Egypt – Tyler's Travel Tales

Setting the scene

Visiting Egypt without stopping by Alexandria is like visiting England & not drinking copious amounts of tea! Unfortunately I was only able to spend 1 day in Alexandria & didn’t get to see everything I wanted. It really needed a couple of days at minimum to do it any justice.

Modern day Alexandria

Located to the North of Egypt on the Mediterranean Sea, Alexandria was founded in 331BC by Alexander the Great. It is an incredible fusion of historical influences, with Greco Roman, Arab, French & British.

In Modern day Alexandria, along with the most stunning views of the Mediterranean Sea, there are some amazing Museums, Amphitheatres, Statues, Monuments, Forts, Religious Buildings & of course the Bibliotheca Alexandria.

It is much quieter than Cairo & subsequently not as fast paced. The roads are a lot safer & the traffic lights actually stand for something there. I took the train, which was around 3 hours from Cairo. They have new trains called Talgo, which are really modern & you see some beautiful views of the countryside. They are more expensive than regular trains, usually I prefer the cheaper more authentic experience, but on this occasion I strongly recommend Talgo. I took a different train coming home & it was a proper experience, with a lot of unique characters on the train (that is as diplomatic as I can be) 😂

Now, my standard of Arabic is somewhere between getting a left hook from Shaq & one of those brutal deep paper cuts you get. However, I am pretty sure I was told to ‘sling my hook’ a couple of times, the street vendors here aren’t as up for a haggle as they were in Cairo, just be wary.

Tourist sites ☀️

Alexandria has such a rich & diverse history, so there is plenty to do! I decided I wanted to walk everywhere & mapped out a really good route, however I was woefully underprepared. A lot of the sites close early & the distance between sites is a lot bigger than it looks on the map. It sounds like an obvious thing to say, but I would say to scope out everywhere you want to visit & check on their opening times etc to make sure you don’t miss out.

You can click through for a guide & photos on each of the sites. The top places I was lucky enough to visit were The Ancient Roman Amphitheatre, Citadel of Qaitby, The Greco Roman Museum . I did visit the Alexandria Museum & St Marks Coptic Orthodox Cathedral however they weren’t big, so I didn’t take many photos & therefor have not set up a page for them.

As touched upon, poor planning on my part meant I missed out on the Bibliotheca (Library), the Catacombs & Pompey’s Pillar. The library was closed for a holiday, which is a shame as that is the main reason I went to Alexandria, as I am a massive book nerd.

Keeping Safe 🥷🏼

Alexandria felt very safe, as it is much less populous, it is not as overwhelming as Cairo. When you get towards the Sea & Citadel of Qaitby, it becomes a bit more full on. It is like Blackpool on steroids! If you are going to take a boat ride, I would say to go with an established company with good reviews. A lot of people will offer you boat rides, but don’t hop on a random paddle boat because of the implication (if you know the reference, you know!). Generally, just stay aware of your surroundings.

Getting around 🚕

If you are tight for time, I would recommend taking Taxi’s around as this will save you a lot of time. Meaning, you get to spend longer at the tourist sites 🤠

You can walk between some places, for example from the train station to Roman Amphitheatre, then to Greco Roman Museum & then Alexandria Museum is a reasonably short walk, even if you are carrying some extra Shawarma weight. From there to the Corniche or Citadel of Qaitby, you’re best taking a Taxi as it isn’t nearby.

Bonus tip ✅

There is a ‘Fish Museum’ located at the Citadel of Qaitby & it looks like you are going to see some really cool fish from the Mediterranean Sea. I was thinking big ass sting rays, sharks, turtles, the full shebang. Alas, I was fooled, do not go into this Fish museum, they have no fish, only plastic toy fish 😂

I am completely new to blogging & only set this up to help people out on their journeys. If you have any questions about the article or feedback, please do leave a comment & I will get back to you. You can also subscribe for free to get a notification when my next post goes live. Thanks for taking the time to read through. Over the coming weeks I will be covering one or two Spanish places & then moving onto some Moroccan spots!

Setting the scene

Luxor is one of the most fascinating areas there is to visit. It contains the ancient city of Thebes, which during the New Kingdom was the Capital of Upper Egypt & is one of the oldest known cities in the world with inhabitants. Here you will visit everything from Ancient Temples, to the Valley of the Kings, to the Valley of the Queens & various Museums.

You will also be treated to the most spectacular views of the Nile & Sun rise/set across the Sahara desert (photo at top of page). If you are a keen daredevil & don’t mind a 4am wake up, you can take a sunrise hot air balloon ride. If I had the option to return to Luxor, or the Great Pyramids, I would choose Luxor. The only analogy I can think of to explain Luxor is, if you have seen the Night at the Museum movie, that is what Luxor compares to, the history comes alive & you feel like you are standing there as it was thousands of years ago. Luxor will always hold a very special place in my heart!

Must visit sites

Luxor is split by the River Nile into the East Bank & the West Bank. There is so much to do & see here, that I originally planned to stay for 2 days, but this quickly turned into extending my stay to 4 days. On the East Bank you absolutely must visit Karnak Temple, Luxor Temple & Luxor Museum. On the West Bank you cannot miss the Valley of the Kings, Mortuary temple of Hatshepsut, Collossi of Memnon & Medinet Habu.

There are a multitude of other sites that I would recommend if you are not pushed for time. These include Valley of the Queens & Ramesseum Temple. The Museum of Mummification is worth checking out as it is right beside Luxor Temple, however you are in & out in 30 minutes as it is very small.

I have pulled together a Page for each of these Tourist sites, with tips on getting there, when to visit, should you take a tour, costs, shocking attempts at selfies & information on keeping safe. You can access each page by clicking the name.

Where to stay, eat & drink?

I haven’t done a separate page for Food, as my hotels food was awesome (my overindulgence cost the life of a deck chair). To see the devastation of the incident click here

I only ventured out to one bar as it was near to my hotel. It was an awesome bar & I would highly recommend it. If you want to see the most unofficial DJ booth click here

I am completely new to blogging & only set this up to help people out on their journeys. If you have any questions about the article or feedback, please do leave a comment & I will get back to you. You can also subscribe for free to get a notification when my next post goes live. Next week I will be posting about Alexandria, the Mediterranean Marvel. Thanks for taking the time to read through ❤️