4 popular scams in Egypt that you should know about: guide's tips

Every year, many tourists from all over the world travel to Egypt in search of an exotic vacation. However, the journey to the ancient pyramids and the hellish desert cannot avoid sellers and scammers who aim to get as much money as possible from unprepared tourists.

Travel blogger Sam Mayfair has compiled tips that travelers traveling to Egypt without a guide should know in his YouTube video. In his video, the 39-year-old guide talks about 4 popular tricks that tourists in Egypt should know, reports DailyMail.

"Friend, you're going the wrong way!"

This is one of the most popular scams that should make you think about a possible mistake. According to Sam, if tourists walk around the pyramid without a guide, then such people will constantly walk around.

"They try to confuse you by saying that you are going the wrong way and leaving the complex. All they're really trying to do is get you to follow them so they can take some photos of you with the pyramids and charge you a predatory amount," explains Sam Mayfer.

In this case, Sam advises to keep walking because the pyramid complex has only 2 exits.

Whistling

Whistling is one of the most favorite and popular scams of the locals. This is how they try to convince tourists of their authority, confuse and demonstrate power. Sam says that most people just follow them and all they try to do is take tourists somewhere to show them something very quickly and charge them money for it.

Riding a camel

Sam advises avoiding this tourist activity because of the risk of getting involved in another scam. Local scammers can often approach travelers asking them where they are from and offer to ride a camel in a complimentary manner. In case of refusal, the fraudster will offer to take a photo with him, for which he will demand money. If the tourist could not refuse the man, he may be taken to bed, but the Bedouin will force him to pay a separate "return price" for his return.

"Free gift"

In this tactic, the fraudster asks the traveler where he is from and tactlessly tries to force him to accept a gift "for good luck." However, it is important to understand that it is better not to take such a souvenir and return it immediately.

"They sometimes even come up to you, put something on your shoulder and just walk away. So just give it back to them immediately and walk away," says Sam Mayfer.

The travel blogger states: "Westerners are afraid of appearing rude to others, so often scammers play on that and take advantage of it by trying to make people feel guilty and give in to them."

In a commentary for MailOnline Travel, Sam noted that despite his experience with local scammers, he strongly recommends going to the pyramids and exploring Egypt.