• Wadi el-Natrun

    Off the beaten track

    A depression of salt lakes on the desert road, and four monasteries still lived in.

    The Delta and the north coastWadi el-Natrun

    BudgetHistoric venue
  • Al-Muizz Street

    The spine of Fatimid Cairo, from Bab al-Futuh to Bab Zuweila, and best walked.

    CairoGamaliya

    BudgetOpen late
  • Katkhuda Sabil-Kuttab

    Our favourite

    A public fountain of 1744 at the fork of al-Muizz, the Quran school above it.

    CairoAl-Muizz, Gamaliya

    BudgetUNESCO
  • The Friday Market

    Cairo's flea market: whatever the city threw out, sold again on a Friday morning.

    CairoSayyida Aisha

    BudgetBest in the morning
  • The Nile river bus

    Public transport on the river: crossing Cairo by water, for the price of a bus fare.

    CairoCorniche el-Nil

    BudgetNile view
  • The Ramadan lanterns

    The fanous market, a few weeks a year: cut tin, coloured glass, and a street that stays up.

    CairoSayyida Zeinab

    BudgetHandmade
  • Luxor after dark

    The temple stands floodlit gold at the roadside, and people sit out on the Corniche until late.

    LuxorCorniche

    BudgetNile view
  • Aswan souk

    Our favourite

    One long covered street a block back from the river: hibiscus, Nubian basketry, spices.

    AswanSouk

    BudgetHandmade
  • Aswan's corniche after dark

    Black water, moored feluccas, and headlights sliding along the parapet.

    AswanCorniche

    BudgetNile view
  • Crystal Mountain

    A calcite outcrop beside the Farafra road: a rock arch, and crystal splinters all over the ground.

    The oases and the Western DesertFarafra road

    BudgetBest in the morning
  • Al-Qasr

    A medieval mud-brick town: covered lanes, dated door lintels, a minaret and a grain mill.

    The oases and the Western DesertDakhla

    BudgetHistoric venue
  • Cleopatra's Spring

    A stone pool fed by a spring, lit after dark, on the Aghurmi road out of Siwa.

    Marsa Matrouh and SiwaSiwa

    BudgetOpen late
  • Fatnas Island

    A spit of palms in Siwa's salt lake, where people sit down for the sunset.

    Marsa Matrouh and SiwaSiwa

    BudgetSunset
  • A monumental sand sculpture, a bearded face standing out against the sky.

    Sand City

    Monumental sand sculptures, signed by carvers from all over the world.

    HurghadaNear Senzo Mall, Hurghada

    BudgetFamily-friendly
  • Cones of spices in large metal basins.

    El Dahar — the old souk

    Unmissable

    The quarter from before the hotels: spices, copper, leather, shisha — and bargaining as the common language.

    HurghadaEl Dahar, Hurghada

    BudgetWhere locals go
  • A pierced lantern, a teapot and a glass of mint tea on a brass tray, among wooden café chairs.

    Zahret el-Bustan

    Our favourite

    The ahwa of students, poets and insomniacs, in an alley behind Talaat Harb.

    CairoDowntown

    BudgetWhere locals go
  • A wooden king and pawns on a chessboard, a game under way.

    El Horreya

    A vast room with bare walls where tea and beer have been served at the same tables for decades.

    CairoBab el-Louk, Downtown

    BudgetWhere locals go
  • An alley lined with low stools and small tables

    The ahwas of El Borsa

    Two pedestrian lanes entirely covered in chairs: Cairo's largest open-air café.

    CairoDowntown

    BudgetWhere locals go
  • A cappuccino in a thick cup on a wooden board, with biscuits, coffee beans and cinnamon.

    Simonds

    The counter where Zamalek has taken its cappuccino standing up since 1898.

    CairoZamalek

    BudgetBest in the morning
  • Scoops of strawberry ice cream in white dishes, surrounded by fresh strawberries.

    Mandarine Koueider

    Buffalo-milk ice cream and oriental pastries, on a Zamalek pavement since 1928.

    CairoZamalek

    BudgetFamily-friendly
  • The cafés of Street 9

    Maadi's shopping street, its terraces and its pavement ahwas.

    CairoMaadi

    BudgetWhere locals go
  • A large tray of baklava being dusted with ground pistachio at the counter.

    El Abd

    The patisserie where you eat standing on the pavement, and where the queue is part of the pleasure.

    CairoDowntown

    BudgetWhere locals go
  • The ahwas of Sayeda Zeinab

    The popular cafés around the mosque, where Cairo gathers after evening prayer.

    CairoSayeda Zeinab

    BudgetWhere locals go
  • Rows of puff-pastry cream horns.

    Tseppas

    A patisserie of Greek origin, in Cairo since the beginning of the last century.

    CairoSeveral addresses across Cairo

    BudgetFamily-friendly