Baggage rules can be a minefield. this blog explains the guidelines to pack for your trip to Egypt.

The basics: standard allowances

EasyJet – as standard all Scuba Travel flights come with a 20kgs hold allowance.  There is no extra for divers.  This must be in 1 hold bag.

Hand baggage is not limited by weight, but you must be able to lift it yourself into the overhead locker.  Max hand baggage dimensions are 56cm x 45cm x 25cm, including handles and wheels.   For more info click here

Thomson – as standard all Scuba Travel flights come with 20kgs printed on your ticket.  You then get an extra 5kgs for waiving your diving cert card at check-in.  Be careful!  No 1 bag can weigh more than 23kgs but you are welcome to take 2 bags for your total 25kgs allowance.

Hand baggage is a strict 5kgs and must fit within dimensions 55cm x40cm x 20cm

Thomas Cook – as standard all Scuba Travel flights come with 20kgs printed on your ticket.  You then get an extra 5kgs for waiving your diving cert card at check-in.

Hand baggage is a 6kgs and must fit within dimensions 55cm x40cm x 20cm

The basics: buying excess hold baggage

Booking excess baggage in advance is easy, but can be very expensive at the airport.  Scuba Travel will make all excess baggage bookings on your behalf.  Please make sure you book this no later than 3 working days before travel.

Simply email camilla@scubatravel.com

EasyJet: you can purchase a second 20kgs hold bag (40kgs total) for £60 return

Thomson: you can purchase an additional allowance that takes you to 40kgs hold for £60 return

Thomas Cook: you can purchase a 20kgs sports bag for either £80 or £90 return (depending on the date of travel)

The basics: UK government electronics ban

Scuba Travel, guidelines

Flights to the UK from Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Tunisia, and Saudi Arabia

You must put all phones, laptops, tablets and e-readers – and accessories that can be used with them – in your hold luggage if they’re larger than any of these measurements:

  • 16cm in length
  • 9.3cm in width
  • 1.5cm in depth (thickness)

For example, you can take an iPhone 7 Plus, Samsung Galaxy 7 Edge, Samsung Galaxy Note 3, LG G3 or Sony Xperia Z2 in your hand luggage.

Please be aware, if you are travelling with Thomson, cameras of any size (normal or underwater) must be packed into the hold luggage with batteries taken out and switched off. TIP: Make sure to have electrical tape for the battery contacts and a plastic bag to put them in. 

You must also check the size of the following accessories:

  • keyboards
  • power supplies and transformers
  • external hard drives

will not be allowed onboard the aircraft in either cabin or hold baggage:

  • spare or separate device batteries
  • portable power sources

Existing safety regulations mean that spare batteries and portable power sources can no longer be carried onboard aircraft operating on affected routes in either cabin or hold baggage.

You can still take other accessories, such as headphones, in your hand luggage.

You must also follow these rules if you’re on a connecting flight via these countries, even if your journey started elsewhere.

Be up to date with the rules on the FCO website

A few things to remember:

  1. The electronics ban applies to Egypt to the UK only flights.  Your flight from the UK to Egypt is not affected.  However, if you are worried about weight, it’s not a bad idea to pack the same way in either direction
  2. There are extra bag scans and personal searches between check-in and boarding the flight.  It takes more time to clear the airport.
  3. These changes have been made by the UK Foreign Office to enhance security coming into to the UK.  No one wants to create more hassle, but Egyptian staff are working exceptionally hard to ensure their security measures are as robust as possible for our safety.
  4. We all have to follow the rules, not just as the UK FCO outlined, but as each airline is interpreting them locally.  There are variations from airline to airline, airport to airport.

So no matter how frustrating it might be to have to work with these rules, try to relax, go with the flow and follow the rules as you are instructed in the airport.  There’s no point trying to cheat the system.  It will only result in your device being left behind in Egypt. Try to be flexible and be prepared to move things about at check-in if asked.