Five apps to Make your Relocation to Egypt Easier

Relocating to a new country involves more than transporting your belongings from one location to another. From navigating unfamiliar streets to finding local services, handling everyday tasks can take some adjustment when you first arrive to Egypt.

A few useful apps can help you become acquainted with your surroundings and manage some practicalities of daily life as you settle into a new country. Here are five apps worth downloading before you make the move.

1. Getting around with Careem and Uber

Becoming familiar with a new city means knowing how to get to your destination. Ride-hailing apps such as Careem and Uber allow you to arrange transport directly from your phone, view fares and follow your driver’s progress.

Careem makes it easier to move around Egypt, order food and groceries, manage payments, and more, while the Uber app allows you to request rides to and from your destination, order food and groceries, and send or receive packages

These apps are very useful when arriving to a new city, especially when planning journeys, checking ride fares and having alternative ride-booking options available when navigating an unfamiliar environment.

2. Managing your finances with Instapay

Getting established in Egypt involves becoming familiar with the country’s digital payment services. Instapay allows users with an Egyptian bank account to make instant transfers from their mobile phones.

You can send and receive money from your accounts to any bank account, mobile wallet or electronic cards, with all your transactions made through the secured Instant Payment Network. Your information and data are handled by licensed banks under the Central Bank of Egypt Regulations.

Banks enabled by Instapay include HSBC, the Arab International Bank, the National Bank or Egypt, and many others.

If you are new to the country and need to set up your financial arrangements, it is worth being aware of the service and its bank account requirements as part of preparing for everyday life in Egypt.

3. Explore local food delivery with Talabat and Elmenus

Finding your favourite restaurants in an unfamiliar city can take time, but food delivery apps can make mealtimes more convenient while you settle into your new home.

Talabat is a leading online food delivery service that seamlessly connects you to your favourite restaurant, allowing you to place and receive an order with ease.

With Elmenus, you can order food from more than 6 000 restaurants, which offers delivery and dine out options from all over Egypt.

Both services allow you to browse for your favourite food options in Arabic and English, making it easier to navigate available choices if you are not yet familiar with Arabic.

4. Planning journeys around Cairo with Bey2ollak

Traffic is an important consideration when travelling around the bustling streets of Cairo and Alexandria. Bey2ollak is a cross-platform app that operates as a traffic information platform using crowd sourcing. The app informs people of real-time traffic status as users interchange their traffic information within the app.

You can get the latest traffic updates about Cairo and Alexandria in real time as users share alerts about accidents, traffic jams or road hazards. Bey2ollak is especially necessary as the Greater Cairo region is known for severe congestion.

For expats still learning the city’s routes and travel patterns, checking traffic information can be a useful part of planning journeys and preparing for potential delays.

5. Managing daily tasks with Elves

Settling into a new country often means finding your feet with tasks you may have previously taken for granted. Locating a plumber, arranging errands or sourcing products can be more complicated when you’re unfamiliar with Egypt’s local services.

Elves is a chat-based concierge service you can use to do anything – from booking flights and handling daily errands, to creating a travel itinerary when you arrive to Egypt. The service aims to relieve you from the potential stress of settling into a new country by providing the support you need to manage your tasks.

For expats, Elves provides another option when organising everyday needs while you settle into the new environment. This is particularly useful for non-Arabic speakers.

Planning a move to Egypt?

Digital tools can make certain aspects of settling into Egypt more manageable, but getting comfortable in a new environment also involves navigating the practicalities of a domestic or international relocation.

Ensure a smooth process with local expertise. From immigration and destination services to settling in, Executive Relocations Africa provides the on-the-ground support you need for a stress-free relocation. Contact us today to speak with our relocation experts.