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Since the earliest days of humanity, the Nile River valley has drawn in and captivated travelers from around CYPRUS EUROPE the world. Modern-day Egypt, the inheritor of an unbroken civilization of more than 5000 years, located at the crossroads of the Asian, African and Mediterranean worlds, is a fascinating mixture of modern diversity ASIA and ancient splendor. Its cultural treasures are supplemented by over 2500 km of scenic coastline along M e a d S e EGYPT the Red and Mediterranean Seas, making Egypt an enchanting year-round destination, able to put a i t e r r a n e a n smile on the face of even the most jaded of travelers. AFRICA Egypt’s advantages are as seductive as they are diverse: the pleasant mild temperatures of air and sea, especially in winter; the hospitality and cheerfulness of its people; the year-round sunshine; the magnificent beaches; the diving and snorkeling resorts and second-to-none reefs and aquatic life; Beaches Sidi Barani the biblical mountains; the romantic desert oases; and, in between, the fertile valley of the Nile, Sallum Rosetta Damietta Diving Sites the second-longest river in the world, packed with life and history. Egypt’s diverse and profound spiritual Marsa Matruh Rafah Golf Courses heritage cannot fail to make an impression on her guests. Pharaonic, Coptic, and Muslim, including Alexandria El Arish Port Said Bardawil El Mansura SUEZ CANA Main Airports Porto Lake churches, convents, mosques, temples and elaborate funerary complexes, Egypt’s spiritual treasures Zaranik Sidi Abd Marina exhibit an artistic and devotional energy that makes Egypt an unforgettable and profound experience. el Rahman Borg Damanhur TANIS Main Roads El Arab Tanta Ismailia Marina Wadi el- L Egypt’s multifaceted treasures, including the To help the traveler plan a unique and El Alamein Natroun Zagazig Timsah Nile Valley with its Pharaonic treasures and its unforgettable trip through Egypt’s myriad Lake Monasteries cultural metropolis of Cairo, the bathing and attractions, we have summarized the highlights Cairo Monuments diving paradise of the Red Sea, and the oases of Egypt’s three main tourist attractions- PYRAMIDS Suez Museums a n OF GIZA Giza Oyoun Musa and open expanse of the surrounding deserts, Sightseeing along the Nile, Recreation along r io ta s PYRAMIDS Ain Qara Oasis t s OF SAQQARA Memphis Ras Sidr Taba National Parks each guarantee the traveler an unforgettable the coast, and Adventure in the desert- a e Sukhna Taba r Heights Siwa Oasis Q p Qaroun Qaroun PORTO Sinai experience on their own. separately in the map that follows, allowing e Lake Pharaoh’s Island AMON TEMPLE Lake Oases D EL SUKHNA SERABIT Taba But the uniqueness of Egypt as a holiday paradise you to put together your own personalized trip, Siwa Gabal El Mawta Fayoum El Fayoum EL KHADIM Nuweiba Cleopatra Oasis Ports lies in the traveler’s ability to combine from among to pick and choose among the smorgasbord Bath Za’farana YA Gabal Wadi Abu El Dakrur El Rayan Beni Suef ST ANTHONY’S ST CATHERINE’S Ras Abu all of these, as their heart and calendar dictate. of Egypt’s attractions to plan the perfect holiday Siwa Rudeis a Pyramids MONASTERY MONASTERY Gallum b Areg t a for you and your family. at St Catherine Dahab q LIB e r The Gr ST PAUL’S Area A Sound & E e f a MONASTERY G Se MOUNT MOSES o Light Shows NILE VALLEY Sand s Ras u Alexandria & Mediterranean Coast: grandeur, great l f e a f l Bawiti D Gharib o u Tourist heritage and sandy beaches f El Tur G D s S Egypt’s legendary port of Alexandria has been at the crossroads of ALEXANDER ue Nabq Information Ancient Cradle e MONS z civilization throughout human history, and the stories of its varied conquerors n THE GREAT TEMPLE El Minya t PORPHYRITES Offices of continue to coexist alongside one another in a rich cultural mélange. Bahariyya s e Sharm el-Sheikh Founded by Alexander the Great, and famous in ancient times for its r Oasis BANI HASAN r scholars, lighthouse and library, Alexandria once again became a focus of e TOMBS e Civilization cosmopolitan influences in the early 20th century, lying at the intersection White t Desert TONA EL GABAL RUINS r n Imagine you are relaxing on the deck of a boat meandering of the Mediterranean, Arabian and African worlds. The grandeur of this rt Mallawi Ras Mohammed down the Nile, sitting back in a comfortable wicker chair. It is late in s ese t El Gouna cultural heyday is still alive today, not only in the books of Lawrence Durrell or White D TEL EL AMARNA the afternoon, and the waiter has just served hibiscus tea. A gentle Konstantinos Kavafis, but also on the Corniche with its numerous restaurants, e breeze wafts across the river. The setting sun bathes sand dunes and famous for their tasty, freshly caught seafood; in the majestic new “Bibliotheca Hurghada MAKADI BAY cliffs in a soft light of the color of golden honey. Water buffalo, ibis Alexandrina;” and in the city’s charming neighborhoods, with cafés, antique W Farafra and camels crowd the shore. Fishermen throw their nets, children markets, and Art Deco cinema-palaces. Alexandria continues to shine as Oasis Asyut SAHL HASHEESH Qasr Farafra MONS CLAUDIANUS paddle, and a local farmer ploughs his field. Now and then you sail the “Pearl of the Eastern Mediterranean” thanks to its oriental flair and deep past villages of loam houses, embedded in palm groves and fields historical, cultural and archaeological heritage. Nile Safaga of green sugar cane. Later, a Pharaonic temple entices you to shore. From Mediterranean beaches to the historic SOMA BAY Abu minqar River Along this wondrous river, an advanced civilization blossomed 5000 monuments of central Egypt years ago, one of the earliest flowerings of civilization. The traces West of Alexandria, towards Marsa Matruh, magnificent sandy beaches stretch along the G Sohag of this mighty civilization, buildings and statues of unparalleled shores of a coastline known for its turquoise-blue water. Along this stretch, holiday homes elf Ke WADI monumentality and splendor, border the river valley for more than and resorts on the beach are in great demand among locals and Egyptians alike, along b Qena ir ABYDOS HAMMAMAT a thousand kilometers, from the fertile Delta region and the glorious a landscape that during World War II was fiercely fought over by Montgomery for the Allies, El Quseir harbor of Alexandria in the north, past the great, historic urban and Rommel for the Axis powers. Haunting memorials to this conflict around Alamein DANDARA make a compelling visit for the history buff. The Nile Delta region to Alexandria’s center of Cairo on the Giza plateau, to ancient capitals of Luxor Qus and Aswan in the far south. In front of such scenery, a Nile cruise east, meanwhile, pampers the senses with lush and verdant vegetation. Ancient Ain Umm VALLEY OF THE KINGS R ruins, such as those at Tanis and Abu Menas, and sights, such as the history-steeped El Qasr becomes a journey of personal discovery, through a land whose Dakhla Dabadib KARNAK Rosetta, and the Coptic monasteries of Wadi el-Natroun, offer the opportunity for Oasis e grace and gloriously old fashioned contemplativeness nourishes true exploration, beyond the well-trodden tourist track. South of Cairo, pearl upon one’s imagination and touches the heart. AL BAGAWAT Al Kharga Luxor pearl of Pharaonic architecture lie threaded along the left bank of the Nile, including NECROPOLIS d Memphis, the Necropolis of Saqqara, and the pyramids of Dahshur, El-Lisht and Mut Port Ghalib Meidum. Further up river, in Central Egypt, not far from El-Minya, are the rock graves Esna of Beni Hassan and Tell El - Amarna, as well as archeological remainders of the Bulaq TEMPLE Marsa Alam S residential city of the heretic Pharaoh Akhenaton. Beyond Assiut, around Sohag, N Kharga OF KHNOUM PROGRAMS ew Oasis Edfu e are more monasteries whose roots date back to the 5th century AD. Further, south, V THROUGH at the border with Upper Egypt, lie the two outstanding temples of Abydos and al TEMPLE a le OF HORUS Dandara. y Kom Ombo The sacred heart of ancient Egypt: Luxor and the West Bank Baris TEMPLE OF SOBEK The start and climax of every journey to Upper Nile is the small town of Luxor. Dush & HAREORIS Wadi El Gemal Egypt Saluga The grand temples and funerary cities found there, tributes to the advanced & Ghazale civilization based around the ancient capital of Thebes, have been impressing Aswan EZBET DUSH visitors for millennia. The magnificent columned halls in the temple of Karnak, SAAD EL-ALI, Berenice Ras Banas NILE VALLEY which for many centuries functioned as the country’s central sanctuary of the THE HIGH DAM god Amun, leave visitors in awe. Over the river in the various valleys of the PHILAE The classic tour Necropolis of Thebes, one is overwhelmed by the gigantic size and spiritual Spend a few days in the capital KALABSHA Cairo, including visits to Giza, Saqqara devotion of the mortuary temples of rulers such as Ramses II or III, and Queen and Fayoum, followed by a boat trip Hatshepsut. One of these valleys, along the Nile, sailing by the Pharaonic the spectacular Valley of the Kings, where the glorious rulers of the New Tropic of Cancer sites of Upper Egypt between Luxor and Kingdom were laid to rest more than 3000 years ago, was where, in 1922, Aswan. For those with a bit more time Giza Pyramids Howard Carter brought to light the legendary treasures of Tutankhamun, whose to spare, Abu Simbel is an easy day- Lake Cairo: Pyramids, mosques and modern museums glorious funerary regalia continue to inspire a global audience.

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