5-Day Cairo Stopover Holiday: Giza, Fayoum & Old Cairo
One hotel for four nights and three days out: the Giza Pyramids and the Grand Egyptian Museum, a long day in the Fayoum oasis, and Islamic and Coptic Cairo.
The short answer
5-Day Cairo Stopover Holiday: Giza, Fayoum & Old Cairo is a 5-day, 4-night trip to Cairo and Alexandria: 4 nights in Cairo. It includes an Egyptologist guide, entrance fees and transfers. Prices start at £591 per person, two sharing (Essential, October–April).
02Overview
A first look
You stay in a single Cairo hotel for four nights, so there is no repacking and no changing rooms. The days out begin with the Giza Plateau and the Grand Egyptian Museum on day 2, led by a licensed Egyptologist. Day 3 takes you to the Fayoum oasis, calling at Lake Qarun, the lakes and waterfalls of Wadi El Rayan and the old waterwheels of Fayoum city, with lunch on the way. Allow 10 hours; this is a long day. Day 4 is a guided day in Islamic and Coptic Cairo.
The Giza day includes a licensed Egyptologist, the entrance fees and the transport. For Fayoum you have a private vehicle, a driver and a private English-speaking guide. We arrange both airport transfers too. Hotel nights are on bed and breakfast. You pick the standard of hotel when you book, from budget to luxury; the sightseeing is the same whichever you choose.
What lingers
- 01The Giza Pyramids and the Great Sphinx with a licensed Egyptologist; the Giza visit takes 4 to 6 hours
- 02The Grand Egyptian Museum, with lunch included
- 03A long day in the Fayoum oasis, 10 hours in all: Lake Qarun, the Wadi El Rayan lakes and waterfalls, and lunch
- 04The old waterwheels of Fayoum city, with a private vehicle and a private guide
- 05A guided day through Islamic and Coptic Cairo
- 06Four nights in one Cairo hotel with breakfast, and both airport transfers
Choose your comfort level
Prices are per person in GBP, from 2 people sharing a double room, including accommodation at the properties listed or similar.
| Comfort level | Where you stay or similar | Per personfrom, Oct–Apr | Choose |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essentialfrom £5913★ hotels | £591May–Sep: from £534 | ||
| Comfortfrom £6354★ hotels | Cairo · 4 nightsJewel Sport City | £635May–Sep: from £612 | |
| Classicfrom £7105★ hotels | £710May–Sep: from £632 | ||
| Prestigefrom £8675★ deluxe hotels | £867May–Sep: from £906 | ||
| Luxuryfrom £1,6085★ luxury hotels | Cairo · 4 nightsSt. Regis Cairo | £1,608May–Sep: from £1,527 | |
| Signature Collectionfrom £2,165landmark hotels | Cairo · 4 nightsFour Seasons Hotel Cairo at Nile Plaza | £2,165May–Sep: from £1,985 |
Hotels on bed & breakfast. You'll stay in these properties, or a similar choice of the same quality. Choose your date in the booking panel for the exact price.
Day by day
Detailed itinerary
5 Days / 4 Nights · Cairo · Giza Plateau · Grand Egyptian Museum · Alexandria · Islamic Cairo · Coptic Cairo
- 1
A private representative meets you at Cairo Airport, helps with your bags and drives you to your hotel, around an hour away. It is your base for the next four nights. The remainder of the day is free to recover from the journey. No meals are included, so ask the hotel where to find dinner nearby.
- 2
Your driver and licensed Egyptologist pick you up at the hotel for a day of about eight hours. The Giza Plateau comes first, with the pyramids and the Great Sphinx, a visit of 4 to 6 hours. Lunch with a view follows, then the Grand Egyptian Museum in the afternoon.
Guide, entrance fees to the Giza outdoor sites and the museum, an air-conditioned car and bottled water are all included, and you are driven back to the hotel.
- 3
Expect a long day out, 10 hours in all. A private driver and a private English-speaking guide pick you up at the hotel and head for the Fayoum oasis, south-west of Cairo. The stops are Lake Qarun, the lakes and waterfalls of Wadi El Rayan, and the old waterwheels of Fayoum city, with lunch at a local restaurant.
The car is private and air-conditioned, and it brings you back to your Cairo hotel by evening. Shoes with grip help here, as the ground by the water can be uneven.
- 4
This guided day explores two of Cairo's old quarters: Islamic Cairo, with its medieval mosques and lanes, and Coptic Cairo, where the city's early Christian churches stand. As on the other sightseeing days, the guide, the entrance fees and the transport are included. Lunch is not, so you can eat wherever suits you along the way. A driver returns you to the hotel.
This is your last night in Cairo, kept on purpose as a buffer before the flight home.
- 5
Once you have had breakfast and checked out, your private driver takes you to Cairo Airport for your flight home. The transfer is planned at around 90 minutes, so let us know your flight time at booking and we will set the pickup. If your flight is later, the morning is yours.
Bundled in
- Private transfer
- Group Egyptologist
- Airport transfer
The fine print
What's included – and what is left out
Included
- Four nights in a Cairo hotel with breakfast
- Private airport arrival and departure transfers
- The Giza Plateau and Grand Egyptian Museum day with a licensed Egyptologist, entrance fees, an air-conditioned vehicle, bottled water and lunch
- The Fayoum oasis day out, 10 hours in all, with a private vehicle, driver, private English-speaking guide and lunch at a local restaurant
- The Islamic and Coptic Cairo day with a guide and transport
- Meet and assist at Cairo Airport
Not included
- International flights to and from Egypt
- Egyptian entry visa
- Tips for guides and drivers
- Dinners, lunch on day 4 and drinks other than those stated
- The inside of the Khufu pyramid and other optional extras
- Travel insurance and personal spending
Field notes
From our Egyptologists
- 01
Arrive at Giza early, before the midmorning coach wave reaches the plateau.
- 02
For mosque visits, carry a light scarf and cover shoulders and knees.
- 03
Ask your guide for the north side of the Sphinx viewing area for cleaner photos.
- 04
Khan al-Khalili is quieter in the late afternoon than after sunset.
- 05
In warmer months, book the museum visit after Giza, when shade and indoor galleries help.
Tailor it
Make it yours
You choose the standard of hotel when you book. Ask us about extra nights, adding Luxor, Aswan or a Nile cruise, or putting the days in a different order.
Your own specialist deals with each request before you book.
Suited to
Is this for you?
Yes, if
- Travellers who want a relaxed Cairo base with guided days out and no flights. Suits couples, friends and solo travellers who are happy with walking, early starts and one 10-hour day in the Fayoum oasis.
Maybe not, if
- Travellers who want a Nile cruise or the temples of Luxor and Aswan, who dislike long days in a vehicle, or who need step-free access to every site.
Honest assessment
The honest pluses and minuses, as our own team sees them after running this trip.
Highlights
- Four nights in one hotel, with no repacking
- Giza, the Grand Egyptian Museum, the Fayoum oasis and Old Cairo in five days
- No internal flights, so days stay simple
Things to Consider
- The Fayoum day is long, 10 hours
- No Luxor, Aswan or Nile cruise
- Uneven stone, steps and little shade at the major sites
Where it fits
A good fit for a Cairo-only break or a stopover. The Fayoum day is long, and neither a Nile cruise nor southern Egypt is included, so add days if those are on your list.
Worth knowing
How this compares
Many Cairo programmes shift you between hotels or add flights. This stopover keeps you in one hotel for four nights and adds a day in the Fayoum oasis by road. You choose the hotel standard; the sightseeing stays the same.
Compare
Similar tours to compare
On the ground
Your route
Snapshot
Good to know
- Travel style
- Guided Cairo stopover with days out
- Accommodation
- One Cairo hotel for four nights, standard chosen at booking
- Destinations
- Cairo · Giza Plateau · Grand Egyptian Museum · Alexandria · Islamic Cairo · Coptic Cairo
- Includes
- 4 nights in one Cairo hotel with breakfast · Private airport arrival and departure transfers · Giza and Grand Egyptian Museum day with an Egyptologist, entrance fees and lunch · Fayoum oasis day out, 10 hours, with a private car, private guide and lunch · Islamic and Coptic Cairo day with a guide and transport
- Best for
- Travellers who like to stay in one hotel · First-time visitors to Cairo · Stopovers before or after another trip
The morning of
Meeting point & timing
- Where
- Cairo International Airport (CAI), Arrivals HallMap
Before you go
What to pack & wear
What to bring
- Passport and any visa or travel documents
- Comfortable walking shoes with good grip
- Sun cream, SPF 30 or higher
- Sun hat and sunglasses
- Refillable water bottle
- Any regular medication
- Small day bag
- A scarf or shawl for visits to mosques and churches
What to wear
- Light, breathable clothing for sun and heat
- Closed shoes with grip, for the stone at Giza and the ground near the Fayoum waterfalls
- Clothing that covers shoulders and knees at mosques and churches
- A hat and sunglasses
- A light jacket for chilly mornings in winter
Children & families
Children are welcome. Every child has a seat in the vehicle, so transport and guiding are charged at the adult rate at any age. The Fayoum day is 10 hours, so consider how your child copes with long drives. Entrance tickets are free for children under 6 and full price from 6. Hotel prices depend on the child's age and the room used, so we give you the exact figure once you tell us the age at booking.
Accessibility
Who can join this
This holiday involves a good deal of walking and some steps, including the uneven stone on the Giza Plateau, with little shade. The Fayoum day lasts 10 hours, with long spells in the vehicle and some walking over uneven ground by the lakes and waterfalls. Vehicles are private and air-conditioned, but we cannot promise wheelchair access at every site. Tell us what you need when you book and we will say honestly which parts suit you.
– Responsible travel
How we travel here
The holiday uses one hotel for all four nights and private road transfers, and vehicle types vary, so we make no claim about carbon savings. Sightseeing is led by local guides and arranged through local suppliers in Cairo and the Fayoum, so much of what you spend stays in the places you visit. We ask guests to bring a refillable water bottle, to take their rubbish home from the Fayoum lakes, and to dress modestly in mosques and churches.
Licensed Egyptologist guides
State-licensed, and people we have worked with for years
Fair wages on the ground
Drivers + guides paid above market
Site preservation
We follow the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities' site rules: marked paths, no touching reliefs
Local teams, real help
Our own offices in Cairo, Luxor, Aswan, Hurghada, Marsa Alam and Sharm El Sheikh
If plans change
Cancellation and refunds
If you cancel, your refund depends on how soon you let us know and on the kind of holiday. See our current cancellation and refund terms
Asked & answered
Frequent questions
01How many nights do we stay, and where?
Four nights in the same Cairo hotel, on bed and breakfast. You never change hotels, and there are no internal flights.02How long is the Fayoum day?
It runs to 10 hours, so it is a long day. A private car, driver and private English-speaking guide take you to Lake Qarun, the Wadi El Rayan lakes and waterfalls and the waterwheels of Fayoum city, with lunch at a local restaurant.03How much time is spent at Giza?
The Giza visit takes 4 to 6 hours. Day 2 lasts about eight hours in total, because it also takes in lunch with a view and the Grand Egyptian Museum.04Are a guide, entrance fees and transport included?
A guide and transport come with every sightseeing day. On the Giza and museum day that means a licensed Egyptologist, the entrance fees and an air-conditioned vehicle. The Fayoum day has a private car, driver and private English-speaking guide. If you want the entrance arrangements for a particular day confirmed, just ask.05Which hotel will we stay in?
You choose a standard when you book, from budget to luxury, and we confirm the hotel for your dates. The itinerary and sightseeing are identical at every standard.06Does the holiday include Luxor, Aswan or a Nile cruise?
No. It stays in Cairo and the Fayoum oasis. A longer holiday can add Luxor, Aswan or a Nile cruise; ask and we will talk you through the options.07Will I catch my flight home?
There are no internal flights on this holiday, so nothing in it can make you miss a connection, and we keep your last night in Cairo as a safety window. Your international flights are booked separately, though, so if you add an internal flight elsewhere, a delay could cost you the connection. If you have to fly to Cairo and connect that same day, pick a late-evening or night departure. Do take travel insurance that covers missed connections.08What is not included?
International flights, the Egypt visa, tips for guides and drivers, dinners, lunch on day 4 and drinks other than those stated, the inside of the Khufu pyramid, travel insurance and personal spending.09When is the best time to go?
October to April is cooler and best for walking around the sites and the Fayoum lakes. Summers are hot, so days begin early.
Last updated Product ID: TOU-CAI-842436
At a glance
- Length
- 5 days · 4 nights
- Starts
- Daily
- Route
- Cairo → Fayoum → Cairo
- Includes
- Egyptologist guide, entrance fees, transfers