. If you're alighting halfway (for example, at Wadi Natrun, along the Desert Road to Alex), it's normal to pay the full fare.

The Koulali and Ahmed Helmi terminals serve the Delta and Canal Zone , Alexandria and the Mediterranean coast (including El-Arish), the Red Sea Coast down to Hurghada and the Nile Valley as far south as Minya (5hr) or Assyut (6hr), from where there are connections further south. If in doubt about which depot to go to, try Ahmed Helmi first. A third terminal on Midan Giza serves the Fayoum (£E6); service taxis to El-Badrashein (for Saqqara) and Dahshur depart from Giza Station nearby; while at least one vehicle a day departs from the Wahia Café , 28 Sharia Qadry, in Saiyida Zeinab, bound for the desert oasis of Bahariya (£E15).

 

International service taxis
Amazingly, there are also international service taxis to neighbouring countries. Hebton Misr Travel (between Midan Ataba and Midan Opera, in the block behind the multistorey car park; tel 591-9124) arranges seats on cars bound for Benghazi (18hr; £E80) and Tripoli (36hr; £E120). The taxis leave from in front of the booking office. The same firm also runs Superjet buses to Benghazi. It is also possible to get to Palestine and Israel by service taxi in stages, by taking one from Midan Ramses to the border at Rafah, then to Khan Yunis, Gaza and finally Jaffa (a suburb of Tel Aviv). If you do this, you will need to set out early to

 avoid being stranded at Khan Yunis.

Domestic flights
EgyptAir (for information tel 245-0260) flies 2-5 times a day to Aswan, Luxor, Hurghada, Sharm el-Sheikh and Alexandria (the maximum number of flights a day in the winter), and daily to Abu Simbel (return flight compulsory). Over the summer there are also three flights a week to El-Arish. Its Cairo offices (generally open daily except Fri 8am-5pm) include: 6 Sharia Adly (tel 390-0999); 9 Sharia Talaat Harb (tel 393-2836); Nile Hilton (daily till 8pm; tel 579-3049); Cairo Sheraton, Dokki (tel 348-8630); Zamalek Club Fence, 26th July Street (tel 305-1431); and 22 Sharia Ibrahim al-Lakani, Heliopolis (tel 290-8453).

International flights
Many airlines make Cairo a stopover between the Near and Far East, or between Europe and sub-Saharan Africa, ensuring a competitive market in fares, student and youth discounts - but also heavy demand for flights. Don't leave buying tickets until the last moment. Especially during August, you should book weeks in advance on Eastern European airlines (which often have the cheapest flights to Turkey, Greece and Western Europe) or for popular long-haul destinations like Nairobi, Bangkok and Delhi.

All reservations should be reconfirmed 72 hours before departure. Also check which terminal you are flying from - most Western airlines use Terminal 2 , the "new airport" ( Al-mattar gadid). Rather than rely on buses or minibuses, it's safer to take a taxi.

 

Boats - Nile cruises and international lines
Although luxury cruises operated by the Hilton, Sheraton and Mena House Oberoi remain prohibitively expensive, budget travellers may consider less ritzy boats run by agencies such as Eastmar Tours (in the passage of 13 Sharia Qasr el-Nil; tel 574-5024), which charges - depending on season - US$40-65 a night per person for a 4- to 7-night cruise. Be aware, however, that better deals could well be available from local agents in either Luxor or Aswan.