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Egypt’s history spans 7000 years and
is reflected in its monuments,
temples, and towns. The
country is a combination of both
ancient and modern civilizations
with first - class conference and
tourism facilities side-by side with
monuments of Egypt’s glorious past.
 Pyramids,
churches, mosques, and museums are
spread all over the capital city of
Cairo. A comfortable blend of
the old and the new is found on both
sides of the famous Nile. On
the Western side, at the edge of the
desert plateau stands the symbol of
the great Pharaohs, the Pyramids of
Giza. Designated by the World,
they stand today as they did
thousands of yeas ago, still guarded
by the legendary Sphinx.
On the Eastern side, high in the
center of the Old City, is the
Citadel of Salah El Din.
Crowning the old section of Cairo,
the Citadel reigns over an area that
hosts some of the world’s most
beautiful Islamic sites.
Visiting this area one plunges into
a living museum.
A touch of the Middle Ages can be
found in the Khan El Khalili Bazaar,
Al Hussien Mosque and the Islamic
Museum. This is also the site
of the world’s oldest university, Al
Azhar, which is open now for over a
thousand years.
 Near
the Citadel, on the bank of the
Nile, lies the old Christian sector
of the city, Coptic Cairo.
With numerous ancient churches, some
dating to the time of the Holy
Family’s flight into Egypt, Coptic
Cairo offers the visitor a unique
insight into the early years of
Christianity.
More than 100,000 objects are on
display in the Egyptian Museum,
which is located in the center of
Cairo. The museum also holds
the full collection of King
Tutankhamen.
The warm-hearted hospitality of the
Egyptians, Egypt’s moderate and
sunny climate, the beautiful beaches
and luxurious hotels combine to give
the visitor a taste of a unique
lifestyle.
In modern Cairo, many forms of
entertainment are available.
Nightclubs and discos, with both
Arabic and Western programs, stay
open until the early hours of dawn.
Restaurants and cafes offer cuisine
of different nationalities. Shops of
every type line the streets and
boulevards, inviting the visitor to
sample Egypt’s own products as well
as imported goods.
Important Links
Egypt
Attractions
Cairo -
City of the Thousand Minarets
Cairo is the largest city
in Africa and Egypt's most populous
city. Its official name is Al-Qahira,
although the name informally used by
most Egyptians is "Masr" (Egyptian
Arabic name for Egypt), from the
original name of Egypt's first Arab
capital Fustat, Misr al-Fustat,
"City of the Tents". The capital of
the Arab Republic of Egypt has a
population of about 7.7 million
people, while its metropolitan area
encompasses about 17.285 million
people, making it the sixteenth most
populous metropolitan area in the
world.
 Aswan
Aswan is where
Egypt travelers go for relaxation,
besides shopping and sightseeing.
About 680 km (425 miles) south of
Cairo, just below the Dam and Lake
Nasser, Aswan is the smallest of the
three major tourist cities based on
the Nile. You feel you have reached
Africa (as most westerners imagine
the continent), mainly because it
has a large population of Nubian
people, mostly resettled from their
homeland in the area flooded by Lake
Nasser.
The area is rich
in granite quarries exploited since
antiquity. Most of the obelisks seen
in Luxor were sourced from Aswan.
And speaking of rocks, there's
Elephantine Island, so called
because its huge dark smooth rocks
resemble the skin of elephants.
The
Pyramids of Giza
The Giza pyramids are
located some eight km inland into
the desert from the old town of Giza
on the Nile, some 20 km southwest of
Cairo city center.
Of the three
principal Giza pyramids, only
Khafre's pyramid retains part of its
original polished limestone casing,
towards its apex.
Saqqara
The Step Pyramid of Djoser
was built for the burial of Pharaoh
Djoser by his Vizier Imhotep. It was
constructed during the 27th century
BC at the Saqqara necropolis to the
northwest of the city of Memphis.
This first
Egyptian pyramid consisted of six
mastabas (of decreasing size) built
atop one another in what were
clearly revisions and developments
of the original plan. The pyramid
originally stood 62 meters tall and
was clad in polished white
limestone. The stepped pyramid (or
proto-pyramid) of King Djoser is
considered to be the earliest
large-scale stone construction.
Alabaster
Mosque
The Alabaster Mosque of
Muhammad Ali is the most popular
Islamic mosque among Egypt
travelers, because of its grandeur
and its location at the Citadel in
Cairo, making it the most visible of
Islamic monuments in Cairo. It was
built during the first half of the
19th century. Muhammad Ali Pasha,
viceroy and effectively king of
Egypt, is buried here.
Philae
Temple
 The
Philae Temple was constructed over a
three-century period, by the Greek
Ptolemaic dynasty and the Roman
Principate. The principal deity of
the temple complex was Isis, but
other temples and shrines were
dedicated to her son Horus and the
goddess Hathor. In Ptolemaic
times Hathor was associated with
Isis, who was in turn associated
with the Greek goddess Aphrodite.
For centuries the Philae temple
complex was the holiest site for
Isis worshippers. The temple was
officially closed down in the 6th
century A.D. by the Byzantine
emperor Justinian. It was the last
pagan temple to exist in the
Mediterranean world. Philae was a
seat of the Christian religion as
well as of the ancient Egyptian
faith. Ruins of a Christian church
were still discovered, and more than
one adytum bore traces of having
been made to serve at different eras
the purposes of a chapel of Osiris
and of Christ. The Philae temple was
converted into a church dedicated to
the Virgin Mary, until that was
closed by Muslim invaders in the 7th
century.
Dahab
Dahab is a small village
situated on the south eastern coast
of the Sinai Peninsula. Formerly a
Bedouin fishing village, most
visitors have been backpackers
traveling independently and staying
in hostels in the Masbet area. In
recent years, new international
chain-hotels in the Medina area and
the construction of other facilities
have made it a popular tourist
destination. The nearest
international airport is located at
Sharm el-Sheikh.
The word Dahab is
Arabic for gold and is possibly a
reference to the geographic
locality. Gold washed down from the
desert mountains may have
accumulated on the alluvial flood
plain where the town was built. The
name may also be a reference to the
color of the sands to the south of
the town itself.
Alexandria
Alexandria is Egypt's
second largest city and the
country's window on the
Mediterranean Sea.
The city is a
faded shade of its former glorious
cosmopolitan self, but still worth a
visit for its many cultural
attractions and memories of a
glorious past. It remains an
important city, as Egypt's chief
seaport on the Mediterranean and a
home to at least 3.5 million
Egyptians.
Alexandria was the
eponymous foundation (in 334 BCE) of
the Macedonian conquerer Alexander
the Great (Iskander al-Akbar), a
rival of Rome in its heyday, and the
world's greatest center of learning
for millennia, now a dusty seaside
Egyptian town with an over-inflated
population of 5 million. The
French-style parks and the
occasional.
Luxor
Luxor is the premier travel
destination in Upper (southern)
Egypt and the Nile Valley. In
antiquity, the city, known as Thebes
by the greeks, was the dynastic and
religious capital of Middle Kingdom
and New Kingdom Egypt. Today, it has
much to offer the traveler, from
vast temples, to ancient royal
tombs, via spectacular desert and
river scenery and a bustling modern
life.
The modern city of
Luxor is on the East bank. This area
has the train and bus stations, most
of the hotels and restaurants, some
museums, tourist shops and so on.
Visitors usually
stay on the East bank and travel
across to the West bank of the Nile,
where most of the pharaonic
attractions are.
.
Valley of
the Kings
Soon after the defeat of
the Hyksos and the reunification of
Egypt under Ahmose I, the Theban
rulers realized the need for a new
royal necropolis.The idea of pyramid
tombs was abandoned, robberies being
one principal reason. A valley on
the west bank was chosen as an
appropriate area where the new tombs
could be excavated underneath in the
limestone and protected from
ransackers. This valley, presently
known as the Valley of the Kings is
under the shadow of impressive
cliffs and the tallest peak, Al Qurn,
is shaped naturally as a pyramid.
The area is both attractive for its
natural beauty and the sheer
quantities of archaeological wonders
discovered there and yet to be
found.
Abu Simbel
 Abu
Simbel is an archaeological site
comprising two massive rock temples
in southern Egypt on the western
bank of Lake Nasser about 290 km
southwest of Aswan. It is part of
the UNESCO World Heritage Site known
as the "Nubian Monuments", which run
from Abu Simbel downriver to Philae
(near Aswan).
The twin temples
were carved out of the mountainside
during the reign of Pharaoh Ramses
II in the 13th century BC, as a
lasting monument to himself and his
queen Nefertari, to commemorate his
alleged victory at the Battle of
Kadesh, and to intimidate his Nubian
neighbors. The complex was relocated
in its entirety in the 1960s to
avoid being submerged during the
creation of Lake Nasser, the massive
artificial water reservoir formed
after the building of the Aswan dam
on the river Nile. Abu Simbel
remains one of Egypt's top...
Hurghada
Since the 1980s, Hurghada
has become the principal bathing
resort on the Red Sea, visited by
American, European and Arabs.
Holiday villages and first class
hotels provide excellent aquatic
sport facilities.
What used to be a small fishing
village is now a fully developed
resort that stretches for about 40
km along the Red Sea shore,
attracting package holiday tourists
mostly from Europe, notably
Russians, Czechs and Germans. Many
restaurants, bars and shops, small
pubs and internet cafes are
available all over Hurghada.
Known as a party
town, with its many clubs, life in
Hurghada begins at night. Nearly
every hotel has its own disco. The
most famous ones at the moment are
"Calypso" and "Papas Beach".
Renowned for belly dancing, Arabic
and
Sharm-el-Sheikh
 Sharm-el-Sheikh's
major industry is foreign and
domestic tourism, owing to its
dramatic landscape, year-round dry
and temperate climate and long
stretches of natural beaches. Its
waters are clear and calm for most
of the year and have become popular
for various watersports,
particularly recreational scuba
diving and snorkeling (which many
consider to be among the best in the
world). Coral reefs, under water and
marine life, unmatched anywhere in
the world, offer a spectacular and
dazzling time for divers. There is
wide room for scientific tourism
with diversity in marine life
species - 250 different coral reefs
and 1000 species of fish.
The Red
Sea Coast
Egypt's Red Sea coast is
famed for its crystal clear blue
waters and exotic marine life,
attracting thousands of tourists
yearly. The reputation is well
deserved - in 1989, an international
panel of scientists picked the north
part of the Red Sea as one of the
Seven Underwater Wonders of the
World. The sea carries over 800 fish
species, including the lethal
stonefish and butterfly fish as well
as shark and over 200 coral species.
In addition, the shores of the sea
are visited by thousands of
migrating birds every year and bird
watchers are bound to have a good
time here.
Beni Hasan
Beni Hasan is a small
village and an important
archaeological locality in Middle
Egypt, some 20 km south of the city
of Minya. Located on the eastern
bank of the river Nile, the small
but interesting site consists of
cliff-hewn tombs overlooking the
river valley with truly magnificent
views in both directions. During the
Middle Kingdom, it was the centre of
the cult of Pakhet.
There are 39
ancient tombs here of Middle Kingdom
nomarchs of the Oryx nome, who
governed from Hebenu. Due to the
quality of, and distance to the
cliffs in the west, these tombs were
constructed on the east bank, but
are otherwise similar to other
Middle Kingdom tombs.
Abydos
Abydos is one of the most
ancient cities of Upper Egypt, about
11 km (6 miles) west of the Nile.
The Egyptian name was Abdju, "the
hill of the symbol or reliquary," in
which the sacred head of Osiris was
preserved. The Greeks named it
Abydos, like the city on the
Hellespont; the modern Arabic name
is el-'Araba el Madfuna.
Considered one of
the most important archaeological
sites of ancient Egypt, the sacred
city was the site of many ancient
temples, including a royal
necropolis where early pharaohs were
entombed. Abydos became notable for
the Great Temple built by Seti I,
which contains a tunnel displaying a
chronological list showing cartouche
names of every dynastic pharaoh of
Egypt from the first, Narmer/Menes,
until the pharaohs of the last
dynasty.
Ecotourism
in the Desert
Where the irrigated fertile
valley of the Nile changes abruptly
into the barren Red Land, called "dashur"
in Ancient Egypt, wonderful
treasures await the adventurous
traveler who dares enters into a
spiritual journey of individual
contact with nature in magnificent
total isolation.
Not many tourists
ever venture into the desert to
witness the spectacular natural
wonders of Egypt. Perhaps this is a
blessing, since large scale tourism
often carry a negative impact.
Jonathan Tourtellot, from National
Geographic Traveler magazine, has
coined the term "geotourism" to
describe a form of "tourism that
sustains or enhances the
geographical character of a
place—its environment, heritage,
aesthetics, culture, and the
well-being of its residents."
 Siwa
Oasis
The Siwa Oasis is
located between the Qattara
Depression and the Egyptian Sand Sea
in the Libyan Desert, approximately
50 km east of the Libyan border, and
some 560 km from Cairo.
About 80 km in
length and 20 km wide, it is one of
Egypt's most isolated settlements,
home to about 23,000 people, the
majority of whom are ethnic Berbers
who speak a distinct language known
as Siwi. Agriculture is the main
activity, primarily the growing of
dates and olives.
Dendera
Dendera is an
archaeological locality in Egypt
just outside the town of Qena (62 km
north of Luxor) in the region of
Middle Egypt.
The modern Arab
town is built on the ancient site of
Ta-ynt-netert which means 'She of
the Divine Pillar', or Tentyra which
is Greek for Dendera. It was the
capital of the sixth nome or
province of pharaonic Upper Egypt,
also named Nikentori or Nitentori,
which signifies willow wood or
willow earth. Others give the
derivation from the sky and
fertility goddess Hathor, also
associated with Aphrodite, who was
specially worshiped there. The
crocodile is recognized as the deity
of the city and was also venerated
as such in other Egyptian cities,
which caused many quarrels, notably
with Ombos.
Amarna
The site of Amarna
(commonly known as el-Amarna or
incorrectly as Tell el-Amarna) is
located on the east bank of the Nile
River, some 58 km (38 miles) south
of the city of al-Minya, 312 km (194
miles) south of the Egyptian capital
Cairo and 402 km (250 miles) north
of Luxor. The site includes several
modern villages, chief of which are
el-Till in the north and el-Hagg
Qandil in the south.
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