Most travellers give Cairo two days: one for the Pyramids and one for a museum, and then they fly south to join a Nile cruise. That covers the essentials. But Cairo is also the best base in Egypt for day trips, and with one or two extra days you can see pyramid fields older than Giza, a Mediterranean city, a desert of fossil whales, or a Second World War battlefield, all back at your hotel by evening.
This guide goes through the day trips from Cairo that are genuinely worth the time, how long each one takes, and which kind of traveller each suits best. Every trip below can be booked privately with us, with your own guide and car.
1. Giza and the Grand Egyptian Museum
The first day trip is barely a trip at all. The Giza plateau and the Grand Egyptian Museum stand about two kilometres apart, so the monuments and the treasures that came out of tombs like them fit comfortably into one day. Start on the plateau while the morning is cool, with the Great Pyramid, Khafre and Menkaure and the panorama point where all three line up, then the Sphinx and the Valley Temple. Move indoors to the museum as the heat builds and give it at least two to three hours: the Grand Staircase and the Tutankhamun galleries alone can fill most of that.
See our Giza Pyramids, Sphinx and Grand Egyptian Museum Day Tour. If you want the Pyramids from another angle, add a camel ride to the panorama point or come back after dark for the Sound and Light Show.
2. Saqqara, Memphis and Dahshur
If Giza is the famous chapter, Saqqara and Dahshur are the beginning of the story. The Step Pyramid of Djoser at Saqqara is the oldest monumental stone building in Egypt. At Memphis, the first capital, a fallen colossus of Ramesses II lies in an open-air museum. And at Dahshur you can see the Bent Pyramid, where the builders changed the angle halfway up, beside the Red Pyramid, the first true smooth-sided pyramid. It is a quieter day than Giza, and Dahshur in particular often has very few visitors.
It is possible to squeeze Giza and Saqqara into one long day, but we usually advise two separate days so neither is rushed. See the Saqqara, Memphis and Dahshur Day Tour.
3. Alexandria
Alexandria feels like a different country. Founded by Alexander the Great and ruled by the Ptolemies, it is Greek and Roman Egypt rather than Pharaonic Egypt, and it sits on the Mediterranean. The drive takes around three hours each way, which still leaves five or six hours in the city for the Catacombs of Kom el Shoqafa, Pompey’s Pillar, the Bibliotheca Alexandrina and the Citadel of Qaitbay, built on the site of the ancient Pharos lighthouse.
It is a long day. If you can spare a night, staying on the coast makes it far more relaxed. Choose between the Alexandria Day Trip from Cairo and the 4-Day Cairo and Alexandria Tour.
4. El Alamein
For anyone interested in the Second World War, El Alamein is one of the most moving places in Egypt. In 1942 the battles here stopped the Axis advance towards Alexandria and the Suez Canal. Today the site has a War Museum and the Commonwealth, German and Italian memorials along a quiet stretch of coast. It is around three hours from Cairo, or an hour and a half from Alexandria, so it works either as its own day or alongside a night in Alexandria. See the El Alamein Day Tour.
5. Fayoum: Wadi El Rayan and the Valley of the Whales
Fayoum is a green oasis about two hours south-west of Cairo, and beyond it lies some of the most surprising scenery in Egypt. Wadi El Rayan has two desert lakes joined by small waterfalls. Wadi El Hitan, the Valley of the Whales, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site where the fossil skeletons of early whales, around 40 million years old, lie along a marked trail in the sand. The final stretch is a desert track, so a 4×4 is used for that part. On the way back, the village of Tunis is known for its pottery workshops above Lake Qarun.
It is a full day of ten to twelve hours, and a welcome change after several days of temples. See the Fayoum Oasis Day Tour.
6. Historic Cairo and the Royal Mummies
Cairo itself deserves at least one day beyond the Pyramids. Medieval Cairo, with the Citadel of Saladin, the Mosque of Muhammad Ali, Sultan Hassan and the old lanes of Al-Muizz Street ending at the Khan el Khalili bazaar, is one of the great Islamic cities of the world. Further south, the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization holds the royal mummies, including Ramesses II and Hatshepsut, a short drive from the churches of Coptic Cairo.
See the Historic Cairo Tour and the Royal Mummies and Coptic Cairo Tour. For an evening, the Tanoura dance show in a restored Mamluk building is hard to beat.
7. Overnight: the White Desert
Strictly speaking this is not a day trip, but it starts and ends in Cairo and it is the trip people talk about longest afterwards. You drive to Bahariya Oasis, cross the Black Desert by 4×4 past Crystal Mountain, and reach the White Desert in time for sunset among wind-carved chalk towers. The night is spent in a simple camp with dinner by the fire, and you drive back the next day. See the 2-Day White Desert and Bahariya Camping Tour.
8. A Beach Day at Ain Sokhna
If you would like one day by the sea without flying to Hurghada or Sharm El Sheikh, Ain Sokhna on the Gulf of Suez is around two hours from Cairo by road. It is where Cairenes go for a quick sea break, and a resort day pass gives you a beach, a pool and lunch. See the Ain Sokhna Red Sea Day Trip.
How to fit day trips around a Nile cruise
Most Luxor to Aswan cruises do not include Cairo, so these trips belong at the beginning or the end of your holiday. A simple rule works well. With two nights in Cairo, do Giza and the Grand Egyptian Museum. With three nights, add Saqqara or historic Cairo. With four or more, add Alexandria, Fayoum or the White Desert, depending on whether you prefer history, nature or adventure.
And try not to schedule a long day trip on the same day as your flight to Luxor or Aswan. Traffic in Cairo is unpredictable, and a relaxed last evening is worth more than one extra site.
Planning tips
- Start early. The sites are cooler and quieter before mid-morning, and most day trips involve some driving.
- Dress for the place. Mosques and churches ask for covered shoulders and knees, and women need a scarf inside mosques.
- Bring sun protection. Giza, Saqqara and Fayoum have very little shade.
- Check opening days. Some museums and sites change their hours by season. We confirm the running order when we send your quote.
Every tour mentioned here is private and quoted on request, so the price reflects your date, group size and what you want included. Browse all of our Egypt day tours, or send us your dates and we will suggest the right mix of Cairo days for your trip.
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