queenie40something
Senior Member
Hi see belowI have heard that the Egyptian postal service is a bit dodgy.
Is it possible to get a poste restante/PO Box/maildrop service at the post offices there?
Are they easy to set up, or do they want visas, etc.?
Any idea how much they cost?
You can only do this at the Post Office El Hurghada Far'e in El Dahar (Downtown). You need a car to get there, otherwise its near impossible. It is about 200m north of the big MISR Petrol Station on the left hand side of the Inner Ring Road, beside the Police Station.
Go into the actual Post Office first (the Post Office Box room is round the corner of the building). They do speak quite good English there (since they are dealing with a lot of foreigners). You need 3 copies of your passport and 7LE to pay for the stamp fee and setting up the Post Office Box.
The actual fee for 1 year rental is 40LE. You can pay for 2 years in advance if you like. They will give you an official looking document with a lot of stamps on it (this is what you paid the 7LE for). On this document you will find your new Post Office Box number.
But you are not quite finished yet. With this paper you go out of the Post Office and go round the side of the same building. There you find the actual Post Office Box room. Currently Mr. Allah presides over it and he speaks no English (but is very nice nonetheless). You present your stamped paper and 10L. The 10LE is for a new lock for your box. Under normal circumstances they will fit it right away and you are on the way to receiving your mail.
Please note that even though the Post Offices are open from 8.30AM (8.30) to 3PM (15.00) and 5.30PM (17.50) to 11PM (23.00) , you can only open a Post Office Box during the morning shift.
See National Postal Authority - Home