Things to do in Egypt

Egypt is a river with a country attached. Almost the whole population lives on the Nile strip and the delta, which is a small fraction of the territory. Everything else is desert.

The four theatres

Travel here sorts itself into four places, and they sell different things. Most trips combine two. The distances between them are flown, not driven.

• Cairo and Giza. The pyramids, the museums and a city of over twenty million, with Memphis and Saqqara further south on the west bank.
• Luxor. Thebes, split into the temples of the east bank and the tombs of the west, plus balloons at dawn.
• Aswan. The southern Nile, the dam, Philae and the felucca stretch, and the road on to Abu Simbel.
• The Red Sea. Sharm el-Sheikh, Hurghada, Marsa Alam and Dahab — reef diving, snorkelling and desert quads.

What the offer is made of

The default here is a private car, a driver and a licensed Egyptologist. Group coaches exist but are the exception. Guiding is a regulated profession, and the guide is most of what you pay for.

Around the monuments sit the add-ons. Camels and quad bikes at Giza, feluccas and dinner cruises on the Nile, sound and light shows after dark. Layover tours from Cairo airport run to the pyramids and back between flights.

The Nile itself

The river is not only scenery here, it is transport. Cruise boats work the stretch between Luxor and Aswan in both directions. Three and four nights are the standard lengths.

Shorter water is sold everywhere else. Feluccas sail at sunset in Cairo, Luxor and Aswan alike. The sail is the product, not the distance.

Practical

• Season. November to March. Luxor and Aswan pass forty degrees in summer, and midday sightseeing stops making sense.
• Tickets. Site entry, inner chambers and photography are often separate charges. Ask what your tour price actually covers.
• Baksheesh. Small tips are constant and expected. Carry low-value notes; nobody will have change.
• Money. Prices are in Egyptian pounds and cash still rules outside hotels. Card acceptance is patchy at the sites.
• Dress. Covered shoulders and knees for mosques and churches, and a scarf for women at mosque entrances.
• Ramadan. Hours shift and afternoons go quiet. Sites stay open, but plan around the evening meal.