Giza pyramids or Saqqara: which day trip first?

See Giza first. It has the pyramids of Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure and the Great Sphinx, and our main Saqqara day starts there: Pyramids, Memphis and Saqqara drives 18.3 km from the Sphinx to Saqqara (about 27 minutes without traffic), then on to Memphis. One day covers both. Our other Saqqara day swaps Giza for Dahshur, so it fits best after a Giza day.

Giza and Saqqara side by side

All three sites below are on the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities ticketing portal, and ticket prices are in Egyptian pounds (EGP). Prices change often: the figures are foreign-visitor prices as of August 2026. Memphis is included because the same tour stops there.

The two official sources disagree on when Giza opens, so both are shown; neither has the plateau open at dawn. For Saqqara they agree on the opening but differ on whether 4 p.m. is closing time or last entry. Either way, the Ministry advises arriving at least an hour before closing.

What each site has

Giza. On our tours the stop covers the three pyramids, then the Great Sphinx, 0.7 km away, and the Valley Temple beside it, part of King Chephren’s funerary complex. Going inside the Great Pyramid is a separate ticket. UNESCO lists the Giza pyramids within Memphis and its Necropolis, the Pyramid Fields from Giza to Dahshur, inscribed in 1979; there is no separate Giza listing.

Saqqara. Pyramids, Memphis and Saqqara covers the Step Pyramid of Djoser, the Pyramid of Teti and nobles’ tombs. Several monuments inside, such as the Tomb of Mereruka and the Serapeum, have their own tickets (see the table).

Memphis. The ancient capital is now an open-air museum, 6.3 km from Saqqara (about 14 minutes without traffic).

Dahshur. Saqqara, Dahshur and Memphis starts at Dahshur, with the Red Pyramid and the Bent Pyramid, 40.1 km from your hotel (about 33 minutes without traffic), then drives 11 km to Saqqara and the Step Pyramid of Djoser (about 23 minutes) and 6.3 km on to Memphis. It leaves Giza out, and lunch is optional, not included.

Why Giza comes first

• Of our two Saqqara days, only the one that starts at Giza covers both sites; Saqqara, Dahshur and Memphis skips Giza, so pair it with a Giza day. A Giza day can be short: the Giza pyramids and the Sphinx half day runs about 4 hours.
• Giza also pairs with either big museum: the Grand Egyptian Museum is 6.8 km from the Sphinx (about 11 minutes without traffic) on Grand Egyptian Museum and the pyramids, and the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir is 20.4 km away (about 20 minutes) on Giza pyramids and the Egyptian Museum. Our museum comparison explains which holds what.

One day or two

One day: Pyramids, Memphis and Saqqara covers Giza, Saqqara and Memphis. Two days, no site twice: add Egyptian Museum, the Citadel and Coptic Cairo on the other day. No tour on this site combines Saqqara with the Grand Egyptian Museum; if the museum matters more to you, swap the Saqqara day for Grand Egyptian Museum and the pyramids, a pair that also repeats nothing. Or split the pyramid fields: Grand Egyptian Museum and the pyramids on one day, Saqqara, Dahshur and Memphis on the other, for the Giza pyramids, the GEM, Dahshur, Saqqara and Memphis with no site twice. More pairings are in Cairo day tours for first-time visitors.

How the combined day runs

1. Pickup at your hotel in Cairo or Giza. To the pyramids it is 16.5 km from Downtown or Zamalek (about 20 minutes), 1.8 km from a Giza hotel near the pyramids (about 4 minutes) and 45.3 km from New Cairo (about 42 minutes), all without traffic.
2. The Giza pyramids, then the Sphinx and the Valley Temple. A camel ride is optional, at extra cost.
3. Lunch at a local restaurant, included.
4. Saqqara, then the Memphis open-air museum.
5. An optional shopping stop at Khan El Khalili or near the pyramids; skip it to go straight back.
6. Back to your hotel: 29.3 km from Memphis, about 26 minutes without traffic.

The tour is private, for your group only, with an English-speaking Egyptologist (a guide trained in ancient Egyptian history). Entrance fees to the sites in the itinerary, water and taxes are included; tipping is not. Going inside the Great Pyramid is an optional extra, not included, and extras the itinerary does not list are not covered. For timing a visit to the plateau, see the best time of day at the Giza pyramids.

Ticket rules at both sites

• Student tickets need a valid student ID, and the student must be 24 or younger.
• Children under 6 enter free.
• Photos with a mobile phone are free of charge at Ministry sites.
• Ramadan hours are shorter and published site by site, as in the table above.