Ok, the title just makes this sound stupid, but i am a budget traveller and am heading around from Cairo to Turkey, so up through Israel, Jordan, Syria, possibly Lebanon and up through Turkey to Istanbul. Does anyone have any tips on security/budget accomodation they would like to share with me. I will also be traveling as a single female. Ok, lay it on me!

Yikes....good luck with that.

Actually, I wonder about bedget travel to Cairo myself (also a single female). I hope that this post gets some good replies. :)

Ok, the title just makes this sound stupid, but i am a budget traveller and am heading around from Cairo to Turkey, so up through Israel, Jordan, Syria, possibly Lebanon and up through Turkey to Istanbul. Does anyone have any tips on security/budget accomodation they would like to share with me. I will also be traveling as a single female. Ok, lay it on me!

Sounds like an excellent trip. Seat61.com has some advice on overland travel through these (and many other) areas, and hostelworld.com will let you book budget accommodation almost everywhere, but I don't have anything specific to suggest. You will need to make sure your passport is not stamped when entering/leaving Israel, as Syria will not let you in if there is evidence that you have visited Israel (alternately you may be able to get an extra passport from your embassy for this purpose).

Portions of the post that previously appeared in this space have been deleted. I would provide you with a reason why, but doing so would likely be against the TOS.

Yikes....good luck with that.

Actually, I wonder about bedget travel to Cairo myself (also a single female). I hope that this post gets some good replies. :)

Volumes could be written about single-women budget travelers in the Middle East...

Let's just put this out there first: You better be a fairly tough and able to handle a lot of attention, ranging from extreme friendliness to downright harassment. Far better to expect the worst and be pleasantly surprised than vice versa. To be sure, this treatment will vary from country to country -- Jordan is different from Egypt, which is different from Israel. But there are a couple of things you need to keep in mind:

(1) Dressing modestly -- by local standards, not yours -- is essential. This means covered from wrists to ankles, nothing form-fitting, and nothing flashy. No shorts, no tank-tops, no matter how hot.

(2) Even if you dress modestly, you are going to get a lot of unsolicited -- and unwanted -- attention from males. There's no way around it. Unaccompanied women -- even the locals -- have to deal with this problem no matter what they look like, how they dress, or how they act. It's a complicated issue, but to make it simple, there are Middle Eastern men who will make certain assumptions about you based solely on the fact that you're alone and unaccompanied. They will feel free to speak to you, to come on to you, in infrequent circumstances, to touch you. Understanding that this will happen no matter what you do and preparing for it will go a long way toward having an amazing experience there.

(3) Do what locals do to head-off the harassment problem: First, wear sunglasses and/or do not make eye contact with men who call out to you, make faces at you, etc. Understand that any acknowledgement of their bad behavior will encourage them. Unless and until you know enough Arabic to shame them into leaving you alone, I highly recommend saying nothing at all. Second and related, if you need to ask someone for something, get directions, buy tickets, etc., do your best to interact with women as opposed to men. The locals tend to do this as well. If you are modestly dressed, asking a woman for assistance, even if your Arabic is non-existent, will almost always result in kindness and help. Third, seriously, find a male traveling companion. Wherever you are, there will be other independent travelers, like yourself. Seeing the sights, going shopping, traveling or whatever is dramatically different if you're with a man. This doesn't mean making some random guy your new traveling companion but rather if the opportunity presents itself to do something together, take it. No sexism intended, but if you try it, you'll see what I mean. Arab women do this all the time, go shopping with a brother or uncle rather than by themselves. Having a male companion sends a clear and strong message to others that you are not to be harassed.

In general, if you're a savvy traveler who has been around the block, you will be fine so long as you learn some of the local rules. But the Middle East is no France. You need to be prepared.

Ok, the title just makes this sound stupid, but i am a budget traveller and am heading around from Cairo to Turkey, so up through Israel, Jordan, Syria, possibly Lebanon and up through Turkey to Istanbul. Does anyone have any tips on security/budget accomodation they would like to share with me. I will also be traveling as a single female. Ok, lay it on me!

Couple of suggestions...I was in Alanya this Spring. It is almost 100% tour packages. They almost never see walk-ups, so you should be able to bargain. I had a very nice 3-star hotel for about $30/night (including meals).

If you have the time, there are ferries from the Turkish Mediterranean coastal ports to Cyprus (three to four hours). I was suprised by how much I enjoyed travelling around Cyprus. And, absolutely no problem crossing the green line from the Turkish side into the Greek side.

In Israel, the only places you have to worry about dressing modestly are in churches, the Old City of Jerusalem, and in Jerusalem's ultra-Orthodox Mea Shearim neighborhood.

If you are planning on dressing any less modestly than the average young Israeli woman, don't bother packing any clothes. You won't need them.

I can tell you this, however -- I know a lot of women who went to Egypt (always in pairs or groups) and each one said that she was made uncomfortable by the remarks/attention and would never go there by herself.

Keep an eye on the holiday inn 5000 point saver properties. Many attractive properties in the middle east have been running through the list. Crowne Plaza Eilat, Holiday Inn Tel Aviv, Intercontinental Amman are just some of the examples of properties available with this program at $50 / night. See the Intercontinental forum for all the details on this promotion.

Go buy the Lonely Planet - it's THE guide when backpacking / travelling on a budget.

Devine3456, welcome to FlyerTalk. If you decide to come out to Lebanon, please do let me know... I don't know much about budget travel (sorry) but if there is anything else you need/want to ask, please feel free.

Another FYI is Israel - Syria and Lebanon won't let you in with a recent stamp in your passport.

What you should consider is start up top and work down to Egypt. Since Israel has normalized relations with Jordan and Egypt, they wont care that you were in Israel, or just came from Israel.

I was in Israel a couple of years ago as a single male traveller (big difference, I know). In the Old City of Jerusalem there were a couple of female backpackers (stayed at a Hostel - can look it up if you like). They commented that generally when they went places they partnered with others from their hostel, the one woman who did venture out on her own in Egypt ended up getting sexually assaulted (groped etc.) walking on a main tourist path - it was early evening/night.

Be careful, not the safest place for a single female.

If you are planning on dressing any less modestly than the average young Israeli woman, don't bother packing any clothes. You won't need them.

You've just renewed my interest in visiting Israel. :D