TRAVELERS' TIP: The cab ride from the Oasis Hotel to the airport took about an hour at noon on a Tuesday.
Terminal 3 of the Cairo airport is brand new. In fact, parts of it are so new that they aren't even on the map (like the "H" gates where we were supposed to go).
TRAVELERS' TIP: There is no post office or even mailbox at the Cairo airport. Mail your postcards before you get here.
I'm not sure why, but our plane did not come to the terminal. Instead, we took a bus from our gate to the plane.
The bus ride afforded us a good tour of the terminal's exterior.
Here's our plane.Our second experience with EgyptAir was almost as good as our first. The flight was just two hours and again we had two drink services and an excellent meal. Our flight attendant was very attentive. And when she accidentally spilled tomato juice all over the guy next to Ma, she made effusive apologies and got him cleaned up right away. The guy was a petro-engineer from Egypt. He had a great sense of humor and spoke excellent English.
We arrived in Turkey, and it became immediately clear that these people really cared about their "guests". There was someone to direct us to an ATM and ground transportation. We took the metro instead.
TRAVELERS' TIP: If you are staying in the Sultanahmet area of Istanbul, the metro+tram option is a good way to go. Exit the airport and head to the left and down the stairs (follow the signs for "Hafif Metro"). Buy a metro token (metal) and a tram token (plastic), each just 1.50 TL (US$1) at the metro station. We bought several tram tokens because we knew we'd use them later. Get off at Zeytinburnu and change to the Sultanahmet tram (there's a turn-style that takes you directly there). Be aware: there are two different trams whose terminus is Zeytinburnu. When you get off the metro, make sure you go through the turn-style that says Sultanahmet-Beyazit (direction: Kabatas). Do not get on the tram that says Gungoren-Bagcilar (direction: Bagcilar). The easiest way to verify is to look at the map above the door inside the tram. If it says "T1", you're on the right tram.
The tram was pretty empty since this was the terminus. We got some good seats near the "bend" accordion thingy.TRAVELERS' TIP. If you're staying at the Ilkay Hotel, you have two options on where to get off the tram. The hotel is located along the tram tracks between Gulhane and Sirkeci stops, but it's a bit closer to Gulhane. On the tram ride to the hotel, if you get off at Gulhane, you'll walk about 100 feet downhill and another 500 feet uphill (hotel on the right). If you get off at Sirkeci, you'll walk all downhill, but it is a bit farther (about 1oo yards longer), and you'll have the advantage of passing by the hotel first (on the right side of the tram) so you know where it is before you get off. On the tram ride back to the airport, choose Gulhane (downhill and closer).