Egypt Travellers With Disabilities

Egypt Travel Itinerary

Travellers With Disabilities

Disability is common in Egypt; many conditions that would be treatable in the West, such as cataracts, cause permanent disabilities here because people can't afford the treatment. Disabled people are unlikely to get jobs (though there is a tradition of blind singers and preachers), so the choice is usually between staying at home being looked after by your family, and going out on the streets to beg for alms. For the disabled traveller, this has its advantages; disability and disfigurement do not get the same embarrassed reaction from Egyptians that they do from able-bodied Westerners. Disability carries no stigma, it is simply God's will, to be accepted and made light of - as Egyptians say, Allah karim (God is generous).

On the other hand, you'll be lucky to see a wheelchair or a disabled toilet, and the streets are full of all sorts of obstacles that would be hard for a blind or wheelchair-bound tourist to negotiate independently. Recently constructed hotels and other tourist facilities tend to be wheelchair-friendly, but few other places have ramps, which are intended for moving baggage rather than people, if they exist at all. If you walk with difficulty, you will find street obstacles and steep stairs hard going. Queuing, and the heat, will take it out of you if you have a condition that makes you tire quickly. A light, folding camp-stool could be invaluable if you have limited walking or standing power.

The monuments are a mix of the accessible and the impossible. Most of the major temples are built on relatively level sites, with a few steps here and there - manoeuvrable in a wheelchair or with sticks if you have an able-bodied helper. Your frustrations are likely to be with the tombs, which are almost always a struggle to reach - often sited halfway up cliffs, or down steep flights of steps. In the Valley of the Kings, for example, the only really straightforward tomb is that of Ramses VI. The Pyramids of Giza are accessible to viewing but not entry; Saqqara is difficult, being so sandy.

Cairo itself is bad news, especially Islamic Cairo, with its narrow, uneven alleys and heavy traffic, but with a car and helper, you could still see the Citadel and other

major monuments. There's a lift in the Egyptian Antiquities Museum. Some diving centres in Sinai and Hurghada accept disabled students on their courses, and the hotels in these resorts tend to be wheelchair-friendly.

Taxis are easily affordable and quite adaptable; if you rent one for the day, the driver is certain to help you in and out, and perhaps even around the sites you visit. If you employ a guide, they may well also be prepared to help you with steps and other obstacles

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