Camel in Desert in Egypt
Photograph ©2015 by Brian Cohen.

9 Tips on How to Deal With Aggressive Touts When Visiting Egypt

he country of Egypt has some of the most valuable treasures in the world — the pyramids, the Sphinx, the tombs of Tutankhamun and Nefertiti to name a few — but aggressive touts can easily ruin what can otherwise be an enjoyable and educational experience.

A tout is a person who solicits business or employment in a persistent and annoying manner — and in the case of those in Egypt, they will pester you until you finally relent; and then expect compensation for their typically minimal service which was unwanted in the first place.

Especially due to the decrease in tourism and the economy reeling from political unrest in recent years, touts will do whatever they can to extract money from you — including pretending to be official employees of the establishment where they are working; initially offering you their services for no charge at all and then slowly convincing you to “add on” services for pay as time passes; attempt to sell you objects and pass them off as genuine; and even initiating “small talk” to earn your trust. One common example of small talk can start off with a smile while the tout says “welcome, my friend” and asks you what country are you from originally.

A common tactic amongst touts is to offer you access to areas otherwise closed off to the public; or photographic opportunities where no cameras are allowed. There have even been reports that touts will hold your camera for ransom after taking a photograph of you unless enough of a gratuity is paid to him.

For the most part, I have been very fortunate with touts — although I have paid a few for their “services” with barely a dent in my wallet — but here are 9 tips on how to deal with aggressive touts when visiting Egypt with some of them based on either my personal experiences or witnessing the experiences of others:

1. Do Not Be Afraid to Politely Question Authority

Do not be afraid to politely question authority for your own protection. When I drove up to the site of the pyramids, a man dressed in plain clothes started giving me instructions — such as opening the trunk of my rental car, for example. I hesitated, asking how was I to know that he was indeed a real police officer and not a tout. He insisted that he was a police officer and showed me his credentials — which, of course, were written in Arabic and I could not read them. I was still hesitant. He finally called over a uniformed police officer, who confirmed to me that he was indeed legitimate. Only then did I comply with his requests; and I also believe that he understood my hesitancy, as he laughed about the situation and assured me not to be concerned. Aggressive touts will take opportunities to pretend that they are official authorities to advance their agendas.

2. Say “No, Thank You” in Arabic

Say la shukran — which generally means no thank you in Arabic — as a polite but firm way of declining their services. You might have to say this several times; but this simple tactic usually does work.

3. Speak Another Language

If a tout does not understand you, he will likely not bother you. I started speaking phrases I know in such languages as Japanese and Romanian. Heck — I even started fabricating languages. It was actually quite fun. They “dropped off like flies”, not knowing what to say next. Do not use more common languages such as German, English or French, as they will know phrases in those languages and attempt to use them instead on you.

4. Ignore Them Outright

This is a technique I learned as a native New Yorker where people will approach you on the street to either attempt to sell you something; give you some unwanted brochure on how to get pimples off of your nose hair; or beg for some spare change from you. Ignoring that a tout even exists is incredibly frustrating to them — but it works.

5. Do Not Enter a Secluded Area

Touts wander the secluded areas of tourist attractions such as the pyramids not to outright steal money from you; but rather to ambush you and have you all to themselves to perform their work on you. If this happens, turn around and walk out.

6. Do Not Violate Any Rules

As I pointed out earlier, aggressive touts will take whatever opportunities they can to pretend that they are official authorities to advance their agendas. If you are caught breaking a rule — such as taking a picture where no photography is allowed, for example — a tout will take advantage of that situation and act as an official, first admonishing you before accepting a “bribe” to forget about the incident and let you off easily.

7. Do Not Place Yourself in a Vulnerable Situation

Do not give a tout any items of yours — such as a camera — which he can hold hostage if he does not get what he wants. Do not allow him to take you into a secluded area — such as a construction zone — to show you something “exclusively”; and especially do not allow him to take you into an area which is locked and he has the key. He might not let you out unless you satisfy his demands.

8. Say You Have No Money

Let the tout know that he is wasting his time on you when he approaches you by saying that you have no money; and if he decides to continue providing his “service” even after your refusal, at least you gave him fair warning in advance.

9. Do Not Be “Guilted” Into Giving More

If you do decide that a tout was worthy of his service — rare indeed, but possible — realize that no matter how much you give him, it will never be enough money. He will complain that his service is his only job; how his mother’s dog’s aunt’s father’s second cousin twice removed needs emergency surgery on an ingrown toenail and cannot fund it — and he will reveal all of this after using his mobile telephone, which is the latest model available. If he complains and you are not in an aforementioned vulnerable situation, be firm and walk away. Do not be “guilted” into giving more money. After all, it is your money — not his. He should be appreciative — not ungrateful.

Summary

I am probably missing some tips here — please feel free to add any additional advice and experiences with touts in the Comments section below — but following the advice listed above should give you some peace of mind and reduce at least some the frustration of dealing with annoying and aggressive touts. Just remember, though, that dealing with some aggressive touts is similar to dealing with flies — and when the weather is hot, you will be dealing with persistent flies as well.

Realize that touts are not harmful and present no danger to your safety — but be prepared; keep your guard up; never get yourself into a vulnerable situation; remain skeptical of the claims of potential touts; and never relent to them. Most of all, do not take them seriously. As irritating as they can be, simply shrug them off and accept their attempted advances as part of the experience.

Photograph ©2015 by Brian Cohen.

  1. I don’t think this is particular to Egypt, so a little unfair to pin it only them. Heck, I’m British and I’ve been heckled by worse touts in London!

    Also, I was in Egypt just over a year ago, there were barely any tourists there. I think this post is a shame, as it is putting even more people off visiting this wonderful country. Given the very low numbers of tourists, can you blame those in “periphery” tourism jobs (eg guiding, souvenir shops, camel rides) for trying to maximise their income? We are extremely wealthy to them, and it annoyed me to see tourists arguing over literal pennies over things at places.

    Despite this, I wouldn’t even say the touting in Egypt is that bad, it may have been years ago, but a firm “la shukran” seemed to put most of them off. Definitely experienced more aggressiveness is China, Nigeria, South Africa, Maldives, Italy, London…

    1. This post was not designed to keep tourists away from Egypt, Laura. Rather, it was meant to prepare tourists for the tout experience. Note that nowhere in the article did I attempt to discourage anyone from visiting Egypt.

      In fact, this article is only one of a series of articles I intend to write about my time in Egypt. With the favorable exchange rate, smaller crowds and the relative safety, now is actually an excellent time to visit Egypt.

      I do agree with you that worse touts do exist elsewhere — I loosely referred to New York as an example in the article — but I tailored this article specifically for visiting Egypt, which I would recommend.

      Sadly, tourism is still down, which means that the touts are aggressive when they capture the attention of a tourist; but it ironically can worsen the experience for a person who does not like to be bothered — such as me, for example. There has to be an equitable compromise where a tourist can enjoy what Egypt has to offer and the tout can earn income without the tourist feeling pestered and the tout feeling cheated.

      I have yet to report on the aggressiveness of the touts in Shanghai, who were indeed significantly worse than in Egypt…

  2. i was just in Egypt last week. Great post. I was successful in avoiding most touts, but could have used this beforehand. I agree with last commenter that Egypt is a great place to visit and tourism should be encouraged. However, the touting is the worst, second only to Turkey, that I’ve seen. Thanks for the post, albeit a bit late for me.

    1. Thank you, RJ. I appreciate it…

      …but I must warn both you and Laura that I do have another article in the works whose topic is more cautionary than the touts in Egypt:

      Driving a car in Egypt. Yes, I actually did that and still am doing that.

      Despite that, I promise to post articles which will encourage tourism in Egypt. I am still here right now; and Egypt does have a lot to offer.

  3. I have an upcoming trip planned in Egypt next January (3 days in Cairo, 2 days in Luxor). Thank you for bring awareness to this issue. Looking forward to more posts from you on Egypt.

    One more question. Could you please elaborate on the security situation in Egypt. Are the pyramids in cairo and temples in Luxor safe to visit? Would you recommend a local guide (and where I might find a good one). I would be traveling with my wife and my parents and I think they would feel safe if we could have a guide with our daily trips to help us avoid any danger (should there be any).

    Thanks again.

    1. I can assure you from my personal experiences in Egypt — in Cairo, Luxor and Hurghada and driving in between all of those areas — that there was not one time where I felt unsafe at all, MPT.

      Security at hotel and resort properties mean your baggage will most likely go through a screening device similar to at the airport; and you may likely have to pass through a metal detector. The strictness of the security varies by hotel property. Tourist destinations such as the pyramids, Luxor Temple, Karnak Temple, the Valley of the Kings and other areas I personally visited will have similar security protocols in place.

      There are police checkpoints throughout all of the parts of Egypt which I drove. There are armed military and police officers; but please do not be intimidated by them. Any interaction I have had with them — more to ask questions and information rather than them stopping me — has been pleasant; although sometimes there is a language barrier.

      If you drive a car, you will be asked at lodging and tourist destinations to pop open your trunk; and your vehicle will be scanned throughout with a mirror underneath. The entire check takes perhaps a couple of minutes at the most.

      I did not use a guide while I was in Egypt, so I cannot recommend one. You really do not absolutely need a guide; but it probably would not be a bad idea to have one if you believe you and your family will feel more comfortable.

      I hope that this helps, MPT.

      1. Hi Brian,
        Thank you so much for taking the time for the detailed reply.
        If I have any questions regarding Egypt close in to the travel dates, I might make a few posts again. I am looking forward to reading your blog.

        Thanks again !!
        mpt

  4. Thanks for the post .. I wish I read your article a little earlier .. we just finished 9 day trip to cairo, aswan and luxor .. you are right saying la shukren is a great answer .. they think you know arabic and they fly away .. Egypt is a great place to be but the people were the most aggressive, greedy and desparate people I have ever seen . I have been to many places but this was the worst experience. I want to add few more tips for those who are taveling to Egypt.. always ask the price before hand when taking a taxi, eating in a restaurant stuff like that. We were tricked a bunch of time.. it wasnt even funny .. you may agree on one price and at the end they will ask for more money so conferm 100% before accepting thier service . Second when booking a hotel in a website such as bookjng.com you will see a fine print that say the price is for Egyptians and it won’t take the payment online it tells you to pay when you get there so when you get there they make you add what ever money they want so try to pay when you book rather than pay when you get there .. also always bargen if they say $5 tell them $1 they always call a high number so you will be afraid to bargain..also its sad to say it is very hard to find people whom you can trust, when you ask a question they want to take advantage of you or they want someone else to take advantage you ..it’s sad but we were afraid of asking simple things like direction .. one more thing when they know you are tourist the $5 item cost $10 so don’t be afraid to tell them it’s $5 not $10 .. for example the street food costs 2 pound but when they know you don’t speak Arabic it’s automatically 5pound ..in aswan we went to a restaurant where locals eat and I asked for a price and he said price no problem but I insisted but he kept saying just go in i didnt want to be rude so we went in and we ordered 2 food at the end he gave us a bill for 56pound and we told him to explain the list of prices but the guy appeared to be not understanding the question so some one else saw tge comotion and came to translate , he knew a little English, and asked what’s wrong and I told the guy to explain to me the price the guy saw the bill that was written in Arabic and smiled I told him his face told me I am being cheated but I had no choice but to pay the price and go .. I have so many stories to tell that made my heart sad .. its sad because thier greed does not encourage tourism. Anyway I leave Egypt with a heavy heart.. never to come back again .. pretty place to be but the people take all the fun out of it

  5. Thanks for posting this! I was in Egypt around the same time you were there and I was inundated with touts and their offers of “help”. You hit the nail right on the head in this article!
    Incidentally, I had a client whose brother was a tout in Egypt. This sparked my curiosity and had to ask him questions about his experiences. What he said was pretty interesting.

    1. Touts operate in a much more sophisticated method than most tourists think. Touts are recruited and hired by business owners. When an owner wants a tout there’s a very detailed hiring process. The prospect is usually hired from the educated but lower classes. The ability to speak English and other major languages are prized as you mentioned in your article. Not only that but the tout has to be able to get the attention of a tourist. Often they look for the best-looking, well-dressed men in their 20’s and 30’s. Women aren’t normally hired as touts as they need to ask permission from their fathers, husbands or brothers. Business owners advise the tout to introduce the tourist to them as their “cousin”. Never a friend or a boss. This will make the tourist feel he’s supporting a family and more likely to buy from the shop owner.
    2. Touts are taught to target tourists based on a particular method. The tout will open with a friendly greeting and then immediately ask the tourist where they come from. If the tourist answers with a wealthy country (USA, UK, Norway) the tout will inform the “cousin” and immediately prices offered will be raised substantially. If a “nice” country is answered (Canada, Korea, Japan) the tout will begin a process of “hard selling” the tourist sometimes becoming more and more aggressive. This is followed up with sad stories, offers of cultural experiences or pressure using stereotypes of the tourists’ country. (Canadians are nice and buy from me, Japanese are honourable and always come to my cousin’s shop). This is the basis for the tout’s script while working.
    3. Touts use a “hook” to attract a potential sale from a tourist. Hooks vary wildly from using a fake passport to make the tourist feel the tout is also from out of the country before coming to their “cousin’s” shop. Saying the tout is a “volunteer” for a “tourist office” but is really the business owner’s shop to claiming they can write in ancient hieroglyphics and an offer of a free papyrus gift in exchange for a “donation”. The papyrus is always fake and the donation is never, ever enough. They will ask or demand more money.
    4. Touts will often have a younger woman with them claiming they are their sister and have an impending wedding. They will ask if the tourist will offer to donate to their sister’s wedding. A child’s graduation or a parent’s anniversary is another substitute. Often this is false and is used as an after-sale to attempt to get more money from the tourist. Even if the tourist says no to their products or tours the after-sale is still employed.

    The above is just one former tout’s experiences. Take it with a grain of salt. The best way to avoid touts is to book tours and buy souvenirs from legitimate sources. I also recommend supporting honest, hard-working Egyptians. They deserve to be rewarded well for their work.

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