Tipping in Egypt: Baksheesh Explained

Baksheesh is one of those words that gets explained to tourists in ways that make it sound more exotic than it is. In practice, baksheesh in Egypt is tipping — the custom of paying small amounts for services, help, or access, sometimes in contexts where a fixed price exists and sometimes where it doesn’t. It is built into the social and economic structure of Egyptian daily life.

The amounts involved are, for most travellers, very small. The EGP 20 you give a hotel porter is worth less than a US dollar. The EGP 100 you give a full-day tour guide is around two dollars. Understanding the system and tipping correctly costs very little and makes interactions significantly smoother.

Why Baksheesh Exists

Egypt’s service workers in the tourism industry — guides, drivers, hotel staff, felucca captains — typically earn base wages that assume tipping as a component of actual income. This is not unusual globally; the hospitality industries in many countries operate the same way. In Egypt it is more explicit and more expected at more points of contact than in some Western countries, which can feel unfamiliar.

The practical implication: tipping is not charity or reward for exceptional service. It is a standard part of how transactions work.

Restaurants

Check the bill first. Many Cairo and tourist-area restaurants now add a 12% service charge automatically, sometimes labelled “service” on the itemised bill. If a service charge appears, additional tipping is optional — EGP 20–50 in cash for the serving staff is generous but not expected.

If no service charge is added, 10–15% of the bill is appropriate. Pay the tip in cash directly to the server rather than adding it to a card payment — card tips do not always reach serving staff.

Street food, koshary shops, and local ful or ta’ameya stalls: tipping is not expected. You pay the stated price.

Hotel Staff

• Porter (carrying bags to room): EGP 20–30 per bag
• Housekeeping: EGP 30–50 per night. Leave it daily rather than at checkout — daily staff may differ
• Concierge (arranging significant help — car hire, restaurant bookings, ticket sourcing): EGP 50–100 for meaningful assistance; nothing required for a brief answer to a question
• Room service: EGP 20–30 per delivery if no service charge is already on the bill

At budget hotels and guesthouses, the same principles apply but scale accordingly — EGP 10–20 per bag is fine at a mid-budget guesthouse.

Tour Guides

A full-day guide (6–8 hours, covering multiple sites) should receive EGP 100–200 per person in your group. For an exceptional guide with strong Egyptological knowledge who clearly adds significant value, EGP 200–300 per person is appropriate.

Half-day guide (3–4 hours): EGP 50–100 per person.

If your guide is also your driver (a common combination for West Bank Luxor tours or day trips from Cairo), tip them once — you don’t split into two separate amounts. EGP 150–250 for a driver-guide covering a full day is appropriate.

Drivers

Private car hire for the day (driver who waits while you visit sites): EGP 50–100 is standard. If the driver was punctual, helpful, and flexible, EGP 100–150 is fair.

Taxi driver for a single journey: small tips are appreciated but not strictly expected. Rounding up EGP 10–20 on a longer journey is reasonable.

Felucca Captains

EGP 30–50 per person for a standard one-hour Nile sailing. If you are on a longer private felucca trip (two hours or more), EGP 100–150 for the captain and his assistant (if present) is appropriate.

Agree the hire price before departure — the tip is separate from the negotiated fare.

At Temples and Tombs

This is the baksheesh category that causes the most confusion. Two situations:

Unofficial guides inside sites: If someone within a temple or tomb complex guides you to a specific area, explains carvings, or unlocks a usually-closed door or passage, a tip is expected. If you asked for this assistance: EGP 20–50 is appropriate. If it was provided without being requested and you didn’t want it: you are not obligated, though EGP 10–20 removes the awkwardness.

Attendants at smaller sites: At less-visited sites, a site attendant may specifically show you things or open a storage area to show an artefact. EGP 20–50 is appropriate for genuine assistance.

Photography inside tombs: Photography inside most tombs and temple interiors is prohibited. Do not pay someone who offers to let you photograph inside — they don’t have authority to grant this, and the money goes to them personally rather than the site. The no-photography rule exists to preserve the pigments.

Toilet Attendants

EGP 5–10 at any public toilet with an attendant. This is standard. The attendant typically provides a small amount of toilet paper; the fee is the price of the facility.

Petrol Station Attendants

Egypt does not have self-service petrol stations. An attendant pumps the fuel. EGP 5–10 per fill is the standard acknowledgement.

Carrying Small Bills

The single most practical tip about tipping: carry small EGP denominations at all times. EGP 5, 10, and 20 notes are the workhorses of the Egyptian tipping economy. Changing a EGP 200 note for a EGP 15 tip creates awkwardness and genuine difficulty — many small businesses do not have change, and this is usually true rather than a negotiating tactic.

Before leaving your hotel each morning, check what small notes you have and replenish if needed. Banks, pharmacies, and busy kiosks can usually break larger notes. Supermarkets in tourist areas are also reliable for generating change.

If you arrive in Egypt with only large bills from an airport ATM (ATMs often dispense EGP 200 notes), go to a bank or exchange office on your first day and ask specifically for small denominations.

A Note on Amounts

All figures above are from 2026. The Egyptian pound has experienced significant inflation in recent years and prices shift accordingly. The amounts here are calibrated to be fair rather than minimal — slightly above what some guides suggest — because the labour involved (guiding, carrying, serving) is real work, and the purchasing power differential between tourist incomes and Egyptian service wages is large.

Tipping well in Egypt costs most visitors very little. It matters considerably to the people receiving it.