Egypt Travel Guides

Egypt Travel Guides

Everything you need to know before you explore the Land of the Pharaohs
Egypt is a land where five thousand years of history meet warm hospitality, golden deserts, and the timeless waters of
the Nile. This quick-reference guide gathers the practical essentials — climate, language, customs, and more — so you
can spend less time planning and more time discovering. Your We Travel representative is always on hand for anything
not covered here.
Time Zone
Egypt runs on Egypt Standard Time — GMT +2, year-round, with no daylight-saving clock change. Set your watch on
arrival and you will not need to touch it again.
Climate & Temperature
Egypt enjoys near-constant sunshine, with cooler evenings in the desert and along the Mediterranean coast. Average
daytime highs and overnight lows (°C) throughout the year:
City Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Cairo High 19 21 24 28 32 35 35 35 32 30 24 21
Low 9 9 11 14 17 18 22 22 20 18 14 11
Luxor High 23 25 29 35 40 41 41 41 39 35 30 25
Low 5 7 11 16 21 23 24 24 22 18 12 8
Aswan High 24 30 35 39 42 41 41 40 36 30 25 25
Low 8 9 13 17 21 24 24 25 22 19 14 10
Sharm El-Sheikh High 23 26 29 33 36 34 34 34 33 28 23 23
Low 16 17 18 21 24 26 27 27 26 23 20 16
Tip: nights in the desert and on the Nile can turn surprisingly cool even in summer — pack a light layer for the evenings.
Language
The national language is Arabic, but you will rarely have trouble communicating: English is widely spoken in hotels and
shops, French is a close second, and many staff in tourist areas also speak German or Italian. A few local phrases will
always earn a smile:
English Arabic English Arabic
Egypt Mus-r / Mis-r Water Maya
Good morning Saba-hel-kheer Beer Beera
Good evening Misaa' el-kheer How much? Bi-kem?
Welcome! A-h-lan! That’s a lot! Kiteer awi!
Goodbye Maa salaama Beautiful Gameel
Please Min fad-lak Wow, cool! Ishta!
Thank you Shok-ran Never mind Maa-lesh
Yes Ay-wa Tomorrow Bok-ra
No La'-a Hopefully, God willing In-sha' al-lah
Tips Bak-sheesh No problem! Ma-feesh mosh-kela!
Electricity
Egypt runs on 220V, with the standard continental European dual round-pronged plug. If you forget an adaptor, your
hotel’s Housekeeping department can usually provide one on request.
Shopping for Souvenirs
Shopping in Egypt ranges from relaxed browsing in high-class souvenir stores and hotel outlets to the authentic — and
sometimes wonderfully hectic — experience of the local bazaars and souks. In the souks, a healthy amount of bargaining
is expected: the “right” price is simply the one both sides agree on. Enjoy the game!
Some of the loveliest, best-value souvenirs to look for:
✦ Gold and silver jewelry, or cartouches inscribed with your name in hieroglyphics
✦ Wooden boxes inlaid with mother-of-pearl
✦ Hand-engraved brass and copper-work
✦ Carved alabaster from the quarries of Upper Egypt
✦ Hand-sewn appliqué work with Arabic, Pharaonic, or folk designs
✦ Cotton galabeyyas — traditional robes and kaftans, often beautifully embroidered
✦ Papyrus, still made by traditional methods and hand-painted with intricate designs
Recommended Egyptian Beverages
Non-Alcoholic
✦ Karkady — a rich, sweet infusion of dark red hibiscus flower, usually served cold, sometimes hot
✦ Limoon — fresh lemonade made from small local yellow limes, served frothy, tangy and sweet
Wine
Egyptian wine has flourished since the industry opened to competition, and today’s local labels are genuinely pleasant
table wines.
✦ Obélisque — made in Egypt with imported Italian grapes; a little drier and heavier
✦ Omar Khayyam (red) / Cru des Ptolémées (white) — made from Egyptian-grown grapes; lighter and fruitier
Beer
Egypt’s brewing scene has taken off in recent years, with local brands alongside big foreign names brewed under license.
Worth trying:
✦ Stella Local (standard lager) and Stella Export (a stronger version)
✦ Premium (dark, rich, sweet lager) and Meister (a light lager)
✦ Sakara Gold and Sakara Premium (a stronger version)
✦ Löwenbräu — the famous German beer, brewed locally under license
Dining Out & Entertainment
All over Egypt — and especially in Cairo — you will find an enormous range of high-class restaurants serving
international cuisine: Italian, Chinese, Japanese, Mexican, Indian, French and Lebanese, alongside international chains
such as TGI Fridays and JW Steakhouse. In Cairo, consider a cruising dinner aboard one of the many boats on the Nile,
most of which include a show after dinner. Western-style bars and discos, as well as Arabic nightclubs with belly dancing,
are easy to find — just ask your We Travel representative for up-to-date recommendations.
Optional Tours
A wide variety of optional tours is available in every area of Egypt. Please check with your We Travel representative for
details, timings, prices and booking.
Chronology of Egyptian History
A quick timeline to help place the sites you will visit — from the Pyramid Age to the present day.
Period Rulers Dates Key Monuments
ANCIENT EGYPT
Pre-Dynastic Age Scattered cultures 6000–3000 BC —
Archaic Period Dynasties 1–2 (Narmer, Hor
Aha) 3100–2700 BC Memphis, Saqqara, Abydos
Old Kingdom Dynasties 3–6 (Zoser, Snefru,
Cheops, Chephren, Mycerinus) 2700–2150 BC Saqqara, Giza, Dahshur,
Meidum
1st Intermediate Period Dynasties 7–10 2150–2050 BC —
Middle Kingdom Dynasties 11–12 (Amenemhat,
Senusert, Montuhotep)
2050–1770 BC Dahshur, Lisht, Luxor area
2nd Intermediate
Period (Hyksos) Dynasties 13–17 1750–1550 BC San El-Haggar
Dynasties 18–20 (Tutmosis,
Hatshepsut, Amenhotep,
Tel El-Amarna, Abydos, Luxor
New Kingdom
1550–1070 BC
Akhenaton, Nefertiti,
area, Abu Simbel
Tutankhamun, Seti, Ramses)
3rd Intermediate Period Dynasties 21–24 (Psusennes,
Sheshonq) 1070–750 BC Luxor area
Nubian Period Dynasty 25 (Piankhi, Shabaka,
Taharqa) 750–660 BC Nubia Museum, Luxor area
Saitic Period Dynasty 26 (Psamtik, Necho) 660–525 BC Sais, Luxor area
Persian Period Dynasty 27 (Cambyses, Darius) 525–402 BC Luxor area, Kharga
Egyptian Restoration Dynasties 28–30 (Nectanebo) 402–346 BC Luxor area
Persian Re-conquest Dynasty 30 (Artaxerxes) 346–332 BC Luxor area
GRAECO-ROMAN EGYPT
Macedonian Rule Alexander the Great 332–323 BC Alexandria, Luxor area,
Bahareyya
Period Rulers Dates Key Monuments
Ptolemaic Period Ptolemies & Cleopatras 323–30 BC Esna, Edfu, Kom Ombo
Roman Period Roman Emperors 30 BC – AD 395 Philae, Dendera
Byzantine / Coptic
Period Byzantine Emperors AD 395–642 St. Catherine’s, Old & Coptic
Cairo
ISLAMIC EGYPT
Rashidun Caliphs Amr Ibn Al-'Aas AD 640–660 Mosque of Amr, Fustat
Umayyad Period Caliphs in Damascus AD 660–750 Fustat
Abbasid Period Caliphs in Baghdad AD 750–868 —
Tulunid Period Ahmad Ibn Tulun AD 868–905 Ibn Tulun Mosque
Ikhshidid Period Caliphs in Baghdad AD 905–969 Fatimid walls, Azhar Mosque
Fatimid Period Caliphs in Cairo AD 969–1171 Citadel, Imam El-Shafi’i
Ayyubid Period Sultan Salah El-Din AD 1171–1250 Sultan Hassan Mosque,
Qalaun, Qait Bay
Muhammad Aboul Dahab
Mamluk Period Mamluk Sultans AD 1250–1517
Mosque
Ottoman Period Sultans in Istanbul AD 1517–1798 —
French Expedition Napoleon Bonaparte AD 1798–1801 —
MODERN & CONTEMPORARY EGYPT
Reign of Muhammad Ali Wali of Egypt AD 1805–1848 Muhammad Ali Mosque at the
Citadel
Muhammad Ali Dynasty Khedives, Sultans & Kings AD 1848–1952 Suez Canal, Abdin Palace
British Occupation Overlaps the above AD 1881–1936 Gayer-Anderson House
King Farouk Last King of Egypt AD 1936–1952 —
President Naguib 1st President of Egypt AD 1953–1954 —
Period Rulers Dates Key Monuments
President Gamal Abdel
Nasser 2nd President of Egypt AD 1954–1970 Aswan High Dam
President Anwar El-
Sadat 3rd President of Egypt AD 1970–1981 —
President Hosni
Mubarak 4th President of Egypt AD 1981–2011 Sadat Memorial
President Mohamed
Morsi 5th President of Egypt AD 2012–2013 —
President Abdel Fattah
El-Sisi 6th President of Egypt
AD 2014–
present New Administrative Capital
Dates for the earliest periods are approximate and vary slightly between sources.