Cairo Travel Guide

About Cairo

Cairo is the largest city in Africa and the biggest and most important city in Egypt. The Egyptian capital; Cairo has a wonderful blend of Pharaonic, Coptic, and Islamic monuments with a variety that can hardly be found anywhere else in the world. Almost all tours to Egypt would begin with a two or three days visit to Cairo.

The population of Cairo is estimated to be more than 10 million citizens today and this is more than 10% of the whole population of Egypt. Greater Cairo, on the other hand, which consists of the cities of Cairo, Giza, Six of October, and Qaliubiya hosts more than 20 million people. This means around 20% of the Egyptians actually live in Cairo. Despite being crowded, Cairo has many fans from around the world who love to spend their vacations in Egypt.

Geographical Location of Cairo

Cairo is featured with a significant geographical location in the Northern section of Egypt. Situated at the end of the Nile Valley a few kilometres away from the beginning of the Nile Delta, Cairo is lucky to have such a centric position in Egypt.

The older sections of Cairo are actually located in the Eastern section of the city, in the East Bank of the River Nile. Afterwards, the city started expanding to the West, especially when Khedive Ismail established new districts in the city at the end of the 19th century.

Cairo is situated around 230 kilometres to the South East of Alexandria, about 530 kilometres to the North West of Hurghada, around 500 kilometres to the North West of Sharm El Sheikh, 680 kilometres to the North of Luxor, and 900 kilometres to the North of Aswan. Many travelers spending their vacation in Egypt usually start their trip with a two or three days tour in Cairo.

Since Cairo is the capital of Egypt, the city is connected to all other regions in the country with paved roads. Moreover, all transportation means can be used to reach Cairo including domestic flights, trains, public buses, and taxies.

From outside Cairo, there are many airlines, from various sections in the world that offer direct flights to Cairo. Being the starting points of many travel packages in Egypt, The Egyptian capital hosts a large number of tourists every year.

The Climate of Cairo

The climate of Cairo, the same as many sections in the world, is featured with being hot in the summer and cold in the winter. The average degree of temperature during the month of July would be from 30 to 35. While the winter, in January for example, the temperature is usually between 6 and 15 degrees. However, it is never actually too cold or too hot in Cairo in order for tourists who travel to Egypt to enjoy their holidays in the Egyptian capital.

The History and establishment of Cairo
The location where the city of Cairo is located today has been the capital of Egypt for a period which is not less than two thousand years, when the Romans constructed the Babylon Fort, near coptic Cairo today, at the beginning of the 1st century AD.

When Amr Ibn El Aas, the famous Arabian army leader, conquered Egypt for the Muslims in the 7th century, he established El Fustat, the first Islamic capital of Egypt near the Babylon Fort.

The second city to be established in the location of Cairo was called El Askar and Saleh Ibn Aly, the first governor of Egypt under the leadership of the Abbasids in Baghdad in 750 AD, founded this ancient city.

Afterwards, when Ahmed Ibn Tulun made Egypt a state that is independent from the Abbasid Caliph in Baghdad in 869, he established his own capital which was called El Qata’e where he constructed his marvelous Mosque of  Ahmed Ibn Tulun .

Cairo was actually established by Gawhar El Seqelly, the army leader during the ruling period of El Muiz Le Din Allah, the Fatimid ruler who conquered Egypt at the end of the 10th century AD before he established his new capital in 969.

The construction work of Cairo took three years to be completed. Gawhar called “El Mansouria” before El Muiz came to Egypt and called his new capital Cairo, or the victorious. Since that date, Cairo became the capital of Egypt and the whole Fatimid Empire and it went out of the control of the Abbasids in Baghdad.

Cairo has witnessed quite a prosperous period during the reign of the Fatimids as it consisted of more than 340 acres as one of the largest cities of the region at that time. The Fatimids went on and established fortified walls around the city of Cairo with huge gates that were opened every day in certain hours following a set schedule.

With the fall of the Fatimids, El Fustat, the former capital of Egypt, that was established by Amr Ibn El Aas in the 7th century, was burned by the Crusaders in 1168. This was another turning point in the history of Zamalek as the residences of El Fustat left their city and went to resort in Cairo. After this incident El Fustat witnessed its end and nobody lived there anymore and Cairo became the only major city in the area.

Cairo Travel Advice

Cairo after around one thousand years since its establishment has turned into a significant cultural, economical, and social hub in the region of the Mediterranean Sea and the Arab World. Many travelers from around the world spending their holidays in Egypt became fond of Cairo and its historical and cultural significance.

With Pharaonic monuments like  the Pyramids of Giza , Saqqara, and Memphis , Islamic monuments like the Citadel ,  the Mosque of Al Hakim , the Mosque of Al Azhar, the Mosque of Amr Ibn El Aas, and the Mosque of Sultan Hassan, and Coptic monuments like the Hanging Church, the Coptic Museum , and the Church of Saint Barbara, Cairo has been the focal point of many tourists who visit Egypt from all around the world.

Tourists spending their holidays in Egypt usually spend the daytime exploring some of the wonderful monuments of Cairo. In the evening they might go on wonderful optional tours or spend the time at leisure walking down the Nile, shopping, having drinks, sitting on a café, or chilling out in one of the hotels spread around the city.

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Tourist Attractions in Cairo

The Mohamed Ali Basha Museum In Shoubra

Coptic Museum in Cairo

Al-Muizz Al-Deen Allah Street

Museum of Islamic Art

Al Azhar Mosque in Cairo

Cairo Opera House