Travel Guide for Exploring Egypt

Tell someone you are traveling to Egypt and they are likely to picture the pyramids and ancient temples. But, as amazing as its ancient pharaonic sights are, travel in Egypt has a lot more to offer.

The Greeks conquered Egypt in 332 BC, but they continued many of the traditions and religious practices of ancient Egypt. After Cleopatra’s demise in 30 BC, Egypt became a province of the Roman empire for 600 years. During that time, the monasteries and churches were established in Egypt, which became a major center of Christianity by 200 AD. The Arabs came next, with the Fatimids (Shiah) followed by the Ayyubids (Sunni), then the Mamluks and Ottomans who turned Cairo into the city of a thousand minarets. Late in the 19^th century, the British occupied Egypt. That officially ended when Egypt became an independent nation in 1922, although the British managed to stay in the picture until 1956.

All of this history means travelers to Egypt can supplement visits to the tombs and temples of pharaohs with Roman ruins, churches, monasteries, mosques, palaces, and more. And, of course, the art and artifacts of all these cultures (and more) can be seen throughout the country in museums large and small.

Too much history for you?

Sit back and watch the landscape drift by as you float down the Nile. Lunch on the day’s fresh fish along the Mediterranean where you can choose whether to watch colorful fishing boats bob in the harbor or admire the futuristic lines of the new library in Alexandria. Or maybe just get away from everything on a seemingly endless strip of sand along the Red Sea or dive into the colorful array of coral and fish that await just below the sea’s surface. Of course, to really want to get away from it all, visit one of Egypt’s deserts where a harsh and oddly beautiful landscape awaits.

There’s more. But that should give you some idea of what Egypt has to offer and why this fascinating country is one of my favorite places to visit.

What’s where in Egypt

Modern Egypt includes the heart of ancient Egypt along the Nile from the Mediterranean south into Nubia (the ancient kingdom of Kush), the Eastern Desert between the Nile and Red Sea, the Sinai Peninsula, and a chunk of the Western Desert between the Nile valley and Libya.

With the exception of the Western Desert, most of which was considered a wasteland and not really under the control of anyone, modern Egypt’s borders align fairly closely with those of ancient Egypt throughout much of its history. Sometimes Egypt was larger and sometimes it was a little smaller, but the area we recognize as Egypt today is pretty consistent with what was identified as Egypt in the days of the pharaohs.

What’s the difference between Upper and Lower Egypt?

When it come to ancient Egypt, there’s a lot of talk about Upper and Lower Egypt. These terms identify the two ancient kingdoms that, together, we know as Egypt. Unfortunately for visitors, the use of these terms is both a little confusing and a little inconsistent.

Let’s start with what “upper” and “lower” mean.

These designations are NOT a pseudonym for north and south. Instead, they refer to the direction the Nile flows and the elevation of the land. And the Nile flows north down to the low-lying delta along the Mediterranean.

LOWER EGYPT is NORTHERN Egypt. This is the Nile Delta area between Cairo and the Mediterranean port of Alexandria.
UPPER EGYPT is upstream, SOUTH of Lower Egypt. It includes Luxor (ancient Thebes), but ends north of Aswan. (Aswan and the area to the south is part of Nubia, a distinct culture that once formed the ancient kingdom of Kush.)

Show more...

And then there’s Middle Egypt

Sometimes maps also identify a swath of the country south of modern Cairo to slightly north of Luxor as MIDDLE EGYPT.

This is a naming convention developed by 19^th century archeologists who apparently needed another way to categorize all of the ancient sites they were looting excavating. It serves no purpose other than identifying the location of an ancient site in Upper Egypt. If you see “Middle Egypt,” just substitute “Upper Egypt.”

The very south of Egypt is Nubian

The southernmost part of Egypt, including both Aswan and Abu Simbel, is called Nubia or Lower Nubia.

Historically and culturally, Nubia extends south into Sudan.

This was once part of the powerful kingdom of Kush. It’s always had a distinct identity – even when Kushite kings ruled Egypt as pharaohs, Egypt and Nubia retained distinct identities. Although integrated into modern Egypt, this area is home to a large population with an African culture and ethnicity quite different from the rest of Egypt.

Touring Egypt

Egyptian World Heritage sites

Egypt currently has seven UNESCO World Heritage sites spread throughout the country. These sites fall into four broad groups representing ancient Egypt, Islamic Egypt, Christian Egypt, and the natural world.

Show more...

Ancient Egyptian World Heritage sites

Most tourists are familiar with the World Heritage sites of ancient Egypt.

They include:

Memphis and its Necropolis, the capital of the Old Kingdom, including the pyramids of Giza and Dahshur outside Cairo.
Ancient Thebes and its Necropolis in and around Luxor, including the temples of Karnak and Luxor and the tombs and temples of the West Bank, including the Valley of the Kings and Village of the Workers.
Nubian Monuments from Abu Simbel to Philae, including the temples at Abu Simbel and the temple of Isis at Philae.

Historic Cairo’s Islamic World Heritage site

Within the ever-expanding city of Cairo, one of the world’s oldest Islamic cities lives on. Dating to the 7^th century, historic Cairo includes about 800 designated monuments representing 1300 years of history. It includes historic mosques, madrasas, bazaars, hammams, fountains, and a variety of other structures, as well as several burial grounds.

The area is made up of five sites:

Al-Fustat, the oldest part of Cairo dates back to the 7^th century. It includes the site of the first mosque built in Egypt, the Mosque of Al-As, along with Roman ruins and the Christian monuments of Coptic Cairo.
The heart of the old Fatimid city, from the Citadel and Mosque of Ahmed Ibn Tulun to the area around the Mosque of Al-Azhar and the Khan Al-Khalili. This was the Fatimid capital and the most important cultural center in the Islamic world by the 14^th century.
Al-Imam ash-Shaf’i Necropolis
As-Sayyidah Nafisah Necropolis
Qayitbay Necropolis

Much of this is still a densely populated area filled with mosques, markets, shops, and homes. It’s a challenging area to preserve and protect.

Christian World Heritage

Christianity has existed in Egypt almost as long as it has been in existence anywhere. A couple of World Heritage sites preserve bits of this history.

Abu Mena is the site of an early Christian pilgrimage site and monastery near Alexandria. It was a major Christian center by the year 600 AD. Today the site is identified as endangered and is usually closed to the public.
The Saint Catherine Area includes the 6^th century Orthodox Christian monastery of Saint Catherine and Mount Sinai, where Christians, Jews, and Muslims all believe God gave Moses the Ten Commandments. Saint Catherine’s is the oldest Christian monastery still used as a monastery. It’s located on the Sinai Peninsula.

Natural World Heritage

The only “Natural” UNESCO World Heritage site is the Wadi Al-Hitan, the Whale Valley, in the northern portion of the Western Desert. The site is significance for its fossils, particularly those of an extinct type of whale that was changing from a land-based animal to the sea-dwelling creatures we know today.

This is an important scientific research site and access is a strictly controlled.

Potential future World Heritage sites

The UNESCO regularly adds sites to the World Heritage list. To be considered, the site’s home country must include it on a list of sites they believe worthy of designation.

Egypt has 33 tentative sites on its list. They include individual structures (or their remains), large archaeological sites, natural areas, and more.

Specific examples include:

The monasteries of the Arab Desert and Wadi Natrun
The pharaonic temples of Upper Egypt from the Ptolemaic and Roman periods – The temples of Dendera, Esna, Edfu, and Kom Ombo that are included on many Nile River cruises
The ancient remains and new library in Alexandria
Egypt’s great desert landscapes, including the Qattara Depression, the Great Sand Sea, and Wadi Sannur Cave
A variety of sites in and around El Fayoum

The entire list is on the UNESCO World Heritage page for Egypt.

Plan a trip to Egypt

When is the best time to visit Egypt?

All tourist attractions are open throughout the year.

Most tourists visit between October and April, when temperatures are cooler. However:

European Christmas and Easter school holidays are particularly busy
Coptic Christmas (January 7) and Coptic Easter occasionally attract violence aimed at the Coptic community.
Spring brings a wind off the desert – Egypt’s wind usually comes from the North, but in spring it flips and brings hot, dusty, air up from the desert for a few weeks.
Winter in Cairo and north can be unexpectedly chilly.

June – September are very hot (temperatures over 100 every day), but if you can stand the heat, prices are low.

Ramadan can be an interesting time to visit, but it’s also more challenging. (Check the calendar for dates, as it changes every year.

Learn More

Online resources

Websites for planning a trip

The US State Department travel page will make you wonder if you should just stay home, but you’d feel much the same after reading their info on France or Spain. But do read it.

TripAdvisor’s Egypt forum is a great resource when the information is up-to-date. If it’s more than a year old, ask what the current situation is. People who actually live in Egypt or travel there regularly are generally very happy to share what they know. (In most cases, it’s best to ignore most advice from people who visited on a tour. Unless, of course, you are taking the same tour.) While you can never completely trust what you read online, answers on the forum usually come from people with first-hand experience. Just make sure it’s up-to-date.

Lonely Planet’s Thorn Tree has long been the gold standard for crowd-sourced travel information. They have an Egypt forum, but (like all their forums), it’s currently not operating. As a brand, Lonely Planet has suffered a lot of turmoil, a loss of focus, and a lot downsizing since its founders sold it in 2007. The same is true of the Thorn Tree, although it seemed to be functioning again before this most recent “pause.” Lonely Planet was recently bought by an online media company, so perhaps it will finally start to thrive once again.

The Rough Guide for Egypt has a considerable amount of solid information available for free on their website. (This is not true of most guidebook publishers.)

The Local’s Guide to Egypt is a new, highly detailed resource that is expanding quickly.

Websites focused on Egyptian history and culture

The Ancient History Encyclopedia has a lot of great information on Egypt, although you may have to do some searching to find exactly what you are looking for.

Osirisnet focuses on the tombs of ancient Egypt, with many photos and illustrations. It is a very thorough, but easy to understand, website by an Egyptologist.

The Egypt Center Collection blog is connected to the Egypt Center at Swansea University in Wales. This website has an amazing amount of recent information by students and experts in Egyptology. Unfortunately, there is no index, so finding information on the site can be challenging.

The Luxor Times had a great Egyptology news page, but I’m not sure it’s still being updated.

Visit Egypt virtually

Local Guide to Egypt put together a list of 22 Egyptian sites you can tour virtually. The list includes ancient tombs, historic churches and mosques, museums, and more. These show floor plans, 3d cut-outs, and walk or zoom through tours. If you are susceptible to motion sickness, avoid the video zoom through tour.

Books on Egypt

There are many, many books about Egypt, inspired by Egypt, and set in Egypt. I’ve gathered a few of them into a virtual library.

This page is under construction.

Please use the links below to access stories, photos, and additional information on travel in Egypt.

Follow these links for my Egypt posts

Travel guide for exploring Egypt