How to plan your trip to Egypt and what to visit?

The first question will come to our mind when we plan to visit a new country especially if we previously intend not to visit it again for any reason and we want to enjoy every moment we will spend in there; which places worth visiting and for how long shall we stay in each place? It seems they are hard questions as we have no preconceived notion about this country.

We think the best and easiest way to achieve this mission successfully is to contact one of the trusted locals who can give us his/her advice and experience honestly far away from fraud.

But in reality that will be very hard to find this trusted guy and there will be no other way except browsing hundreds & hundreds of articles talking about this topic but this will definitely lead to more confusion.

So here in this article we will act the role of the trusted locals and we will briefly highlight the cities & the places worth visiting in Egypt through which the visitors can make sure they will spend an enjoyable & unforgettable holiday in Egypt.

Egypt has 2 different main elements of tourist attractions; Egypt is rich of the Ancient Egyptian Heritage and at the same time is very popular for the beautiful resorts by the Red Sea where you can find the incredible marine life of renowned coral reefs and colorful fish, 10% of which are found nowhere else in the world. So spending an ideal vacation in Egypt needs to combine through the 2 above mentioned elements.

The next question which is better, organizing the trip to Egypt ourselves or organizing it through a local travel agency?

There are advantages and disadvantages to both cases. Egypt is really easy to travel around independently especially if you are able to use some of the common Arabic words with the locals. But if it will be your first trip to Egypt, the organized tours by a local travel agency will be the best option because the local travel agency will be able to get better deals for the hotels, domestic airfare, means of transportation, guides...etc.  So the hassles of these things will be taken care of. At the same time you will be able to get a complete overview and idea about the country through the travel agency guides who will escort you to all places.

Finding the good local travel agencies is not hard any more. What you need is just to look for the travel agencies which have good reputation on the internet and start communicate with them for further details and make sure what you are looking for, it will fully come true.

Here below we will list the top cities to visit in Egypt and the enough time to be spent in each one of them: -

1. Cairo (2 days are enough)

Cairo is the official capital of Egypt and visiting Cairo is a must. Nobody can imagine he/she could miss marveling the Great Pyramids of Giza while being in Egypt, the oldest of Seven Wonders of the World. But Cairo is a very populated and noisy city, so staying more than 2 nights in Cairo can turn your dream into a nightmare. We can basically suggest the following plan to do in Cairo:

1^st Day: - The Great Pyramids of Giza, Sphinx & Grand Egyptian Museum.

2^nd Day: - Step Pyramid of Saqqara, Citadel of Saladin & Khan El Khalil Bazaar.

 

2. Alexandria (1 day is enough)

Alexandria is the city which was founded by Alexander the Great at about 331 BC. Alexandria is located at the North West of Egypt by the by the Mediterranean Sea and far from Cairo about 210 km. It is a very beautiful city but there are no many things to see. We can recommend visiting Catacombs of Kom EL Shouqafa, Pompey's Pillar and the new library of Alexandria, so spending one day in Alexandria is enough.

 

3. Luxor (2 days are enough)

Luxor was the ancient city of Thebes, the capital of Egypt during the New Kingdom (ca. 1800 BC). It is located at the South of Egypt and it is far from Cairo about 670 km. Luxor is often called the world's greatest open-air museum. It has many archaeological popular sites like Valley of the Kings, Funerary Temple of Queen Hatshepsut ….etc. Luxor is the best place in Egypt for people who are keen to take a real idea about the Ancient Egyptian Civilization. The suggested itinerary in Luxor can be like following: -

1^st day: - Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut Temple, Colossi of Memnon, Karnak Temple & Luxor Temple – Nile Cruise *.

2^nd day: - Medinet Habu, Deir El Madina, Ramesseum & tombs of the Nobles.

 

4. Aswan (2-3 days are enough)

Aswan is more idyllic than other cities in Egypt. In Aswan you can get a different feeling literally from all aspects. Aswan is astonishing combination of different things; nature's beauty, history, tranquility & human beings. Unique experiences definitely can be found there. Aswan is located at the South of Egypt and it is far from Cairo about 890 km. In Aswan visits and tours can be varied between cultural & recreational. We can suggest the following tours: -

Felucca Tour on River Nile –The Nubian Village – High Dam – Unfinished Obelisk – Beautiful Temple of Philae – Great Temple of Abu Simbel – Nile Cruise *.

* Nile Cruises between Luxor and Aswan are one of the things which shouldn’t be missed in Egypt. Duration of the Nile Cruise depends on from where you will start the journey. If you start the journey from Luxor to Aswan, it will take 4 nights (recommended). And if you will start from Aswan to Luxor, the Nile cruise trip will take only 3 nights. The main reason for why this journey from Luxor to Aswan will take longer time is the stream of River Nile which flows from the South to the North. On the cruise way between Luxor and Aswan you will be able to visit Edfu Temple of Horus (the falcon-headed god) & Kom Ombo Temple dedicated to Sobek (crocodile-headed god).

 

5. Hurghada (3 days are enough)

Hurghada is one of major Red Sea resorts in Egypt. Hurghada is far from Cairo about 470 km to the South East. Hurghada is popular for windsurfing, kitesurfing, water sports, yachting, scuba diving, snorkeling and desert safari tours. Plus to the beautiful marine life and so many species of colorful fish which could be found in the Red Sea, tourists can also have an unforgettable life time experience in Hurghada desert where there are the beautiful mountains and the astonishing landscape.

 

6. Sharm El Sheikh (4 days are enough)

The famous resort by the Red Sea is located at the extreme south of Sinai Peninsula. It is far from Cairo about 500 km. Sharm is very popular for the dive sites which are considered among the top dive sites in the world like Thistlegorm & Shark and Yolanda Reef. While tourists are in Sharm El Sheikh, they will not be able to ignore enjoying the tours among the beautiful mountains of Sinai like quad biking & jeep safari. Visiting the Bedouins in their villages is a must as a way to know more about their. Testing the Bedouin food and enjoying Sinai night sky escorted by an astronomer’s explanation is one of the ways how to get most out of your vacation in Sharm El Sheikh. Sharm El Sheikh has a strategic location which will enable you during your holiday in Sharm of doing a lot of day tours to the popular sites outside the city of Sharm like the boat trips to National Park of Ras Mohammed (with more than 220 species of coral & more than 1000 species of fish), or the bus tours to Mount Sinai (where Moses received the 10 commandments), Jerusalem in Israel & Petra in Jordan. Sharm El Sheikh is a big story and whatever we mention about the things to do in it, we will never be able to cover every thing and tourists will still need to visit the city themselves to explore how beautiful is the city of Sharm.