What to see in Egypt: 20 interesting places to explore the country

Going on vacation to Egypt for the first time, you should be prepared for incredible discoveries. Egypt is a land of mysteries and unknown answers. And if the answer to the question of why Tutankhamun’s tomb was the only one not plundered, you probably know, then there are still a lot of mysteries that you have to solve during excursions to Egyptian sights.

For example, why was the only female pharaoh buried among the men, even though it is forbidden? What must be done in Egypt to receive a full remission of sins? Where did the images of a helicopter and a boat come from in ancient temples? How to stumble in order to dig up the most famous temple of Egypt? How to make a tourist brand out of mushroom and chicken? And what, in the end, is the point of the story about the Siwa fortress? Ready for discoveries? Then read on!

Pyramids of Giza and the Great Sphinx. Cairo

One of the seven wonders of the world, the last surviving pyramid of Cheops, can be seen near Cairo, as part of a large necropolis in the Giza plateau.

The Giza Necropolis is a real cluster of tombs and temples dedicated to the three pharaohs of the 4th dynasty of the Old Kingdom: Cheops (Khufu), Khafre (Khafre) and Menkaur (Mykerin). They ruled Egypt from 2600 to 2480 BC. There are also pyramids-satellites for the wives of rulers, temples-guides and a 20-meter Sphinx with the body of a lion and the head of a man, guarding the entrance to this kingdom of the dead.

The biggest mystery is: how was it all built? The height of the pyramids of Cheops and Khafre is almost 140 meters, Menkaura – 62 meters. The blocks from which they were built weighed 2.5 tons. “As?!” – scientists ask and suggest that all this greatness was built with the help of an inclined embankment, which was poured in as the tombs “growth”. The Pyramids of Giza are a top must-see attraction during your holiday in Egypt.

Egyptian Museum. Cairo

The total looting of the tombs in the 19th century forced the Egyptian authorities to create a separate Egyptian Antiquities Service. And still, it was not possible to cope with the “leakage” of national values ​​- the artifacts went to the black market and abroad. 

In 1850, the French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette turned down a prestigious job at the Louvre, flew to Cairo and took matters into his own hands.

It cost Mariette a lot of strength and nerves, but in 1863 he was able to found the first Egyptian Museum in the Cairo region of Bulak. After the death of the Egyptologist, his work was continued: artifacts were collected, there was a struggle to finance the construction of a full-fledged museum.

In 1902, the two-story Egyptian Museum finally opened in Cairo, on Tahrir Square. Today, more than 150 thousand exhibits are presented in a hundred halls, gradually revealing the history, culture and life of the Egyptian state. The most impressive point of the tour of the Egyptian Museum is the hall of Tutankhamun, where almost all the exhibits are made of pure gold. 

Karnak and Luxor temples. Luxor

The two largest temple complexes of Ancient Egypt were located at a distance of 365 sphinxes from each other – they were connected by an alley of sculptures of these mythical creatures. 

The Karnak Temple was the first to be built in the 20th century BC and was a city of 33 temples with a perimeter of 1.5 kilometers by 700 meters. The key ones were the temple of Amon-Ra, built under Amenhotep III, the temple of Mut, the wife of Amon-Ra, and the temple of Khonus, their son. Each new pharaoh tried to “check in” at the Karnak temple in order to perpetuate the memory of himself with the help of these walls.

The Luxor temple began to be built under Pharaoh Amenophis in the 14th century BC. The building consisted of several courtyards fenced with giant statues of pharaohs. Today, only three of the six 20-meter statues of Ramses II and his wife Nefertari can be seen. And in general, the Luxor temple was much less fortunate than Karnak: almost ruins remained of it. Both temples have survived to this day due to the fact that until the 19th century they were covered with sand. 

Valley of the Kings and the Temple of Hatshepsut. Luxor

Hatshepsut, daughter of Thutmose I, entered world history as the first and only female pharaoh. And also as a connoisseur of art, a builder of monuments, a reconstructor of ruined sights and a brave commander.

Hatshepsut was able to become pharaoh by taking custody of his heir, stepson, after the death of her husband-pharaoh. To get closer to the gods, she ordered in the temples to depict the god Amon-Ra with the face of his father. She artificially gave her skin a dark color, wore men’s clothes and a false beard – symbols of courage in Egypt. And she ordered to build her own tomb in the Valley of the Kings, not the Queens, right behind her temple. 

The three-story temple of Hatshepsut was built from 1482 to 1473 BC. It came out light, airy due to the absence of walls and pylons – they were replaced by open terraces. The building was distinguished by a large number of sculptures. 

Behind the temple begins the Valley of the Kings, or the City of the Dead – a grandiose necropolis, where for 500 years – from the 16th to the 11th centuries – the pharaohs, members of their families and close associates were buried. At the moment, archaeologists have unearthed more than 50 tombs. Almost all of them were looted, except for the tomb of Tutankhamen. Apparently, this is due to a series of deaths of people who opened the tomb, and conjectures about the curse.

Mount Moses. Sinai

The mountain where, according to the Bible, Moses received stone tablets with 10 commandments from God, is located just 130 kilometers from Sharm el-Sheikh. You will have to leave early: for those who managed to reach a height of about 2285 meters above sea level by dawn, the Almighty forgives all sins. 

The ascent to the mountain takes about 2.5 hours. There are two paths to forgiveness to choose from: the “path of repentance” and the “camel path”. In the first case, you will have to go through 3,750 stone steps without a fence, in the second, you will have to drive two-thirds of the way on a camel, having walked independently to the top only about 700 steps. The reward will be a stunningly beautiful sunrise over Mount Sinai. Well, the absolution of all sins, of course.

Monastery of St. Catherine. Sinai

One of the oldest Orthodox monasteries is located at the foot of Mount Sinai. It was built between 548 and 565 AD at the behest of Emperor Justinian.

Initially, it was a monastery of the Transfiguration, it was also called the monastery of the Burning Bush. After some time, it was renamed in honor of the Holy Great Martyr Catherine.

Catherine lost her head for refusing to renounce her faith. Her body, according to legend, was taken by angels to Mount Sinai. After 300 years, the monks found the remains of the martyr, identifying her by the ring given to her by Jesus.

Today, all pilgrims who have come to the service receive a ring with the inscription AGIA AIKATERINA. For the sake of what they strive to get into the monastery, what miracles they want to see:

• the relics of St. Catherine;
• the chapel of the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary of the 6th century;
• mosaics of the 6th century in the Basilica of the Transfiguration;
• that very Burning Bush: it was transplanted outside the walls of the temple and this is the only such plant in South Sinai;
• over 2000 early Christian icons;
• the second most important library of manuscripts after the Vatican;
• the well of Moses;
• crypt and cemetery with the chapel of St. Tryphon.

The monastery under Mount Sinai has never burned or been ruined. In 2002 it was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Kite Bay Fortress Alexandria

The Citadel of Alexandria appeared thanks to the Mamluk Sultan Qaitbey in 1477 and was supposed to serve as a defense against the Turks. They built a fortress from the remains of the famous Lighthouse of Alexandria, destroyed by an earthquake several centuries earlier. The large-scale construction of white stone and limestone had two rows of walls with walkways, tunnels, embrasures, barracks, armory rooms and cells for prisoners.

The role of an outpost on the Mediterranean Sea, the fortress of Kait Bay fulfilled in full, taking over the siege and 500-year-old possession of the Ottomans. Under Muhammad Ali, she received a second life – the ruler made a large-scale repair and equipped the citadel with modern coastal guns. In the 1880s, the fortress was badly damaged by British troops. It was restored at the behest of King Farouk, who wished to build a personal estate within these walls.

Today it houses the Alexandria Maritime Museum.

Montaza Palace. Alexandria

For old times, the Egyptians call the luxurious building on the Mediterranean coast in the Montaza region the residence of King Farouk, although Farouk himself fled these walls during the 1952 revolution.

The first to build his small palace here was Salamluk in 1892 by Khedive Abbas II, the last ruler of the Muhammad Ali dynasty. He came to the Mediterranean in the summer, setting the tone among the local nobility and “promoting” the Montaz area.

The large palace of Al-Haramlik in the Ottoman-Florentine style was completed in the 1930s by the first king of Egypt and Sudan, Ahmed Fuad, Farouk’s father. More than 250 rooms, Italian marble, crystal chandeliers – the construction was on a truly royal scale. The cherry was the tower in the style of the Italian Renaissance, a copy of the tower of the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence. 

Today, the royal palace of Alexandria is run by the president, so tourists are not allowed here. But you can visit the royal park with an area of ​​​​61 hectares. In addition to rare plants, there are luxury hotels with the best beaches. 

Reserve Abu Galum and the Blue Hole. Dahab

Here, between Sharm el-Sheikh and Taba, the Sinai mountains come to the very edge of the northern shore of the Red Sea. Almost 400 square kilometers are inhabited by 167 rare species of animals, birds and plants, 44 of which can only be found here, in Abu Galum, the national park of Egypt.

An excursion to Abu Galum gives you the opportunity to get acquainted with the wild natural life of Egypt, one that you might not have suspected. There is excellent birdwatching, an exciting safari. But most tourists come here for diving and snorkeling. Local coral reefs are known far beyond the borders of Egypt, and especially the Blue Hole. For the sake of diving into this funnel with a diameter of 55 meters, divers from all over the world seek to Abu Galum. 

White desert. East Sahara

Once, 80-85 million years ago, the sea splashed here. The water receded, exposing natural limestone deposits at the bottom: the remains of plankton, corals, snails, ammonites. The wind and the sun played the role of a sculptor, turning whimsical figures out of white rocks: the head of the Sphinx, camels and birds. But the title of the visiting card of the White Desert went to the sculpture of a mushroom with a hat and a chicken under it. Although, perhaps, everyone will see something of their own in the geometry of snow-white rocks 10-12 meters high.

The White Desert is far from the main tourist cities, covering almost 300 square kilometers between the oases of Farafra and Bahariya. Therefore, there are few tourists here, although they managed to destroy some of the natural creations before this territory received the status of a National Park and protection in 2002. 

The nearest city from where you should take a tour of this sight of Egypt is Cairo. Drive 500 km. However, as a bonus, you can see the Black Desert along the way. And if it doesn’t impress you, then the pink-purple colors of sunset or dawn on snow-white rocks will surely win you over.

Colored Canyon. Nuweiba

The brightest natural landmark of Egypt is located 150 kilometers from Sharm el-Sheikh. Rocks from 20 to 80 meters high seem to be painted in colors from white-sand to orange-red. When the eyes get used to it, gray, pink and even purple blotches can be seen in the rock – somewhere in gentle tones, and somewhere with a metallic sheen. This is how copper, cobalt, granite and the remains of ancient corals appear.

A giant fissure 5 kilometers long and 1 to 10 meters wide is believed to have appeared as a result of an earthquake. Wind, rain and time have done their job, deepening and polishing this colorful natural labyrinth of rocks. It is dangerous to go here alone, it is better to go as part of an excursion with a certified guide. Then, in addition to walking along the multi-colored rocky meanders, jeep safari on the sands, camel riding and tea in the company of Bedouins are waiting for you.

Temples in Abu Simbel

The cave temples of Abu Simbel are the most famous landmark in Egypt after the pyramids and the Sphinx, part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

Abu Simbel is a 100-meter cliff near Nubia, an 8-hour drive from Hurghada. By 1244 BC, the temple of Ramses II, dedicated to Amun-Ra, was carved into the rock. It took 20 years to carve out halls, columns and sculptures from stone.

The facade of the temple is decorated with four 20-meter statues: the gods Ra-Khorakhte, Ptah, Amon and Pharaoh Ramses II. Similarities can be found in the faces of the characters: they all look like Ramses. So the ruler wanted to equate himself with the gods. 

Three amazing stories are associated with the temple:

1. The temple covered with sand was accidentally found in 1813 by a Swiss traveler: he literally stumbled on its top. 
2. In the middle of the 20th century, the temple was sawn into 1036 blocks of 20 tons each and transported to a new place, assembled like a puzzle. This was due to the risk of flooding during the construction of a reservoir in Aswan. Specialists from 50 countries worked on the transfer, the process took 4 years.
3. Every year on February 22, the pharaoh’s birthday, and on October 22, the day of his ascension to the throne, the rays of the sun fall on the face of the statue of Ramses II in such a way that it looks like the pharaoh is smiling. 

Next to the main temple there is a second, small temple. It was built in honor of the first wife of Ramses Nefertari Merenmut and is dedicated to the goddess Hathor. 

Temple of Dendera

In the ancient city of Dendera, 230 km from Hurghada and 55 km from Luxor, on the west bank of the Nile stands the main temple of the goddess Hathor. The same sacred cow, which, according to ancient Egyptian mythology, gave birth to the Sun and spilled the Milky Way across the sky. 

Hathor was revered as the goddess of the sky, fertility, femininity, beauty, motherhood. The main pilgrims of the temple were women: they asked the goddess for the long-awaited conception or the happy birth of an already conceived child. 

The sanctuary was built in the 1st century BC, back in the Greco-Roman era. Construction dragged on for 200 years. The building, 79 meters long, has columned and Hellenistic halls, underground crypts are located below, and chapels are located above. In the Chapel of Osiris you can see the world’s first zodiac calendar. 

A distinctive feature of the Temple of Hathor in Dendera is the simultaneous presence of reliefs with Egyptian gods and statues of Roman emperors from Augustus to Nero.  

Mortuary Temple of Seti I. Abydos

Abydos is one of the oldest cities in Egypt, inhabited long before the advent of the pharaohs. A representative of the 19th dynasty Seti I ordered to build a temple in honor of Osiris here. 

In fact, Seti pursued a cunning political goal – to equate himself with the gods by placing a statue of the pharaoh in the temple next to their sculptures. So the Ramesside dynasty legitimized its divine origin, although its ancestors were ordinary warriors from the Delta.

The temple was completed by the son of Seti I, Ramses II. A colossal L-shaped structure with 2 columned halls and 7 chapels emerged.

What Temple Seti I is known for:

• a special technique for the execution of reliefs on the walls;
• the dynastic list of the pharaohs of Egypt, the so-called “Abydos list”, according to which the chronology of the reign of the region was restored;
• reliefs of a boat, an airship and a helicopter on a beam in the main hall are the result of the work of crooked restorers.

Abydos is located 500 km from Cairo, 100 km from Thebes and about the same from Luxor. Therefore, a tour of the Abydos temple will take place without crowds of tourists.

Aswan Dam. Aswan 

This grandiose piece of engineering gave Egypt control of the Nile, stopping droughts and floods. The English dam, built in 1902, did not cope with this task. Therefore, they decided in the 1960s to make another attempt.

The new dam was built by Soviet specialists with the involvement of almost 30,000 Egyptian workers. The materials that went to the Aswan Dam would be enough for 17 pyramids of Cheops. Therefore, it is called the pyramid of the XX century.

The construction took 4 years, in the process the housing of almost 60 thousand local residents was destroyed, historical monuments were flooded. Only 11 of the most valuable sights of Egypt thanks to UNESCO managed to be transferred to another place, the most important of which were the temples of Abu Simbel.

The length of the dam is almost 4 km, height – 111 meters, width at the base – about a kilometer, to the top – 40 meters. At the top is a 4-lane road with a triumphal arch. At the top there is an observation deck overlooking the dam and Lake Nasser. During an organized tour, you can see a 15-meter model of the Aswan Dam.

Market Khan el-Khalili. Cairo

The largest and oldest market in Africa was erected in the early Middle Ages on the site of an old cemetery. Emir el Khalili ordered to build a caravanserai here. And then another, and another. And in the 16th century they were combined into a market complex, slightly reconstructed and replanned. 

Today in Khan el-Khalili life is in full swing. Right in front of you, artisans sew grandmothers, mint trays, weave carpets. Prices here are touristy, as befits a top tourist attraction. Walking along the old market streets, past shops, cafes and hookah bars, the main thing is not to get lost, because the territory of the market is almost 5 thousand square kilometers. 

Grand Aquarium. Hurghada

“The Red Sea in Glass” is the name of the grandiose oceanarium and mini-zoo in the Magawish area in Hurghada. Here, on the territory of more than 40 thousand square meters in tanks with a volume of 3.5 thousand cubic meters of water, 1200 representatives of 100 species of the Red Sea fauna, its coast and other world zones live.

The exposition is divided into 24 thematic galleries. There is an open-air rainforest area with flamingos, monkeys and ostriches, a crocodile pond, numerous aquariums with turtles, snakes, fish and – the main feature of the Grand Aquarium – a 25-meter glass tunnel in which stingrays, sharks and others swim above your heads sea ​​dwellers.

The aquarium in Hurghada is also famous for the skeleton of an ancient whale 20 meters long.

The Grand Aquarium was built in 2015 not only for entertainment purposes, but also with an ecological mission: it operates an educational center that fights to save endangered species. 

Old city. Siwa

The Siwa oasis, 50 kilometers from the Libyan border, is considered one of the most beautiful in Egypt and is famous for its date and olive groves. And also – the visit of Alexander the Great to the temple of Amun, where the Oracle informed the commander about his divine origin and recognized him as the legitimate pharaoh of Egypt.

The southern part of Ras Mohammed is home to some of the world’s best dive beaches with underwater corals that are two billion years old. Under water, you can see entire reef cities with an amazing variety of underwater inhabitants. Just listen to these names: Eel Garden, Shark Reef, Anemone City, Iolanta Reef, Shark Observatory.

What else can you see in Ras Mohammed:

• mangroves;
• rare geological rocks;
• a salt lake that fulfills wishes (you just need to plunge headlong into very salty water – and the wish will come true, try it!).

Ras Mohammed Reserve. Sharm El Sheikh

The first national park in Egypt was opened in 1989 and was called the “head of Mohammed” – Ras Mohammed. It is located 25 kilometers from Sharm el-Sheikh and occupies 480 thousand square kilometers, two thirds of which are water with the islands of Sanafir and Tiran. Here you can meet the rarest species of birds and animals for this region, but the feature of the reserve is the underwater world.

The southern part of Ras Mohammed is home to some of the world’s best dive beaches with underwater corals that are two billion years old. Under water, you can see entire reef cities with an amazing variety of underwater inhabitants. Just listen to these names: Eel Garden, Shark Reef, Anemone City, Iolanta Reef, Shark Observatory.

What else can you see in Ras Mohammed:

• mangroves;
• rare geological rocks;
• a salt lake that fulfills wishes (you just need to plunge headlong into very salty water – and the wish will come true, try it!).

Wadi el Rayyan and Wadi el Hitan. Faiyum Oasis

The Faiyum oasis has long been called the gardens of Egypt. It appeared about 4 thousand years ago by the forces of Pharaoh Amenehmet: thanks to hydraulic engineering, water from the Nile filled an artificial lake called Meridov. Today, 3 million Egyptians live in an oasis 2 hours from Cairo.

The oasis is rich in interesting tourist locations, but the two most attractive are the only waterfall in Egypt in the Wadi el Rayyan reserve and the paleontological monument of Wadi el Hitan, known as the Valley of the Whales.

Wali el Rayyan is a protected area under the protection of UNESCO. The reserve consists of 7 parts with upper and lower lakes, springs, mountains and a waterfall. This is a nesting place for rare species of birds, sand gazelles, arctic foxes and phoenixes are found here. Egyptians come here to take a walk on a sailboat or surf on the sand from Mount Mudawara.

30 kilometers to the east is the Valley of the Whales. In the 1830s, the 15-meter remains of archeocetes, ancient whales, were first found here. About 40 million years ago, these giant marine inhabitants swam in the waters of the prehistoric Tethys Ocean, the ” heirs ” of which were the Mediterranean, Caspian and Black Seas.