Egypt with 18 week old

[Margot1029]

Anxiety ridden mum here 😂
Going to Egypt in March when my son is 18weeks old.
I am wondering / panicking about how I wash, sterilise bottles over there. Can I use their tap water to wash the bottles? Can I use their tap water to boil and use to
mix with formula? Been told not to use bottled water?
I’m at a point where I either want to cancel or actually considering buying single use sterile bottles and litre cartons of formula, as just seems easier?
please help!

I've been to egypt. Wasn't ill. Used tap water for brushing my teeth. I wasn't 18 weeks old though.
What will make you ill is eating things like salad outside the hotel. The water is safe but only if you are used to it.

You could boil tap water and let it cool for the baby's milk

My mum used to go to a really fancy hotel
in Sharm every year, said she was treated like royalty.

every single time they were both ill with d and v and had to go to pharmacy for medication. Mum said last time enough is enough, she was still ill 6 weeks later.

Sorry, no way would I be going never mind with a baby!!

We've been to Egypt lots of times, including with small babies. There's no reason to think it will be anything other than fabulous. Use boiled bottled water for making up bottles and bottled water and Milton to sterilise them.

What hotel are you off to?

I've lived in Egypt, I wouldn't take a baby there, not because of the danger of it but because it's a shit hole! 😂 Non of us were ill (2 adults and child). The tap water is highly chlorinated and smells a bit like bleach. I expect its fine to wash bottles before sterilising due to the chlorine. The food in hotels etc is fine. Sometimes a bit crap but like I say we were not ill. That is most probably due to living in SE Asia just before. The pavements are rubbish if you have a push chair, think trees in the middle, bins, holes, big bits of steel sticking out, the roads generally don't have pedestrian crossings, the taxis are fast and a bit crazy if you're not used to it. There are endless old men sitting around smoking and staring. 99% of the men smoke really stinky cigarettes. But if you're in a resort and ever leave them non of this will matter.

Yes they have babies in Egypt. They have a high infant mortality rate, too.

You’re the only poster on 2 pages of replies thinking it’ll be “fabulous” there is a reason it’s cheap “luxury” … it’s an unsanitary shithole overall and not a single person I know who has been has managed to escape illness.

Anyone taking a child, especially a baby, is mad.

I get that it’s affordable and that’s why it’s popular but really, there is a reason it’s resorts are cheap when compared with other 5 star resorts around the world.

If you both get ill who will look after your baby?

Every single person I know who has been to Egypt got horrendous d and v. No way in hell I would take a baby there. Sorry.

I would cancel, it's a shit hole in general, you are likely to get sick. Not worth it.

That’s not my experience @BabyFour2023 - we pick our hotels carefully, but I’ve also been on at least ten diving liveaboards in Egypt (so on a boat for a week!) and wasn’t unwell on any of them. Our kids have never been sick whilst in Egypt either. We are sensible with what we eat, but high end hotels have good hygiene, use filtered water for making ice etc. I’ve travelled extensively all over the world, and the worst food poisoning I ever had was in a ‘nice’ resort in Europe.

If Egypt is so terrible then why would I keep going back (when I can afford to go elsewhere)? I don’t doubt there are some awful resorts, and there are many I wouldn’t stay or eat at, but there’s certainly plenty of amazing hotels.

Are babies not allowed in Egypt?

It really isn't an "unsanitary shithole". If you are stayignin one of the luxury hotels it will be fine overall as long as you are careful. We have been to a number of the hotels in Sharm and also elsewhere (Nile cruises, hotels in Cairo, Luxor, Aswan etc). Don't drink the water or let any water into your mouth eg when showering, brushing teeth, swimming etc, don't stay out too long in the sun (particularly when mixed with alcohol), don't eat the salads since they don't always wash in bottled water, don't eat fruit unless it has a peel (again due to the washing), don't eat cream/mousse based desserts (which actually rules out a lot of their desserts), don't have ice in your drinks unless you know its bottled water, use plenty of hand sanitiser before eating and after handling money or being in public places err on the side of caution with meat and go for meat which is over done if anything since undercooked chicken etc is fairly common.

Follow those rules and you're likely to be fine.

Although I've not visited Sharm El Sheikh, I've been to Luxor, Aswan, and Abu Simbel many times, and wouldn't be worried about taking a baby or very young child, so long as you are very careful with hygiene. Don't use tap water for teeth brushing or bottles under any circumstances. Many varieties of bottled water are available and are very cheap - just make sure that the seal is still firmly in place, as it's not uncommon for small shops and individuals to re-fill bottles with tap water. Avoid anything that may have been washed unless you can be certain that it has been washed in bottled water. But above all, make sure that you use hand sanitiser EVERY time you touch any money - most of the notes you will come across will be filthy and covered in germs.

The standard of hygiene can be dodgy in some hotels, but in others it is every bit as good as in the UK. With only a few exceptions, we've always eaten in local restaurants and have found that most Egyptian food is wonderful; I think it's a very under-rated cuisine.

I'm generally quite susceptible to stomach bugs and upsets, but I've always been very careful when I've travelled to Egypt and have never had the slightest problem. My husband has never been ill, nor has my daughter, who lived and worked in Cairo for a year.

All your 'don'ts' are basically making it sound like an unsanitary shit hole! 😂

The water can't be consumed. That's the main issue. You just drink bottled water.

It isn't a shithole. Some of the hotels are beautiful.

I’ve been twice and wasn’t Ill either time. I think you're more likely to be Ill from an international hotel with buffet food than you are from a regular restaurant. I wonder where all those posters claiming to be Ill caught it? I travelled independently from Cairo to Alexandria by train staying in hostels and also went down the Nile. Sharm is a bog standard international resort and personally not that appealing to me so I probably wouldn’t have chosen it. If you want a beach holiday then I think there are other countries with a far safer profile overall.

You can stay in the nicest hotel possible and still massively get the shits in Egypt.

No way i'd take and 18 week old. I wouldn't take any child to be honest, as you'll just spend half holiday in hotel room making them drink fluids.

You can stay in the nicest hotel possible and still massively get the shits in Egypt.

Yes but if you follow the rules it is far less likely.

If you go to a massive cram them in buffet style "holiday village" type hotel then the chances are fairly high that you'll get a dodgy tummy.

I've been, stayed in a nice new relatively small hotel in Sharm. Most of the guests were ill after the first night as they'd all had salad with their meals. I stuck to meat and bread the whole time ... had the opposite problem!

I would not take a baby there, very high chance you, your husband and/or baby will be sick at some point.
The water is dodgy, do is everything washed in it. Also a lot of power cuts so refrigerated foods are also an issue.

I’ve been to Egypt approx 12 times, 11 times in hotels in Sharm, and once travelling down the country.
Never been ill. No massive problems with mosquitoes.
Drink and brush teeth with bottled water.
Eat in hotel or at nice restaurants, not street food.

I’m not an 18week old baby though and have never taken children.

Don't go anywhere then. Wtf.

Everyone I know has been really sick after.

I went twice to Egypt with my teenage son. Neither of us got sick there or after.

Every person and I do mean everyone I know who has been to Egypt has been ill. I wouldn't go myself never mind risk the health of such a young baby.

What a lovely relaxing holiday you describe 🙄

Egypt is a dump. Sorry Egyptians.