Questions about Egypt for Mature Travellers

Odyssey Traveller has offered educational escorted small group tours since 1983, for mature travellers travelling either as a couple or as a solo traveller. Over that time we have built up a good knowledge bank to answer the questions about Egypt that travellers are likely to ask, as they make their plans to tour independently, or with us as part of a small group tour. We hope that this list of frequently asked questions and the answers we provide will help you with planning your next holiday. If you are still deciding on a route, our Egypt itinerary for mature travellers sets out a day-by-day plan from Cairo to Lake Nasser.

Read on, but please do not hesitate to contact us via the website, or through email or chat if you have more questions about Egypt or our other tours.

A view of the River Nile at Luxor, Egypt

A statue of Rameses II at the open-air museum of Memphis.

Where is Egypt located?

Egypt is located in the northeast corner of the African continent.

It shares borders with Libya (west), Sudan (south), and Israel and the Gaza Strip (northeast) and has two coastlines–the Mediterranean coastline in the north and the longer Red Sea and Gulf of Aqaba coastline in the east. The river Nile flowing in its heartland is the longest river in Africa.

How did Egypt get its name?

Egypt got its name from the Greek translation of one of the names of its ancient capital, Memphis.

The original site of Egypt’s ancient capital is located 24 kilometres (15 miles) southwest of modern-day Cairo. Now largely in ruins, Memphis used to be a bustling city founded, according to tradition, in the 3rd millennium BC by Menes, the legendary king who first united the two prehistoric kingdoms of Upper and Lower Egypt.

The name “Memphis” is a Greek version of the Egyptian Men-nefer, which is the name of a pyramid built in honour of the 6^th Dynasty King Pepi I. Another term for Memphis, Hut-ka-Ptah (“mansion of the ka of Ptah”; ka means soul and Ptah is the local god of Memphis), translates to Aigyptos in Greek, a name later applied to the country (“Egypt”) as a whole.

Why is Egypt considered the most advanced civilisation?

A settlement that would later become Egypt emerged from the fertile and life-giving Nile valley and delta about 5,000 years ago, and for 30 centuries it was the principal civilisation in the ancient Mediterranean. Ancient Egypt’s history, language, religion, and architecture continue to capture the imagination of archaeologists and historians, and have given rise to a specific field of study called “Egyptology”.

Egypt was the site of one of the world’s oldest urban and literate societies. Its wealth, prior to the creation of large empires in the 1st millennium BC, was the greatest of any known state in the ancient Middle East. Its riches were largely derived from its annual crops, thanks to the fertile land near the Nile. High productivity ensured that Egypt had large surpluses that they could store to guard against famine or crop failure.

Egypt cultivated flax, a plant with edible seeds, and it held a special place in Egyptian culture, society, and economy, according to Kassia St Clair’s The Golden Thread (2018, p. 43). Linen was imbued with magical meaning (p. 39). Egyptians used linen to wrap their dead—as can be seen in the excavated tombs of Egyptian mummies—and used it as currency in trade.

The majority of the population was involved in agriculture, and the centralised state mobilised this huge labour force–who otherwise would be idle during the months when the Nile River flooded–to build Egypt’s massive monuments. (Recent discoveries have shown that the pyramids’ builders were not slaves but paid workers.)

The most recognisable of these monuments was the 146-metre-high Great Pyramid of Giza, which remains standing to this day. It was the tallest human-built structure in the world for nearly 4,000 years, until the spire of Lincoln Cathedral in England overtook it in the early 14th century.

The symmetry and majesty of the ancient Egyptians’ stonework, inscribed with a pictorial writing system called hieroglyphs, mirrored their belief that their perfect fertile region was a gift from the gods, and therefore should be honoured with these equally perfect monuments.

Modern historians say ancient Egypt had 31 dynasties (with the rulers later called pharaohs, from per aa, “great house” or “great estate”), and these dynasties were divided into several periods or kingdoms. The legendary king Menes was said to be the first ruler of the first dynasty, but there had been rulers before him, lost now to history.

The pyramids of Giza were built during the age of the Old Kingdom (circa 2650–2150 BC). An ancient Egyptian medical text, the Edwin Smith Surgical Papyrus, is considered the oldest known surgical treatise; it was copied around 1600 BC from texts that may date back to the Old Kingdom–one of the many testaments to ancient Egypt’s advanced civilisation.

How did Egypt become a country?

Egypt in its modern incarnation as an Arab state had its roots in the Muslim conquests of the 7th century AD.

Let’s look at what happened before this time:

Memphis was captured by invading Assyrians in 671 BC, near the end of what historians call the Third Intermediate Period.

Egypt regained its independence under Psamtik I within two decades, and Assyria itself collapsed after the fall of Nineveh in 612 BC. But Egypt’s independence lasted only another century.

In 525 BC, the Persians took Memphis, putting Egypt under Persian rule for more than a hundred years. When Alexander the Great marched into Egypt with his army composed of Macedonians and Greeks in 332 BC, the Egyptians were on the verge of overthrowing the Persians and welcomed Alexander as a liberator. He took Egypt without a fight and used Memphis as his headquarters. A sizeable Greek population began to call Memphis home.

After Alexander’s death in 323 BC, Egypt came under the reign of the Ptolemaic Dynasty, which ruled the country for three centuries. They didn’t use Memphis as their base, however. Instead, they ruled from the capital city of Alexandria, the port city founded and designed (and named) by the Macedonian conqueror.

The last Ptolemaic ruler was Cleopatra. Cleopatra and Julius Caesar’s teenage son, Caesarion, nominally succeeded his mother to the throne as Ptolemy XV Caesar, but he was executed on Octavian’s orders within weeks. With him died the Ptolemaic Dynasty.

Octavian became Emperor Augustus (“revered”), and Egypt fell under the rule of the Roman Empire. Egypt remained under Roman and Byzantine control for nearly seven centuries. The Romans built a city-fortress they called Babylon on the east bank of the Nile River, the site of present-day Cairo; its walls still stand in Old Cairo.

Muslim forces began venturing out of the Arabian peninsula in the 7th century, bringing down the Sassanid Empire of Persia and capturing Byzantine territory. Babylon fell in April 641. Alexandria surrendered later that year, and the whole of Egypt fell under the rule of the Caliphate in 646.

Cairo (from Al-Qāhirah, “The Victorious”) was founded in 969 by the Fatimid Caliphate, which originated in what is now Tunisia and Algeria, and became the seat of the Fatimid Caliph in 973.

Egypt reached economic, political, and cultural heights under the Mamluk rulers (1250-1517), and was used as a base of expansion by the Ottomans (1517-1798).

Egypt subsequently fell under French and British occupation, until its independence in 1922. From a constitutional monarchy, it became a republic in 1953, after the 1952 revolution and decades of unrest.

What is Egypt’s capital?

Egypt’s capital city is Cairo, but since 2015 Egypt has been building a new capital in the desert east of Cairo, and President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi laid the first stone of the project.

Known until late 2025 as the New Administrative Capital (NAC), and now officially The New Capital, the city lies about 45 kilometres east of Cairo. The area covers 714 square kilometres (roughly the size of Singapore) and houses Egypt’s government and a new financial district. Government ministries began moving there in 2023. You can read more in our article on Egypt’s capital cities.

The Pyramids of Giza

Montaza Palace in modern-day Alexandria, Egypt

A view of modern-day Cairo, Egypt

What is Egypt’s language?

The official language of Egypt is Arabic. The grammar and syntax of Modern Standard Arabic has remained largely unchanged since the 7th century, but several vernacular dialects have developed through the centuries.

When is the best time to visit Egypt?

The best times to visit Egypt are the months of February to April and October to November, which avoid the scorching heat of the country’s desert climate. Our Ancient History & Culture of Egypt small group tour travels in the cooler part of the year.

Cairo’s average high temperature for February is 21 degrees Celsius, and 25 degrees for November. To compare, Cairo burns at 35 degrees (or more) around June to August.

Can you travel to Egypt without a visa?

Most visitors need a visa. Citizens of many countries, including Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States, are eligible for an electronic visa and can apply online through the official portal at www.visa2egypt.gov.eg before travelling; many can also get a visa on arrival. Rules and fees change, so check the current requirements before you book.

Travellers may be asked for the following documents on arrival:

• Passport valid for at least six months from arrival date
• e-Visa printout
• Travel itinerary
• Supporting letter e.g. letter from company or invitation letter for business/family visits
• Hotel bookings/details about places to visit if going as a tourist

It is always advisable to check with your local consulate prior to travel as visa rules may change.

What currency should I take to Egypt?

The currency is the Egyptian pound (LE), with 200 LE as the highest denomination. You can bring your own currency and just exchange it at currency exchange shops or banks in major towns.

What is Egypt known for?

Egypt is known for its long and fascinating history, and the great monuments and colossal statues left behind after the age of pharaohs.

The Giza pyramids include the Great Pyramid, the last surviving wonder of the ancient world, and are a must-visit site on your trip to Egypt. From here, make a beeline to the famed Sphinx.

Located on the banks of the Nile is Luxor, the modern name of the ancient Egyptian city of Thebes. Thebes’ ruins are centred around the Temple of Luxor, commissioned by King Amenhotep III of the late 18th dynasty and dedicated to the king of the gods, Amun.

Other Theban sites include the Valley of the Kings, a vast city of the dead where more than 60 tombs, many of them of pharaohs, have been discovered, the terraced Temple of Hatshepsut at Deir el-Bahari, and Karnak Temple, whose ancient name Ipet-isut means “the most sacred of places”.

Further south, beyond Aswan, the rock-cut temples of Abu Simbel were moved to higher ground in the 1960s to save them from the rising waters of Lake Nasser.

Step a bit forward in time to medieval Cairo at the Khan El-Khalili bazaar, which was established in the 14th century. Shop around for unique souvenirs and sit for a coffee at the oldest cafe in Cairo–the El-Fishawi, established in 1797. One of its known patrons was Egyptian writer Naguib Mahfouz, who won the 1988 Nobel Prize for Literature.

When did the Grand Egyptian Museum open?

The new museum on the Giza Plateau, the Grand Egyptian Museum, was announced in 1992 and initially scheduled to open in 2012 (it was delayed in part by the “Arab Spring” protests). After opening in stages, it was officially inaugurated in November 2025. Sitting on 120 acres with panoramic views of the pyramids of Giza, it is, as CNN Travel describes, “the largest museum dedicated to a single civilization”. The museum houses around 100,000 artefacts, many of them on display for the first time, giving the public a deeper appreciation of ancient Egyptian history. It is also the new home of King Tutankhamun’s treasures, shown together for the first time, including those previously housed in Cairo’s Egyptian Museum. The atrium features the 11-metre (36-foot) statue of Ramses II, greeting visitors as they enter the vast structure. It is one of the highlights of Egypt, and our Ancient History & Culture of Egypt tour spends a full day there.

The Sphinx and the pyramids in Egypt

Entrance to the Temple of Luxor, illuminated at night.

Valley of the Kings, Luxor, Egypt

The temple complex of Karnak in Egypt

Khan El Khalili

These are just a few of the places to explore in Egypt. If you want to learn more, join us on our small group tour of Egypt, Ancient History & Culture of Egypt: simply click through to see the full itinerary and sign up!

This small group tour focuses on the history and culture of ancient Egypt, designed especially for mature travellers. Other tour operators or tour companies may simply survey the archaeological sites such as the Luxor temple and the Giza pyramids. Our Egypt tour, however, also visits contemporary feats such as the Aswan High Dam and lets us witness the contemporary Egyptian experience, in places such as a carpet school near Saqqara and the souk in Luxor.

Visit Egypt with Odyssey Traveller on this escorted tour as we sail up the Nile from Luxor to Aswan on a Nile river cruise, travel by coach to Abu Simbel and sail north on a Lake Nasser cruise, learning more about the developments of Egyptian antiquity.

If you have any enquiries regarding this or any other tour, please call or send an email.