Women are advised to follow certain guidelines when swimming in oasis springs. In tlie most isolated springs unfrequented by locals, female travelers are not likely to be bothered. The same goes for pools cordoned off and adjoined to tourist rest houses. Women should not, however, enter pools where men are already bathing. Sometimes there is a separate pool where women may bathe, provided they wear a gahxbiyo.

Note that the requirement for foreigners to obtain permission to visit the oases was lifted in 1985-86. Despite what out-of-date sources will tell you, you need only flash a passport at the numerous military checkpoints en route-keep it handy. In Dakhla, Kharga, or Farafra you might be asked to pay a LE4.50 per person tourism development tax. It’s usually easy to avoid: claim you’ve already paid, deny being a tourist, protest-often they don’t press the issue. If you pay the tax at a hotel, be sure to keep the receipt as proof; otherwise you may have to pay again.