After Dan and my Nile River cruise last April ended in Aswan, Egypt, we flew from Aswan to Cairo to end our trip sightseeing around Cairo and of course, visiting the Great Egyptian Pyramids! Arriving in Cairo after spending a week in small towns was a bit of a wake-up and an interesting way to end our trip. Many people we spoke with on our trip, both tourists and Egyptians, advised that Cairo would be our least favorite place in Egypt, and categorized it as a dirty, dangerous, sprawling city. We didn’t find this to be the case AT ALL and actually had a ton of fun in Cairo! That being said, it is a CRAZY HUGE city with a million things happening at once. This post talks about what we did in Cairo and our experience in the city in 2019 (pre-COVID)!

WHAT IS CAIRO, EGYPT AND WHAT’S IT LIKE?

Cairo, located in the North of Egypt, is the capital of Egypt and its largest city. And by large, I mean SO huge. Sprawling actually with many, many different neighborhoods. Cairo is the largest city in the Arab world and the largest city in Africa. Set along the Nile River, Cairo is loud and polluted, but also a really fascinating mix of traditional Arabic culture and modern Egyptian culture. Its unlike any other city I have ever visited and most certainly a cool place to visit.

While cool and enjoyable for me and Dan, visitors, particularly inexperienced travelers not from Arabic countries, should know that Cairo can be stressful and is generally not for the timid traveler. Be prepared to spend few days outside of your comfort zone and be sure exactly where you are going before setting out. For example, we went to dinner one evening and it was an hour drive from our hotel (oops!)

We stayed near Tahrir Square in Downtown Cairo, and most of our exploring took place in this area (as would most tourists). Downtown Cairo was originally designed to be a “better Paris” and while old and sadly needing much repair, some of the buildings in downtown are totally gorgeous. Very Parisian in my opinion! Further, aside from most signs being in Arabic, downtown Cairo is home to many shops, restaurants, markets, and people. Very, very busy, very, very crazy! I recommend taking a guided tour guide, particularly if this your first venture in Cairo.

And yes Tahrir, near where we stayed, is the infamous “Martyr Square” that was home to many of the protests leading up to the 2011 Egyptian Revolution. Its now a generally safe, yet very busy, driving circle surrounded by many fast food chains. The Egyptian Museum is also close by. It was super cool to stay near a place that played such a role in recent history.

WHAT WE DID IN CAIRO, EGYPT

Since Cairo is so huge and there a so many things that you can see and do, I recommend perusing the world wide web and selecting things that you want to prioritize. Again, it takes a really long time to get around Cairo and there is not easy public transportation. Cairo is also not a “walkable” city in my opinion such as, for example, Paris. Thus, advance planning is key. We took Uber most places but again, traffic was insane. We selected a few prominent sites that we wanted to see before leaving home and carefully fit each one into our schedule. And we still hit some snags! I recommend planning your time but leaving extra “wiggle room” between each site.

The Mosque of Muhammad Ali

Our first stop in Cairo, which we visited on our own without a tour guide, was the gorgeous Mosque of Muhammad Ali (also in the cover picture). The Mosque of Muhammad Ali is located in Cairo Citadel,  which is a medieval Islamic-era fortification that was the seat of government in Egypt for almost 700 years. The Citadel was later used by Egypt’s military, until it was opened to the public in 1983. Cairo Citadel is located in the Mokattam Hills area of Cairo, not too far from Downtown Cairo.  We Ubered from our hotel.

Visitors pay a small entrance fee to enter into the Citadel complex, which is quite large and contains several mosques, as well as museums and military artifacts. There are some food and souvenir stands inside the Citadel, particularly at the entrance. The one thing I did not see: toilets. 

We visited this Mosque of Muhammad Ali on our own and it was pretty easy. We simply walked up to the Mosque (there are signs), purchased plastic coverings for our shoes (less than $1 USD, bring Egyptian Pounds for this), and went inside to explore. While a working mosque, visitors come here all the time. You won’t look or feel out of place if you come just to see it, even if you have never entered a mosque. However, be sure to wear arm and knee coverings. I was not asked to cover my head (and many women were not covering their head), nor were we required to take off our shoes as long as we had the coverings on.

Be sure to explore the exterior of the Mosque of Muhammad Ali, as its just as stunning as the interior. The infamous clock, a gift from France in exchange from the twin Obelisk of Luxor, is here in the Clock Tower. Spoiler alert, it never worked and still does not. Coming from our hotel, I suggest allotting 3 hours to arrive, enter the complex, explore, and catch a cab back to Downtown Cairo.

 

On our visit, we met a lovely group of students who were on a trip with, who else, their English teacher! So we spent a lot of our visit chatting with the kids. They had fun practicing their English and taking SO MANY selfies with Westerners! But seriously, it was so nice to be warmly welcomed by the youth in a place we thought may not welcome us!

The Great Egyptian Museum

Another stop on our Egyptian itinerary was the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities a/k/a the Egyptian Museum. This is the famous pink museum in Downtown Cairo that has been open since 1901 and holds Egypt’s most precious artifacts, including those from King Tut’s tomb! We really enjoyed our time here but know that you really should hire a guide, preferably before you arrive. There are hardly any signs in English and very little organization. Deciphering this museum on your own would be very difficult. You must pay extra to enter the mummy room, with actual real mummies (NOT for kids, trust me), and the King Tut exhibit, both of which are recommended (no photos in either). I would also note that you must send your bags through a X-Ray machine on your way out, because it would be just that easy to steal something from the museum… I would further note that the Great Egyptian Museum is scheduled to open in Giza in late 2020 or early 2021, which is planned to largely eclipse this museum. Time will tell if it opens up! For time purposes, most guides box the tour into 1 or 2 hours, but this museum is huge. You could spend all day here.

Khan el-Khalili Bazaar

Another cool spot that we visited that is high on many tourists lists is Khan el-Khalili Bazaar. Khan el-Khalili Bazaar is famous bazaar and souk in Cairo. Crowded, hot, and a bit crazy, some will find Khan el-Khalili Bazaar really fun and others will find it so stressful! Its best visited with a guide, particularly to navigate its narrow streets. For those looking to shop shop shop, Khan el-Khalili Bazaar offers a lot of shopping, but often in the form of cheap tourists trinkets. A lot of these cheap vendors sell the exact same products. There are some upscale stalls, as well. Ask your guide if you are looking for something particular. Most everything is negotiable and bring cash for the cheap things.

We ended our Khan el-Khalili Bazaar tour with a Turkish Coffee for me and hookah for Dan at El-Fishawi Cafe . El-Fishawi Cafe is said to be the oldest cafe in Khan el-Khalili and its a cool, casual spot for a coffee or tea. Live music is often playing in this area of the bazaar and and its definitely a site to see. Not surprising, its very popular with tourists, but you can usually snag one of the small tables spilling in the street. Don’t expect anything too fancy.

The Great Pyramids of Giza

Although not actually in Cairo, I could not end this post without mentioning the Great Pyramids of Egypt, which were the entire reason that we decided to visit Cairo. The Great Pyramids of Giza are actually located about an hour from Cairo in the smaller tourist city of Giza. That being said, its easy and common to visit the Pyramids as an early day trip from Cairo, which is what we did. I wrote all about it here. I recommend using a tour guide to maximize your time at the Pyramids.

A Food Tour Through Downtown Cairo

We also took a guided food tour through Downtown Cairo with Bellies-En-Route. I wrote about it here. We found this tour to be a great way to explore crazy Downtown Cairo with a local guide while trying all of the local Egyptian foods, most of which we would not have tried on our own!

WHERE WE STAYED IN CAIRO, EGYPT

We stayed at the Ramses Hilton in Cairo, which we picked solely because it was a good points redemption. We had actually planned to stay at the more upscale Hilton Conrad, but that booked up like the day before we made the booking – oh well! The Ramses Hilton Ramses is located right on Tahrir Square and while a bit dated, was a decent hotel. There are a number of restaurants and shops on site, as well as a pool and night club, and even an “English” pub (no Guinness though). Nearly everyone in this hotel is a tourist, and you should feel free to wear whatever you want.  One of our favorites parts about the Ramses Hilton were its two Executive Lounges, one having just opened! Very fancy, and they even gave us a Stella Beer outside of their standard two hour daily happy hours. Like all hotels in Cairo, security is intense and involves the opening of car trunks, dogs, under car mirrors, and a metal detector. Don’t be alarmed; this is the norm.

I would also suggest when booking your Cairo hotel that you seriously consult a map and stay near to the sites you want to see and things you want to do. As I mentioned, Cairo is HUGE and crossing the city can take a really long time. Also, know that the Great Pyramids are actually in Giza, about an hour from downtown Cairo. This means that no matter what the hotel website says, you will not be able to see the Great Pyramids from your Cairo hotel.

WHERE WE ATE AND DRANK IN CAIRO, EGYPT

Alcohol.  Like our experience in Luxor and Aswan, alcohol is not that hard to find in Cairo, particularly if you know where to look. Western hotels and Western oriented restaurants will serve beer and alcohol, and possibly spirits. Cairo also has actual bars and clubs that serve alcohol. And, we even passed an alcohol store in downtown Cairo, where apparently anyone can buy booze. We didn’t go in, but I found it so interesting given what I had read prior to visiting. The one thing that did surprise me, however, was the fact that a number of tourist focused restaurants in Downtown Cairo did not serve alcohol. If alcohol is sought, be sure to confirm via the restaurant’s website.

In terms of food, we actually ate dinner at our hotel two of three nights and breakfast every morning. We almost always eat dinner outside of the hotel in a local restaurant but quite frankly, we were exhausted after a long and hot day of sightseeing every night. So the lounge or room service it was! This Hilton did not offer the delicious mozzarella sticks that were offered by the Hilton Luxor…

We did go out to dinner our final night, which actually took an hour to reach via car.! SO.MUCH.TRAFFIC. The restaurant was called Fayruz and it was a Lebanese restaurant located in the Intercontinental in Heliopolis, a newer, more Western part of Cairo. The food and service were actually great and a live singer gave a great performance. However, it was way too far from our hotel for my liking.

We also stopped for dinner at a super touristy restaurant for lunch on one of our tours with Emo Tours, Bonne Soiree As with many touristic restaurants, Bonne Soiree offered a buffet with the standard Egyptian tourist fare: rice, falafel, white sauce for dipping, some meat, etc. No booze. The food was decent and certainly edible, but it would not have been my first choice. Note that if you stop for lunch on a pre-paid tour, you will still be expected to pay for drinks, such as soda. Bring cash for this.

Honestly, I would have been disappointed in our Cairo food choices had we not taken our food tour with Bellies en Route. If you are a foodie in Cairo, I highly recommend this tour. 

TIPS FOR TRAVELING TO CAIRO, EGYPT

My first tip in Cairo is to hire a guide or join a tour. This will save you a lot of stress. We used Emo Tours Egypt. Guides also keep the hawkers (individuals selling water, trinkets, etc. mostly to tourists) away.

Keep Egyptian pounds on you. Many smaller restaurants, hawkers, and tourist sites do not take credit card.

And on that note, hawkers are all over the tourist sites. Stand your ground and don’t engage unless you actually plan on purchasing. Having exact change helps the negotiations.

Know that any visit to a perfume, papyrus, or a ceramics factory is a tourist trap. If you want to visit, go only with your guide. These places take credit card.

Don’t drive, whatever you do. The driving in Cairo is insane. Uber worked well in 2019 (if you can access internet, we could with T-Mobile), as did taxi.

Most people in tourism spoke English well enough.

For picky eaters, there are numerous Western fast food chains in Cairo, as well as Western and International foods in international brand hotels.

Clothing. We ran into both traditionally dressed people in Cairo and younger Egyptians wearing Western style clothing. However, both were dressed conservatively: knees and shoulders covered. I abided by this rule and never felt out of place despite wearing exclusively Western clothing. 

Always carry hand sanitizer and tissues/toilet paper in your bag. 

When going to the airport, have a print out of your ticket or itinerary. We were specifically asked for this every time we entered an airport in Cairo. We were luckily able to pull it up on our phone.

Also, while long haul Egypt Air flights permit you to bring and drink alcohol on board, you can only carry on that you buy in the airport. No worries, the Cairo airport sold screw off Egyptian red wine bottles and mini bottles of alcohol. 

STEAL OUR TRIP

Ramses Hilton: 1115 Corniche El Nile, Cairo. Many amenities, including a casino, pool, and nightclub. Nile river views. The lower levels can be loud at night.

Emo Tours Egypt: The tour company that we used to book our tour of the Great Pyramids, the Egyptian Museum, and the Bazaar. Use the code SAVETHISWAY to save 10% off all tours. 

Bellies En Route Food Tour: We did the Downtown Cairo Food Tour at a cost of $70 US/person. Book in advance online, as spots on the tour are limited. This was a great way to see downtown Cairo and try some local foods.  Price includes all food, unlimited bottled water, and 1 alcoholic beverage (or a non-alcoholic drink like a tea or soft drink).

Fayruz Lebanese Restaurant: Intercontinental Citystars. Open 13 – “late.” Upscale for Cairo. Live music often played. Food was very good. Alcohol served. Pricey for Cairo. Credit card accepted.