Egypt known by many sobriquets… the land of the Nile, Misr, the cradle of human civilization, to name a few, and its capital city of Cairo is the starting point of any journey into this mystical land. An interesting fact is that while Misr refers to the country of Egypt, locals also call Cairo as Misr. The metropolitan area of Cairo is one of the most densely populated areas of the world, where modern skyscrapers and buildings rub shoulders with the ancient pyramids, structures that were built 4500 years ago!! To be honest though, nothing can prepare you for Cairo. The hustle and bustle, the sheer number of people and cars filling the streets, and the incredible amount of history the city is home to, is something that you need to experience to believe.
First things first, do lower your expectations when you come to Egypt. And not for the architecture, that will blow all your wildest expectations out of the sky. Lower your expectations for the state of tourism in Egypt. Lower your expectations for the way people will treat you as walking ATMs, always trying to sell you things and being borderline intrusive and rude at times. Do bear in mind that the middle east and Egypt has been through very trying times since the Arab Spring in 2011 and tourism is a big, I mean really big contributor to their Economy. They need the tourist dollars and are not shy about asking for it. So fair warning in advance, being a tourist in Egypt is unlike any other country would have visited.
Secondly, don’t try to do Egypt on your own if you value your sanity. Can you do it solo, yes, but be prepared to spend a lot more time and effort and be pushed and prodded for every single thing by the locals if you plan to go that route. I would highly recommend paying a little extra and get a tour guide for your entire Egypt trip. It will buy you peace of mind on your vacation. We went with Memphis tours which was a little expensive but their guides and arrangements were top notch, so no complaints there!
Thirdly, tipping is expected everywhere and for everything. Somebody “helps” you find a free luggage trolley at the airport. You will be asked to tip. Lift your luggage from the floor into the trunk of the car. Tip expected again. Give you directions. Again, a tip is needed. You get the drift. You can argue at length as to whether this is right or wrong, but given that it is a country that is so dependent on tourism it is hard to just blame the people. Though I will add, that they will be brazen when they ask for tips, and will not leave you till you have paid. So beware. Also any tour guide that you take will tell you to your face at the start what the “expected” tip is for the guide, driver, restaurant etc. It just is a bit overwhelming but that is just how it is in Egypt. Just get used to it for the duration of your stay in Egypt and enjoy the history and architecture on display.
Ha, now with all the ranting done, lets focus back on Cairo and what we came to see! Of course, the great Pyramids of Giza is at the top of any sane persons list of things to do. For our first night we stayed at a hotel barely 5 mins from the Giza complex. There are rooms that get you a view of the pyramids from your room, but we didn’t get them sadly. Our tour company pushed us to book tickets for the light and sound show at the pyramids which we did end up purchasing (they are very expensive just so you know), and I feel that you can definitely skip it. It’s a bit gimmicky, and looks like they haven’t updated the lights or the sound since the mid 90s. Given how popular the pyramids are I would have expected more. I’ve heard there are restaurants nearby where you can see the show while enjoying dinner, given a chance that is what I would have preferred.
Next morning, our tour started bright and early in a shared van with 8 other tourists. We met our fun Egyptologist guide who had a great sense of humor and a lot of knowledge about Egyptian history. Even though we reached the Pyramid complex barely 20 mins after opening, there was a sea of humanity already present. But your first glimpse of the great pyramid and you will forget about the people around (for a brief instant at least) and just stare in awe at the structure in front of you!
The Giza pyramid complex comprises of three main pyramids, the Great Pyramid (the tallest, and tomb for Khufu/Cheops), Pyramid of Khafre (2nd tallest, for the son of Khufu) and Pyramid of Menkaure (the smallest, for the son of Khafre). Khafre Pyramid is almost as big as the Great Pyramid, but is built on a raised platform so it looks taller in pictures. It also has the original limestone casing still intact at the top, all pyramids were covered with that casing when originally made. The other main structure is the Sphinx, with a man’s head atop a lion’s body, made from a single slab of sandstone.
The great pyramid of Giza which stands at an impressive 146m tall was the tallest man made structure in the world till the construction of the Lincoln Cathedral in 1311 (a remarkable 3800 years!!). This is the first pyramid you will see on entering the complex and it is the only one one you can enter. Entering the pyramid costs extra, and is not worth it (our own guide told us it’s not worth it as it is very claustrophobic and dark, and you cannot take pictures either). It’s best to come to the complex as soon as it opens to get pictures without people, otherwise, it’s better to head over to the Khafre where you get a much better view of all three pyramids.
You can also do a camel ride at the pyramids, definitely go with a camel recommended by your guide (even though it might be slightly more expensive) for a hassle free ride. The ride is very bumpy and uncomfortable because the area is not a real sand desert so the camel’s hooves don’t sink into the sand which happens deep in the Sahara and makes the ride more comfy! 20 minutes is more than enough for your photo opportunities! Your camel guide will take really good pictures for you (in anticipation of a nice tip of course).
The pyramid complex is pretty big, and all the stops will need the use of a car to reach, again not an issue if you take a guided tour. Next stop is the Sphinx, which is usually the most crowded, too many selfie sticks here. You’ll have to be patient to get a good picture (we weren’t that lucky since we went in the last week of December, so the picture below is from the internet!). There is a lot of history associated with the pyramids which your guide will no doubt cover in great detail. Hearing it then and there while you marvel at these fantastic architectural giants is the true experience and one which you’ll treasure for a long time. Excavations in Egypt are ongoing, and they keep discovering new things every year. The whole pyramid complex takes about half a day to explore, so doing it in the morning, will give you plenty of time to explore, and makes a lunch break the perfect segway to visit the Grand Egyptian museum in the later half.
After a quick stop at a papyrus shop (very overpriced IMO!), we had lunch at a local restaurant before making our way to the Egyptian museum at Tahrir Square. This houses the largest collection of Egyptian artifacts in the world and must not be missed. Sometime in the next couple of years, this museum will shift to a new Grand Museum that is under construction very close to the pyramids complex in Giza. The red sandstone exterior of the building is very distinctive and was designed by French and Italian architects. The interior has 2 floors and every inch is covered by mesmerizing artifacts. You can spend ages here marvelling at the sheer collection (numbering over 120,000 pieces)! Most of the pieces are well labeled and your guide will also help fill in some of the blanks where needed. Don’t miss King Tut’s special exhibit where you can see the solid gold mask of King Tut. Equally impressive are the royal tombs which are so well preserved for their age. It took me back to my history lessons in school when we would read about all the Pharaohs!
You would be wrong to assume that ancient Egyptian history is all there is to Cairo. Our itinerary took us to Luxor for the next couple of days (read about it here!), but on our last day in Egypt we explored Islamic Cairo, which is equally impressive. The citadel which houses the Salah-Al-Din castle and the mosque of Mohd Al Pasha should not be missed for their fantastic islamic architecture. A lovely park surrounds the whole citadel which gives you great views over the city.
For our last day in Egypt, we had hired a cab with a driver from our hotel, and our driver was super nice and doubled up as our de-facto guide even though he didn’t have to. Would highly recommend getting a car + driver rather than trying to Uber/Careem it everywhere, you would get lost/scammed easily. Plus all the car plates are in Arabic and you would find it hard to even find your Uber in the crowd! Our driver/guide personally took us inside the Al-Azhar mosque, with its beautiful yet serene white courtyard, again something which you would need a local to help you with.
Our last stop was the Khan-el-khalili market, which is an old souq, very close to Al-Azhar mosque. I found it a bit over-hyped, there is literally one gate, Bab al-Ghuri, which is flanked by a set of shops selling egyptians souvenirs (like lamps and other trinkets), and everybody’s instagram photo of the souq is of this place (with one more example shown below taken by yours truly lol).
The place is crowded, but if you wait you can get some very nice Arabian Nights-esque shots. 30 minutes or so is more than enough time to explore the area. However for shopping, it is better to buy souvenirs in cities outside Cairo where you will be helping the locals.
With that, our trip to Egypt came to an end. We are so thankful and grateful that we got to immerse ourselves in the amazing architecture and history that Egypt has to offer (read about our adventures in Luxor here). With the middle east being such a mercuric place it’s never easy to decide when is the best time to go, but we would definitely tell you to just make your bookings and go for it rather than wait for the perfect time. The history on offer here is amazing and as long as you keep your expectations realistic for the rest of the things which I’ve mentioned earlier you will have the time of your life exploring all that Egypt has to offer.
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