How to get from Israel to Sinai Egypt?
To get to the Taba border, you will first have to go to Eilat city (south of Israel), you can do it by plane from Tel Aviv or by a bus. Because we didn’t want to lose the day, we took the night bus from Tel Aviv central station to Eilat, it was around 80 ILS – Israeli Shekels (20,9€;23,1$) per ticket (one way), the last bus leaves at midnight.
Once you come to the city center, you can take a taxi which will cost around 50 ILS (13€;14,4$) or you can take a bus (line 15, comes every 30-45 min) straight to the Taba border.
Taba border crossing
The border is open 24/7 seven days a week except for few days in the year (check before on the internet) and it is quite easy and fast to cross. Just take into consideration that it can get crowded on Israeli holidays, which means you could be stuck there for several hours.
On the Israeli side you will have to pay an exit fee of 107 ILS (28€;31$), but if you are staying in one of the hotels near the border its free of charge, just show your bill – booking confirmation is not enough.
On the Egypt side you will have to fill up a form with your details and destination, and give it to the passport control, they will stamp your passport and you are officially in Sinai.
You don’t need to apply for a visa, if your visit won’t be longer than 14 days, you get it at the border. If you plan to stay more or visit other parts of Egypt you have to fill a request for a visa on the Egyptian embassy.
You will also need to pay the entry fee on the Egypt side, it costs around 400 EGP – Egyptian pound (22,7€;25,2$), someone will approach you on the exit from the border (you can pay only with local cash, credit card won’t be accepted). There are two ATMs at the border, you also have money exchange.
Transportation in Sinai, Egypt
The main transportation is by a private car or by minivan taxies. When you will exit the border area, you will be surrounded by taxi drivers offering their service. It’s advisable to bargain with them cause they will want to overcharge you. If you see other travelers, aks them to share the ride with you, it will be much cheaper. We shared a minivan taxi to Nueba area and paid about 230 EGP (13€;14,5$) per person.
Click HERE to read our Sinai peninsula travel guide.