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How to Visit Petra from Egypt

Petra is known as “The Rose-Red City, Half as Old as Time.” It is one of the New 7 Wonders of the World, recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The ancient city dates back to around the 6th century BC originally built by the Nabataean’s and expanded by the Romans during their time of rule around 106 AD. The city suffered from an earthquake around 660 AD severely damaging it’s infrastructure and economy and around 1189 AD it was eventually abandoned and forgotten about until around 1812 when it was rediscovered by Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt.

Petra is truly an incredible place to see, it’s almost unbelievable how they were able to carve their city out of the massive sandstone canyon of Wadi Musa. The detail that went into every building and structure is truly something to behold, particularly the Treasury. This is a must see for history lovers and all those that enjoy exploring ruins.

You can get there a number of ways. The easiest is to fly into Amman and take a bus to Petra, you can do this as a day trip. For the more adventurous i’d suggest taking a ferry from Nuweiba Egypt to Aqaba Jordan, that way you can spend some time on the Red Sea and visit Aqaba as well! That is what I did. I started in Sharm El Sheikh taking a bus to Nuweiba, this can take all day depending on if the bus plans to leave on time or not. However the bus is very inexpensive, around 4 USD. Once in Nuweiba you have to go to the ferry terminal and find an unmarked shack where you can buy a ferry ticket, after you get there i’d suggest asking a local how to find the ticket office. It’s a good idea to spend the night in Nuweiba so that you have an entire day to get your ferry ticket in order. The round trip ticket costs around 100 USD. I can’t stress enough how important it is to give yourself plenty of time because the ferry’s are often not on time, the one I took was 3 hours behind schedule on the way to Aqaba and 8 hours behind schedule coming back to Nuweiba.

Once you get to Aqaba you can get your visa on arrival at the port after going through customs. They have currency exchange counters so you can exchange for Jordanian Dinar. The visa costs 40 JOD which is about 55 USD. I suggest staying a couple nights in Aqaba as it is a beautiful beach town full of restaurants and night life.

To get to Petra from Aqaba you can hire a taxi, they will drive you there and back for around 40 JOD, make sure to negotiate a price before you leave. The drive is about an hour and a half through the beautiful Wadi Musa mountains.

Once you are at Petra you can buy a ticket at the gate for 50 JOD which is about 70 USD. The trek down through the canyon can be done on foot or by donkey or camel. If you choose donkey or camel be sure to negotiate that price too, you shouldn’t pay more than 4 JOD.

There are several areas to explore, there is the Siq, the Treasury and the Monastery. If you have time you should try to explore them all. It is often very hot so bring plenty of water and try to stay cool!

Top Things to do on the Egyptian Red Sea

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The Red Sea is incredible and definitely worth visiting while in Egypt. It’s full of white sand beaches with plenty of diving and snorkeling opportunities. There are few tourists and it’s extremely affordable, so what’s not to love? There are a couple of fair sized cities to stay in; Hurghada which is south east of Cairo and Sharm El Sheikh which is on the peninsula east of the Suez Canal. There are multiple ways to get to Hurghada from Cairo but I chose the bus which is about a six hour ride that cost 3 USD.

Hurghada is a gorgeous beach town full of restaurants, night clubs and white sand beaches along the Red Sea. My hotel was very inexpensive, around 14 USD per night. Hurghada is also world renowned for scuba diving if that’s your thing, it’s definitely worth checking out.

Next place you should go is Sharm El Sheikh. You can take a ferry or fly. I had to fly because the ferry was sold out the entire week I was there. If you want to take the ferry you may want to book it in advance. The flight cost around 100 USD and took about an hour. The hotel I stayed in was right on the beach at Naama Bay and it cost around 18 USD.

Sharm El Sheikh is known for it’s incredible coral reefs and palm-tree lined promenade. It also has some incredible white sand beaches, clear waters and casinos.

Sharm El Sheikh is also surrounded by the Sinai mountains.

Saint Catherine’s Monastery is wonderful day trip you can easily do from Sharm El Sheikh. It’s about a 3 hour drive, you can hire a taxi or rent a car. I rented a car for around 15 USD per day. Saint Catherine’s Monastery is a Unesco World Heritage Site at the foot of Mount Sinai. It was built around 550 AD and is one of the oldest working Christian monasteries in the world.

Saint Catherine’s is supposedly the place that Moses saw the burning bush and the summit of Mt Sinai, which is behind the monastery, is supposedly where Moses received the 10 commandments. There are two ways to the top, you can hike up the steps of repentance or ride a camel, either way you must be accompanied by a Bedouin guide.

Another great option as an excursion from Sharm El Sheikh is visiting Petra. You can take a ferry from Nuweiba across the Red Sea into Aqaba and then either take a bus or hire a taxi to take you to Petra. I highly recommend visiting Petra if you have the time!

Alexandria is the Pearl of the Mediterranean

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Alexandria has long been called the Pearl of the Mediterranean, it lies in the north central part of Egypt on the Mediterranean sea. It was founded by Alexander the Great so there is an interesting mixture of Ancient Greek and Ancient Egyptian history. It’s a major economic center with deep Islamic roots and has an interesting mix of western influence. They say Istanbul is where the East meets the West, which is true, but I also found the same thing to be true in Alexandria.

You have several options getting from Cairo to Alexandria. You can take a 45 minute flight for about 68 USD, take a 3 1/2 hour bus ride for 4 USD or a 3 hour train ride for 2 USD. I took the train because it was the best price and I could see the countryside and all the little towns it went through on the way.

I stayed in one of the many hotels downtown with the goal of being as close as possible to the Corniche. It ended up being a short 5 minute walk and was beautiful being so close to the sea.

The peninsula at the end of the Corniche is the former site of the Pharos Lighthouse, which was one of the original 7 Wonders of the World. Unfortunately it was destroyed by an earthquake in the 14th century, but you can still explore the area where it stood and tour Fort Qaitbey, which was constructed over the remains.

The entirety of the Corniche is worth walking. It’s pleasant experiencing a nice sea breeze in Egypt as generally the air is dry and very hot.

There are plenty of historical sites to visit in Alexandria, I started with Kom Al Dekka. This was a residential area from Graeco-Roman times and included a Greek Theater.

The highlight of Kom Al Dekka was Villa of the Birds. The original villa was destroyed in a fire in the 3rd century but the tile work remains and is a beautiful mosaic worth the trip alone.

The next place you should go is the Catacombs of Kom Ash Shuqqafa. This was my favorite place I went in Alexandria. As far as burial sites go this one is extremely interesting because of the mix of Roman and Ancient Egyptian religion. The entrance is a spiral chamber so the bodies would have had to been lowered by rope.

Constructed in the 2nd century AD, the catacombs were divided by 3 levels. Originally it was a lot smaller, probably designed for a private crypt of a wealthy family but over the 300 years it was used more and more people were buried down there eventually holding more than 300 bodies.

Next place you should go is Pompey’s Pillar. This was the site of the Ancient Egyptian settlement of Rhakotis. Pompey’s Pillar is a giant column made of red granite from Aswan. The same stones they used for the Pyramids. It sits on the great temple of Serapis.

Lastly I went to the Mosque of Abu Abbas Al Mursi. If you like islamic architecture than this mosque is not to miss!

Luxor is an Open Air Museum

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Luxor is an absolute must see in Egypt. It’s a 10 hour train ride or 2 1/2 hour flight from Cairo and it’s totally worth it. Luxor is considered the worlds largest open air museum, the only city that comes close to rivaling it is Rome. Both the temples of Karnak and Luxor are in the city and nearby are the Valley of the Kings and Queens. Luxor used to be the Ancient Egyptian city of Thebes so there is plenty to see here and accommodations are very inexpensive.

First place you should go to is the Karnak Temple. This is Ancient Thebes and it’s Necropolis. It’s a stunningly massive display of ruins dating back to around 2000 BC. The temples of Amun, Mut and Khonsu make up the Karnak complex and are the largest religious buildings ever constructed covering about 200 acres. They are extremely impressive today and must have seemed otherworldly to those that witnessed the site in its own era.

The next place you should go is the Luxor Temple complex. This complex was started by Amenhotep III in 1392 BC and completed by Tutankhaman around 1339 BC. Parts of it were used for worship pretty much up until today. It lies parallel to the Nile river and is just as massive as the Karnak Temple complex. You can easily spend a day at these two temple complexes, there’s more than enough to see.

Another place worth stopping by is the Colossi of Memnon. These are two massive stone statues of the Pharaoh Amenhotep III, which have stood here since 1350 BC.

The next morning you can take a hot air balloon ride over the Valley of the Kings at sunrise. There are several companies that offer this experience and I think it cost around 50 USD. Totally worth it. It’s incredible to see the valley from so high up and being at sunrise it’s not too hot outside yet, so win win! This was definitely one of my favorite things I did in Egypt.

Last but not least are the Valley of Kings and Queens. For over 500 years tombs were carved out of stone and Pharaohs and nobles were buried here. These tombs are pretty interesting to see as often they were buried with treasures and other items they deemed of use for when the Pharaohs rose again. You can easily spend an entire day here as there are dozens of tombs to explore, both in the Valley of Kings and the Valley of Queens. They say photography isn’t allowed but usually will bend that rule for a small fee.

Cairo is Capital Charm from an Ancient Age

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Cairo is the capitol of Egypt and the largest city in the Middle East. Its tumultuous, buzzing, dusty and caked in exhaust yet somehow also full of spirit and charm. It boasts a population of over 20 million in the metro area and was founded around 969 AD, although civilizations have been in the area for thousands of years.

There are a lot of things to do and see in Egypt but Cairo is the best place to start your journey. You can stay at one of the many hotels around Tahir Square for a very affordable rate and be right in the center of everything.

If you love history and/or museums than the Egyptian Museum is something not to miss. It’s right there in Tahir Square on the bank of the Nile River.

This museum has more artifacts of Ancient Egypt than anywhere in the world. It has over 120,000 items, most of which are on display. Most notably the treasures of King Tut’s tomb, as well as mummies, jewelry and other grave goods.

The ground floor is organized chronologically and has a lot of the larger items like tombs, chariots and statues.

Next make sure to go to Mohammed Ali Mosque. Its huge, beautiful and sits on the summit of the citadel. The views of Cairo from this mosque are worth the trip alone.

The mosque was built between 1830-1848 in the Ottoman style and can be seen from almost anywhere in Cairo. It was the biggest mosque built in the 19th century.

There are many other notable mosques to visit in Cairo but if you only have time for one make sure to visit Al-Hakim Mosque. It is interesting both in the architecture and the history of Sultan Al-Hakim who ruled over it. It has a history of violence and strange behavior with the Sultan thought to be insane.

The most notable part of the mosque architecturally speaking are the minarets which are the earliest surviving minarets of Cairo. Built in 928 AD.

Lastly but certainly not least, no trip to Cairo is complete without a visit to the Pyramids of Giza.

You can take a taxi from Cairo over to Giza and visit the pyramids. Essentially its like traveling back in time. It’s by far the largest and one of best ruins of a former civilization you will be able to find. It’s the last wonder of the ancient world and has been standing for nearly 4000 years. They were originally intended as tombs for the pharaohs but now stand as the definitive symbol of Ancient Egypt. Truly magnificent to behold.

You can enter the Great Pyramid of Khufu, the largest of the pyramids, and climb up to the top where the kings sarcophagus lies. This is a very steep climb up a very narrow path. It is much cooler inside the pyramid than it is in the hot desert, but if you have issues with claustrophobia I wouldn’t recommend the trek.

After Cairo there are many other destinations to consider, such as Luxor, Aswan or somewhere on the Red Sea like Hurghada, Sharm El Sheikh or Nuweiba. Egypt has plenty of possibilities.

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