Were full-time travel bloggers who have been exploring the world since 2016, visiting 50+ countries across 5 continents along the way. So, I was happy to tick it off. The Giza Plateau bumps right up against the sprawling city of Giza. Egypt is hot throughout the year and in the summer months from April October its scorching! If I was paying more attention to sleep cycles than sarcophaguses, the thought of turning an already exhausting journey from Paris to Johannesburg into a multi-day event in order to spend one day in Cairo and save approximately $100 in flight costs might have seemed a tad ridiculous. In my mind, I had held fanciful notions of embarking on a daring windswept desert adventure of some sort to reach the Pyramids, so it was slightly incongruent to see them just there, merely a few steps away from the chaos of the city streets. But theres no denying that having a private driver who knew where they were going, access to a car with a/c in it, and a guide who knew the lay of the land made our one day in Cairo far less stressfuland those services alone would have been worth the price of the tour. On our last day in Cairo, we got very lucky that there was minimal haze. You think you know them, but there are still new mysteries to uncover Written by Michael Turtle Michael Turtle is the founder of Time Travel Turtle. For photos, the best view is the one just in front of thelight and sound show seating area. This tour will be around 2 hours and will take you by camel, horse, quad bike, or horse and cart to the dunes. The tour specified that we should meet at the King Hotel in the city centre by 7:30am, so Jessy and I called an Uber to bring us there for about 110 Egyptian Pounds ($9). Personally, I decided to take a camel tour as I wanted to see it that way. Giza is the most famous, but across Egypt, theyve discovered over 138 Pyramids! US & Canada: 1-800-315-3949 Toll Free. Thanks to Ask Aladdin to make our trip memorable which we will never forget in our life. Its tucked away in a little side street but still has suites that overlook the Pyramids. Hi Kate, the link you shared has many tours (offered by different companies), which one did you use for your tour? You can go inside the Pyramids, yes. There was one question I am not sure you answered. A trade-off between the most fantastic views of the Pyramids and the hustle and bustle of the mass tourism industry here. Bigger tips should be reserved for tour guides, cruise ship staff, hotel staff, and private drivers. Hi Shrey! So, you may not be able to see as much by walking. The only (small) downside was that the hotels entrance cant be seen from the street and it can therefore be a bit difficult to find, but one quick phone call to the front desk solved thateven at around 4am, a cheerful receptionist picked up and immediately sent an employee down to the street level to escort us upstairs. To explore the Pyramids during our short time in Cairo, I had booked the Half-Day Pyramids Adventure Tour with Urban Adventures. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Earth Trekkers is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn advertising fees by advertising & linking to Amazon.com. If there is a big celebrity, royalty, or a politician in town, it may close entirely. After presenting our Egypt e-visas to pass through immigration, Jessy and I exited into the arrivals area at Cairo Airport, only to be confronted by about a dozen taxi drivers shouting TAXI! In our faces. Again, these guys offer a free really tasty home-cooked breakfast and delicious Egyptian coffee! trying to determine pickup time. Then continue to . By continuing to browse this website you are agreeing to our use of cookies. Its even more amazing to think that people built these pyramids almost 5,000 years ago. The building itself is large and beautiful, dating back to the early 20th century, but it is also a bit rundown, lacks the kinds of upscale amenities (like a/c) that you would expect for a museum of this level of importance, and has shockingly few barriers between patrons and many 5,000-year-old artifacts. 8-Hour Private Tour of the Pyramids, Egyptian Museum and Bazaar from Cairo Ride a camel through the sand beside the soaring pyramids at Giza and go toe-to-toe with the enigmatic Sphinx. What time did you schedule your pickup at the hotel? You will be constantly asked to buy things at the Pyramid complex. Basically, wear comfortable clothing and a sturdy pair of walking shoes. Baksheesh. Some rooms include a seating area for your convenience. Wear light clothing that is breathable. It will always be etched in my memory. The latest theory is it took two decades to complete the Great Pyramid, the last and only surviving ancient wonder, withan army of around 100,000 slaves. This pyramid was built around 2570 BC and it is the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. We visited the Giza Plateau twice, in the morning and in the afternoon, shortly before sunset. With a longer layover in Cairo and more time to spend on an Egypt itinerary in general, wed probably also consider tours to explore the area more in depth. The general advice Ive heard from other bloggers is that its interesting but not necessarily a must-do, and not great for people who dont like tight spaces. Unless youre on a stupidly expensive private tour of the Pyramids and you get a special permit, you wont be able to step inside or go near the Sphinx. If you took a taxi or Uber to get here, you can pay your driver to take you around the Giza Plateau. in from athens; out to luxor; in from. We used Uber to travel back to the airport at the end of our Cairo layover and found it just as straightforward as Uber is in every other city. After our fellow tour members returned, our final stop was to visit the Great Sphinx of Giza, which is located on the same site about a few hundred metres away from the Pyramids. Tips For Visiting the Giza Plateau and Great Pyramids - National Geographic If you go from Cairo airport to pyramids by taxi the most comfortable, available 24/7 and fastest way. Dont forget travel insurance for Egypt, its quite easy to get ill here! Cairos notorious traffic problems had reared their ugly head, and it would yet another half an hour until we finally arrived at the hotel. Cairo to Pyramids of Giza - 4 ways to travel via line 2 Metro, taxi Yes you are right! You can capture the Great Sphinx with a pyramid in the background. This gives you enough time to go inside one of the pyramids, visit Panoramic Point, and snap a photo with the Sphinx. Giza, Egyptian Museum, Al-Khalili Bazaar Private Guided Tour 2023 - Cairo There is such beauty in the art of time travel, getting lost in the wonder, allowing it to take your breath away and.suddenly, you wake up and realise you are in modern-day Giza! So, its like walking in someones graveyard (talk about dark tourists). Hit Cairo's essential sights in just a day with your personal Egyptologist and Wi-Fi-enabled minivan on this time-saving door-to-door tour. If you make a purchase through one of these links, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Visiting the Pyramids Of Giza Without A Guide - Cairo Airport Transfer Since youre allowed to have layovers of up to 24 hours with Aeroplan, I decided to take this opportunity to schedule a 16-hour stop in Cairo and check the Great Pyramids of Giza off my bucket list. The yellow taxis are the most expensive. The Great Pyramid is also namedCheops. The Pyramids of Giza, along with the Sphinx and a handful of smaller tombs, form one of the most iconic sights in the world. If you prefer, a taxi can be hired for 22 minutes between Cairo Airport and Giza. EGYPT ITINERARY: With 10 days in Egypt, visit Cairo, Luxor, Aswan and Abu Simbel. Sometimes its German, French, Spanish etc. And we also have information on how much it costs to visit Egypt. True, less well-known is that fact that you can see the skyline of Cairo quite clearly from the pyramids and that a Pizza Hut commands one of the most epic views of Giza, but in the age of the internet, even these facts aren't a surprise to as many visitors as they once were. So, go to a reputable dealer or artist, not the market. A few more funny photos later (Kiss the Sphinx! ). But, you could just hire one for a couple of Egyptian Pounds while youre here. Then its 360EGP (15.60) for entry inside the Great Pyramid, 100EGP (4) for entries inside the 2nd and 3rd Pyramid. During our visit, our mothers skipped it and they dont feel like they missed out on anything. Our tour guide, Khaled, played a big part in making the tour enjoyable, and one thing I learned from him is that theres so much more to explore in Egypt beyond Cairo and the Pyramids, such as the ancient treasures of Luxor in the south of the country. Today, along with my husband Jeremy and dog Ranger, Im working toward my eventual goal of splitting my life between Europe and the USA. The content and opinions expressed on this site are provided by the authors of this site and are theirs alone. If your Cairo layover is a bit longer than ours (or simply doesnt involve a 3am arrival time that leaves you exhausted), you may also consider adding the Step Pyramid of Sakkara (which predates the pyramids in Giza!) On your Cairo layover you can easily see the following: The Nile river; The Pyramids of Giza; The Sphinx; The Grand Egyptian Museum; Getting to the pyramids takes 45 minutes on a good day, 3 hours on a bad. There are hardly any toilets at the Pyramid complex at all. Can I see the pyramids and anything else? It really touched my heart as I was alone here in Egypt. So, you can either groan and complain about commercialism taking over or use it to your advantage! While we are well used to shaking off touts and aggressive salespeople these days, it was certainly far more relaxing to spend our time in Cairo not having to worry about saying , Ive mentioned our tour guide, Bossi, a few times, but I just really cant overemphasize how impressed with were with, If we return to Cairo, we would not hesitate to, Wed still recommend using Uber when you can, but our successful cab ride definitely made for a very heartwarming first experience in the country and immediately made us eager to come back for a longer trip and explore more of the epic, Despite only spending a whopping four hours there during our. Theres no special permit to climb a Pyramid. What area should I stay to see the most I can? If youre well prepared on what to expect when youre here, you will be just fine. He explained to our group that we were free to wander around the Pyramids for the next 30 minutes or so, and that we could also enter the interior chamber of the Great Pyramid of Khufu if we wanted. There are actually 9 Pyramids in total. First, you will need to take a taxi or private car from wherever you are in Cairo. I recommend checking the official government website for this, especially in 2022 when we know these things can change quickly. Witness the wonders of the Western Sahara on this tour of Ancient Egyptian civilization's most renowned sites. It cant be avoided and so I would make sure you keep change on you. For 3,800 years, the Great Pyramid was the tallest building in the world, until the Lincoln Cathedral was built in 1311 AD in England. Giza is FULL of tour buses and groups who head to the viewpoint first. So,there are infinite possibilities. Some will put the meter on, some will refuse, some its like pulling teeth to get a reasonable price! Its like walking in a different era and a historical playground. Agree with BBeckett, it can take a great deal longer, so you'll have to keep an eye on time spent at the site. The pyramids were built as tombs for the pharaohs of Egypt. (I tried climbing onto the first few levels of the stonework, if only to gain an appreciation for the sheer manpower that wouldve gone into building the Pyramids all those lifetimes ago, but was quickly reprimanded by the security guards who were patrolling the site on horseback.). Side noteanyone else grow up with the completely mistaken impression that the Great Sphinx was female? Its a much different experience than visiting the colorful tombs in the Valley of the Kings or climbing down the tunnels of the Bent Pyramid and the Red Pyramid (this feels like an adventure). Mostly to get people to leave you alone, but also to learn about the Pyramids. What is the most efficient way to do so. If your answer is no then how much is the fees of transit visa? . You will need a Visa for Egypt. The Pyramids open at around 8 am and shut at around 5 pm which is a little bit of a bummer because it means that you can't go there for sunrise or sunset. Prince of Travel is a licensed travel agent, registered in the province of Ontario, Canada. Learn more Al Haram, Giza Overview Tours & Tickets Tours and Tickets to Experience Giza Pyramids Sightseeing Tours Private Sightseeing Tours Bus Tours Day Trips Between March and October, expect hot temperatures. The natural light from the sun in the morning lights up these Pyramids beautifully. Cairo is an enormous, sprawling city, but it is surprisingly easy to navigateespecially when you only have time to head to the most famous attractions. How old are the Pyramids, really? You can visit the Pyramids on a sunrise or sunset tour in the Sahara desert. Before going there, I had this visuals that I had to travel an hour or two outside Egypt to reach the desert where the Pyramids are built. Same with Papyrus scrolls, many are actually banana leaf and not a genuine products. Some links throughout this site are affiliate links. The maximum withdrawal amount is usually around 2,000 Egyptian Pounds. Window Seat: Spot the Pyramids Before Landing in Cairo we may add the camel ride which is another hour and just trying to ensure we dont get back too late. We typically do not take tours, but in this circumstance, having a guide and a driver made our visit hassle free and very enjoyable. I hate getting up and down on them,but once Im up its pretty fun! There are usually two kinds of . Its well known the Egyptian government takes a dim view of all these Youtubers who keep climbing to the top and have been issuing lifetime bans. Visiting the Pyramids Of Giza Without A Guide To those of you who are staying for a very short time in Egypt and do not want to waste their spare time staying at the hotel. Cairo Airport (CAI) to Pyramids of Giza - Rome2rio document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Getting ready to go to Egypt after graduation, me and my sister :) Despite the amazingness of the site, visiting the Pyramids isn't made easy for tourists. we have used Uber or Cairos metro system to get around to the major sights, waited in line for tickets ourselves, negotiated prices alone, and successfully seen the highlights of the city? I believe our layover was somewhere around 20 hours, but we did spend a few hours sleeping in a hotel before starting our tour. However, there are some places that you can go, like this restaurant, and you can see the Pyramids from there. Home to around 120,000 artifacts of ancient Egyptthe bulk of them stunningly well-preservedthis museum caused our jaws to hit the floor more than once. If you negotiate with the taxis it should cost you a maximum of around 250EGP (10GBP).
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