Travel bucket list idea:
Cairo, Lower Egypt, Egypt
The densely-crowded Egyptian city of Giza – on the West Bank of the Nile just outside of Cairo – welcomes millions of tourists every year to visit one of the world’s greatest archaeological sites.
The Giza Plateau, wedged between the city’s borders and the Western Desert, is a remarkable complex of gargantuan stone pyramids, several cemeteries, and a giant statue of a mythological sphinx – all dating back to 2,500 BC.
The largest pyramid and the last survivor of the world’s seven ancient wonders was built as a tomb for Pharaoh Khufu.
A remarkable feat of ancient engineering, and an enduring testament to the sophistication of the ancient Egyptians, the Great Pyramid contains 2.3 million limestone blocks of over 25 tonnes each, cut and assembled to astonishing precision.
Sharing the Giza plateau with the pyramids is this no-less impressive statue of a sphinx – a mythological creature with human head and body of a lion. Its face is believed to resemble Pharoah Khafre.
Standing 20m high, 73m long it dates back to his reign in 2500 BC, and apart from a broken nose (cause unknown), remains remarkably well-preserved.
This structure beside the Sphinx was built to receive and mummify the pharaoh’s bodies, before entombment in a pyramid – it’s believed Pharaoh Khafre’s body was mummified here.
The massive granite slabs were shipped down from Aswan. It had been buried under desert sand until its discovery in 1852.
Rent a horse from reliable MG Stables or one of the other stables near the Sphinx and ride into the desert beyond the Pyramids. Perfect at sunset, and moonlight rides are also now available.
For evocative pyramid viewing without the hordes, head for Dahshur, a short drive south, there are smaller but equally impressive pyramids, which are blissfully crowd-free.
Most people visit as part of a group tour, but if you prefer to go it alone, take a taxi to the plateau and wander at leisure. You can ask your driver to wait or there are usually drivers at the exit to the site, beyond the Sphinx.
You can go inside the Great Pyramid – a limited number of tickets are on sale first thing in the morning and at 1pm. Be warned, it’s a strenuous, highly claustrophobic climb inside the Great Pyramid. Ticket sales stop an hour before closing time.
For refreshments before or after, head to the nearby Mena Hotel café for Egyptian and international cuisine with views over the pyramids.
Tours to the pyramids also run from Luxor (1 hour flight) and Sharm el-Sheik (5 hour drive) – you don’t have to stay in Cairo. It’s a long day of travel, but there is sufficient time to gasp at the pyramids and then marvel at Tutankhamun’s treasures in the Egyptian Museum.
The pyramid plateau is open daily (exact times vary by season). Morning light is best for photographing the Sphinx, but late afternoon is best for the rest.
April is sandstorm season; July and August are unbearably hot. Spring and autumn are best for weather and optimal light.
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