Money on the Red Sea: Cash, Cards, ATMs and Tipping

Few things shape a smooth trip on the Red Sea coast quite like understanding how money works here. Get it right and the whole experience flows: taxis, tips, dive trips and dinners all happen without friction. Get it wrong and you spend your holiday hunting for an ATM that works or arguing over change for a large note. The good news is that the system is simple once you know the patterns. This guide covers the Egyptian pound, where cards are accepted and where cash is king, how to handle ATMs and exchange, and the all-important art of tipping, so you can relax and enjoy the coast from El Gouna to Marsa Alam.

The Egyptian pound, in brief

The local currency is the Egyptian pound. You will see it written as EGP (the international code) or as "LE" or "L.E.", a long-standing abbreviation that comes from the French livre égyptienne. The pound is divided into 100 piastres, though in practice piastre coins are rarely used for anything meaningful these days, and prices tend to round to whole pounds.

A few things worth knowing:

• Notes come in a range of denominations, from small everyday notes up to large ones. The biggest notes are convenient for ATMs but a headache for small purchases.
• The pound floats, and its value against the euro, pound sterling and US dollar can move significantly. Do not anchor to a rate you saw months ago.
• You may encounter both newer polymer notes and older paper ones in circulation. Just check you are handling the denomination you think you are.

Takeaway: think in pounds while you are here, and check the current exchange rate the day you travel rather than trusting an old figure.

Cash vs card: what each is good for

The coast runs on a healthy mix of both, but they suit different situations.

Cards work well for:

• Hotels and larger resorts
• Established restaurants, dive centres and bigger shops
• Supermarkets and pharmacies in the main towns
• Organised excursions booked through reputable operators

Cash is essential for:

• Taxis, microbuses and most short local rides
• Markets, small kiosks, street food and corner shops
• Tipping in almost every situation (more on that below)
• Smaller towns and anywhere off the main tourist strip

Contactless and chip-and-pin are common in the bigger establishments, but card machines can be down, the network can drop, and some places quietly prefer cash or add a surcharge for cards. Always carry enough cash to cover a day without relying on plastic. Tell your bank you are travelling so a foreign transaction does not trigger a block, and check what your card charges in foreign-transaction fees.

ATMs and the small-note problem

ATMs are widely available in Hurghada and El Gouna, generally available in and around Safaga, Sahl Hasheesh, Makadi, Soma Bay, El Quseir and Marsa Alam, and thinner on the ground once you head into quieter areas or the far south. The practical rules:

• Withdraw in the bigger towns before heading somewhere remote, a dive day, a desert trip or a stay at a smaller property.
• Use ATMs attached to actual bank branches where you can. They are better maintained, more likely to be stocked, and a safer place to stand.
• Expect fees. Local ATMs often charge a withdrawal fee, and your home bank may add its own. Taking out a larger sum less often can reduce the per-trip cost, balanced against not carrying more cash than you are comfortable with.
• Mind the denominations. ATMs tend to dispense the largest notes, and almost nobody on the street can break them. Whenever you pay at a hotel, supermarket or busy restaurant, ask for, or hold on to, your smaller notes. They are gold for taxis, tips and kiosks.

A standing tip from residents: keep a "small notes" stash separate from your main wallet so you always have something to hand over without flashing a fat roll of cash or waiting for change that may not come.

Exchanging money safely

You can exchange foreign cash at banks, licensed exchange offices (bureaux de change) and many hotels. A few habits keep it clean:

• Use banks or clearly licensed exchange offices for the best combination of fair rates and legitimacy. Hotel desks are convenient but often give a poorer rate.
• Avoid anyone offering to change money informally on the street. It is not worth the risk of bad rates, short-changing or worse.
• Bring clean, undamaged notes. Torn, marked or very old foreign bills are sometimes refused.
• Count your money before you leave the counter and keep the receipt.
• Change what you need, not your whole budget. Converting leftover pounds back at the end can cost you on the spread, and you can always withdraw or exchange more.

Major currencies like the euro, US dollar and pound sterling are generally the easiest to exchange. More unusual currencies may get a poorer rate or be harder to change, so converting to a major currency before you travel can help.

Tipping and baksheesh: the social glue

Tipping, known locally as baksheesh, is woven into daily life here. It is not a grudging add-on; for many people in service roles it tops up modest wages, and a small, genuine tip is warmly received. The trick is to keep it proportionate and have small notes ready. Treat the following as general patterns rather than fixed prices, since what feels right depends on the service and your own budget:

• Restaurants and cafés: a service charge is sometimes already on the bill, but a little extra for good service is normal and appreciated. If there is no service charge, a modest percentage is the norm.
• Hotel housekeeping: a small note left in the room, ideally each day rather than only at the end, since staff rotate.
• Porters and bellhops: a small note per bag.
• Taxi drivers: rounding up is fine; a fixed-fare ride does not always need extra, but a small top-up for help with luggage is kind.
• Dive guides, instructors and boat crew: tipping at the end of a trip or course is customary and genuinely valued; a collective tip for the boat crew is common.
• Tour guides and drivers on excursions: a tip at the end of the day is expected for good service.
• Petrol attendants, parking helpers, washroom attendants: a small coin or note for the small services that are part of daily life.

Two principles smooth all of this: carry plenty of small notes so you are never stuck, and tip in pounds rather than foreign coins, which are awkward for the recipient to use. A tip given with a smile and eye contact lands far better than a large amount handed over grudgingly.

Budgeting expectations

The Red Sea coast can suit a wide range of budgets, from all-inclusive resort stays where you barely touch your wallet to independent trips where you pay as you go. Rather than quoting figures that age badly, think in terms of patterns:

• All-inclusive stays cover most food and drink, so your spending is mostly tips, excursions and extras.
• Independent travel means budgeting for meals out, transport, activities and tips, all of which are generally good value by Western European standards but vary widely by choice.
• Excursions and diving are often the biggest discretionary costs; dive packages, day trips and desert safaris add up.
• Build in a cash buffer for tips, taxis and the small daily extras that are almost always cash-only.

Takeaway: keep a daily float of small notes, lean on cards for the big and the formal, use cash for everything small and human, and you will navigate money on the coast as easily as the locals do. When in doubt, ask your hotel or dive centre; people here are used to the question and happy to help.