Destination
Type of Activity
Editors Pick
Read MoreAbu Simbel
A forty-minute flight south of Aswan and only a two-hour drive from the border of Sudan, Abu Simbel is the site of one the greatest examples of ancient Egyptian art. The main temple is framed by four colossal statues of...
- Sultan Hassan Mosque, courtesy Berthold WernerRead More
Churches and Temples
The highlights of Old Cairo are connected to the three central religions of the region. The main sites of Islamic Cairo are the Citadel and the Mosque of Muhammad Ali. In the mosque’s courtyard, visitors can see the clock that...
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Colossi of Memnon
These monumental statues of Amenhotep III (1386-1353 BC) once guarded a mortuary temple for one of the pharaohs. Those buildings have disappeared over time and the statues were named by the Greeks after Memnon, the Ethiopian king who was killed...
- Courtesy A.HariryRead More
Edfu
The most intact of all of Egypt’s temples, the Temple of Horus at Edfu was built between 237 and 57 BC. Located between Aswan and Luxor, it is the second largest temple of ancient Egypt (after Karnak) and is well...
- Courtesy Diego DelsoRead More
Egyptian Museum
The Egyptian Museum was built in 1900 by the French architect Marcel Dourgnon. Its purpose was to house artifacts collected by the French archeologist Auguste Mariette, whose mausoleum is located in its gardens. (The Temple of Edfu was one of...
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Hot-air Balloon Ride
When the weather is suitable, hot-air balloon rides are offered on the West Bank of the Nile at Luxor early each morning. Rides can be booked on a private or shared basis and generally leave around 6 am. The ride...
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Indagare Tour: Markets
Visit the bustling market of Khan el-Khalili—not for the shopping, but for the atmosphere. Most of the shops in the labyrinthine souk sell the same tourist souvenirs: ceramics, copper ware, carpets, leather, gold jewelry and lots of cotton goods, from...
- Courtesy Ad MeskensRead More
Karnak Temple
Spread across 64 acres, this gigantic temple complex took 2,000 years to build and was once serviced by 81,000 priests. There is a sound and light show offered here some evenings; it is touristy but impressive all the same. Contact...
- Courtesy RémihRead More
Kom Ombo
Known as the twin temples, the Kom Ombo temples are dedicated to the Crocodile God Sobek, who was the God of Fertility and the Creator of the World and—to the Falcon God Haroeis—known as Horus the Elder. The temple, which...
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Memphis and Saqqâra
The pyramids at Saqqâra, where Egypt’s royalty and nobility were buried during the Old Kingdom (mid-to-late third millennium BC), are worth a visit. It is the largest archaeological site in Egypt, and important discoveries are still being made here. In...
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Mohamed Mahmoud Khalil Museum
Set in an ornate palace in Giza, this museum is dedicated to lauded politician Mohamed Mahmoud Khalil and contains a variety of historic artifacts. The museum also has an impressive collection of paintings, including many by prominent Impressionist artists such...
- Courtesy the Yorck ProjectRead More
Nefertari’s Tomb
Only opened to a limited number of visitors in 2017, the Tomb of Nefertari has long been considered the most beautifully decorated of all of the discovered tombs on the West Bank of Luxor. The tomb was prepared for the...
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Nile Cruises
Fewer than 300 boats have licenses to operate on the Nile, and after the Arab Spring when tourism to Egypt evaporated, many of them were moored for months. The hotels in Luxor and Aswan stood as empty as haunted houses,...
- Courtesy Marc RyckaerRead More
Nubian Museum
This museum in Aswan, which takes the form of a Nubian village with conical hut structures, contains a few significant treasures from the area, including statues and mummies.
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Pyramids
At the distance of a few miles the Pyramids rising above the palms, looked very clean-cut, very grand and imposing, and very soft and filmy, as well. They swam in a rich haze that took from them all suggestions of...
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Queen Hatshesput’s Temple
The world’s first epic female ruler, Queen Hatshesput, ruled from 1478-1458 BC and was responsible for some of the greatest aspects of the Temple at Karnak as well as her own massive necropolis. (A trick for pronouncing her name: Queen...
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Temple at Luxor
The tomb for Ramses the Second is often cited as the inspiration for Percy Shelley’s poem Ozymandias (in fact, he wrote it before traveling to Egypt). It is the only temple in Egypt that contains both a mosque and a...
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The Nile
Most of the great treasures of ancient Egyptian civilization, and two thirds of all of the world’s antiquities, lie on the East and West banks of the River Nile between Luxor and Aswan. During the reign of the great pharaonic...
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The Philae Temple
Located a few kilometers south of Aswan, the Temple of Philae was built to honor the goddess Isis between the years of 380 BC and 300 AD and includes Greco-Roman influences in its elaborate columns. The Philae Temple was moved...
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The Sphinx
Situated adjacent to the Pyramids, the Great Sphinx is not only the most recognized Egyptian monument, but one of the best known monuments in the world. The massive lion body with the head of a pharaoh most likely dates back...
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Tomb of Seti I
The largest, deepest and most elaborate royal tomb within the Valley of the Kings was discovered in 1817 by Giovanni Belzoni, who recalled the near perfect preservation of the immaculately painted walls when he entered. It’s no surprise that the...
- Courtesy Nowic LuRead More
Valley of the Kings
An important geological site, the Valley of the Kings contains 63 tombs belonging to pharaohs and nobles of Ancient Egypt. The location was chosen by the pharaohs because it was, at the time, too high to be damaged by floods...
