Best things to do in Cairo

The main things to do in Cairo are its museums, which hold Tutankhamun's treasures and the royal mummies, and its medieval city: the Citadel on the Muqattam hills, the mosques of Islamic Cairo and Al-Muizz Street, the churches and synagogue of Coptic Cairo and the Khan El Khalili bazaar. Add a sail on the Nile, an evening show and a day trip out of the city.

See the pyramids from Cairo

The Giza pyramids and the Grand Egyptian Museum are on the west-bank side of greater Cairo, 16.5 km from a Downtown or Zamalek hotel, about 20 min without traffic. They have their own guide, things to do in Giza. Our Giza pyramids and Egyptian Museum tour pairs the plateau with the museum in Tahrir in one day of about 8 hours.

Cairo's three museums of ancient Egypt

Three museums divide ancient Egypt between them, and each has a tour of its own on this site.

The Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities calls the Tahrir museum the oldest archaeological museum in the Middle East. The royal mummies left it for the Museum of Civilization in a parade on 3 April 2021, so they are no longer in Tahrir. The Tahrir museum is 1.5 km from the hotel and the Museum of Civilization 7.5 km, without traffic. Our half days each take one museum with an Egyptologist guide: the Grand Egyptian Museum, the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir and the Museum of Civilization, and the two museums tour pairs the GEM with Tahrir. These are new tours, so the program is confirmed with your quote. If you have time for one, read Egyptian Museum or Grand Egyptian Museum?.

Medieval and religious Cairo

Climb to the Citadel and the Muhammad Ali Mosque

The Citadel was begun by Salah al-Din (Saladin) in 1176 on the Muqattam hills and still gives a panoramic view of Cairo. Inside, the Mosque of Muhammad Ali, built in 1848 and known as the Alabaster Mosque, has twin minarets that the Ministry gives as 84 meters high each. It is 4.2 km from the hotel, about 7 min without traffic, on our Citadel and Muhammad Ali Mosque tour.

See the Mosque-Madrasa of Sultan Hassan

The Sultan Hassan madrasa is one of the Mamluk complexes that UNESCO says still dominate Cairo's skyline. It is 1 km from the Citadel on our Coptic and Islamic Cairo day tour, which also covers the Citadel, Coptic Cairo, Al-Muizz Street and the bazaar in one day, with lunch.

Walk Al-Muizz Street in Islamic Cairo

Al-Muizz Street runs from Bab al-Futuh in the north to Bab Zuwayla in the south, past twenty-nine monuments from the 10th to the 19th centuries; one area ticket covers the street and monuments such as the Qalawun group and Sultan Barquq's mosque. Nearby, Al-Azhar has been a center of religious learning for the Islamic world since its foundation in 970 AD (UNESCO). Our Islamic Cairo and Al-Muizz Street tour visits Al-Azhar Mosque, walks the street and ends in the bazaar; Al-Azhar is 3.1 km from the hotel, about 4 min without traffic.

Visit Coptic Cairo

Coptic Cairo lies within the walls of the Roman fortress of Babylon. The Hanging Church, built toward the end of the 4th century, takes its name from its place between two towers of the fortress, 13 meters above the ground; the Church of St Sergius (Abu Serga) is the site of the cave where the Holy Family sought refuge, and Ben Ezra is the oldest synagogue in Egypt, no longer in use. Our Coptic Cairo tour visits all three, 6.2 km from the hotel, about 7 min without traffic. The Coptic Museum nearby, with about 16 thousand pieces, is not on our tours; its hours and ticket are in the table below. To choose a side of the old city, see Coptic Cairo or Islamic Cairo.

Shop in Khan El Khalili

Khan El Khalili is a large bazaar of shops near Al-Azhar Mosque, with markets for gold, copper ware, textiles, rugs, spices and leather goods (Britannica). Our Khan El Khalili walk is about 3 hours in the afternoon or evening, with a guide to explain the lanes and help you find your way, and goes on along Al-Muizz Street.

Prices are in Egyptian pounds (EGP). Our old-city tours include the entrance fees to the sites in their program.

The Nile, food and evenings

Sail a felucca on the Nile

A felucca is a traditional wooden sailboat. Our private felucca ride is a two-hour sail with views of the Cairo skyline, in the morning or at sunset, with transfers from your hotel.

Eat your way through Cairo

The street food tour tastes koshary, falafel (taameya), ful and other street food at local places downtown, then sweets and tea; the Egyptian cooking class has you cook Egyptian home dishes with a local cook and sit down to eat what you made. Both are new tours, confirmed with your quote.

Spend an evening on the river or at a show

The Maxim dinner cruise is a reserved table on a Nile restaurant boat with an open buffet, belly dancing, a Tanoura show and live music; the Tanoura show night is the whirling tanoura dance with live Sufi music, on set nights. Both are shared with other guests, with private transfers. Cairo evening options compared sets them side by side.

Day trips out of Cairo

Alexandria is 216.1 km from the hotel, about 2 h 26 min without traffic, on our Alexandria day trip from Cairo: the catacombs, Pompey's Pillar, the Roman amphitheatre, Qaitbay and the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, with lunch. Fayoum is a day of lakes and waterfalls at Wadi El Rayan, 143.2 km away, about 1 h 48 min, and pottery workshops in Tunis Village. Luxor in a day from Cairo goes by plane, and the flights are not included in the tour price.

What is Cairo known for?

Besides the pyramids at its edge, for its old Islamic city. UNESCO describes Historic Cairo, founded in the 10th century, as one of the world's oldest Islamic cities, with its famous mosques, madrasas, hammams and fountains, which reached its golden age in the 14th century; it was added to the World Heritage List in 1979.

For how many days to give the city, see how many days for day tours by city. To plan a day your own way, you can book a guide only in Cairo, in English, Spanish, Portuguese, German, French or Italian. Every Cairo tour is on the Cairo page.