A travel guide to Egypt.

What the guide covers

The Egypt guide is being prepared by destinations along the Nile, on the coast and in the desert. In the north, the list ranges from Cairo and Giza to Alexandria, El Alamein and the Fayoum oasis. In the Nile Valley it includes Luxor and Aswan, with Abu Simbel. On the Red Sea and the Sinai: Hurghada and El Gouna, Marsa Alam, Sharm el-Sheikh, Dahab and Saint Catherine; in the Western Desert: Bahariya, the White Desert and Siwa.

Each destination brings together the towns in the region, what to do in each one, attractions with their own page, when to go and how to get there. Destinations appear on the country page as they are published: while a destination is in preparation, it does not appear in the list.

Provinces and groups

Egypt is divided into 27 governorates, called muhafazat in Arabic, from Cairo and Giza to the Red Sea, the South Sinai and the New Valley. In the guide they are shown in nine groups that follow the country's travel areas: Cairo and Giza; Alexandria and the Mediterranean Coast; the Nile Delta; the Suez Canal; the Sinai; the Red Sea; Fayoum and Middle Egypt; Upper Egypt; and the Western Desert.

When there is an established form in Portuguese, it is used, as in Cairo, Giza, Alexandria, Aswan and Luxor. Other names appear in the transcription used in the country, such as Hurghada, Sharm el-Sheikh and Marsa Alam. Many places have multiple English spellings, and signs usually show the name in Arabic and English.

How to travel around Egypt

Egypt is a large country, but travel follows the Nile: from Cairo, trains—including a night sleeper train—and domestic flights go to Luxor and Aswan, and river cruises link the two cities in three to four nights, with stops at Esna, Edfu and Kom Ombo. For the Red Sea and the Sinai there are flights to Hurghada, Marsa Alam and Sharm el-Sheikh, and roads from Cairo and Luxor. Many visitors hire a driver or book tours for transfers between sites.

The time zone is UTC+2, and UTC+3 from the last Friday in April until the end of October. Most of the country is desert: the climate is dry, with mild winters and very hot summers in Upper Egypt; on the Mediterranean coast, winter brings a few rainy days.

Heritage and nature

Egypt has seven UNESCO World Heritage Sites: Historic Cairo; Memphis and its necropolis, with the pyramid fields from Giza to Dahshur; ancient Thebes in Luxor, with its necropolis; the Nubian Monuments, from Abu Simbel to Philae; Abu Mena; the Saint Catherine area in the Sinai; and Wadi Al-Hitan, the Valley of the Whales, in Fayoum. National parks protect coral reefs in the Red Sea, such as Ras Mohammed and Wadi el-Gemal, and desert landscapes, like the White Desert.

Why there are no prices

In Egypt, the guide does not show tour or ticket prices because they change frequently. Many sites charge separate fees for tombs and interior areas, such as in the Valley of the Kings and the Giza pyramids: the text notes this, and the amount should be checked before you go.

How the content is made

The information for each place is researched from official sources, such as the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, site and museum administrations, national parks and UNESCO, and verified before publication.

The pictures in this guide are illustrations based on the real place, not photographs, and may differ from it. Photos sent by travelers appear separately, as travelers' photos.

If you find any information that differs, write to us: fixing it is quicker than it seems.

All of Cidade Turismo

The guide started in Brazil and now also covers other countries, always with the same organization: routes, destinations and cities.

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