Female expat driving in Cairo

Wc to cairo jo...driving is not that easy...theres a lot of crazy drivers....taxi is fine if u get the easy taxi.

Thank you iconic21 

i Would advise you to take some time to see how our traffic works before driving on your own ( which is totally random ) , take a taxi ( the white ones would be better and always insist that the driver activate the meter or else you skip this one ) , and there are applications called careem or uber both are safe and better than common taxi .

But in General driving in Egypt is random , NEVER  tailgate behind a microbus ( the small toyota buses ) or a taxi or any public transportation of any sort  because they will stop anywhere and when you least expect it , and to top it the passengers might even drop off / get on the bus in the middle of the crowded road . and for signaling you will notice that the drivers usually wave with their hands ( which only focus on one side only !! ) , and if they are talking on their mobile phone while driving don't get surprised .

For other vehicles , its more of a dare game , who is willing to take the vacant space in front first  or willing to put some dents in his car , usually the thumb rule is the first in is always has right to pass , its a no rules system
that's it .

The only benefit you would gain from driving your self , you will get used to reading minds of other drivers   ( works only while driving )  , being attentive to your surroundings like never before , either being extremely indifferent or highly provoked about anything and being punctual if you know how to avoid crowded streets .

in Short welcome to our jungle  .

Jo u have to watch before u practice ,Egypt is number one in road accidents.

The train is the best once you get used to it, however, taxis with meter is a good choice, just make sure that the meter is running and never ride with a taxi that claims his meter is not working.

Driving a car is not as hard as it may seem, drivers seems aggressive only, if you drive with a local friend for 2 hours you will get to be comfortable driving in Cairo.

Mohammed Giza

I'd advise you to only get into white taxi cars, make sure the meter is activated as suggested by others, and that it is NOT with a younger male; only older guys. It's just safer. If you really want to be even safer, before you get into the taxi, take a picture of the license plate and email it to yourself and a friend. The taxi driver will understand you're doing this for your safety, might not like it, but who cares what they feel; your safety is paramount, not their feelings.

I've grown up in the States and have seen aggressive driving. Here it's aggressive but more reckless. I'm in the process of buying a car (trying to find the absolute safest thing in the market because I know accident will happen, just a matter of time) and definitely worried about the highways here. No one uses indicators and for strange reason, they like to drive in the middle of two lanes; maybe everyone has a problem with their vision here? I really can't seem to understand why this happens. I need to have a car to get around and will need to deal with this behavior by being more alert and taking precautions.

You can find people to hire just for particular trips, possibly someone from your building, like a personal limo driver. Here in Madinaty, we have a lot of these car services and it costs us about 100EGP to get from here to Agooza/Downton area. I'd expect to pay around the same price for a taxi. These guys however you can call anytime and they come to you which is very convenient.

Also Sometimes the underground is good but avoid rush hours from 1pm to 5pm

you just need someone professional who drive a lot in cairo  2 weeks and you will be an excellent egyptain driver    a lot of foreigners  drive in egypt  you are just like any egyptain wanted to driver you just need some practice   
Taxis aren't reliable for  somone who  go out a lot and if you are willing to stay at cairo for long period

i wouldn't recommend it...its crazy

yes safe , what is the problem < but you must knows ways you will drive on it < or have GPS in your car

I am a female expat and find uber super safe and efficient here.

Chrissie