Cairo
Cairo
Modern city, ancient ruins.
The megacity and its pyramids.
The megacity and its pyramids.
Cairo is chaos at its most magnificent, infuriating and beautiful. From above, the distorted roar of the muezzins' call to prayer echoes out from duelling minarets. Below, car horns bellow tuneless symphonies amid avenues of faded 19th-century grandeur while donkey carts rattle down dusty lanes lined with colossal Fatimid and Mamluk monuments. - Lonely Planet Guide
We recommend using a travel agency to book trips and tourism in Cairo. It's useful to have an Arabic speaking guide that will show you around and explain the history.
Accomodations
Accomodations
The wedding will take place at Mena House Hotel on May 10th, 2018.
- We recommend staying at Mena House WEDNESDAY MAY 9th and MAY 10th as all wedding activities will take place in the hotel gardens.
- Visit the Wedding and Venue page for instructions on booking with the special wedding rate.
- The Pyramids of Giza are close-by – you can go Wed 9th before or after check-in
While visiting the city before or after the wedding, we recommend staying somewhere in Downtown Cairo:
- Intercontinental Cairo Semiramis
- Cairo Marriott Hotel/Omar Khayyam
- Sofitel Cairo Nile El Gezirah
- Four Seasons Nile Plaza
- Steigenberger Hotel El Tahrir
- New President Hotel (Budget option)
*The Egyptian Museum, the Nile and other sights are more accessible from downtown.
Three Day Itenerary
Three Day Itenerary
We recommend at least three days to get a feel for Cairo. Feel free to use this itenerary as a guide.
May 8th: Downtown Cairo
- Egyptian Museum (including Mummy room)
- Khan El Khalili Bazaar (Souk) – lunch at Naguib Mahfouz Café
- Bab El Foutouh (Cairo’s old city wall/gate) Sultan Hassan Mosque
- Henna Night along the Nile – Sofitel Hotel (Zamalek)
May 9th: Downtown Cairo → Mena House
- Memphis (Statue of Ramesses II) + Sakkara
- Lunch
- Pyramids, Sun Boat, Sphinx
- Camel Ride *Be ready to negotiate
May 10th: Mena House
- Sleep late. You will need this. Egyptian weddings go into the early morning. Rest well the night before.
- Eat breakfast
- Siesta
- Wedding activities start at 5:00 pm
May 11th: Mena House
- Party until wee hours of the morning.
- Sleep
- Brunch at the Mena House
- Sights to see if you have an extra day:
- Citadel Salah El Din
- Mohamed Ali Mosque
- Old Cairo (Coptic Cairo, hanging church, synagogues)
Things to do in Cairo
Things to do
Lonely Planet's top destinations in the city.
Getting thereFlights, visa, travel agent, and safety info.
CairoEgypt’s sprawling capital on the Nile is home to 10 million people.
Red SeaBeautiful beaches, snorkeling, diving, and affordable resorts.
LuxorWelcome to the world’s greatest open-air museum.
AswanSouthern Egypt’s strategic and commerical gateway since antiquity.
Nile CruisesSee Egypt the way the ancients did. All-inclusive Nile trips available.
