Several hotel nightclubs offer a programme of dinner with a slightly risqué "Russian Show" and a belly dancer. The best ones are in the Helnan Palestine (June-Sept daily 11pm-4am; £E45 minimum charge) and the Montazah Sheraton (Thurs 11pm-4am; £E105 minimum charge; June-Sept daily pool-side belly dancing, 11pm-2am; £E35); the show in the Hotel Cecil (£E66 minimum charge) is not up to much. Foreigners who turn up at the Crazy Horse inside Athineos on Midan Ramleh are discouraged from entering the nightclub, which is full of prostitutes (10pm-5am; minimum charge £E75). You're better off heading to the Latin-American Show on the terrace of the Salamalek (June-Sept daily 7-11pm; minimum charge £E75), an all-singing, all-dancing affair that also features a DJ.

 

Young Egyptians prefer the kind of discos that exude sweat and Arabic pop from the upper floors of seedy buildings. Unfortunately, they open and close so often that it's hard to be specific about venues - listen out and you might locate one. Punters who aren't in mixed-sex couples may be refused admission to the pricier, Westernized discos in the top hotels, but you could try the Ramada Renaissance 's Black Gold, which gushes from 6pm to 9pm and 11pm to 4am (minimum charge £E25; closed Tues); Aquarius in the Montazah Sheraton from 10.30pm to 2am (£E25 minimum charge, £E43 on Thurs; closed Wed).