Cairo evenings: felucca, dinner cruise or sound and light?

The three classic Cairo evenings on this site are a private felucca sail of about 2 hours, a dinner cruise on the Maxim boat with a buffet and live entertainment, and the sound and light show at the pyramids with dinner after. Choose the felucca for quiet time on the Nile, the cruise for food and a show, the sound and light for the pyramids after dark. Newer on the site, and compared further down: a tanoura show night, a Khan El Khalili walk and a street food walk.

The options side by side

A felucca is a traditional wooden Nile sailboat. Tanoura is an Egyptian folk dance in which the dancer spins in a wide, colored skirt.

Questions

How much does a felucca ride cost in Cairo?

On this site the price comes in the reply to your request, for your date: prices are per person, for 2 or more people, and no payment is taken with the request. For the felucca, that price covers transfers in a private air-conditioned vehicle, pickup and return, the sail, a bottle of water, and taxes and service charge. Tipping is not included.

Is a felucca ride worth it?

It is if you want slow, quiet time on the Nile rather than another site: the sail lasts about two hours, with views of the Cairo skyline, and only your group is on board. If you want dinner and a show the same evening, the Maxim cruise gives both; the felucca lists no meal.

Where to get a felucca ride in Cairo?

On our tour you do not have to find one: your tour leader meets you at your hotel in Cairo or Giza and takes you to the riverbank. The tour data do not name the landing. The Cairo day by plane from Sharm El Sheikh also lists an optional felucca ride, which is not included in that tour's price.

The dinner cruise: what is on board

The Maxim evening includes private round-trip transfers from your hotel in Cairo or Giza, an English-speaking tour leader and a driver, a reserved table on the boat, the open buffet, the entertainment, bottled water during the transfers, and taxes and service charges. Drinks appear in neither the included nor the not-included list, so ask about them when you book. Tipping is not included.

The sound and light show: the pyramids after dark

The show evening starts with a representative at your hotel, then the show on the Giza Plateau and dinner at a local restaurant. From a Downtown or Zamalek hotel the plateau is 16.5 km, about 20 min without traffic; from New Cairo, 45.3 km, about 42 min. The tour's included list names an Egyptologist guide while its stops name only a representative, so ask who comes. More in the pyramids sound and light show: what to expect.

Newer evenings: tanoura, the Khan and street food

Three newer tours also run in the evening. Their programs follow how the market runs them and are confirmed with your quote.

The tanoura night is the dance on its own, show ticket included (Sufi music is the devotional music of Islamic mysticism); on the Maxim cruise a Tanoura show is one part of the entertainment. The walk through Khan El Khalili, Cairo's old bazaar, comes with a guide to explain it and help you find your way. On the street food walk the tastings are included: koshary (rice, lentils and pasta), ful (stewed fava beans) and taameya, the Egyptian falafel.

Before dark: the quad bike

The quad bike ride at the Giza pyramids runs in the afternoon or at sunset: a safety briefing from a Bedouin desert guide, then about 2 hours of riding in the desert with the pyramids of Cheops, Chephren and Mycerinus in view, and a short break at the quad base before the drive back. It is private, just your group.

What the weather means for an evening out

Cairo's average daily low is 9.7°C in January and 22.9°C in July, so bring a layer for the felucca or the plateau in winter. In June, July and August the average daily highs are 34.5°C to 34.8°C, so the evening options keep you out of the midday heat.

Which to choose

• Quiet time on the river with only your group: the felucca.
• Dinner with music and a dance show: the Maxim cruise.
• The pyramids at night, then dinner: the sound and light show.
• Something active before dark: the quad ride.
• A dance show on its own: the tanoura night.
• The old bazaar with a guide: the Khan El Khalili walk.
• Dinner as a string of tastings: the street food walk.

All of them start and end at your hotel in Cairo or Giza, and tipping is not included on any of them. See every evening outing on evenings and shows, or all our Cairo tours.