Cairo

Egypt·Africa

Currency

EGP

Language

Arabic

Timezone

Cairo

Continent

Africa

Our guide

Discover Cairo

Cairo is not so much visited as absorbed — twenty million people, permanent din, and at the end of an ordinary avenue, the Great Pyramid of Giza. The three pyramids and the Great Sphinx sit on a plateau the city reached by sprawling. Two museums share the pharaonic inheritance: the Egyptian Museum on Tahrir Square, and the Grand Egyptian Museum out by the pyramids. The Salah El Din Citadel commands the skyline, and the Mosque of Ibn Tulun, the oldest surviving in its original form, offers a calm nothing else here does.

When to go

October to April, without hesitation. Summer, June to August, regularly passes 38 °C and makes the Giza plateau punishing by mid-morning. Spring brings the khamsin, a sand wind that veils the sky for days at a time. Ramadan changes the city's rhythm — slow days, very lively evenings — and its dates shift each year.

Getting around

The metro, three lines, is the only reliable way to escape traffic that has no real equivalent; some carriages are reserved for women. Ride-hailing apps are widely used and spare you the standing negotiation that taxis require. Walking works badly — distances are long and crossing the road is a skill. Islamic Cairo and Coptic Cairo, on the other hand, are walked once you are there.

Where to eat

Koshari — lentils, rice, pasta, tomato sauce and fried onions — is the national dish and costs next to nothing. Ful medames and taameya, the Egyptian broad-bean falafel, make up breakfast. Karkadé, hibiscus infusion, is drunk hot or iced. Our data lists only five explicitly halal addresses, which means nothing here: in an overwhelmingly Muslim city the label is rarely applied because it goes without saying.

Good to know

The Egyptian pound is the currency and cash still rules outside the larger establishments. Bargaining is expected in markets and for a good share of services. Covered clothing is required in mosques and makes life easier everywhere else. The Egyptian weekend falls on Friday and Saturday. Allow generously for journey times: traffic turns a short distance into an hour.

Smart Planning