Best Day Trips from Cairo

Cairo's position at the heart of Egypt makes it an exceptional base for day trips to some of the ancient world's most significant sites. The Great Pyramids at Giza are technically in Cairo's western suburbs, but several outstanding archaeological sites lie within 1-3 hours of the city centre and are easily accessible.

The Step Pyramid of Djoser at Saqqara — the world's oldest stone monument, predating the Giza pyramids by a century — lies just 30km south of Cairo. The Memphis Open-Air Museum nearby preserves colossal statues from ancient Egypt's first capital. Dahshur's Bent Pyramid and Red Pyramid are significantly less visited than Giza and offer an extraordinary experience of ancient engineering with almost no crowds. Alexandria, Egypt's Mediterranean city and the site of the ancient world's greatest library, is just 2.5 hours west by express train — making it an achievable full-day trip from Cairo.