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| Cities Information |
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| Cairo |
 Cairo is the capital of Egypt and by far the largest with a population of around 23 million. Cairo is a hectic city that really never sleeps and is everything you would expect from such an ancient city!
Cairo itself is more than 1000 years old, has one of the 7 wonders of the ancient world, the River Nile, bustling streets, demonstrates perfect examples of Islamic Architecture, hosts the Egyptian Museum and many more famous sights.
The traffic in Cairo is something else. Organised chaos has often been used to describe it and many people take photos of it as it's just so hard to believe.
Your stay in Cairo is not complete without visiting the Egyptian Museum, the Pyramids & Sphinx of Giza (just 20km from the city centre), Khan el Khalili Bazaar and driving through Old Cairo.
If you have more time then we recommend the Citadel (containing the Mosque of Muhammad Ali and with fabulous views of the City), the Coptic Churches, Sakkara, Memphis, Dasher, a Nile Felucca ride, the Gayer Anderson House and the Ibn Tullen Mosque.
Cairo is also famous for its night life with a huge selection of restaurants and bars - both modern and traditional style. In Cairo the restaurants/bars etc are fairly spread out and often well hidden between houses and shops.
Here is handful of upmarket and rather special restaurants which we recommend you try while in Cairo:
Abou El Sid
157, 26th of July St
Phone - 2735 9640
They serve Egyptian cuisine (as well as alcoholic beverages)
Sequaia
3 Adul Feda St
Phone - 2735 0014
They serve Egyptian and International cuisine (as well as alcoholic beverages)
Naguib Mahfouz Restaurant
5 El Badistan Lane, Khan El Kahili Bazaar
Phone - 2590 3788
They serve Egyptian cuisine
Studio Misr
Al Azhar Park, Salah Salem
Phone - 2510 9150
They serve Egyptian cuisine |
| Aswan |
 Aswan is known as the "Beauty of the Nile". And because of the views of the Nile with the many small islands and feluccas sailing by, Agatha Christie wrote her famous novel "Death on the Nile" while sitting on the terrace of the Old Cataract hotel.
Aswan is also the most relaxed city in Egypt and things move at a very slow pace. So keep that in mind when dealing with the restaurants or hotels. This is due to the chilled out attitude of the Nubians. Many Nubians were relocated to Aswan from further south after their homelands were flooded by the massive manmade Lake Nasser created by building the High Dam.
Night life in Aswan is not big but the sights and activities you can do during the day makes it well worth the visit! We recommend a visit to the High Dam, the Philae Temple, the Unfinished Obelisk, taking a felucca ride to visit the botanical gardens, a camel ride to visit St Simone Monastery and the tombs of the Nobles where the desert meets the rive Nile. From Aswan you can also do a day tour to the famous rock cut temple of Ramsis II - Abu Simbel. At the Aswan markets you will have the chance to purchase many local goods but its famous for cotton and fresh spices. And lastly, we highly recommend a visit to one of the Nubian villages with the chance to socialize (perhaps share a cup of mint tea) with he Nubians.
Most of the restaurants don�t serve alcoholic beverages in Aswan - but you will find them in the 4 or 5* hotels.
Here is few local restaurants we recommend you try while in Aswan:
Al Dokka Restaurant
Essa Island - opposite Elephantine Island
Phone : 230 2465
They serve Nubian cuisine
Panorama Restaurant
Corniche El Nil
Phone 231 6169
They serve Egyptian cuisine
Aswan Moon Restaurant
Corniche El Nil
Phone 231 6108
They serve Egyptian cuisine |
| Luxor |
 Luxor is the city that has 1/3 of the world's monuments! It was the ancient city of Thebes and the capital of ancient Egypt. That�s why now it�s the most famous tourist destination in Egypt and considered the world's greatest "open air museum".
The city itself is very touristy but from most 5* hotels on the East Bank you will have brilliant views of the Nile and the surrounding desert.
The amount of tombs and temples to visit in Luxor is enormous, but the most impressive and the ones you can not miss are; Luxor Temple and Karnack Temple's on the East Bank and The Valley of the Kings, Valley of the Queens, the temple of Queen Hatshepsut's and the Colossi of Memnon on the West Bank.
Luxor is also a great place to do a Hot Air Balloon ride. As you are floating through the sky you see below the astonishing temples and monuments of Luxor, the banks of the Nile and the fields with the farmers working with the sunrise.
Luxor is not famous for its good selection of restaurants! You will find a great vairiety of restaurants inside the 5* hotels and here are a couple of good ones in the city:
Murphy's Irish Pub
El Gawaza st
Phone: 095 238 8101
Typical pub atmosphere that serves local Egyptian beers and has a good selection of pub food.
Kings Head Pub
Khaled Ebn El Walid St
Phone: 273 1249
A relaxed English style pub that serves local Egyptian beers and has a good selection of pub food. |
| Hurghada |
 Hurghada is the biggest beach resort town on the Red Sea. Once just a simple fishing village, Hurghada is now a bustling town famous for its crystal clear water, mild climate and untouched reefs. Hurghada is considered an international center for water sports. You can participate in many activities such as windsurfing, sailing, deep sea fishing, snorkeling, diving, waterskiing, wake boarding, paragliding and swimming! If getting in the water isn�t your thing, don�t worry, they also have glass bottom boat and submarine tours, an underwater museum and an aquarium - so everyone can experience the underwater gardens.
Hurghada is also known as a party town, some will say that life begins at night in this city with the large amount of bars and clubs - all of which are easily found along the main street.
Thousands of people from all nationalities travel to Hurghada with their families to enjoy the sun and the private beach resorts. Many hotels offer so many activities and facilities that one may never leave the hotel!
We recommend you try the Hurghada Marina Boulevard where you will find more than 15 restaurants and 8 bars in one location. The style is very modern and the cuisine is international. |
| Sharm El Shiekh |
 Situated on the southern most tip of the Sinai Peninsular and is known as the "city of peace" due to the large amount of international peace conferences held there.
This Red Sea hot spot has been billed as one of the most picturesque, idyllic vacation cities in the world because you are sure to find clean air, warm weather, beautiful beaches and a relaxed atmosphere. Water sports, diving, safari's, golf, camel riding, tennis, quad biking and shopping are to name just a handful of the activities available in Sharm.
Sharm el Sheikh attracts a huge number of tourists from all over Europe, America as well as a lot of Egyptian and foreign residents from Cairo.
Sharm el Sheikh has a large selection of hotels to suit any budget. We suggest the 4 - 5* options preferably which is an international chain.
We recommend a snorkeling or diving tour between Tiran Island and Ras Mohammed national park where you will find some of the world's most brilliant underwater scenery.
At night Naama Bay is the main place to 'be' with a Las Vegas style strip with numerous open air restaurants as well as shops, night clubs, bars, coffee shops, malls and even casinos! There is so many restaurants to choose from we recommend at least a couple of nights in Naama Bay to enjoy a meal and experience the atmosphere. If you prefer a more quite/romantic meal then head down to the end of the strip near to the Marriott Beach hotel where you will find a few lovely places on the water. |
| Alexandria |
 Alexandria is also called "The Bridge of the Mediterranean". It is the 2nd largest city in Egypt with a population of 4 million people.
In ancient times Alexandria was one of the most famous cities in the world. It was founded around a small fishing town 332BC by Alexander the Great who needed a bridge between the old Pharonic world and the new world of the Greeks. It was to be the political and cultural centre of his empire, a harbor for trade and a link between Egypt and the rest of the world. When Alexander died his body was carried back to Egypt and was buried in Alexandria. Alexandria remained the capital of Egypt for nearly a thousand years until the Muslim conquests of Egypt in 641AD when a new capital founded in Fustat - which is now Old Cairo. Alexandria went into a slow decline all through the middle ages and the importance of Cairo as the capital and Rosetta as a port took over Alexandria. Over the centuries its monuments were destroyed by earth quakes and their ruins were used as new building materials. Till the reign of the Egyptian reformist Mohamed Ali (and his successors) who built a new town on top of the old one. Once again Alexandria became one of the Mediterranean's busiest ports and attracted a cosmopolitan mix of people. But in the time of Nasser and nationalizing, most foreign businesses and foreign traders left and now the population of Alexandria is mainly Egyptians who came from the countryside for city work. Alexandria gets very busy during the hot summer months (July & August) as the climate is much cooler than Cairo and other parts of Egypt.
The most famous sights to visit in Alexandria is the Quitbey Fort - which was built in 1477 by the same stones in the same spot of the legendary Pharos Light House - one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, the Alexandria library and the Catacombs of Kom Ash Shugash - which is the largest known Roman burial sight in Egypt. The Alexandria library, like the Quitbey fort is built in the same location of the Old Alexandria library which was the largest and most important library of the ancient world where great philosophers and scientists of that age came to seek knowledge.
In Alexandria your visit is not complete unless you have a seafood meal. We recommend either of these two restaurants:
The Fish Market Restaurant
El Guiesh Rd, Amfoushi
Phone 03 480 5114
Cuisine - Seafood
San Giovani
205 El Guiesh Rd, Stanly
Phone 03 546 7775
Cusine - Seafood |
| Dahab |
 Dahab is situated on the southeast coast of the Sinai Peninsular just 85km's from the busy and commercialized Sharm el Sheikh.
Dahab is considered to be one of the Sinai's most treasured destinations. Its golden beaches, rugged mountains and relaxed (almost hippie) atmosphere that made it so popular. At one point it was referred to as the Koh Samui of the Middle East but in recent years it has grown and you will find a good infrastructure for scuba divers, snorkelers and travelers with many restaurants, bars, banks, internet cafes and a few up market hotels.
Dahab is also famous nowadays for the Windsurfing and Kite surfing which is all centered on the Lagoon just a few kilometers out of town.
Sinai is home to the Bedouins, who were originally nomadic people, but now prefer to make homes and live around the Dahab area. Bedouins are very relaxed people and their influence adds to the uniqueness of Dahab.
In Dahab we recommend a day trip to the Blue Hole. It�s the perfect spot for both experienced or novice snorkeler with the coral reefs and huge variety of fish just a few feet from the shore. Perch yourself in one of the beach cafes and enjoy lunch and unlimited snorkeling.
There is a lot of seafood and Egyptian BBQ restaurants on the beach front of the main strip in Dahab. We recommend Ali Baba's, the Kitchen, Alaadins and El Mondo's. For a drink you can try The Tree, El Dar, Black Prince but the best is Mojito's with cool music, good ambiance. |
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