Things to do in Cairo

Cairo is the largest city in Africa and the Arab world, and it does not slow down. The pyramids stand at the edge of it, in Giza, on the other bank. The city itself is a thousand years of layers.

The old city

Islamic Cairo is the medieval core, and it is still in use. Al-Muizz street runs through it. Khan el-Khalili has been a market since the fourteenth century.

• The Citadel. Saladin's fortress on the ridge, with the Muhammad Ali mosque and the best view over the city.
• Coptic Cairo. The Hanging Church and the Ben Ezra synagogue, inside a Roman fort, ten minutes apart on foot.
• Khan el-Khalili. Copper, spice, lanterns and coffee houses, and shopping tours built entirely around it.

Three museums, not one

Cairo now has three major collections and they split the material between them. Booking the wrong one is a common mistake. The Egyptian Museum on Tahrir, the Grand Egyptian Museum at Giza and the civilisation museum in Fustat are separate visits.

The river and the table

The Nile runs through the middle, and the boats are half the evening offer. Feluccas sail at sunset. Dinner cruises range from modest to five-star with a floor show.

Food tours go to the street stalls for koshari, taameya and grilled meat. Most run a few hours in the evening. They double as a way to see districts you would not walk into alone.

Practical

• Traffic. The city is enormous and the roads are slow. Two sites in one day is realistic; four is not.
• Layovers. Short private tours from the airport are a standard product. Six hours is enough for Giza and back.
• Season. November to March is comfortable. Summer afternoons are for museums, not for open sites.
• Fridays. Mosques close to visitors around midday prayer. Plan Islamic Cairo for another day or another hour.
• Getting around. The metro is cheap and fast on its three lines, and taxi apps work everywhere.