Land of the Pharaohs! Visiting Egypt is a must for every travel geek. Egypt has a lot more to offer than just seeing the pyramids of Giza, the only existing wonder of the seven wonders of the ancient world. It offers sundry pieces of the world’s ancient monument still around today.
Best time to go
The best period to visit Egypt is in the winter, which is between November and April when the temperatures are usually about 20 °C during the day and can reach 7 °C at night compared to the summer, usually June to august when the temperatures can reach 40 °C.
Transportation in Egypt
Getting in and around Egypt is easy. With seven international airports and several others. Through Egypt’s national airline Egyptair.com, you can reach most tourist destination cities in Egypt by air and the fares are very affordable.
Alexandria
Founded in 331 B.C. during the Hellenistic era by Alexander the Great himself and befittingly nicknamed The Pearl of the Mediterranean. The city stretches some 32 km on the northern coast of Egypt, it is the birthplace of Cleopatra and where she ruled then Ptolemaic Egypt.
The numerous sights reveal that the history here is rich. Visit the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, a modern styled library built as a restoration of the legendary library of Alexandria which was highly revered during the Ptolemaic era.
What is worth seeing here ranges from an old Roman Amphitheater, only discovered in the middle of the 20th century, to diving into the city’s waters to see the drowned ancient city along with its most popular section anonymously dubbed Cleopatra’s Palace.
Aswan
The serene city of Aswan lying on the east edge of the River Nile in southern Egypt. This city is a sleeping beast due to its calm nature today, which contrasts its past, as it was the stronghold for defending Egypt’s southern borders.
Cruise on the Nile in wooden boats known as felucca and visit the Nubian village on the Elephantine Island, one of several islands on the Nile in Aswan.
The unfinished Obelisk, Philae Temple and a Coptic Monastery founded in the 6th century A.D. are some of the sites to tour in this city.
Take a day’s trip from Aswan to Nubia and see The Great Abu Simbel Temple. This enormous twin temple and rock carvings of King Ramesses II, sculpted out of rocks in the 13th century was famously rescued wholly onto the bank of the Lake Nasser in 1968 during the creation of the Lake.
Giza
Facing the fact that the Pyramids of Giza were actually built as mausoleums to preserve the bodies of Pharaohs is just overwhelming.
The structures are built some 4000 years ago by what is now believed to be highly skilled workers and some and tens thousands of local farmers due to the near accurate geometry the structures execute.
The largest of the three pyramids of Giza known as the Pyramid of Khufu is also the oldest. You will definitely notice the half-human half-cat Sphinx known as “Father of Terror” as its Arabic name suggests.
Sinai Peninsula
There cannot be a talk about visiting Egypt without considering the Sinai region. Sharm El-Sheikh, a resort city set on the Red Sea, is regaining its strength as a top tourist destination. Snorkeling, wind surfing, parasailing are popular and some of the fun activities to catch here.
Dahab, which translates “Gold” in Arabic, is truly a golden beach city that attracts many tourists.
Visit St. Catherine’s Monastery that is set at the foot of the Mount Sinai, also known as Mount Horeb by what is believed to be the burning bush where God spoke to Moses. Hiking up the mountain where the Ten Commandments was delivered is fun and easy to do.
Luxor
Known as Al-Uqsur in Arabic and as Thebes during ancient Egypt times. Luxor welcomes thousands of tourists yearly as the city known to be “the world’s greatest open-air museum”. It holds a staggering number of the world’s best-preserved ancient monuments.
The hieroglyph adorned Valley of the Kings, the Luxor and Karnak Temples, Valley of the Queens, Queen Hatshepsut’s Temple and Colossi of Memnon are all within touch from Luxor.
Cruising on the Nile as well as riding hot air balloons are all on the to do list here.
Hurghada
Best known for its diving as snorkeling reputation. Hurghada has been transformed from a small fishing town into a top resort destination in Egypt. With over a hundred hotels to choose from, you can cool off or enjoy a camel ride at the sunny beaches.
Explore the city and dive into the Red Sea to admire the colorful coral reef. Getting on a submarine or visiting the Hurghada Grand Aquarium is an option to size up the magnificent aquatic life of the Red Sea.
Getting offshore to nearby Giftun Island will reward with the best view of the coral reefs and snorkeling experience.
Cairo
The dusty atmosphere of Cairo harbors some superb Islamic architecture as evident in the Muhammad Ali mosque, found in the Citadel of Cairo, which offers a great sight of the city. The interior displays so much splendor and houses the tomb of Muhammad Ali Pasha.
Khan Al-Khalili souk is the best place to shop for merchandise as well as enjoying the variety of activities.
The must visit landmark to see in the Capital is the Museum of Egyptian antiquities, a very significant museum in the world. This museum holds about 120,000 of Egypt’s antiquities and treasures.
