Air Conditioned People Carrier

A modern people carrier will travel safely at 140kms an hour on the road to Siwa from Marsa Matrouh and 100km's from Alexandria to Matrouh due to speed cameras so you can be in Siwa in six hours from Alexandria.

We have worked with one company for two years who have provided us with a 100% good service. They have offices in Cairo and Alexandra with experienced drivers who can pick you up from the airport and whisk you directly to Siwa or take you to your hotel first and travel down to Siwa in the next few days depending on your plans and site seeing itinerary for the Pyramids etc. They are fully licensed and insured to carry tourists around the country and are very good at what they do. Depending on the size of your group we can arrange for a car that will carry up to three people, a people carrier that will carry up to seven and a small coach that will carry around 18.

Most people hire a people carriers as shown in the picture below. These cost 1,200 EGP from Alexandria to Siwa and 1,500 EGP from Cairo. This is for one way only. We arrange all your transportation needs in advance of you arriving in Egypt. If you would like to book your transportation please contact Somewhere Different.

All vehicles we use for our guests are less than 2 years old. Fully air conditioned and all have experienced drivers who have all been to Siwa before.

Yes, you will see many camels on your journey to Siwa.

As you will be the only passengers in the people carrier on the way down to Siwa you can travel in a way that suits you. You can leave Cairo at 11.00pm and sleep all the way arriving in Siwa in the morning. You can stop off at the Commonwealth War Graves at El Alamain which is about half way to Siwa from Cairo. This is very interesting and you pass right by it.

War grave of 80,000 soldiers at the Commonwealth War Graves at El Alamain

Charm Life is a 5 star resort on the Mediterranean coast just after El Alamain. You can stop here and sun bath on the sandy white beaches with now worries of upsetting the locals and have a swim in the turquoise sea before having a good buffet lunch for around £10 each.

For the adventurous, I know a successful Bedouin business man who lives near El Alamain and has a huge house set among the mud huts of his neighbors. They drive their donkeys past his BMW and, well they all seem to get along. He loves to meet 'the foreigner' and we sometimes drop in on him for lunch. Every one gathers to speak to the 'Anglasa' and a traditional Egyptian lunch is served. This is a real travelers treat, but it does take a good few hours so be warned!

The Bus

The buses that service Siwa are reliable and safe and take 9 hours from Alexandria and 11 hours from Cairo. The seats are reclining(ish) and the same as any coach seat in the UK. You have enough room to read a book or type away on your laptop (that's what I do) and you normally get one movie in English and one in Arabic, the story lines in the Arabic films are often easer to understand and very entertaining.

The cost is around 50 EGP per person from Alexandria and 65 EGP from Cairo. There are several buses a day to Siwa from each city.The buses from Cairo terminate at Marsa Matrouh but there is a simple connection there to continue on to Siwa. The time table does change so I do not want to put the times here, but there is one around 7.00am, 10,00am, 2.00pm, 5.00pm and 10.00pm. We can confirm all of this for you at the time of your traveling if you choose to travel to Siwa using the bus. The over night buses are popular with the locals and if you can sleep on a bus this is a good option.

When we travel as a family, we catch the train to Alexandria from Cairo and then catch the bus from there to Siwa. The bus stops three times on the way for tea and toilets. The toilet facilities are currently... basic but a new half way house is being built on the way to Siwa that will fix this problem. You will often meet other travelers on the bus and talk the hours away.

If you would like to come to Siwa by bus when staying at the Siwa Villa, please get in contact with us here at Somewhere Different and we will arrange everything for you.