Does UnionPay card work in Sharm el-Sheikh Egypt?

At the old building, an ATM to the left of the entrance reportedly dispensed cash from a UnionPay card without problems last year. For card payments, insert the card into the terminal rather than tapping it.

On 5 September 2026 a traveler withdrew cash from an airport ATM using a yuan-denominated card. Paying with it at the 'Russian pharmacy' failed, and withdrawing cash from another bank's ATM in the Old Market had not worked so far either.

At Senzo Mall, card payment worked at the pharmacy and at Ravin (an Egyptian clothing/gift brand store), but the grocery supermarket didn't accept cards at all — cash pounds only.

Card payment is accepted at the Anton store on the other side (selling clothes, souvenirs, tea/coffee/sweets).

A UnionPay Rosselkhozbank card worked for payment at Elezaby pharmacy, but was declined at a nearby Russian pharmacy. At a large FixPrice store, card payment also went through, but only at one specific register (near the shoes/bags section) — not all registers accept cards.

There are two ATMs near the hotel: one right by the hotel was out of order, while the other — near a state pharmacy (turn left from the hotel) — worked fine, successfully dispensing cash with a UnionPay Rosselkhozbank card.

In June 2026 a traveler withdrew 4,000 Egyptian pounds at a time from her hotel's ATM with a UnionPay card, even though, as others had written earlier, hotel staff insist their ATM does not take such cards. Another family of tourists helped her with the machine.

UnionPay was declined at multiple pharmacies in Sharm el-Sheikh. However, payment went through without issues at FixPrice store on Naama Bay.

In June 2026 a traveler wrote that UnionPay cards are accepted at pharmacies, and, according to others, at the airport duty-free shop. Pounds came out of her hotel's ATM without problems even though it had no UnionPay sticker, and the menu could be switched to Russian. She did not remember which bank the ATM belonged to.

In July 2026 a participant summed it up like this: with any foreign card you can withdraw Egyptian pounds; according to him, you cannot withdraw dollars from ATMs anywhere in Egypt. Russian-issued cards do not work, with the exception of UnionPay cards from Rosselkhozbank.

In September 2026 tourists with Russian passports were sent straight to the ATM at one bank without explanation. Another participant explained from her own experience: try the bank's ATM first, and if it has no cash, you can exchange money inside the branch. In her words, the staff at that bank do not speak Russian; she communicated in English.