© Lonely Planet Publications

327

WESTERN DESERT
Western Desert
Cairo can keep its pyramids, and Luxor can have its temples – this is the desert of deserts,
an unfathomable natural wonder unlike any other. Egypt’s Western Desert stretches from
the Nile and the Mediterranean to the Sudanese and Libyan borders, rolling far into Africa
oblivious to any lines drawn on the map. The Great Sand Sea starts here, a formidable khaki
ocean undulating with some of the largest sand dunes on earth.

This desolate region is punctuated with five major oases boasting freshwater sources
and supporting islands of verdant greenery. The valley floors lie speckled with crumbling
Roman forts, once towering protectively over ancient caravan routes as they wound their
way across North Africa. Flourishing palm plantations engulf medieval towns, and it’s here
out west that you will find the eerie rock formations of the White Desert, a dreamscape of
eroded, snow-white pinnacles. Nearby, you can explore the charred mountains of the Black
Desert, and bathe in innumerable crystal-clear springs as they gush from the valley floor.
Away from the popular desert circuit road lies happily isolated Siwa, a tranquil paradise of
springs and ancient ruins thickly carpeted with date palms.

Not many travellers peel themselves away from the popular Nile Valley routes to make
the dusty trip out west. It’s a shame. Paved roads now connect the oases, and while travel
in this region takes time, the Western Desert offers some of the most jaw-dropping scenery
and photogenic journeys in all Egypt.

HIGHLIGHTS

„ Sleep under the blazing desert stars amid the

unreal chalk-rock formations of the White Desert Siwa Oasis
(p347)
„ Soak in the tranquil, old-world ambience and
unique culture of breathtaking Siwa Oasis (p355)
Great Sand Sea
„ Dip into one of the numerous cool and hot natural
springs (see boxed text, p341) that lie peppered White
Desert
around the oases
Al-Qasr
„ Wonder at the crumbling ruins of the medieval
mud-brick fortified towns that protected oasis
dwellers from marauding desert tribes in Al-Qasr
(p342)
„ Scramble over the ruins of Roman forts and the
Al-Kharga Oasis
oldest Christian cemetery in the world around
Al-Kharga Oasis (p331)
„ Take the ultimate desert adventure, a multiday
safari into the foreboding Great Sand Sea (p367)
and beyond
 ὄὄὄ
ὄὄὄὄὄ
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WESTERN DESERT 328 W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • H i s t o r y lonelyplanet.com

WESTERN DESERT 0
0
150 km
100 miles

ὄὄὄὄ
ὄὄ
ὄὄὄὄὄὄ
ὄὄ
To Marsa
Matruh (155km) Wadi 11
Natrun CAIRO

19

Qattara 10
Qara
Oasis Depression
2

Medinat
Siwa Al-Fayoum al-Fayoum

ὄὄὄ
ὄὄὄὄὄ
ὄ ὄ
Oasis Oasis
Beni Suef
Siwa Az-Zeitun

Areg
Oasis 20
(Paved Ro
ad in Po
or Co
nditio EASTERN
n)
Bawiti (ARABIAN)
DESERT

ὄὄὄ
ὄ
ὄὄὄὄὄ
ὄ
Bahariya
Oasis Minya

10 Mallawi
Black
Desert Deir Mawas

Ni
h

le
WESTERN Ri

a
Ain Della White ve

rd
(LIBYAN) r
Desert
Quss

A
DESERT

ὄὄὄ ὄὄὄ
ὄὄ ὄ
Abu

bu
Said Asyut
Qasr al-Farafra

M
uh
Farafra
Oasis
ar
Gr
e a
t Abu Minqar iq 25
S
a
n
d
S

ὄὄὄ ὄ
ea

10 Dakhla
Oasis
Abu Tartur
Plateau
LIBYA

Al-Qasr
Mut Al-Kharga

10 Bulaq
Gilf Kebir Al-Kharga
Oasis To Luxor
Jaja
(150km)

Baris

Gebel
Uweinat

History The ancient Egyptians understood the na-

As with the Sahara and other deserts that ture of the desert, which they saw as being
stretch across northern Africa, the Western synonymous with death and exile. Seth, the
Desert was once a savannah that supported god of chaos who killed his brother Osiris, was
all manner of wildlife. Giraffes, lions and el- said to rule here. Despite their fears, it is be-
ephants roamed here in Palaeolithic times, lieved the ancient Egyptians did maintain links
when the landscape is thought to have looked with the oases throughout the Pharaonic era
much like the African Sahel. All that you see although so far, with the exception of Dakhla
in the desert – the huge tracts of sand, the vast Oasis, there is scant evidence of this before
gravel plains, the fossil beds and limestone the Third Intermediate Period. But with the
rocks – were once the happy hunting grounds accession of a Libyan dynasty (22nd dynasty,
that supported nomadic tribes. Gradual cli- 945–715 BC), focus moved to the west and the
mate change led to desertification and turned oases, with caravan routes to the Nile Valley.
this vast area into the arid expanse seen today. Many monuments in Al-Kharga and Bahariya
Only depressions in the desert floor have date from this period.
enough water to support wildlife, agriculture The oases enjoyed a period of great pros-
and human settlement. perity during Roman times, when new wells
lonelyplanet.com W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • C l i m a t e 329

WESTERN DESERT
and improved irrigation led to a vast increase Long-Range Desert Safaris
in the production of wheat and grapes for ex- Going on safari in the Western Desert can be
port to Rome. Prosperity was also encouraged one of the most rewarding experiences Egypt
by provincial army units, usually consisting of has to offer. It can also be one of the most
non-Romans serving under Roman officers, frustrating. Each area has its local guides and
which protected the oases and trade routes. experts, though many of them operate on a
Garrisoned fortresses can still be seen in the shoestring and have neither the expertise nor
desert around Al-Kharga and Bahariya, and the equipment to pull off a long-range safari.
Roman-era temples and tombs lie scattered This won’t stop guides from trying to persuade
across all the oases. you they can do it. Journeys to the remote Gilf
When the Romans withdrew from Egypt, Kebir (in Egypt’s southwest corner) and the
the trade routes became unsafe and were a Great Sand Sea need organisation, reliable
target for attacking nomadic tribes. Trade equipment and plenty of experience. There
suffered, the oases went into gradual decline, are risks, and people do die in the desert each
and the population of settlements shrank. By year. Military permits, which are available lo-
medieval times, raids by nomads were severe cally for short desert treks, must be procured
enough to bring Mamluk garrisons to the in Cairo for longer trips.
oases. The fortified villages built to defend The following safari operators have solid
the population can still be seen in Dakhla international reputations, are among the more
(Al-Qasr, Balat) and Siwa (Shali). reliable in Egypt, and will treat the desert with
But even the gradual cessation of attacks the respect it deserves. Expect prices to be
and the growing power of the pashas in Cairo considerably higher than those of the many
during the 19th century could not revive the smaller, local outfits.
prosperity of ancient times. Although the Al-Badawiya (%02-575 8076; www.badawiya.com)
oases remained important bulwarks against The three Ali brothers are Bedouin from Farafra, who
any threat to Egypt’s western flank, the dif- have built up a significant business operating out of their
ficulty of travel through the desert meant Al-Badawiya Hotel and an office in downtown Cairo. With
they remained isolated agricultural commu- considerable experience in the Western Desert, they can
nities until the arrival of motor vehicles and mount tailored camel or jeep safaris from three to 28 days.
paved roads. They have tents, cooking equipment and bedding.
The biggest change to the oases after the Dabuka Expeditions (6085 987 9896; www.dabuka
departure of the Romans occurred in 1958, .de) Dabuka is a German-based company that specialises
when President Nasser created the New in North African desert travel, not only through Egypt but
Valley to relieve population pressure along also though Libya, Sudan, Tunisia and Jordan. In Egypt it
the Nile. Roads were laid between the previ- arranges multiday safaris into the Great Sand Sea, Gebel
ously isolated oases and an administration Oweynat and Gilf Kebir, as well as organising camel
was established. The New Valley Governorate expeditions and running off-road driving courses.
is the largest in Egypt and one of the least Egypt Off Road (%010 147 5462; www.egyptoff
densely populated: although conditions were road.com) Egypt Off Road is one of the most highly
right for people to migrate to the New Valley, recommended desert tour operators in Egypt. Many
there has never been enough work to attract expat desert rats swear by owner, Peter Gaballa, who
significant numbers. taught them how to drive in the desert. Peter is an
excellent car mechanic and speaks Arabic, French, English
Climate and German fluently. He organises driving lessons in the
The ideal time to visit the Western Desert is desert and trips to the Western Desert oases, as well as
in late autumn or early spring. During the more serious two-week expeditions to the Gilf Kebir and
summer season, temperatures can soar as the Great Sand Sea.
high as 52°C and although there is little hu- Hisham Nessim (%012 780 7999; www.raid4x4egypt
midity, the heat can be withering. Winter is .com) Rally driver and owner of the Aquasun hotels in
very pleasant with average daytime highs of Farafra and Sinai, Hisham Nessim has been driving in the
20°C to 25°C, although it can get very cold desert for many years. With satellite phones, GPS and
(down to 0°C at times) at night. Winds, par- six 4WDs specially rigged for long-range desert travel,
ticularly the hot, dry wind of April known as he is prepared to go to all corners of Egypt. He offers five
the khamsin, can present great problems for programmes (including self-drive) of seven to 14 days, or
desert travellers. will tailor-make tours.
WESTERN DESERT 330 W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • A l - K h a r g a O a s i s lonelyplanet.com

the oasis has improved somewhat since then,

OASES FOR BEGINNERS and with a smattering of fascinating ancient
So what exactly is an oasis? An isolated sites it’s a worthwhile stopover.
pocket of fertile tract surrounded by arid Lying in a 220km-long and 40km-wide de-
desert and supported by a natural water pression, Al-Kharga Oasis was at the cross-
source – that’s what. Water is available in roads of vital desert trade routes, including
these strips of vegetation since the oasis the famous Darb al-Arba’een (Forty Days Rd;
surface lies closer to the water table here see boxed text, p333). Al-Kharga’s influential
than in surrounding areas, allowing natural location brought it great prosperity, and the
springs to form. Each of the oases found in arrival of the Romans improved things as
the Western Desert lies in a depression, the wells were dug, crops cultivated and fortresses
deepest of which is the Qattara depression built to protect caravan routes from attack-
at 134m below sea level. ing desert nomads. Even as late as the 1890s
Oases were vital to the old trade routes, British forces were using lookout towers here
as cross-desert caravans needed to stop to to safeguard the ‘back door’ into Egypt. Today,
replenish valuable food and water supplies. attempts at modernising Wadi el-Gedid (the
Political control of an oasis often led to great New Valley) with environmentally question-
prosperity from the lucrative commerce that able land-reclamation efforts and intensive
passed through these well-trodden paths. agriculture pose a bigger threat to the area
than pillaging clans ever did.

Khalifa Expedition (%012 321 5445; www.khalifa Al-Kharga

exp.com) Khaled and Rose-Maria Khalifa have been The busy city of Al-Kharga is the largest
running camel and jeep tours throughout the Western town in the Western Desert and also the
Desert from their base in Bahariya Oasis for well over a poster-child of the government’s efforts to
decade. Rose-Maria is a qualified speech therapist and modernise the oases. Unfortunately, visitors
foot masseuse, which perhaps explains why they also offer are unlikely to see the town’s drab housing
meditation tours for people more interested in communing blocks and wide, bare highways as much of
with nature than looking at antiquities. an improvement.
Pan Arab Tours (%02-418 4409/419; www.panarab Still, the town makes a good base to explore
tours.com) With more than 30 years’ experience, Pan some of the remarkable, gently crumbling sights
Arab Tours has developed expertise in taking visitors into found around this oasis valley floor. There’s a
Egypt’s deserts. Used by archaeologists as well as tourists, fine museum to check out, and a walk through
the company has a number of specially equipped vehicles the scruffy streets of the old souq (market) is
and offers six itineraries throughout the country, from two a worthwhile distraction. To visit most of the
to eight days. Graeco-Roman sights, however, you’ll need to
Zarzora Expedition (%02-761 8105; www.zarzora arrange your own transport (see p333).
.com) Captained by the very experienced Ahmed Al- Although there is no record of trouble in
Mestekawi, a retired colonel who used to conduct the oasis, at the time of our visit foreigners
military desert patrols, Zarzora does expeditions to Siwa, were encouraged to take police escorts around
Gilf Kebir and the Great Sand Sea. Ahmed has in-depth town and to nearby sights.
knowledge of the area and moonlights as a lecturer on the
desert’s environment and history. ORIENTATION
Al-Kharga is fairly spread out, with the bus
AL-KHARGA OASIS station in the southeast near the souq and
%092 / pop 74,940 crumbling old centre, and most of the ho-
As the closest of the oases to the Nile Valley, tels a fair hike away. If you’re coming from
Al-Kharga used to have the unenviable role Dakhla, you may want to be let off early at
as a place of banishment for mischievous Nile Sharia al-Adel.
Valley citizens. Its remote location, punishing
summer heat and destructive winds mean the INFORMATION
oasis was synonymous with misery and exile. Emergency
It may seem strange then that its chief town, Ambulance (%123)
Al-Kharga, was chosen as the capital of the Tourist police (Map p332; %792 1367; Sharia Gamal
New Valley Governorate in the 1950s. Life in Abdel Nasser)
 ὄ
lonelyplanet.com W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • A l - K h a r g a O a s i s 331

WESTERN DESERT
Internet Access
Governorate Information Support Centre
AL-KHARGA OASIS

ὄὄ
0 15 km
(Map p332; %792 6973; Governorate Bldg, Sharia 0 10 miles
Al-Munira
Gamal Abdel Nasser; h8am-3pm & 6pm-midnight To Asyut
(205km)
Sat-Thu)
Monastery of
Internet café (Map p332; %793 0722; off Midan Al-Kashef

Sho’ala; per hr E£10; h8am-2pm & 4-11pm) Necropolis of

Al-Bagawat Al-Kharga
Airport
Temple of

ὄὄ
Temple of Hibis
Medical Services An-Nadura
Al-Kharga
General hospital (Map p332; %792 0777; Sharia
Basateen) Train
Station

Money
Pioneers Hotel (p334) has an ATM. Hamadalla
To Mut
Banque du Caire (Map p332; off Sharia Gamal Abdel

ὄὄ
Sahara City
(Dakhla Oasis;
147km) Qasr al-Ghueita
Nasser) Very slow service, but there is an ATM.
Banque Misr (Map p332; Dakhla rd) Qasr az-Zayyan
Al-Haytan
Spring
Bulaq
Post & Telephone
Private telephone shops are sprinkled all over
Al-Kharga.

ὄὄ
Main post office (Map p332; Sharia Abdel Moniem Riad;
h8am-2.30pm Sat-Thu)
Telephone centrale (Map p332; Sharia al-Gomhuriyya;

Darb
h24hr)

Tourist Information al-Arba' een (Forty Days Rd)

ὄὄ
To Luxor
New Valley Tourist Office (Map p332; %792 1206; (225km)

[email protected]; Midan Nasser; h8.30am-3pm

Sat-Thu) Tourism Manager Ibrahim Hassan and his crew
are very helpful. Several members of staff help arrange
private transport to local sights. Jaja

ὄὄ
SIGHTS
Al-Kharga Museum of Antiquities
This two-storey museum (Map p332; Sharia Gamal
Abdel Nasser; adult/student E£25/15; h8am-5pm) is
housed in a cavernous, well-lit building made Baris
al-Gedida
from local bricks and designed to resemble Baris
the architecture of nearby Bagawat. Inside is a
Darb al-Arba'

small but interesting selection of archaeologi-

cal finds from around Al-Kharga and Dakhla
Oases. There’s a particularly good selection
een

of prehistoric objects, flints, ostrich eggs and

tools tracing the prehistory of the oases in Qasr
ad-Dush
both English and Arabic. There’s also a smat-
tering of objects from Pharaonic, Greek and
Roman antiquities. One fascinating find is a The upper floor contains objects from
collection of wooden Roman panels (early the Coptic, Islamic and Ottoman eras, with
versions of post-it notes) detailing farmer’s some fascinating jewellery, books, coins
accounts, marriages and contracts of the time. and textiles.
Also look for the exquisite false-door stele
of 6th-dynasty governor Khent-ka (c 2700 Temple of Hibis
BC) with the earliest known reference to The town of Hebet (‘the Plough’, now cor-
Dakhla Oasis. rupted into Hibis) was the capital of the oasis
WESTERN DESERT 332 W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • A l - K h a r g a O a s i s lonelyplanet.com

in antiquity, but all that remains today is pick-ups (50pt) heading to Al-Munira pass
the well-preserved limestone Temple of Hibis this way.
(Map p331; adult/student E£25/15; h8am-5pm Oct-Apr,
8am-6pm May-Sep). Once sitting on the edge of Temple of An-Nadura
a sacred lake, the temple was dedicated to Located on a hill off the main road at the
the Theban god triad of Amun-Re, Mut and north end of town, the Temple of An-Nadura
Khons. Construction of the temple began (Map p331; admission free) has strategic views of
during the 25th dynasty, though the deco- the area and once doubled as a fortified look-
rations and a colonnade were added over the out. It was built during the reign of Roman
next 300 years. emperor Antoninus Pius (AD 138–161) to
An avenue of sphinxes leads to a series of gate- protect the oasis, and inside you will find
ways, the colonnade of Nectanebo and then to the remains of a sandstone temple with
a court, a hypostyle hall and an inner sanctuary. hieroglyphic inscriptions. It later housed a
One of the reliefs in the hypostyle hall shows Coptic church and was used as a fortress by
the god Seth battling with the evil serpent the Ottomans.
Apophis – an archetype of the St George and The site is badly ruined, but the superb vis-
the dragon motif. Among the graffiti left by tas are ideal for sunset adulation. The ruins lie
19th-century European travellers is a lengthy perched on a rise off to the right of the main
inscription from 1818 by Frederic Cailliaud, road before the Temple of Hibis.
who claimed to have been the first European
to see the temple. Necropolis of Al-Bagawat
The temple is in the process of been reno- It may not look like much from afar, but this
vated and restored to its original location after Necropolis (Map p331; adult/student E£25/15; h8am-
a bungled attempt to move it elsewhere to 5pm Oct-Apr, 8am-6pm May-Sep) is one of the earli-
protect it from rising groundwater. It’s 2km est surviving and best-preserved Christian
north of town just to the left of the main road; cemeteries in the world. About 1km north

0 400 m
AL-KHARGA 0 0.2 miles

17 14
To Pioneers Hotel & Palm
Aref

Restaurant (400m); Temple of

Hibis (1km); Temple of An-Nadura
Midan (2km); Necropolis of Al-Bagawat
Nasser (3km); Airport (5km); Asyut (240km)
7
12
9
INFORMATION SLEEPING
10 15
Banque du Caire.......................1 B1 Dar al-Bayda Hotel................11 C3
Al-K
enee Banque Misr............................2 A2 El-Radwan Hotel.....................12 B1
sa
1 General Hospital.......................3 B3 Hamadalla Hotel....................13 B2
Governorate Information Kharga Oasis Hotel.................14 B1
er
ss

Support Centre.................... 4 B2 Mumtaza Rest House.............15 B1

Na

ya
riy

Internet Café...........................5 C3 Waha Hotel.........................(see 16)

del

hu

Main Post Office......................6 B2

om
l Ab

New Valley Tourist Office.........7 B1 EATING

Al-G
Gama

Telephone Centrale..................8 B2 Al-Ahram...............................16 B3

Tourist Police...........................9 B1 Chicken Restaurant..............(see 18)
22
Chicken Restaurant.................17 B1
4 SIGHTS & ACTIVITIES Pizza Ibn al-Balad...................18 C3
Raid Al-Kharga Museum of Ta'amiyya Takeaway..............19 B3
m
nie
13 Mo Antiquities..........................10 B1 Wembe..................................20 B3
l
2 8 de
Ab Midan
Abdel TRANSPORT
Moniem Riad
Port Said

6 Buses (Upper Egypt Bus Co) &

Service Taxis......................21 C3
To Mut
(Dakhla Oasis; Egypt Air............................... 22 B2
189km)
Al-Ade
l

Midan 19
Midan Bas
as-Saha Basateen atee
3 n
16
20 Midan
Sho'ala
21
To Train Station (5km); 18
Qasr al-Ghueita (18km); Souq
Qasr az-Zayyan (25km); Old 11
Baris (90km); Luxor (310km) Town 5
Book your stay at lonelyplanet.com/hotels W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • A l - K h a r g a O a s i s 333

WESTERN DESERT
THE WAY OF DUSTY DEATH
Al-Kharga Oasis sits atop what was once the only major African north–south trade route through
Egypt’s Western Desert: the notorious Darb al-Arba’een, or Forty Days Rd. A 1721km track linking
Fasher in Sudan’s Darfur Province with Asyut in the Nile Valley, this was one of Africa’s great
caravan trails, bringing the riches of Sudan – gold, ivory, skins, ostrich feathers and especially
slaves – north to the Nile Valley and beyond to the Mediterranean. It’s thought to date back
to the Old Kingdom, and the richness of the merchandise transported along this bleak track
was such that protecting it was a priority. The Romans invested heavily here, building a series
of fortresses – such as Qasr ad-Dush (p336), the Monastery of Al-Kashef (below) and Qasr al-
Ghueita (p335) – to tax the caravans and try to foil the frequent raids by desert tribesmen and,
on occasion, Nubians.
Despite the dangers, Darb al-Arba’een flourished until well into the Islamic era, by which time
it was Egypt’s main source of slaves. Untold numbers of tragic human cargo died of starvation
and thirst on the journey north. According to 19th-century European travellers, slavers travelled in
the intense summer heat, preferring to expose their merchandise to dehydration on what British
geographer GW Murray (author of the 1967 Dare Me to the Desert) called ‘the way of dusty death’,
rather than risk the possibility of bronchitis and pneumonia from the cold desert winter.
Despite repeated attempts by the British to suppress the trade, slaves were brought north
until Darfur became part of Sudan at the beginning of the 20th century. The Darb al-Arba’een
withered and today its route has been all but lost.

of the Temple of Hibis, it’s built on the site al-Arba’een. The magnificent mud-brick re-
of an earlier Egyptian necropolis, with most mains date back to the early Christian era,
of the 263 mud-brick tombs appearing to although the site was occupied as early as
date from the 4th to the 6th centuries AD. the Middle Kingdom. Once five storeys high,
While many of the domed Coptic tombs much of it has collapsed but you can see the
are fairly plain, a few have vivid murals of tops of the arched corridors that crisscrossed
biblical scenes inside and some have ornate the building. To get here, walk or drive on
façades. The Chapel of Peace has figures of the the left-hand track from the Necropolis of
Apostles on the squinches of the domes, just Al-Bagawat for about 1km.
visible through Greek graffiti. The Chapel of
the Exodus, one of the oldest tombs, has the TOURS
best-preserved paintings, including the Old Al-Kharga has few outfits offering desert
Testament story of Moses leading the children trips, although there has been continual talk
of Israel out of Egypt, which is visible through of agencies setting up shop in the near future
some 9th-century graffiti. Another large fam- (inshallah). Some of the staff at the tourist
ily tomb (No 25) has a mural of Abraham office moonlight as impromptu guides and
sacrificing Isaac, and the smaller Chapel of the can help organise transport for the day, but
Grapes (Anaeed al-Ainab) is named after the unfortunately there is a dearth of overnight
images of grapevines that cover the walls. A trips on offer. For more information on longer
guardian will be anxious to guide you to some desert trips, see p329.
of the more colourful tombs, he should be
tipped (around E£5). SLEEPING
Hotels
Monastery of Al-Kashef You’d better recalibrate your hotel expecta-
Dominating the cliffs to the north of Al- tions for Al-Kharga before you arrive as, with
Bagawat is the ruined Monastery of Al- a couple of exceptions, the choices are a little
Kashef (Deir al-Kashef; Map p331), named sad. On the up-side, many places are nearly
after Mustafa al-Kashef, a tax collector, and empty year-round, so getting a room is never
strategically placed to overlook what was a problem!
one of the most important crossroads of the Waha Hotel (Map p332; %792 0393; Sharia an-Nabawi;
Western Desert – the point where the Darb s/d without bathroom E£12/14, s/d E£20/30) This is the
al-Ghabari from Dakhla crossed the Darb cheapest digs in a town low on options. This
WESTERN DESERT 334 W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • A l - K h a r g a O a s i s Book your stay at lonelyplanet.com/hotels

four-storey hotel has basic, dingy rooms and proffers the best-value nap in town. A favourite
whiffy shared toilets – splurge on a private bath- stopping-off point for desert adventurers, it
room. Bonus: you can clamber up on the roof sports generous and comfortable midpriced
for sweeping views of the surrounding valley. rooms, friendly, courteous staff and has a lush,
Mumtaza Rest House (Map p332; %792 1206; fax palm-filled garden and terrace. By the time
792 1205; Sharia Gamal Abdel Nasser; dm E£20; a) Fresh you read this, construction of some lovely
from a round of renovations, the carpeted traditional mud-brick bungalows in the palm
chalets of this government rest house are a groves should have been completed – these will
pretty good deal by Al-Kharga standards. definitely be worth a look.
It’s often being used by government officials, Hamadalla Sahara City (Map p331; %762 0240;
so it’s best to call ahead to check availability Kharga–Dush rd; s/d E£85/110; a) Hamadalla Sahara
(reservations are made through the tourist City shimmers like a gussied-up, garish pink-
office, p331). and-yellow mirage in the open desert, 15km
Hamadalla Hotel (Map p332; %792 0638; fax 792 south of Al-Kharga. Set around an urban-
5017; off Sharia Abdel Moniem Riad; s/d E£40/55, with air-con like hotel complex, it has domed bungalows
E£65/85; a) A hotel popular with overland tour clustered in small groups, each sporting neat,
groups, Hamadalla has rooms that are clean agreeable rooms with private bathrooms. It’s
but dark, gloomy and garnished with ruffled a pain to get to without your own wheels, but
furniture. There are a number of different the views of the desert rising over nearby Qasr
room configurations, so ask to see a few. It al-Ghueita are damned impressive.
sometimes sells Stella beer.
Dar al-Bayda Hotel (Map p332; %792 9393; Midan Camping
Sho’ala; s/d without bathroom E£40/60, s/d E£60/90, with Kharga Oasis Hotel (Map p332; %792 4940; Midan
bathroom & air-con E£75/120; a) A shabby place just Nasser; per person E£13) The palm grove out the
to the left off Midan Sho’ala, where the buses back of this hotel is your best bet in town for
and service taxis are based, so it’s handy for sleeping under your own canvas. You can
late arrivals or if you’re toting a lot of luggage. use the hotel’s toilet and shower facilities, but
Most rooms have fans but can be noisy and, be warned that the garden breeds aberrantly
frankly, are overpriced. large swarms of mosquitoes at night.
El-Radwan Hotel (Map p332; %792 1716, 012 747
2087; off Sharia Gamal Abdel Nasser; s/d E£50/80; a) EATING
There’s a good welcome (though not in If your palate needs a break from the staple
English) at the Radwan, which is beside the Egyptian trinity of chicken, fuul (fava bean
Town Hall and well located for the Museum of paste) and ta’amiyya (mashed, deep-fried fava
Antiquities and the tourist office. The rooms beans), you’d be best to head for one of the
are dark and worn, but reasonably kept and better hotels. Otherwise, there’s a smattering
off the main road. of basic eateries around Midan Sho’ala, Sharia
Pioneers Hotel (off Map p332; %792 9751-3; www al-Adel and near Midan Basateen. There’s a
.solymar.com; Sharia Gamal Abdel Nasser; s/d half board from cheap chicken restaurant a few doors down
€66/84; ais) An apt name: these guys from the bus station, and another at the
pioneered the concept of luxury resorts in northern end of town.
the Western Desert, though few hotels have Pizza Ibn al-Balad (Map p332; Midan Sho’ala; pizzas
followed their lead. While the salmon-pink, E£6-20) Strike us down if this place doesn’t serve
low-rise construction is reminiscent of a some of the best darned fiteer (Egyptian pizza/
hollowed-out sponge cake, the hotel does offer pancake) in the oases. Deservedly, it’s one of
a level of comfort that was until recently un- the most popular places to eat. Choose from
imaginable in the oases: a swimming pool, fit- cheese, veggie and tuna or beef toppings.
ness area, outdoor Bedouin-style café, ATM, Al-Ahram (Map p332; Waha Hotel, Sharia an-Nabawi;
billiards and a children’s playground all con- meals E£8-20) A small, friendly place serving roast
nected by ridiculously lush grass. It is the only chicken and kofta (spiced minced meat grilled
place in Al-Kharga where you can count on on a skewer) accompanied by modest salads
getting alcohol. and vegetable dishes.
Kharga Oasis Hotel (Map p332; %792 4940; Midan Wembe (Map p332; Midan Basateen; meals E£8-24) This
Nasser; s/d E£70/95; a) Another modern homage to busy local eatery gets the thumbs up from
concrete, the 1960s Kharga Oasis nonetheless people who are qualified to give such ratings,
lonelyplanet.com W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • A l - K h a r g a O a s i s 335

WESTERN DESERT
and serves the usual Egyptian comestibles: set you back E£350. Cairo (six to seven hours)
grilled meats, salads, rice and vegetables. costs E£600 for the car (maximum seven peo-
Palm Restaurant (off Map p332; %792 9751-3; fax 792 ple), but expect a long, hot, cramped ride.
7983; Pioneers Hotel, Sharia Gamal Abdel Nasser; buffet dinner
€10) If there is a group staying here, dinner Train
tends to be a buffet; otherwise the restaurant Al-Kharga’s train station (Map p331), on the
offers an à la carte selection of Continental road south to Baris, reflects government am-
dishes. None of the cooking here is particu- bitions for the place, with impressive Islamic
larly inspiring, but this is one of the best din- architecture featuring a domed ceiling and
ing experiences to be had in Al-Kharga. marble interior. Alas the service doesn’t live
up to the dream: there is one weekly departure,
GETTING THERE & AWAY on Friday at 7.30am (E£11/10.25 for 2nd/3rd
Air class), sometimes. The ticket office reckons
The airport is 5km north of town. While on eight to 10 hours to cover the 477km. Be
EgyptAir (Map p332; %790 1334; Sharia Gamal Abdel prepared for at least 12 hours. To get to the
Nasser) has been talking for years of restarting station, take any micro or bus heading for
flights to Al-Kharga, the Petroleum Surface Baris or a taxi (E£5).
Company has beaten it to it. The latter has
tentatively scheduled Sunday flights on a 15- GETTING AROUND
seat plane, leaving Cairo at 8am and returning Microbuses (50pt) run along the main streets
from Al-Kharga at 4pm (€50 one-way, 1½ of Al-Kharga, especially Sharia Gamal Abdel
hours). Contact the tourist office (p331) for Nasser. Outside the town, covered pick-up
schedules and bookings. trucks go to the villages along the road south to
Baris. Expect to pay around E£1.50 to E£2.
Bus
Upper Egypt Bus Co (Map p332; %792 0838; Midan South to Baris
Sho’ala) operates buses to Cairo (E£51, eight to A good asphalt road heads south of Al-
10 hours) at 7am, 9.30pm and 11pm. The 7am Kharga to Baris, the southernmost town in
bus goes via Asyut and takes the Nile Valley the Western Desert. As you follow the road
agricultural road, lengthening the trip but there are a number of easily accessible sights,
allowing stops in Minya or Beni Suef. all of which are shown on the Al-Kharga Oasis
There are several buses bound for Asyut map (p331).
(E£9 to E£10, three to four hours) leaving at
6am, 7am, 11am, 2pm and 9pm. There are QASR AL-GHUEITA & QASR AZ-ZAYYAN
8.30am and 11.30am services that originate It is easy to see why the Romans chose this
in Dakhla. site, some 18km south of Al-Kharga, for
Local buses to Baris (E£3, one hour) leave Qasr al-Ghueita (adult/student E£20/10; h8am-5pm
at 7am and 2pm. Oct-Apr, 8am-6pm May-Sep). The imposing Roman
At the time of writing, regular bus serv- mud-brick fortress has survived millennia
ices to Luxor were suspended due to lack of and still dominates the road to Baris. The
demand. To get to Luxor you could either massive outer walls enclose a 25th-dynasty
catch a bus to Asyut and change there, or sandstone temple, dedicated to the Theban
hire a private taxi (see below). triad Amun, Mut and Khons. In later centu-
ries, the fortress served as the perimeter for a
Service Taxi village, with some houses surviving along the
The service taxi station (Map p332; Midan Sho’ala) outer wall. Within the hypostyle hall, a series
is next to the bus station. Most of the ve- of reliefs show Hapy, the potbellied Nile god,
hicles are microbuses but there are also a holding symbols of the nomes (provinces) of
few Peugeot station wagons. Destinations Upper Egypt.
include Asyut (E£10, three to four hours) The fortress’ name translates as Fortress of
and Dakhla (E£10, three hours). the Small Garden, which seems an unlikely
name for a place surrounded by desert. But
Taxi in antiquity, Qasr al-Ghueita was the centre
Thanks to the new road, special taxis can get of a fertile agricultural community renowned
you to Luxor (via Jaja) in three hours, but will for its grapes: tomb inscriptions in Thebes
WESTERN DESERT 336 W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • D a k h l a O a s i s lonelyplanet.com

mention the quality of the Ghueita grapes. Getting There & Away
An asphalt road leads 2km to the temple from There are buses between Al-Kharga and Baris
the main road. (E£3, two daily), leaving from Al-Kharga at
About 7km further south are the remains 7am and 2pm, and from Baris at 6am and
of Qasr az-Zayyan (adult/student E£20/10; h8am-5pm noon. The frequent microbuses and pick-up
Oct-Apr, 8am-6pm May-Sep), another fortress enclos- trucks are a more convenient option between
ing a temple. Unlike many of the sights in this Al-Kharga and Baris, and cost about E£3. To
oasis, the fort is still situated beside a small but cover the 15km between Qasr ad-Dush and
thriving village. Baris, negotiate a special ride with a covered
If you don’t have a vehicle you can get pick-up, usually available for E£20 to E£30,
to the temples by taking a bus heading depending on the waiting time.
for Baris (see p335) or a covered pick-up
going to Bulaq (E£1). There is an asphalt DAKHLA OASIS
road linking the two temples, but 7km is a %092 / pop 79,810
long hike if you’re on foot – be sure to take With more than a dozen fertile hamlets sprin-
plenty of water. kled along the Western Desert circuit road,
Dakhla lives up to most visitors’ romantic ex-
BARIS pectations of oasis life. Lush palm groves and
Baris, 90km south of Al-Kharga, was once orchards support traditional villages, where
one of the most important trading centres imposing, ancient mud-brick forts still stand
along the Darb al-Arba’een, but there is lit- guard over the townships and allude to their
tle left to remind you of that. Other than a less tranquil past.
few kiosks selling fuul and ta’amiyya, there The region has been inhabited since pre-
is little of note apart from the mud-brick historic times, with fossilised bones hinting at
houses of Baris al-Gedida, about 2km north human habitation dating back 150,000 years.
of the original town. Hassan Fathy, Egypt’s In Neolithic times, Dakhla was the site of a vast
most influential modern architect, designed lake and rock paintings show that elephants,
the houses using traditional methods and zebra and ostriches wandered its shores. As
materials and intended Baris al-Gedida to the area dried up, inhabitants migrated east to
be a model for other new settlements. Work become the earliest settlers of the Nile Valley.
stopped at the outbreak of the Six Day War In Pharaonic times, Dakhla retained several
of 1967 and only two houses and some pub- settlements and was a fertile land produc-
lic spaces have ever been completed. ing wine, fruit and grains. The Romans, and
About 13km to the southeast of Baris later Christians, left their mark by building
is Qasr ad-Dush (adult/student E£20/10; h8am-5pm over older settlements, and today’s remaining
Oct-Apr, 8am-6pm May-Sep), an imposing Roman medieval-era fortified towns attest to the more
temple-fortress completed around AD 177 violent times of Bedouin and Arab raids.
on the site of the ancient town of Kysis.
Dush was a border town strategically placed Mut
at the intersection of five desert tracks and At the centre of the oasis lies the town of Mut,
one of the southern gateways to Egypt. It settled since Pharaonic times (Mut was the
may also have been used to guard the Darb god Amun’s consort). Although now a mod-
al-Dush, an east–west track to the Esna and ern Egyptian town, it has the most facilities
Edfu temples in the Nile Valley. As a result in the area and makes the most convenient
it was solidly built and heavily garrisoned, base for travellers. Mut’s wide boulevards
with four or five more storeys lying under- and the proximity of the palm groves all help
ground. A 1st-century sandstone temple to give it some charm, while the remains of
abutting the fortress was dedicated to Isis the ruined old town show how it must have
and Serapis. The gold decorations that once once looked.
covered parts of the temple and earned it re-
nown have long gone, but there is still some INFORMATION
decoration on the inner stone walls. Emergency
Baris is not an ideal place to stay the Ambulance (%123)
night and you’re better off staying at or near Tourist police (off Map p338; %782 1687; Sharia 10th
Al-Kharga. of Ramadan)
ὄὄ
ὄὄ
lonelyplanet.com W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • D a k h l a O a s i s 337

WESTERN DESERT
DAKHLA OASIS 0
0
10 km
5 miles

ὄὄὄὄὄ
ὄὄ
To Qasr al-Farafra Dunes
(Farafra Oasis; Bir
250km) al-Gebel
Al-Qasr

Gebel Amhadah
Edmonstone

ὄὄὄ
ὄὄ
Deir al-Haggar

Ain
Dunes

al-Asil
Al-Rashda
Balat
Al-Gedida Qila
Bir al-Gedid al-Dabba
Qalamun Bedouin Bashendi
Camp Teneida
El-Hindaw
Al-Dohous Sheikh
Waley To
Dunes

Mut Inn
Mut Talata Nasser's Al-Kharga
Hotel (Al-Kharga
Mut Oasis;
130km)
Prehistoric
Rock Carvings

Internet Access about the oases. For urgent issues he can be contacted at
Internet connections in Mut have been known home on%782 0782.
to approach courier-pigeon speed. Abu
Mohamed Restaurant (p339) and El-Forsan SIGHTS & ACTIVITIES
and Mebarez Hotels (see p338) all have an Ethnographic Museum
internet terminal or two, though prices are Dakhla’s wonderful museum (Map p338; Sharia
much higher (E£10 to E£15) than at the as-Salam; admission E£3; h8am-2pm Sat-Thu), attached
internet cafés. to Dar al-Wafdeen Government Hotel, is
Abo Ali Internet (Map p338; Sharia as-Sawra al-Khadra; per only opened on request: ask at the tourist of-
hr E£1; h8am-late) fice or at the Cultural Palace (Map p338; %782 1311;
Mido Net (Map p338; Sharia Basateen; per hr E£1; Sharia al-Wadi), where the museum’s manager,
h8am-late) Ibrahim Kamel, can be found. The museum
is laid out as a traditional home, with dif-
Medical Services ferent areas for men, women and visitors.
General hospital (Map p338; %782 1555; off Sharia Displays of clothing, baskets, jewellery and
10th of Ramadan) other domestic items give an insight into
oasis life.
Money
Banque Misr (Map p338; Sharia al-Wadi; h8.30am- Old Town of Mut
2pm Sun-Thu) Exchanges cash and does cash advances For much of its existence, the villagers of old
on Visa and MasterCard, but does not change travellers Mut lived with the threat of raiding Bedouin.
cheques. Most houses here have no outside windows,
thus protecting against intruders and keeping
Post & Telephone out the heat and wind of the desert. Often
Branch post office (Map p338; Sharia as-Salam; ignored by passing travellers, the labyrinth of
h8am-2pm Sat-Thu) mud-brick houses and lanes that wind up the
Main post office (Map p338; Midan al-Gamaa; h8am- slopes of the hill is definitely worth exploring.
2pm Sat-Thu) Today, you’ll still see a few outlying houses
Telephone centrale (Map p338; Sharia as-Salam; being inhabited or used to store livestock,
h24hr) and there are plenty of low-slung, shaded cor-
ridors through which to meander. From the
Tourist Information top of the hill, at the citadel (the original town
Tourist office (Map p338; %782 1685 6; Sharia as- centre; Map p338), there are great views of
Sawra al-Khadra; h8am-3pm & some evenings) Friendly the new town and the desert cliffs and dunes
tourist-office director Omar Ahmad is a mine of knowledge that surround it.
WESTERN DESERT 338 W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • D a k h l a O a s i s Book your stay at lonelyplanet.com/hotels

0 400 m
MUT 0 0.2 miles
13
15
To Bedouin Oasis Village (1km); To El-Hindaw
17 Mut Inn; Mut Talata Springs (3km); (6km)
Bedouin Camp & El Dohous Village (3km);
Bir al-Gedid (8km); Bir al-Gebel (25km);
Al-Qasr (29km); Qasr al-Farafra
(Farafra Oasis; 300km)
As

Tamir
-S 8
aw

El-Hindaw
16 ra To Tourist Police (400m);
al- Nasser’s Hotel (5km);
Kh 24 Balat (35km); Bashendi
18 a (42km); Al-Kharga
dr 25
a (Al-Kharga Oasis; 177km)
INFORMATION
1 27
Abo Ali Internet............................1 B2 Police 4
amadan 28
Banque Misr.................................2 B2 19 29 Station 1 0 t h of R
Branch Post Office.......................3 C3 21 Midan
General Hospital..........................4 D2 al-Tahrir
Main Post Office..........................5 B4 22 Egypt Air
Mido Net.....................................6 B3
Telephone Centrale......................7 C3
2
Tourist Office...............................8 B1

SIGHTS & ACTIVITIES

Al-Wadi

Cultural Palace.............................9 B3
Ethnographic Museum...............10 C3
New
SLEEPING Mut
Anwar Hotel..............................11 C3 10
El Forsan Hotel...........................12 B4
am
El-Negoom Hotel........................13 B1 7 Sal
Gardens Hotel............................14 C3 As-
Mebarez Hotel...........................15 A1 3
9 11
EATING Basateen
6
Sharia al-Genayen

Abu Mohamed Restaurant..........16 B1

Ahmed Hamdy's Restaurant.......17 A1 14
Anwar Restaurant....................(see 11) DRINKING
Coshary......................................18 B1 Garden Sheesha & Tea Cafés..................22 B2
Dawia Restaurant.......................19 B2 Tourist Village
Qalamuni Cafeteria....................20 B4 (unfinished) TRANSPORT
Said Shihad................................21 B2 Bus Station.................................23 B4
Old
Town Herz Bus Company.....................24 B1
12 Microbuses & Service Taxis.........25 B1
Microbuses to Farafra and
Old
Citadel Al-Kharga Oases....................26 B4
Old Pick-Ups to Al-Qasr....................27 B2
Citadel Pick-Ups to Balat & Bashendi.....28 D2
Mosque 30 23 Upper Egypt Bus Co Booking
26 Office.....................................29 B2
a

Midan
iy y

al-Gamaa Upper Egypt Bus Co Ticket

ur

h y
m 5 20 Jul Office.....................................30 B4
- Go h of
To Airport Al 2 6t
(10km)

TOURS the desert around Dakhla. You’re looking at

Dakhla has its share of keen, would-be desert about E£60 for a two-hour ride or E£150 to
guides (although they are not as aggressive E£200 per person per (bumpy) day. If you
as in Bahariya). Most hotels and restaurants want to go further afield, check with the tour-
will also offer to take you on a trek around ist office to confirm whether the person tak-
the area. A typical day trip includes visits to ing you has the necessary permits – Dakhla
Qalamun (p342) and Baris al-Gedida (p336), a is one of the closest oases to the Gilf Kebir,
drive through the dunes, visits to a spring and but permits to go there are only issued from
a tour of Al-Qasr (p342), for up to E£100 per Cairo. For more information about desert
person. Alternatively, aspiring taxi drivers can safaris, see p329.
drive you to outlying sights for around E£150
to E£200 per day. SLEEPING
An overnight trip around the same area, Hotels
with Bedouin music, will cost about E£400 Mut has a decent selection of hotels, although
per person, including food. The owners of most crowd the budget end of the spectrum.
the Bedouin Camp (right) are camel experts Recently, there’s been a refreshing trend for
and can arrange long and short trips into hotels designed with Bedouin-influenced
Book your stay at lonelyplanet.com/hotels W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • D a k h l a O a s i s 339

WESTERN DESERT
flair, using natural materials, mud bricks sure a state of disrepair is their inevitable
and palm logs. fate. A murky-looking pool has been added
El-Forsan Hotel (Map p338; %782 1343; zakelmasry@ to the terrace.
yahoo.com; Sharia al-Wadi; s/d without bathroom E£16.50/25, El-Negoom Hotel (Map p338; %782 0014; fax 782
s/d E£25/45, s/d bungalow E£35/60; i) While the main 3084; north of Sharia as-Sawra al-Khadra; s/d E£40/50, with
building is a typically stuffy concrete confabu- air-con E£45/75; a) On a quiet street behind the
lation, the newer, domed mud-brick bungalows tourist office and near a selection of restau-
out back are a much more interesting option. rants, this extra-friendly hotel has a span of
With attached rooms surrounding a small, lush trim little abodes with bathrooms, some even
garden, there’s also a covered rotunda restau- with air-con and TV. This is one of the most
rant (meals E£15 to E£20) boasting top views. dependable options in town.
The friendly staff is keen to arrange local tours, Mut Inn (Map p337; %792 7982/6; www.solymar
and breakfast is available (E£5 to E£8). .com; Mut Talata Springs; s/d half board €45/70; as)
Gardens Hotel (Map p338; %782 1577; Sharia al- This three-star inn out of town at Mut Talata
Genayen; s/d E£19/24, with shower E£18/23) Low prices Springs sports six chalets, six lodge rooms
and a good location help keep the rooms oc- with fans, a five-room villa and a restaurant.
cupied at this ramshackle but popular budget The décor is kitsch and the rooms overpriced,
hotel. There’s a great bamboo café on the roof but this is a comfortable hotel with a pleasant,
here, though the shared bathrooms can be deep pool fed by warm spring water.
pretty dire and single women may feel uncom- Mebarez Hotel (Map p338; %/fax 782 1524; Sharia as-
fortable with the stares from resident Egyptian Sawra al-Khadra; s/d E£65/105, with air-con E£95/115; ai)
men. Breakfast is extra and the hotel rents Safari groups and others doing an oases tour
bicycles for E£10 per hour. like to stay here, where the rooms offer a rea-
Bedouin Camp & El-Dohous Village (Map p337; sonable level of comfort and cleanliness, even
%785 0480; www.dakhlabedouins.com; Al-Dohous; huts s/d though the staff can be surly. The top-floor
E£30/50, village s/d E£80/120) Al-Hag Abdel Hameed rooms have great vistas over the oasis – ask
comes from a family of Bedouins who set- for one facing away from the road.
tled in the area a generation ago. While some Bedouin Oasis Village (off Map p338; % 782
of the original reed huts remain in Bedouin 0070, 012 669 4893; s/d E£70/150, full board E£100/200)
Camp, nearby El-Dohous Village has grown This relative newcomer, on a rise above the
into a Disneyland of structures made from main street into town, has well-designed,
gently curving mud-brick and natural ma- traditional-style buildings replete with a
terials. There’s a huge variety of rooms, from deluge of domes, arches and vaults. Nice
bell-shaped cave rooms to regular two-storey arty touches in the humble-but-cosy rooms
abodes, all carefully decorated with crafted and in the communal areas really spruce the
pillows and local crafts. The hilltop restau- place up, and the restaurant (dinner around
rant has outstanding views (meals E£25) and E£20) has splendid views. In the oases’ race
there are plenty of cushioned chill-out areas to ‘Beduinify’ everything (it’s the flavour of
strewn about the place. The nearby spring the month), these guys have trumped the
looks tempting but may stain clothes. competition with the first ‘Bedouin spa’ (ie
Anwar Hotel (Map p338; %782 0070; Sharia Basateen; a natural spring pool).
s/d/tr with fan E£20/40/60, with air-con E£30/60/80; ai)
The friendly and sociable Mr Anwar runs Camping
this family establishment with gusto and of- You should be able to camp near the dunes
fers relatively clean rooms above the popular west of Mut or in Al-Qasr, on a star-lit pla-
restaurant of the same name. Noise from the teau just north of town, but check first with
nearby mosque can be an issue. the tourist office in Mut.
Nasser’s Hotel (Map p337; %782 2727, 010 682 6467;
Sheikh Waley; s/d E£30/50; s) While his brothers EATING & DRINKING
Abu Mohamed and Ahmed Hamdy run two of There is no fancy dining in Mut, but there
Dakhla’s better restaurants, Nasser has given is some decent, fresh food (mostly of the
the hotel business a shot. His hotel has grown chicken/kebab/rice variety) to be had. For an
into a warren of gritty rooms with shared atmospheric tea or sheesha (water pipe), pop
bathrooms, and although brand-new rooms into one of the rowdy and popular outdoor
were being built when we last visited, we’re sheesha and tea cafés near Midan al-Tahrir.
WESTERN DESERT 340 W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • D a k h l a O a s i s lonelyplanet.com

Anwar Restaurant (Map p338; %782 0070; Sharia Herz Bus Company (Map p338; %782 4914) re-
Basateen; meals E£2-15) A café-restaurant that’s cently started running a daily bus to Cairo
popular with locals, below the hotel of the (through Asyut) at 8pm (E£45) from the
same name. Anwar serves up ta’amiyya and microbus and service taxi station.
fuul, in addition to the more substantial
chicken-and-rice combo. Service Taxi & Microbus
Ahmed Hamdy’s Restaurant (Map p338; %782 0767; Microbuses leave when full from the old part
Sharia as-Sawra al-Khadra; meals E£2-15) On the main of Mut, near the mosque, and cost E£10 to
road into town is Ahmed Hamdy’s popular Al-Kharga, E£20 to either Farafra or Asyut
place serving delicious chicken, kebabs, veg- and around E£60 to Cairo.
etables and a few other small dishes inside or
on the terrace. The freshly squeezed lime juice GETTING AROUND
is excellent and you can request beer (E£12) Abu Mohamed Restaurant (p339) and Gardens
and sheesha. Hotel (p338) rent out bicycles for E£10
Abu Mohamed Restaurant (Map p338; %782 per hour.
1431; Sharia as-Sawra al-Khadra; meals E£3-25; i) Abu Most places in Dakhla are linked by
Mohamed, brother of Ahmed Hamdy, touts, crowded pick-ups, Peugeots or microbuses,
cooks and serves in this simple roadside but working out where they all go requires
restaurant. His set meal includes good veg- a degree in astrophysics. Those heading to
etables with kebab or pigeon (order ahead) Al-Qasr (E£1) depart from Sharia as-Sawra
and ends with homemade basbousa (a sticky al-Khadra. You can take pick-ups to Balat
dessert). Cold beer, internet and bike hire and Bashendi from in front of the hospital
are available. for E£1. Most others depart from the service
Dawia Restaurant (Map p338; Sharia as-Sawra al- taxi station on Sharia Tamir.
Khadra; meals E£5-12) The wall-to-wall, sparkling It may prove easier on occasion to bargain
white tiles signal one of the cleanest places for a ‘special’ pick-up.
to eat in town. As well as the usual Egyptian
victuals, Dawia throws caution to the wind: Around Mut
it fries up burgers and even experiments with The following sights are all marked on the
several pasta dishes. Dakhla Oasis map (p337).
Said Shihad (Map p338; Sharia as-Sawra al-Khadra; meals
E£6-15) Owner Said is onto a good thing here: HOT SPRINGS
grilling up a meat-centric feast nightly to a There are several hot sulphur pools around
dedicated following of hungry locals. The lamb the town of Mut, but the easiest to reach is
shish kebab is the thing to go for – yum! Mut Talata (Mut Three). It’s at the site of a
If you need to scratch a ta’amiyya or fuul small hotel (p338), so unless you are stay-
itch, the following will oblige: ing there, you have to dip in the exposed
Coshary (Map p338; Sharia as-Sawra al-Khadra; meals E£2) 1.5m-deep pool outside the hotel’s walls.
Qalamuni Cafeteria (Map p338; Midan al-Gamaa; The pool’s funny-coloured water is both
dishes E£2-10) hot and actually relaxing, though it may
stain clothes.
GETTING THERE & AWAY Bir al-Gedid (New Spring), a short dis-
Bus tance from the Bedouin Camp (p338), is
Upper Egypt Bus Co (Map p338; %782 4366; Midan the latest artesian well to be dug and is
al-Gamaa) runs buses at 7pm and 8.30pm to also rust-coloured.
Cairo (E£56, eight to 10 hours) via Al-Kharga Set among breathtaking desert scenery,
Oasis (E£10, one to two hours) and Asyut Bir al-Gebel (Mountain Spring; admission E£10) has
(E£20, four to five hours). Other services to been turned into a day-trip destination
Asyut leave at 6am, 8.30am and 10pm. You where blaring music and hundreds of school
can also go to Cairo (E£56) via Farafra Oasis children easily overwhelm any ambience it
(E£20, three to four hours) and Bahariya might have had. Sitting on the edge of a small
Oasis (E£35, seven hours) at 6am and 7pm. palm-shrouded oasis, surrounded by rolling
There’s a convenient booking office (Map p338; dunes and towering desert cliffs, this still
Midan al-Tahrir), where the bus also stops to pick has to be one of the most beautiful dipping-
up passengers. spots in the oases. It’s best to come in the
lonelyplanet.com W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • D a k h l a O a s i s 341

WESTERN DESERT
THESE ARE A FEW OF OUR FAVOURITE SPRINGS…
There’s nothing better after a hard day’s rambling along the dusty roads of the desert than a
soak or swim in one of the many springs that dot the Western Desert. The following are but a
few of our best-loved water holes:
Cleopatra’s Bath (p360) No, the queen in question probably did not bathe here, but since this is one of the most
famous, stunning and clear bubbling springs in the Western Deserts, it’s fine by us.
Bir Wahed (p360) This hot, Jacuzzi-like spring sits among the dunes on the edge of the Great Sand Sea. Amazing
sunsets guaranteed.
Ain Gomma (p354) A small, gushing, clear and cool isolated spring in a minioasis 45km south of Bawiti, sur-
rounded on all sides by the vast desert expanse.
Bir al-Gebel (opposite) Surrounded by breathtaking scenery, this spring can get packed with rowdy picnickers
during the day. It’s ideal in the evening when the crowds die down.

Spring Etiquette
When bathing in the public springs of the oases, it’s important to be mindful of generally ac-
cepted spring etiquette:
„ If locals are bathing, wait until they are finished before entering the water.
„ During the day, women should wear a long baggy T-shirt over their bathing suit, although in
some places even this may not be appropriate.
„ To locals, a woman bathing alone is about as provocative as running through a town’s main
drag in your panties. Don’t do it.

evening when it’s quieter and the stars blaze camels, giraffes and tribal markings. Long
across the night sky. If you arrive during visited by desert travellers, some of whom
spring peak hour, there’s a serene natural left their names carved in the rock, it has
spring about 500m before Bir al-Gebel on recently suffered from the attentions of less
the right, concealed behind a brick pump scrupulous travellers who have all but ru-
house. A sign marks the turn-off 20km north ined most of these curious images with their
of Mut, from where it’s about another 5km own graffiti.
to the springs.
BALAT
SAND DUNES & CAMEL RIDES For a captivating glance into life during me-
A few kilometres out past the southern end dieval times, pay a visit to the Islamic village
of town you can have a roll around in sand of Balat, 35km east of Mut. Built during the
dunes which, while not the most spectacu- era of the Mamaluks and Turks on a site
lar in the desert, are easy to reach for people that dates back to the Old Kingdom, this
without their own transport. Almost every is a living monument to the possibilities of
hotel and restaurant in Mut offers day trips Sudanic-style mud architecture. Here in the
that include a sand dune stop. Sunset camel old town, charismatic, winding lanes weave
rides out to the dunes can also be arranged through low-slung corridors past Gaudí-like
(see Tours, p338). moulded benches. Palm fronds are still used
for shelter as smoothly rounded walls ease
ROCK CARVINGS into each other. The tiny doors here were
Dakhla’s cultivated land ends at the feet designed to keep houses cool and confuse
of some strange rock formations 45km to- potential invaders. A guide will happily take
wards Al-Kharga. This was the crossroads you onto the roof of one of the three-storey
of two important caravan routes, the Darb mud-brick houses for commanding views
al-Ghabari between Dakhla and Al-Kharga (a small tip is expected). To get to Balat, a
and another, now lost, track that linked the pick-up from near the general hospital in
nearby village of Teneida with the Darb al- Mut will cost E£1.
Arba’een to the south. Carved into the soft You will need your own vehicle to explore
rock are prehistoric rock carvings, showing Ain al-Asil, or the Spring of the Origin, an
WESTERN DESERT 342 W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • D a k h l a O a s i s lonelyplanet.com

Old Kingdom settlement. The oasis expert Sights

Ahmed Fakry, who excavated here in the The Supreme Council for Antiquities has
1970s and found remains of a large fortress taken responsibility for the town, but because
and possibly a canal, believed it was once the people still live there, it is unable to enclose
capital of the oasis. The site was abandoned the site or charge an entrance fee. Visitors are
in Ptolemaic times and there is little of inter- expected to go with one of the Antiquities
est here today unless you are archeologically guards (who will expect a ‘donation’ of up
inclined. Ain al-Asil is about 2km down a to E£10).
track leading north off the main road, 200m The old town is built on the ancient foun-
east of Balat. dations of a Roman city and is thought to be
About 1.5km past Ain al-Asil is Qila al- the one of the oldest inhabited areas of the
Dabba (adult/student E£20/10), Balat’s ancient oases. The gateway of a temple to Thoth is
necropolis. The five mastabas (mud-brick now the front of a private house, and inscribed
structures above tombs that were the basis blocks from the temple have been used in
for later pyramids) here, the largest of which other local buildings. Most of what you can
stands over 10m high, date back to the 6th see today, however, dates to the Ottoman pe-
dynasty. Four are ruined, but one has been riod (1516–1798). During its heyday, this was
restored and is now open to the public. probably the capital of the oasis, easily pro-
Originally all five would have been clad in tected by barring the fort’s quartered streets.
fine limestone, with three thought to have The size of the houses and the surviving frag-
belonged to important Old Kingdom gover- ments of decoration suggest a puzzling level
nors of the oasis. Opening hours are 8pm to of wealth and importance given to this town
5pm October to April and 8am to 6pm May by the Ottomans.
to September, but you may need to find a The architecture of the narrow covered
guardian in the nearby buildings. streets harks back to its ancient origins. The
winding lanes manage to remain cool in the
BASHENDI scalding summer and also serve to protect
This small village to the north of the main their inhabitants from desert sandstorms.
Dakhla–Al-Kharga road takes its name from Entrances to old houses can be clearly seen
Pasha Hindi, the medieval sheikh buried and some are marked by beautiful lintels –
nearby. The Tomb of Pasha Hindi is covered by acacia beams situated above the door. Carved
an Islamic-era dome, which sits over a Roman with the names of the carpenter and the owner
structure, clearly visible from the inside of the of the house, the date and a verse from the
building. Locals make pilgrimages to pray for Quran, these decorative touches are wonder-
the saint’s intercession. Nearby is the sand- fully preserved.
stone Tomb of Kitines (both tombs adult/student E£20/10; There are 37 lintels in the village, the earli-
h8am-5pm Oct-Apr, 8am-6pm May-Sep), which was est of which dates to the early 16th century.
occupied by Senussi soldiers during WWI One of the finest is above the Tomb of Sheikh
and by a village family after that. Nevertheless, Nasr ad-Din inside the old mosque, which is
some funerary reliefs have survived and show marked by a restored 12th-century mud-brick
the 2nd-century AD notable meeting the gods minaret. Adjoining it is Nasr ad-Din Mosque, with
Min, Seth and Shu. a 21m-high minaret. Several buildings have
been renovated, including one that appears to
AL-QASR have been a madrassa, a school where Islamic
One of the must-see sights in Dakhla Oasis is law was taught and which doubled as a town
the extraordinary medieval/Ottoman town of hall and courthouse: prisoners were tied to a
Al-Qasr, which lies on the edge of lush vegeta- stake near the entrance.
tion at the foot of the pink limestone cliffs that Also of interest is the restored House of
mark the northern edge of the oasis. It’s an Abu Nafir. A dramatic pointed arch at the en-
extraordinary place that has been thoughtfully trance frames a huge studded wooden door.
restored to provide a glimpse of how other oasis Built of mud brick, and on a grander scale
towns looked before the New Valley develop- than the surrounding houses, it incorporates
ment projects had their way with them. Several huge blocks from an earlier structure, pos-
hundred people still live in the town that not so sibly a Ptolemaic temple, decorated with
long ago was home to several thousand. hieroglyphic reliefs.
Book your stay at lonelyplanet.com/hotels W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • Fa r a f r a O a s i s 343

WESTERN DESERT
Other features of the town include the Getting There & Away
pottery factory, a blacksmith’s forge, a water- Pick-ups to Al-Qasr leave from opposite Said
wheel, an olive press and a huge old corn mill Shihad restaurant in Mut and cost E£1.
that has been fully restored to function with
Flintstonelike efficiency when its shaft is ro- DEIR AL-HAGGAR
tated. Near the entrance is the Ethnographic This restored Roman sandstone temple (ad-
Museum (admission E£3; h9am-sunset). Occupying mission E£20; h8am-sunset) is one of the most
Sherif Ahmed’s house, which itself dates complete Roman monuments in Dakhla.
back to 1785, the museum’s everyday ob- Dedicated to the Theban triad of Amun,
jects try to give life to the empty buildings Mut and Khons, as well as Horus (who can
around them. be seen with a falcon’s head), it was built
Heading back to Mut from Al-Qasr, take between the reigns of Nero (AD 54–68) and
the secondary road for a change of scenery. Domitian (AD 81–96). The cartouches of
You can visit several tombs (admission E£10) near Nero, Vespasian and Titus can be seen in the
the ruined village of Amhadah, dating from hypostyle hall, which has also been inscribed
the 2nd century. About 15km further towards by almost every 19th-century explorer who
Mut is the Mamluk village of Qalamun, with passed through the oasis. If you look care-
both Ottoman and modern houses built of fully in the adjacent Porch of Titus you can
mud. There are good views of the countryside see the names of the entire expedition of
from the cemetery. Gerhard Rohlfs, the 19th-century desert
explorer. Also visible are the names of fa-
Sleeping mous desert travellers Edmonstone, Drovetti
Al-Qasr Hotel (%787 6013; s/d/tr E£10/20/30) The and Houghton.
sprightly and ever-helpful Mohamed cap- The temple has been enclosed by a
tains this great little guesthouse, which sits wall to help prevent wind and sand ero-
above a café near the old town. The bu- sion. Deir al-Haggar is signposted about
colically charming rooms have screens and 7km west of Al-Qasr; from the turn-off it’s
balconies and some even boast views onto another 5km to the temple.
Al-Qasr. There’s a breezy upstairs communal
sitting area where you can play games or FARAFRA OASIS
relax, and for E£2 you can sleep on a mat- %092 / pop 21,920
tress on the roof. The ground-floor coffee- Blink and you might miss dusty Farafra,
house and restaurant serves good basic fare the least populated and most remote of the
(breakfast E£3 extra). Mohamed rents bikes Western Desert’s oases. Though little evi-
for E£5 a day and arranges camel tours into dence has been found of Pharaonic occupa-
the surrounding desert (E£75 for the day, tion, Farafra does make a cameo appearance
E£120 overnight). in the legend of King Cambyses’ army (see
Beir Elgabal Camp (%772 6600; elgabalcamp@hot boxed text, p346), which is purported to have
mail.com; s/d E£25/50; s) This place has clean, disappeared in the 6th century BC on its way
plain rooms next to Bir al-Gebel spring. It’s to Siwa.
in an idyllic position at the base of the soar- Farafra’s exposed location made it prone
ing desert mountains, although fairly isolated to frequent attacks by Libyans and Bedouin
from any amenities, 4km from the turn-off on tribes, many of whom eventually settled
the Mut road. in the oasis and now make up much of
Desert Lodge (%772 7061/2, in Cairo 02-690 5240; the population.
www.desertlodge.net; s/d/tr half board US$90/120/150; In recent years, the government has been
ai) The best accommodation in Dakhla increasing its efforts to revitalise this region,
also has the best views of Al-Qasr. This and the agriculture of olives, dates, apricots,
thoughtfully designed, mud-brick fortress guava, figs, oranges, apples and sunflowers is
of a lodge crowns a hilltop overlooking the slowly developing. Though light on tourist
town and comprises 32 large rooms in tra- infrastructure or any real attractions, Farafra’s
ditionally styled clusters. The restaurant is proximity to the White Desert (only 20km
adequate, and there is also a bar and many away) and its torpid pace of life and extensive
of the services you would expect for the ex- palm gardens, manage to draw a small trickle
acting price. of travellers each year.
WESTERN DESERT 344 W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • Fa r a f r a O a s i s Book your stay at lonelyplanet.com/hotels

0 20 km SIGHTS & ACTIVITIES

FARAFRA OASIS 0 12 miles
Badr’s Museum

ὄ
To Black Desert (40km);
Bawiti (Bahariya Badr Abdel Moghny is a self-taught artist
Oasis; 90km)
whose gift to his town has become its only
Crystal
Mountain real sight, bless ’im. Badr’s Museum (Map p345;
%751 0091, 012 170 4710; donation E£5; h8.30am-

Rd
Naqb as-Sillim sunset), surrounded by a desert garden, is
worth seeing for the enthusiasm that Badr

hla
Twin

- Dak

ὄὄ
ὄ
Peaks
puts into his work, much of which records
traditional oasis life. His distinctive style of

ya
riy
ha
Ba
painting and sculpture in mud, stone and
sand has won him foreign admirers; he ex-
hibited successfully in Europe in the early
To Ain Della White Desert
(30km)
Aquasun
1990s and later in Cairo.

ὄὄ
ὄ
Farafra Ain Bishay
Bir
Sitta Qasr al-Farafra Springs
Quss Abu
Said A popular stop is Bir Sitta (Well No Six; Map
Farafra
p344), a sulphurous hot spring 6km north-
Oasis west of Qasr al-Farafra. Water gushes into a
Jacuzzi-sized concrete pool and then spills out
into a larger tank. This is a good place for a

ὄ
night-time soak under the stars.
The Roman spring of Ain Bishay (Map p344)
bubbles forth from a hillock on the northwest
edge of town. It has been developed into an
Abu
Minqar
irrigated grove of date palms together with
citrus, olive, apricot and carob trees, and is a
To Mut (Dakhla Oasis; 220km) cool haven amid the arid landscape. Several
families tend the crops here; you should seek
Qasr al-Farafra someone out and ask permission before
The only real town in Farafra Oasis, Qasr wandering around.
al-Farafra remains an undeveloped speck
on the western Egypt circuit that is only now TOURS
beginning to discover the cheap thrills of Farafra is nearer than Bahariya to the White
concrete. The town’s tumbledown Roman Desert and yet there is a very limited choice
fortress was originally built to guard this of desert outfits. Al-Waha Hotel (below) of-
part of the desert caravan route, though these fers perfunctory trips around Farafra and the
days all it has to show for it is a mound of White Desert for around E£425 per vehicle
rubble. for an overnight stay. Both Al-Badawiya and
Some small, mud-brick houses still stand Aquasun are more expensive (see Sleeping,
here against all the odds, their doorways se- below), but are well prepared for long-range
cured with medieval peg locks and their walls desert travel as well as trips closer to home;
painted with verses of the Quran. see also p329.

INFORMATION SLEEPING
For tourist information, contact the tourist At the time of our visit, the new Sahara Hotel
office in Mut (p337). was being completed 1km north of town,
Hospital (Map p345; %751 0047; main Bahariya– promising to bring more dome-roofed, mud-
Dakhla rd) For dire emergencies only. brick goodness to Farafra.
Post office (Map p345; off main Bahariya–Dakhla rd; Al-Waha Hotel (Map p345; %016 209 3224, 012 720
h8.30am-2.30pm) 0387; [email protected]; d without bathroom E£35,
Telephone centrale (Map p345; off main Bahariya– s & d E£45) A small, primitive hotel opposite
Dakhla rd; h24hr) Badr’s Museum, Al-Waha offers two- and
Tourist police (Map p345; Sharia al-Mishtafa Nakhaz) three-bed rooms with orderly shared bath-
No telephone. rooms, though frills are at a premium here.
Book your stay at lonelyplanet.com/hotel W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • Fa r a f r a O a s i s 345

WESTERN DESERT
and piping-hot water from Bir Sitta fills the
QASR AL-FARAFRA 00 200 m
0.1 miles
hotel pool. Owner Hisham Nessim has had
years of hotel-owning experience in Sinai and
is also a longtime desert-safari operator (see
INFORMATION
Hospital........................................1 B1 also p329).
Post Office...................................2
Telephone Centrale......................3
A3
A3
Al-Badawiya Safari & Hotel (Map p345; %751
Tourist Police................................4 B3 0060, 012 214 8343; www.badawiya.com; s/d E£140/200,
SIGHTS & ACTIVITIES
villas with air-con E£220/300; ais) We hear
Badr's Museum............................5 A2 mixed opinions about Al-Badawiya on the
To White Desert 1 Bahariya–Dakhla road, but there is no escap-
(25km); Bawiti
To Ain Bishay (Bahariya Oasis; ing the dynamism of the Ali brothers, who
Rd

(1km); Bir Sitta; 185km)

dominate Farafra tourism with their hotel
hla

Aquasun Farafra (6km)

-Dak

6
and safari outfit. Al-Badawiya has a wide
ariya

Bir
choice of stylishly designed and traditionally
Bah

Sit
ta themed rooms and is dotted with cushioned
sitting areas, has a refreshing pool, and boasts
more than its fair share of arches and domes.
z
akha

5
sa Breakfast costs E£20, reservations are recom-
fa N

da
Al-Mar
mended in winter. Saad Ali and Hamdy Ali
ishta

7
lead camel and jeep trips into the Western
Al-M

Old Al-Bosta
Fort 3 2 Desert (see p329).
10 4
Al-Bol
A l- d

is Fountain EATING
Bala

8 9 As with most facilities, eating choices are lim-

Shops
Gardens 11 ited in Farafra.
12 Al-Tamawy Restaurant (Map p345; dishes E£2-10) A
cafeteria on the main road, Al-Tamawy has
Nakhaz

uncomplicated food on offer along with tea,

coffee and, of course, sheesha.
Al-Mishtafa

Samir Restaurant (Map p345; dishes E£8-20) With

To Mut
(Dakhla Oasis; outdoor tables off the main drag, this tourist
300km)
-oriented place is spotless, with, wait for it,
SLEEPING
tablecloths! The spicy kebabs are delicious,
Al-Badawiya Safari & Hotel..........6 B2 though it’s a shame it tends to hike the prices.
Al-Waha Hotel.............................7 A2
Check the prices before you dine.
EATING Aquasun Farafra (Map p344; %012 225 9660; meals
Al-Badawiya Safari & Hotel........(see 6)
Al-Tamawy Restaurant................8 A3 E£20-45) Fresh organic ingredients are used in
Assam Restaurant........................9 A3 Aquasun’s restaurant, and dishes are a choice
Hussein's Restaurant..................10 A3
Samir Restaurant........................11 A3 of the usual Western and Egyptian staples.
Shops, Bakery & Coffee Shop....12 A3 Has been known to serve beer and wine.
SHOPPING Al-Badawiya Safari & Hotel (Map p345; %751 0060,
5 Dr Socks.....................................(see 6) 012 214 8343; meals E£25-50) Al-Badawiya serves
TRANSPORT freshly made, if rather expensive, dishes in-
Buses to Bahariya & Cairo..........(see 6)
Buses to Bahariya & Cairo..........(see 8)
cluding pasta and simple three-course meals,
Microbuses to Dakhla................(see 8) using organic vegetables from its own farm.
Serves beer and wine on occasion.
You can also try Hussein’s Restaurant (Map p345;
Some rooms have balconies onto the unsealed dishes E£5-9) or Assam Restaurant (Map p345; dishes
streets of Farafra. E£6-15) for simple outdoor seating and grilled
Aquasun Farafra (Map p344; %012 7807 999; www meats to order.
.raid4x4egypt.com; Bir Sitta; s/d half board €50/70; as)
Built beside Bir Sitta and nestled in its own SHOPPING
idyllic oasis, Aquasun has 21 chalet-style It’s a family affair. In the summer, Dr Socks
rooms built around a peaceful garden. Each takes wool from the neck and lower back of
has its own porch, thatched with palm fronds, camels, spins it and knits. His sister makes
WESTERN DESERT 346 W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • Fa r a f r a t o B a h a r i y a O a s i s lonelyplanet.com

THE LOST ARMY OF CAMBYSES

Persian king Cambyses invaded Egypt in 525 BC, overthrowing Egyptian pharaoh Psamtek III and
signalling the beginning of Persian rule over the country that was to last 193 years. This success,
however, was not necessarily representative of this ‘tyrannical despot’s’ skills as a military strategist.
In the years immediately following his conquest of Egypt, Cambyses mounted several disastrous
offensives. In one such campaign, he sent a mercenary army down the Nile into Ethiopia that was
so ill-prepared and undersupplied it had to turn to cannibalism to survive. The soldiers returned
disgraced, having never even encountered the enemy on the battlefield.
Cambyses’ most famous failure, however, remains his attempt to capture the Oracle of Amun
in Siwa (see p359). As recounted by Greek writer Herodotus, Cambyses set out to destroy the
famous oracle, which insolently predicted his tragic end, and legitimise his rule over Egypt. To
this end, he dispatched an army of 50,000 men from Thebes, supported by a vast train of pack
animals weighed down by supplies and weapons. The army is purported to have reached Al-
Kharga and Farafra Oases before turning west to cover the 325km of open desert to Siwa – a
30-day march without any shade or sources of water. Legend has it that after struggling through
the Great Sand Sea, the men were engulfed by a fierce sandstorm, which buried the entire army
under the desert’s shifting sands never to be heard from again.
There have been dozens of unsuccessful expeditions over the centuries determined to find a
trace of the lost men of Cambyses. Only time will tell if the shifting sands that buried this ancient
army will ever reveal their archaeological riches.

sweaters, his uncle blankets, while he and his shaped rock formations of the White Desert
mother get on with the socks and scarves. to the eerie black-coned mountains of the
Dr Socks and his wares can be found at Al- nearby Black Desert, with a healthy dose of
Badawiya Safari & Hotel (p344) and beyond. sand dunes interspersed for good measure.
Count on E£10 to E£30 for socks, and up to These regions are relatively easy to get to
E£400 for a blanket. from either Farafra or Bahariya Oases and
are immensely popular with one-day and
GETTING THERE & AWAY overnight safari tours.
There are buses from Farafra to Cairo (E£40,
eight to 10 hours) via Bahariya (E£20, two to Ain Della
three hours) at 10am and 10pm. Buses from Surrounded by cliffs on the north and east
Farafra to Dakhla (E£20, four to five hours) and dunes to the south and west, Ain Della
originate in Cairo and leave around 1pm to (Spring of the Shade) lies about 120km from
2pm and around 1am to 2am. Buses stop at Farafra al-Qasr. The contrasting tawny hues of
Al-Tamawy Restaurant, the petrol station and the surrounding landscape envelop this area
at Al-Badawiya hotel. Tickets are bought from in an alluring, almost soft glow. But Ain Della
the conductor. is more than a picturesque water hole. Lying
Microbuses to Dakhla (E£20, three to four within 200km of the three major oases of Siwa,
hours) also leave from in front of Al-Tamawy Bahariya and Farafra, it has been a strategic and
Restaurant when full (ie not often), so you’re extremely important source of water for desert
better off going early in the morning. The travellers since ancient times. Most famously,
same goes for microbuses to Bahariya Oasis the army of the Persian conqueror Cambyses
(E£20, three hours). Rare service taxis to is thought by many to have disappeared in the
Dakhla cost E£20, to Al-Kharga E£30. dunes near here (see boxed text, p359). During
WWII the British Army’s Long Range Desert
FARAFRA TO BAHARIYA OASIS Group stored fuel and supplies here and used
The stupefying desert formations between it as a jumping-off place for their raids behind
the Farafra and Bahariya Oases are respon- German and Italian lines.
sible for attracting more travellers to this Ain Della’s position is still considered vital
far-flung corner of Egypt than any other to controlling vast swathes of the Western
sight. No surprises there: this unearthly ter- Desert: it is from here that Egyptian army
rain varies from the bizarre and impossibly patrols search the desert for drugs and arms
lonelyplanet.com W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • Fa r a f r a t o B a h a r i y a O a s i s 347

WESTERN DESERT
smugglers. Anyone coming here must have a On the west side of the road, away from the
guide and military permit (obtained through wind-eroded shapes, there are small canyons
desert guides; see also boxed text, p352, or formed by white, clifflike chalk monoliths called
Tours, p361 and p344). inselbergs. Less dramatic than other areas, they
are nevertheless beautiful, and eerie to walk
White Desert around. The shade and privacy they provide
Upon first glimpse of the White Desert (Sahra also makes them good camping spots.
al-Beida; Map p344) dreamscape, you’ll feel About 50km north are two flat-topped
like a modern Alice fallen through the desert mountains known as the Twin Peaks, a key
looking-glass. Starting just 20km northeast of navigation point for travellers. A favourite
Farafra, the yellow desert sands east of the road destination of local tour operators, the view
start to become pierced by chalky rock forma- from the top of the surrounding symmetrical
tions, sprouting almost supernaturally from the hills, all shaped like giant ant hills, is spectacu-
ground. Blinding-white spires of rock reach for lar. Just beyond here, the road climbs a steep
the sky, each frost-coloured lollipop licked into escarpment known as Naqb as-Sillim (Pass of
an ever odder shape by the dry desert winds. the Stairs); this is the main pass that leads into
As you get further into the 300-sq-km White and out of the Farafra depression and marks
Desert Protectorate, you’ll notice that the sur- the end of the White Desert.
real shapes start to take on familiar forms; A few kilometres further along, the desert
chickens, ostriches, camels, hawks and other floor changes again and becomes littered with
uncanny shapes abound. They are best viewed quartz crystals. If you look at the rock forma-
at sunrise or sunset, when the sun turns them tions in this area you’ll see that they are also
hues of pink and orange, Salvador Dali–like, or largely made of crystal. The most famous of
under a full moon which gives the landscape the formations is the Crystal Mountain, actually
a ghostly, arctic, whipped-cream appearance. a large rock made entirely of quartz. It sits
The sand around the outcroppings is littered right beside the main road some 24km north
with quartz and different varieties of deep- of Naqb as-Sillim, and is easily recognisable
black iron pyrites, as well as small fossils. by the large hole through its middle.

KNOW YOUR DUNE

Formal classification of types of sand dune was made in the 1970s, when scientists could examine
photographs of dune fields taken on an early space mission. They identified five types of dune,
four of which are found in Egypt.

Parallel Straight Dunes

Called seif (sword) in Arabic because they resemble the blades of curved Arab swords, these dunes
are formed by wind and are primarily found in the Great Sand Sea and the northern Western
Desert. Usually on the move, they will even fall down an escarpment, reforming at its base.

Parallel Wavy (or Barchan) Dunes

These are crescent-shaped dunes, with a slip face on one side. They are as wide as they are long
and are usually found in straight lines with flat corridors between them. Usually on the move,
they can travel as far as 19m in one year. They are predominant in Al-Kharga and Dakhla Oases
and are also found in the Great Sand Sea.

Star Dunes
Created by wind blowing in different directions, these dunes are usually found alone. Instead of
moving, they tend to build up within a circle. They are rare in Egypt.

Crescent (or Whaleback) Dunes

These are hill-like dunes formed when a series of smaller dunes collide and piggyback one
another. Distinctive, with sides pointing in different directions, they can be seen in the area
between Al-Kharga and Dakhla Oases.
WESTERN DESERT 348 W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • B a h a r i y a O a s i s lonelyplanet.com

Unfortunately, the White Desert is in dan- through Bahariya Oasis. The Black Desert
ger of becoming a victim of its own popularity is a popular stop-off for tours running out
as more and more people choose to make the of Bahariya, though it’s mostly ill-suited for
journey here. On busy nights, the horizon is overnight camping. Other sights in the re-
filled with the lights of campfires, the still gion include Gebel Gala Siwa, a pyramid-shaped
night filled with the sound of drums and sing- mountain that was formerly a lookout post for
ing. Daylight reveals burned-out campfires, caravans coming from Siwa. Gebel az-Zuqaq is
discarded refuse and, most depressing of all, a mountain known for the red, yellow and
tyre tracks over the white rocks. The fragile orange streaks in its limestone base. There is
white chalk formations are now threatened, an easily climbed path leading to the top.
and although the area has been designated
a protectorate, there is not enough funding Getting There & Away
to pay for adequate protection. If you are Ordinary vehicles are able to drive the first
going to visit – and we are not suggesting you kilometre or so off the road into the White
don’t – consider going by foot or camel, be or Black Deserts, but only 4WD vehicles can
sure to leave nothing behind and, if you are advance deeper into either area. Some travel-
driving, discourage your guide from driving lers simply get off the bus and take themselves
over the rocks. into the White Desert – but be very sure that
For information on getting to the White you have adequate supplies, and remember
Desert see right. that traffic between the neighbouring oases
is rarely heavy.
Black Desert There are plenty of safari outfits that can
The change in the desert floor from beige take you around these sights. See boxed text,
to black, 50km south of Bawiti, signals the p352, and p344 for listings.
beginning of the Black Desert (Sahara Suda).
No surprises there. Formed by the erosion of BAHARIYA OASIS
the mountains, which have spread a layer of %02 / pop 33,680
black powder and rubble over the ground, the Bahariya is one of the more fetching of the
desert stands as a particularly stark contrast to desert circuit oases, and at just 365km from
the White Desert further south. Small, black, Cairo is also the most accessible. Surrounded
volcano-shaped mountains mark the end of on all sides by towering ridges, much of the
the desert and are part of a fault that runs oasis floor is covered by verdant plantations

BAHARIYA’S GOLDEN MUMMY CACHE

Put it down to the donkey: until 1996, no-one had any idea of the extent of Bahariya’s archaeo-
logical treasure trove. Then a donkey stumbled on a hole near the temple of Alexander the Great
and its rider saw the face of a golden mummy peering through the sand. Since then Dr Zahi
Hawass, head of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, and his team have done extensive research
in a cemetery that stretches over 3 sq km (see Map p349). Radar has revealed more than 10,000
mummies, and excavation has revealed more than 230 of them in what has come to be called
the Valley of the Golden Mummies.
These silent witnesses of a bygone age could shed new light on life in this part of Egypt during
the Graeco-Roman period, a 600-year interlude marking the transition between the Pharaonic
and Christian eras. Bahariya was then a thriving oasis, and with its rich, fertile land watered by
natural springs, was a famous producer of wheat and wine. Greek and, later, Roman families set
up home here and became a kind of expatriate elite.
Research has shown that after a brief decline when Ptolemys and Romans fought for control
of the oasis, Roman administrators embarked on a major public works programme, expanding
irrigation systems, digging wells, restoring aqueducts and building roads. Thousands of mud-
brick buildings sprang up throughout the oasis. Bahariya became a major source of grain for the
empire and was home to a large garrison of troops; its wealth grew proportionately. Researchers
are hoping that continued excavation of the necropolis will provide more answers about the
region’s early history and its inhabitants.
lonelyplanet.com W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • B a h a r i y a O a s i s 349

WESTERN DESERT
0 5 km
BAHARIYA OASIS 0 3 miles

Gebel Dist 2
A B C 15 D
SIGHTS & ACTIVITIES
Gebel
Ain Segam................................... 1 D3 Maghrafa
Bir al-Ghaba.................................2 D1
1 Bir al-Mattar................................3 C2
Bir al-Ramla..................................4 B3
Golden Mummies Site..................5 A3
Oasis Heritage Museum (Camel
Camp).....................................6 C3
Qarat al-Hilwa.............................7 A3
Temple of Ain al-Muftella............8 A3
Temple of Alexander....................9 A3

SLEEPING Gebel Mandisha

Ahmed's Safari Camp................10 A3
Badr Sahara Camp......................11 B2
Bedouin Village Camp................12 C3 3
Desert Safari Home....................13 B3
2 International Hot Springs Hotel..14 B3
Nature Camp.............................15 D1
Palma Village Hotel....................16 C3
Qasr el Bawity Hotel &
Restaurant..............................17 B3
11

Zabou
Gebel al-Ingleez
To Siwa
Oasis (343km)
4 17
8 14
16
13 To Cairo
12
3 Bawiti (316km)
Mandisha
El-Agouz 1
7 6
10
To Black Desert (10km);
Under the Moon Camp,
9 el-Hayz & Ain Gomma (42km);
Qasr al-Farafra
5 (Farafra Oasis, 143km)

of date palms and pockmarked with dozens Until recently, Bawiti was a quiet town
of refreshing springs. dependent on agriculture, but it’s gaining a
The conical hills that lie strewn around new lease on life as more people head to the
the valley floor may have once formed is- desert or come to see the Golden Mummies,
lands in the lake that covered the area dur- and now has a good selection of hotels. Be
ing prehistoric times. During the Pharaonic warned, however, that upon arrival you’re
era, the oasis was a centre of agriculture, likely to be accosted by overzealous touts
producing wine sold in the Nile Valley and before you even step off the bus (see boxed
as far away as Rome. Its strategic location text, p352).
on the Libyan–Nile Valley caravan routes
ensured it prospered throughout later ages. INFORMATION
In recent years, stunning archaeological Hospital (Map p350; %3847 2390) Head to Cairo
finds, such as that of the Golden Mummies except in dire emergency.
(see boxed text, opposite), and easy access M&N Internet (Map p350; per hr E£10; h8.30am-9pm
to the White and Black Deserts have earned Sat-Thu) Near Popular Restaurant, has a couple of newish
Bahariya a firm spot on the tourist map. computers.
National Bank for Development (Map p350;
Bawiti h9am-2pm Sun-Thu) Changes cash only. No ATM.
The sandy streets of the region’s modern ad- Old Oasis Hotel (Map p350; %3847 3028) Offers
ministrative capital may at first sight seem internet access.
pretty underwhelming. But scratch beneath Tourist office (Map p350; %3847 3035/9; h8am-
the surface and you might walk away with a 2pm Sat-Thu, also 7-9pm Sat-Thu Nov-Apr) Run by the
different picture: stroll through its fertile palm eager and helpful Mohamed Abd el-Kader, who can also be
groves, soak in one of the many hot springs or contacted on %012 373 6567 or by email (mohamed_
explore its quiet back roads, where donkeys [email protected]).
still outnumber combustion engines. Tourist police (off Map p350; %3847 3900; Sharia Misr)
WESTERN DESERT 350 W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • B a h a r i y a O a s i s lonelyplanet.com

0 200 m
BAWITI 0 0.1 miles

To Bir
ar-Ramla
(3km)
Palm INFORMATION
Groves
Desert Police............................1 C2
12 11 Hospital...................................2 C3
13
M&N Internet..........................3 B2
National Bank for Development..4 B2
6 Old Oasis Hotel...................(see 13)
Tourist Office...........................5 B2
SLEEPING
Alpenblick Hotel.....................10 B3

el i m
SIGHTS & ACTIVITIES
El-Beshmo Lodge...................11 A1 El-Beshmo Springs....................6 B1

Yusuf S
New Oasis Hotel....................12 A1 Museum (al-Mathaf)............... 7 D3
Old Oasis Hotel......................13 B1 Qarat Qasr Salim..................... 8 D2
Western Desert Hotel............14 C2 8
Sa
20 Ticket Office............................ 9 D2
fa
ya
EATING
To Gebel al-Ingleez (2km);
Cleopatra Restaurant.............15 C2 Bir al-Mattar (4km);
Popular Restaurant.................16 B2 17 14 Bir al-Ghaba (15km)
Vegetable Market..................17 B2 4
Post Office16 15
18 22 5
Misr (Cairo Rd) 3
1
Shops
To Bir al-Muftella
(1.6km); Siwa
Oasis (420km) 21 9
To Rashed (200m);

f
Al-Matha
Heritage Museum (750m);
19 Tourist Police (900m);
7 Cairo (334km)
Cemetery
To Qasr al-Farafra 10
(Farafra Oasis 185km) Antiquities
Inspectorate
Ticket Office
2
SHOPPING TRANSPORT
Ganoub Traditional Handicrafts..18 B2 Hilal Coffeeshop & Bus Stop....21 A2
Girls Work Shop.........................19 B3 Upper Egypt Bus Co Ticket
Horass Handcraft........................20 B2 Kiosk....................................22 B2

SIGHTS & ACTIVITIES Qarat Qasr Salim

Museum (Al-Mathaf ) This small mound (Map p350) amid the
Since the discovery of the Golden Mummies houses of Bawiti is likely to have been built
in the 1990s (see boxed text, p348), growing upon centuries of debris. There are two well-
interest in Bahariya’s ancient past has led to preserved 26th-dynasty tombs here that were
the opening of this new museum (Map p350; Sharia robbed in antiquity and reused as collective
al-Mathaf; h8am-2pm). Yes, that building resem- burial sites in Roman times. The rock-cut
bling a war-time bunker is the museum, but Tomb of Zed-Amun-ef-ankh (h8.30am-4pm) is a
don’t let that put you off (the ticket office is fascinating glimpse of Bahariya in its heyday.
the hut situated 50m from the museum to- It appears that Zed-Amun-ef-ankh was not a
wards Sharia Misr; see boxed text, opposite). government official but was given the richness
This is where the mummies come to rest. of colourful tomb paintings anyway, hinting
Some of the 10 mummies on show are richly at his wealth and importance. Researchers
decorated and while the motifs are formulaic assume he was a trader, perhaps a wine mer-
and the work is second-rate, the painted faces chant or landowner making money out of
show a move away from stylised Pharaonic Bahariya’s thriving wine-export business.
mummy decoration towards Fayoum por- Unusually, his tomb contains only one cham-
traiture (see boxed text, p209). Underneath ber, with four circular (as opposed to the usual
the beautiful wrappings, the work of the square) pillars and seven squat false doors.
embalmers appears to have been sloppy: in Next to it lies the Tomb of Bannentiu (h8.30am-
some cases the bodies decayed before the em- 4pm), his son. Consisting of a four-columned
balming process began, which suggests that burial chamber with an inner sanctuary, it is
these mummies mark the beginning of the covered in fine reliefs depicting Bannentiu
end of mummification. Nevertheless, they in various positions with the gods. The most
serve as an eloquent reminder of Bahariya’s interesting pictures flank the entrance to the
antiquity. burial chamber. On one side, the journey of
Book your stay at lonelyplanet.com/hotels W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • B a h a r i y a O a s i s 351

WESTERN DESERT
the moon is shown, with the moon, in the
form of the god Khons, depicted as a source YOUR TICKET TO ANTIQUITIES
of life and flanked by the goddesses Isis and In a move to make their lives a little easier,
Nephthys. The other side of the entrance is Bahariya’s authorities have decided to issue
decorated with the journey of the sun. a one-day ticket that gives entry to five of
the oasis’ ancient sites: the museum, the
Oasis Heritage Museum tomb of Zed-Amun-ef-ankh, the tomb
You can’t miss Mahmoud Eed’s Oasis Heritage of Bannentiu, the Bir al-Muftella and the
Museum (Map p349; %3847 3666; www.camelcamp.com; Temple of Alexander. Tickets are available at
Bahariya–Cairo rd; admission E£5-10; hno set opening times), the at the ticket office (adult/student E£35/20;
about 2km east of the town’s edge on the road h8.30am-4pm) of the Museum (Al-Mathaf;
to Cairo: this hilltop bastion is announced by opposite). This is annoying as most visitors
massive clay camels gazing longingly onto the either don’t have the time or the desire to
street. Inspired by Badr’s Museum (p344) in see all the sights the oasis has to offer, yet
Farafra, its creator wishes to capture, in clay, have to pay for them.
scenes from traditional village life, among
them men hunting or playing siga (a game
played in the dirt with clay balls or seeds), SLEEPING
women weaving and a painful-looking bar- Unlike most places in the New Valley, there
ber/doctor encounter. There is also a display is a very good selection of budget and mid-
of old oasis dresses and jewellery. Look for priced hotels in Bawiti, as well as elsewhere
the sign saying ‘Camel Camp’, which is the around Bahariya Oasis. The few options ap-
plain and overpriced accommodation that’s proaching the top-end range can be found
also offered here. outside the town; see p354.

Hot & Cold Springs Budget

The closest springs to central Bawiti are the It makes sense to sort out accommodation in
so-called Roman springs, known as El-Beshmo Bawiti before you arrive, especially in high
(Map p350), beside El-Beshmo Lodge. The season due to the fray of touts that swarm each
view over the oasis gardens and the desert bus arrival (see boxed text, p352). A tourist
beyond is wonderful, but unfortunately the policeman now often escorts new arrivals to
spring is not suitable for swimming. the Bawiti tourist office where sleeping ar-
The hot sulphurous spring of Bir al-Ramla rangements can be made in peace.
(Map p349), 3km north of town, is very hot Desert Safari Home (Map p349; %3847 1321,
(45°C) and suitable for a soak, though you 012 731 3908; www.desert-safari-home.com; dm E£15,
may feel a bit exposed to the donkey traf- s/d without bathroom E£35/50, s/d E£45/65, with air-con
fic passing to and fro. Women should stay E£80/100; a) The friendly family that runs
well covered. this place looks ready to sign your adop-
At Bir al-Mattar (Map p349), 7km northeast tion papers the minute you walk in the door.
of Bawiti, cold springs pour into a viaduct, The whitewashed rooms encircle the sort of
then down into a concrete pool where you cute greenery that garden gnomes would feel
can splash around during the hot summer right at home in and the vine-shaded sitting
months. As with all the springs the min- area is refreshingly cool. The restaurant here
eral content is high and the water can stain serves the usual full dinner for E£20 and has
clothing. One of the most satisfying springs beer. Although it’s a long walk from town,
to visit is Bir al-Ghaba (Map p349), about patriarch Bardy Khozam will pick you up
15km northeast of Bawiti. It’s quite a trek to and offers bicycles for hire.
get out here, but there is nothing quite like a Alpenblick Hotel (Map p350; %3847 2184; alp-pen
moonlit hot bath on the edge of the desert. [email protected]; off Sharia Misr; d/tr E£50/70) This
Just past the village of Mandisha, near the granddaddy of the Bahariya hotel scene just
Bahariya–Cairo road, huddles Ain Segam (Map keeps getting dragged out of retirement by its
p349) spring. Hidden behind a large pump consecutive owners, though seemingly against
house on the edge of a lush palm grove, this is its wishes. In a continual state of ‘expansion’,
a great place to have a dip or bring a picnic and you can’t ignore the fact that the current
laze in the shade of the swaying palm fronds. rooms here are pretty grimy and overpriced.
WESTERN DESERT 352 W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • B a h a r i y a O a s i s Book your stay at lonelyplanet.com/hotels

BAHARIYA TOURS
There is furious competition throughout the oases – and even in Cairo – for tour business, but it
is particularly intense in Bahariya. Here, every hotel offers tours, as do a number of eager young
men who have taken out bank loans to pay for their cars. The battle for customers is so fierce
that most buses arriving in Bahariya are now greeted by a tourist police officer, who will escort
foreigners through the throng of aggressive touts to the safe haven of the tourist office. Here
Mohamed Abd el-Kader can give you up-to-date information about local hotels and tour operators.
He usually suggests only going with a driver approved by your hotel or the tourist office; others
may be cheaper, but you will have no comeback if something goes wrong. And things do go
wrong: there have been several serious injuries in the past few years and at least one death.
A typical itinerary will take you to the sights in and around Bahariya (Temple of Alexander,
Ain el-Muftella, Gebel Dist and Maghrafa) then out through the Black Desert, with a stop at the
Crystal Mountain and then into the White Desert.
A day trip to the local sights of Bawiti is around E£100 to E£150, while a one-night camping trip
into the White Desert will cost E£150 to E£400 per day. If you’re travelling into the remote corners
of the desert, you’ll be looking at E£550 to E£650 per day. One of the variables is how much of
the distance is covered off-road (which uses more fuel and is more wearing on the cars).
Before signing up, check vehicles to make sure they’re roadworthy, confirm how much food
and drink is supplied (and what this will be), ask how long the operators have been conducting
safaris, confirm start and end times (some operators start late in the afternoon and return early
in the morning but charge for full days) and try to talk with travellers who have just returned
from a trip to get their feedback.
If you’re planning on exploring remote parts of the desert such as the Gilf Kebir, Gebel Oweynat
or the Great Sand Sea it is absolutely imperative that you go with an outfit that supplies new
4WDs (travelling in convoy), GPS, satellite phones and experienced Bedouin guides. You’ll need
an official permit for the Great Sand Sea (US$100, takes 14 days to process).
If you are at all unsure of arrangements, check with Mohamed Abd el-Kader. And be sure to
inspect the car, its spare tyres, water and communications before leaving.

New Oasis Hotel (Map p350; %3847 3030; max_rfs@ E£80/140, with air-con E£120/180; ais) Astute
hotmail.com; by El-Beshmo spring; s/d E£50/80, with air-con owner Saleh Abdallah is at the helm of this
E£100/120; a) A study in curvaceous construc- hotel, which is one of the most charming
tion, this small but homely hotel has several places to stay in Bawiti town. The Old Oasis
teardrop-shaped rooms, some with balco- Hotel sits above a pretty, shaded garden of
nies overlooking the expansive palm groves palm and olive trees and has 13 simple but
nearby. Inside, the rooms are aged but kept impeccable fan rooms, as well as a few fan-
in good condition, though someone seems cier stone-wall air-con rooms. A large pool
to have been a little overzealous with the receives steaming hot water from the nearby
powder-blue paint. spring; the runoff waters the hotel garden.
A good restaurant serves full meals (dinner
Midrange & Top End E£30) and you can rent a motorbike form
Western Desert Hotel (Map p350; %3847 1600; www here (E£150 per day) and access the internet
.westerndeserthotel.com; off Sharia Misr; s/d US$20/35; (E£10 per hour).
ai) A new hotel right in the middle of El-Beshmo Lodge (Map p350; %/fax 3847 3500;
town, opposite Popular Restaurant, the 17 www.beshmolodge.com; by El-Beshmo spring; s/d E£130/200;
rooms are small, clean, simple and good as) Another old-timer, El-Beshmo Lodge
value. You pay the same price with or with- sits beside the spring of the same name (the
out air-con, so it’s worth booking ahead and small pool is filled with spring water). The
specifying. It has a swish-looking restaurant 25 rooms are simply furnished and reason-
downstairs that’s open 24 hours (though not ably comfortable, with both fan and air-con
always in a row, it seems). rooms the same price. There is also a good
Old Oasis Hotel (Map p350; %3847 3028, 012 232 café-restaurant serving meals, tea, coffee and
4425; www.oldoasissafari.com; by El-Beshmo spring; s/d sheesha in a pleasant atmosphere.
lonelyplanet.com W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • B a h a r i y a O a s i s 353

WESTERN DESERT
EATING 10am, 3pm and around midnight. Extra buses
The market houses several places that fire up originate in Dakhla and pass through town
the barbecue pits and roast cheap chicken and around noon and midnight, stopping at the
kebab meals after dusk. Hilal Coffeehouse at the western end of town
Cleopatra Restaurant (Map p350; meals E£5-15; and at the ticket office.
h6am-10pm) It’s worth popping in here just If you’re heading to Farafra (E£20, one to
for the smiling welcome and friendly evening two hours) and Dakhla (E£40, four to five
chats, though it’s also popular for its yummy hours), you can pick up one of the buses from
chicken, fuul, ta’amiyya and eggs. Cairo that are supposed to leave Bahariya at
Rashed (off Map p350; meals E£12-15) More a caf- 12.30pm and 11.30pm. Passengers are usually
eteria than a restaurant, Rashed serves hot dropped off at Popular Restaurant before the
and cold drinks and sheeshas (E£2) as well bus continues down the street to one of the cof-
as simple meals of rice, chicken or meat, and feehouses at the western end of town, stopping
vegetables. It’s near the petrol station at the for 30 minutes.
far eastern end of town. Only some bus tickets can be booked from
Popular Restaurant (Map p350; meals E£15-20; the Upper Egypt Bus Co booking office in
h5.30am-10pm) Name it popular, and they will Bawiti. As most of the buses don’t originate
come. Off the main road in Bawiti, this small here, you either have to book in Cairo or take
roadside restaurant is the chosen stopping-off your chances on standing.
point for many passing through Bawiti. The ir-
repressible Bayoumi serves the usual selection Service Taxi
of chicken, soup, rice and vegetable dishes, Microbus service taxis run from Bawiti to
though quality seems to be slipping while Moneeb (near the bus station) in Cairo when-
prices are creeping up. There’s cold beer too. ever they have enough customers. A seat costs
about E£20. A microbus to Farafra (they’re not
SHOPPING very frequent) will cost E£20. Tickets can be
There is a living craft tradition in the oases, bought opposite the desert police station (Map
though puzzlingly many handicraft stores sell p350) or ask at Popular Restaurant (left).
crafts made elsewhere. There are no service taxis to Siwa, so you
Girls Work Shop (Map p350; south of Sharia Misr; will have to hire a private 4WD for the rough
h10am-1pm Sat-Thu) This great handicrafts store journey (permit required). Expect to pay
bucks the trend and sells only crafts made in around E£800 to E£1500. If there is a 4WD
Bahariya Oasis, thus providing local women that has arrived from Siwa and is returning
with skills and much-needed work. Nice one! empty, you might be able to get a ride with
Ganoub Traditional Handicrafts (Map p350; Sharia it for half that amount. Recent changes in
Misr; hclosed Tue) A tasteful little shop with the legislation make it easy to arrange same-day
best selection of crafts in Bawiti, brought from permits to travel to Siwa (US$5 per person).
all over Egypt, including camel-wool blan-
kets and traditional oasis robes. It also has a Around Bawiti
small selection of books on the desert as well The area’s antiquities (eg Tomb of Alexander
as postcards. and Temple of Ain al-Muftella) have been re-
Horass Handcraft (Map p350; on the way to El-Beshmo cently spruced up and mostly reopened to the
spring; h8am-8pm) Sells some locally made crafts, public. Surrounding the town are mud-brick
including hand-decorated pouches cleverly villages and palm gardens, many fed by springs
marketed as ‘mobile phone holders’ or, our fa- that are ideal for a night-time soak. Further
vourite, ‘guidebook holder’. It also has stand- afield lies some spectacular desert scenery; Black
ard adorned traditional Bedouin costumes and Desert, Gebel Dist and Gebel Maghrafa can be
camel-hair socks. If the shop is closed knock on seen on a day trip or on an overnight safari.
the door directly across the street. The following sights and sleeping options
feature on the Bahariya Oasis map (p349).
GETTING THERE & AWAY
Bus SIGHTS
Upper Egypt Bus Co (Map p350; %3847 3610; Sharia Temple of Alexander
Misr; hroughly 9am-1pm & 7-11pm) runs buses to Southwest of Bawiti, just beyond Ahmed’s
Cairo (E£25, three to four hours) at 6.30am, Safari Camp, is the only place in Egypt where
WESTERN DESERT 354 W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • B a h a r i y a O a s i s Book your stay at lonelyplanet.com/hotels

Alexander the Great’s image and cartouche have Williams, a British officer, monitored the
been found – although since being uncovered movements of Libyan Senussi tribesmen.
by archaeologists in the late 1930s these have Gebel Dist is an impressive pyramid-shaped
been mostly worn away by the wind. Alexander mountain that can be seen from most of the
was known to have visited Siwa, but there is oasis. A local landmark, it is famous for its
no evidence to suggest that he passed through fossils – dinosaur bones were found here in
Bahariya, so his likeness here is puzzling. The the early 20th century, disproving the previ-
corrosive desert winds, combined with some ously held theory that dinosaurs only lived in
insensitive restoration, have left this site pretty North America. In 2001 researchers from the
bare with few clues to its original splendour. University of Pennsylvania found the remains
of another huge dinosaur, Paralititan stromeri.
Temple of Ain al-Muftella The discovery of this giant herbivore, which
Slightly south of the spring of the same name the team deduced was standing on the edge of
are four 26th-dynasty chapels that together a tidal channel when it died 94 million years
form the Temple of Ain al-Muftella. The bulk ago, makes it likely that Bahariya was once
of the building was ordered by 26th-dynasty a swamp similar to the Florida everglades.
high priest Zed-Khonsu-ef-ankh, whose About 100m away is Gebel Maghrafa (Mountain
tomb was recently discovered under houses of the Ladle).
in Bawiti (but is still closed to the public). For a brief glimpse of what Bawiti might
Archaeologists suspect that the chapels could have been like before cement had its way with
have been built during the New Kingdom and it, it’s worth venturing to the bucolic hamlet
then significantly expanded during the Late of El-Agouz. The village, 3.5km east of Bawiti,
Period and added to during Greek and Roman was supposedly founded by several families
times. All have been extensively restored and cast out from Siwa for the promiscuity of their
have been given wooden roofs to protect them womenfolk, though it’s probably best not to
from the elements. remind locals of that. Here you’ll still find
low-slung, mud-brick buildings among the
Qarat al-Hilwa swaying palms and extremely friendly inhabit-
This sandstone ridge is about 3km southwest ants dishing out smiles like they’re going out
of Bawiti, northwest of the road to Farafra. of style. The road to El-Agouz, which is off the
In the New Kingdom this was a necropolis, Bahariya–Cairo road, continues for several
a burial place of successive governors who, kilometres to the town of Zabou, which lies
as representatives of the pharaoh, were the nearly engulfed by the shifting desert sands,
most powerful figures in the oasis. The 18th- and loops back to Mandisha on the main
dynasty Tomb of Amenhotep Huy is the only highway. To get here, hop on any microbus
inscribed tomb left in the necropolis, but heading east from Bawiti and ask to be let off
there is little to see there now. The faded, at El-Agouz.
sunken reliefs here once showed scenes of One of the most magnificent springs we
Amenhotep’s dreams for the afterlife: ban- have yet seen is Ain Gomma (off Map p349), a
quet tables groaning with fruit, cakes, flow- fair distance away at 45km south of Bawiti.
ers and casks of wine. Cool and crystal-clear water gushes into this
small spring as it sits surrounded by the vast
Other Sights Around Bawati desert expanse on all sides – the views are
There are a number of other sights in Bahariya amazing. There’s a shady, cushioned café
that are included as part of a tour by the many here where you can buy tea and soft drinks.
safari operators in Bawiti. Most can also be Situated near the town of El-Hayz, it’s difficult
done on foot if the weather is cool. to reach without your own transport, though
Gebel Mandisha is a ridge capped with black many safari trips to the White Desert will stop
dolomite and basalt that runs for 4km be- here en route. You can also stay at nearby
hind the village of the same name, just east Under the Moon Camp (below).
of Bawiti.
Clearly visible from the road to Cairo, flat- SLEEPING & EATING
topped Gebel al-Ingleez, also known as the Black Budget
Mountain, takes its name from the remains Badr Sahara Camp (%3847 2955; www.badrysaharacamp
of a WWI lookout post. From here Captain .com; Gebel al-Ingleez; huts per person E£25) A couple of
Book your stay at lonelyplanet.com/hotels W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • S i w a O a s i s 355

WESTERN DESERT
kilometres from town, Badr Sahara Camp Midrange & Top End
has a handful of bucolic, African-influenced, International Hot Springs Hotel (% 3847 3014;
two-bed huts each with small patio sitting www.whitedeserttours.com; s/d/tr half board US$38/60/78)
areas out front. Hot water and electricity can’t About 3km outside Bawiti on the road to
always be counted on, but cool desert breezes Cairo, this German-run three-star spa resort
and knockout views of the oasis valley can. has forgettable architecture, but its 36 rooms
Pick-ups available. and eight chalets are very comfortable, built
Bedouin Village Camp (%/fax 3847 6811; www around a hot spring and set in a delightful
.beduinvillage.com; El-Agouz; s/d E£30/60) A Bedouin- garden. As well as a deep pool of therapeutic
themed camp with small, shabby rooms cir- spring water there’s a gym, sauna, rooftop
cling a central thatched area. The atmosphere lounging area and a good restaurant. Owner
is friendly and the place is not without charm; Peter Wirth is an old Western Desert hand
as a bonus, owner Abdelsadiq Elbadrmani, an and organises recommended trips through-
accomplished Bedouin musician, provides the out the area.
evening entertainment. It’s in the ambrosial Qasr el-Bawity Hotel & Restaurant (%3847 1880,
village of El-Agouz (see also opposite). in Cairo 02-753 8108; www.qasrelbawity.com; s/d half board
Ahmed’s Safari Camp (%/fax 3847 2090; www US$40/80, ste US$200/250; as) The relatively new
.ahmedsafaricamp.com; r per person E£45, with air-con E£95; Qasr el-Bawity offers some of the swankiest
ais) About 4km west of Bawiti, near the accommodation in Bahariya. With a finely
Siwa road, Ahmed’s is an old favourite among trained eye for environmentally friendly de-
travellers and trans-Africa groups. There are sign, this place has sumptuous rooms fin-
cool, pleasant, domed double rooms as well ished in cool stonework and sporting ornate
as more basic ones (some of which have air- domed roofs, fine furniture and arty, frilly
con, the rest fans), or you can sleep under the touches. There are two pools (one natural
stars on the roof (E£5). Simple meals (E£55) and one chlorinated) and the restaurant here
and beer are available, which is just as well is suitably good.
because it’s a long walk to town if you have Palma Village Hotel (%3849 6969/99, 012 468 1024;
no transport. There’s a hot spring a few steps s/d half board US$45/60; a) Along the desert road
from the hotel. between El-Agouz and Mandisha villages, this
Nature Camp (%012 337 5097, in Cairo 02-847 2184; place has a whiff of the Wild West about it
[email protected]; Bir al-Ghaba; r half board per (the stagecoach out front is a dead giveaway).
person E£70) At the foot of Gebel Dist, Nature If you can ignore the chintzy foyer, the rooms
Camp sets new standards for environmen- are great value, with wrought-iron furniture
tally focused budget accommodation. The and some of the nicest bathrooms in all of
peaceful cluster of candlelit and intricately Bahariya with, wait for it, real baths. It also
designed thatch huts looks out onto the ex- runs nearby horse stables that offer rides for
pansive desert beside Bir al-Ghaba. The food E£18 per hour.
is very good (meals E£25) and the owner,
Ashraf Lotfe, is a skilled desert hand. Only SIWA OASIS
some rooms have bathrooms attached. Staff %046 / pop 21,800
will drive you the 17km into Bawiti if you If, like most visitors to Siwa, you are driving
arrive without transport. the 300km south from the coast through
Under the Moon Camp (off Map p349; %3847 2838, the monotonously featureless and desolate
012 423 6580; www.helaltravel.com; El-Hayz; s/d half board desert, you’ll be rubbing your eyes thinking
E£90/160) Isolated in the small oasis hamlet of that your first sight of Siwa is an emerald
El-Hayz, 45km south of Bawiti, this neat camp mirage. Set against a backdrop of jagged
has several round mud-brick huts scattered sandstone hills, backed by the rolling silica
around a desert compound. The accommoda- ocean of the Great Sand Sea and carpeted
tion is very modest, but the pyramid-roofed thick with palm groves, this is easily the
abodes are cheerfully painted and well kept. most captivating oasis in Egypt. Here, an
The lovely Ain Gomma spring (opposite) is abundance of free-flowing freshwater springs
nearby, but apart from that, and the brilliant support hundreds of thousands of olive and
desert scenery, there’s not a whole lot to do fruit trees and date palms, which also shade
out here. The owners run safari trips and and cool the valley’s mud-brick villages as
arrange pick-ups from Bawiti. they rest concealed in the greenery.
WESTERN DESERT 356 W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • S i w a O a s i s lonelyplanet.com

Siwa’s very isolation helped protect a text, p346). This only helped increase the pres-
unique society that until today stands apart tige of the oracle and reinforce the political
from mainstream Egyptian culture. Originally power of the Amun priesthood.
settled by Berbers (roaming North African The oracle’s power, and with it Siwa’s
tribes), Siwa was still practically independ- fame, grew throughout the ancient world.
ent only a few hundred years ago. For centu- The young conqueror Alexander the Great led
ries the oasis had contact with only the few a small party on a perilous eight-day journey
caravan traders that passed along this way across the desert in 331 BC. It is believed that
via Qara, Qattara and Kerdassa (near Cairo), the priests of Amun, who was the supreme
and the occasional determined pilgrim seek- god of the Egyptian pantheon and later associ-
ing the famous Oracle of Amun. Even today ated with the Greek god Zeus, declared him to
local traditions and Siwi, the local Berber be a son of the god. On coins minted after this
language, dominate. time, Alexander was often portrayed with the
Siwa is less about rushing around any major ram’s horns associated with Amun. Ptolemaic
sights than it is about sitting back with a cup leaders, anxious to prove their credentials,
of tea or a sheesha and letting the halcyon days also made the trek. The tombs at Gebel al-
wash over you. It’s hard to feel pressured in Mawta (p359) are testament to the prosperity
a place where donkey carts still outnumber of the oasis during this period.
combustion engines. The hectares of palm The end of Roman rule, the collapse of the
groves invite casual strolling, numerous com- trade route and the gradual decline in the in-
fortable and cushioned cafés are perfect for fluence of oracles in general all contributed
chilling and meeting fellow travellers, and to Siwa’s gentle slide into obscurity. While
dozens of clear springs practically beg for you Christianity spread through most of Egypt,
to dip your toes. As increasing numbers of there is no evidence that it ever reached Siwa
independent travellers discover the tranquil and priests continued to worship Amun here
joys of this remote paradise, local inhabitants until the 6th century AD. The Muslim con-
are ever more mindful of retaining their tra- querors, who crossed the desert in 708, were
ditions and limiting the sort of uncontrolled defeated several times by the fierce Siwans.
‘development’ that has scarred more popular However, there was a cost to this isolation: it is
tourist destinations in Egypt. said that by 1203 the population had declined
to just 40 men, who moved from Aghurmi to
History found the new fortress-town of Shali. The oasis
Siwa has a long and ancient, ancient past: finally converted to Islam around the 12th
in late 2007 a human footprint was found century, and gradually built up wealth trading
that could date back three million years, mak- date and olive crops along the Nile Valley, and
ing it the oldest known human print in the with Libyan Fezzan and the Bedouins.
world. Flints discovered in the oasis further European travellers arrived at the end of
prove that it was inhabited in Palaeolithic and the 18th century – WG Browne in 1792 and
Neolithic times, but beyond that Siwa’s early Frederick Hornemann in 1798 – but most
history remains shrouded in mystery. were met with a hostile reception and several
The oldest monuments in the oasis, includ- narrowly escaped with their lives. The Siwans
ing the Temple of the Oracle, date from the thus gained a reputation for being fiercely
26th dynasty, when Egypt was invaded by independent and hostile to non-Muslim
the Assyrians. Siwa’s Oracle of Amun (p359) outsiders. Throughout the 19th century, the
was already famous then, and Egyptologists Egyptian government also had problems try-
suspect that it dates back to the earlier 21st dy- ing to gain the loyalty of the oasis. Siwa was
nasty, when the Amun priesthood and oracles again visited in WWII, when the British and
became prominent throughout Egypt. Italian/German forces chased each other in
Such was the fame of Siwa’s oracle that it and out of Siwa and Jaghbub, 120km west
threatened the Persians, who invaded Egypt in Libya, until Rommel turned his attention
in 525 BC and ended the 26th dynasty. One of elsewhere. By then the Siwans were politi-
the Western Desert’s most persistent legends cally incorporated into Egypt, but the oasis
is of the lost army of Persian king, Cambyses, remained physically isolated until an asphalt
which was sent to destroy the oracle and dis- road connected it to Marsa Matruh in the
appeared completely in the desert (see boxed 1980s. As a result, Siwans still speak their own
lonelyplanet.com W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • S i w a O a s i s 357

WESTERN DESERT
0 2 km
SIWA OASIS 0 1 mile

To Ain Qurayshat (23km);

Abu Shuruf (30km);
To Taghaghien Touristic Island Az-Zeitun (35km);
(8.5km); Taziry (9.5km); Ain Safi (38km)
Adrére Amellal; Kharmisah,
Bilad ar-Rum (13km); INFORMATION SLEEPING
Maraki (15km); Shiatta (60km); Hospital....................................1 B3
Desert Rose.............................8 A3
Qara Oasis (150km);
Marsa Matruh (303km) Fata Morgana Hotel.................9 D3
Lake SIGHTS & ACTIVITIES Mubarak Hotel.......................10 B3
Siwa
Cleopatra's Bath......................2 D2 Qasr az-Zaytouna..................11 C3
Fatnas Spring (Fantasy Island)..3 A3 Siwa Shali Resort................... 12 D3
Gebel al-Mawta.......................4 C2 Talaa Ranch Hotel................. 13 D3
Sherif Sand Bath......................5 D3
Talaa Ranch.........................(see 13) EATING
Temple of the Oracle...............6 D2 Tanta Waa Coffeeshop &
Temple of Umm Ubayd...........7 C2 Restaurant.........................14 D2

Aghurmi Lake
Zeitun
See Siwa Town & Shali
Map (p358) 7

Subukha
6

14 2
Mosque
1
3
13
Military Area
(No Access) Gebel
10 Dakrur
11
5

To Great Sand
Sea (2km); 9
Bir Wahed (8km)

12
8

distinct Berber dialect and have a strong local MONEY

culture, quite distinct from the rest of Egypt. Banque du Caire (Map p358; Siwa Town; h8.30am-
The oasis is now home to 20,000 Siwans and 2pm, also 5-8pm Oct-Apr) Purported to be the only all
just over 1000 Egyptians. mud-brick bank in the world, there’s an ATM here that
works more often than not. Located next to the police
Information station.
EMERGENCY
Tourist police (Map p358; %460 2047; Siwa Town) PERMITS
A permit is needed to venture off the beaten
INTERNET ACCESS track from Siwa, but this is easily arranged
El-Jawhara International Call (Map p358; %460 by local guides. Mahdi Hweiti at the Siwa
1180; Sidi Suleyman, Siwa Town; per hr E£10; h8am- tourist office (p358) will arrange permissions
1am) Has three computers and what might just be the quite quickly (but not on Friday), at the fixed
fastest connection in town. Just. rate of US$5, plus an extra E£11 for the local
El-Negma Internet Centre (Map p358; %460 0761; Mukhabarat (Intelligence Police) office. The
59 central market sq, Siwa Town; per hr E£10; h9am- same rate applies for the permit needed to
midnight) Also reasonably good computers. travel from Siwa to Bahariya. You’ll need
Siwa Oasis Net (Map p358; %460 2049; central your passport.
market sq, Siwa Town; h10am-2.30pm & 6-11pm) Note that most permits will be valid for
one day only, and although overnight trips
MEDICAL SERVICES can be easily arranged, they are not always
Hospital (Map p357; %460 0459; Sadat St, Siwa Town) permitted.
Only for emergencies.
Pharmacy Al-Ansar (Map p358; %460 1310; central POST & TELEPHONE
market sq & Sharia Sadat, Siwa Town; h8am-2pm & Main post office (Map p358; behind Arous al-Waha
4pm-2am) Hotel, Siwa Town; h8am-2pm Sat-Thu)
WESTERN DESERT 358 W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • S i w a O a s i s lonelyplanet.com

Telephone centrale (Map p358; Siwa Town; h24hr) be rented nearly everywhere. In Siwa Town
Located at the beginning of the Marsa Matruh road. there’s a good ethnographic museum and the
old fort of Shali, as well as the ancient remains
TOURIST INFORMATION at Aghurmi and the Gebel al-Mawta. Day trips
Tourist office (Map p358; %460 1338; mahdi by jeep to the surrounding villages, the desert
[email protected]; Siwa Town; h9am-2pm Sat- or to Bir Wahed, a cold freshwater lake and
Thu, plus 5-8pm Oct-Apr) The local tourist officer Mahdi a hot spring in the dunes, can easily be ar-
Hweiti is very helpful and knowledgeable and has plenty ranged. Or you can go further and arrange an
of information about travelling in the oases. He also sells overnight safari into the Great Sand Sea.
an informative local guide (E£20) and can help arrange
trips to some of the surrounding villages or the desert. He SIWA TOWN
can be reached on his mobile (%010 546 1992). In the Siwa is a pleasant little town centred around
evening, you can watch an interesting documentary about a market square, where roads lead off into the
Siwa in English, French or German. palm groves in nearly every direction. Around
the corner from the local council offices is the
Sights & Activities small House of Siwa Museum (Map p358; adult/student
Even though there are a number of fascinating E£10/5; h10am-noon Sun-Thu), which contains a
sights hidden in the dense palm greenery of modest display of traditional clothing, jew-
this oasis, the main attraction in Siwa remains ellery and crafts typical of the oasis. It was
its serene ambience. Strolling through the inspired by a Canadian diplomat who feared
palm groves or relaxing over a cup of tea as that Siwan culture and its mud-brick houses
the townspeople go about their languid paces would disappear in a flood of poured cement
seems to be the order of the day. Occasional and modernity. You can arrange to see the
visits to one of the wonderful springs in the museum through the tourist office or find
area offer further distractions, and bicycles the custodian at the nearby Town Council
are a suitably paced form of transport that can Building (Map p358).

0 200 m
SIWA TOWN & SHALI 0 0.1 miles

To Sidi Jaafar (12km);

Bilad ar-Rum (15km);
Marsa Matruh (300km)
INFORMATION EATING
Banque du Caire...................1 B1 Abdu's Restaurant......................21 B2
El Jawhara International Call..2 B2 33
Al Babinshal Restaurant...........(see 12)
El Negma Internet Centre.....3 B2 29 7 Alexander Restaurant.................22 B2
Main Post Office..................4 B1 8
14 Dunes Restaurant.......................23 C3
Pharmacy Al-Ansar...............5 B3 37 East-West Restaurant.................24 B2
Siwa Oasis Net....................6 C2 Kenooz Siwa............................(see 18)
9 1 4
Telephone Centrale..............7 B1 New Star Restaurant & Coffee
Tourist Office.......................8 B1 Shop......................................25 C2
Tourist Police........................9 B1 13 Nour al-Waha............................26 C2
To Temple of the Sahara Café & Restaurant..........27 B3
11 Oracle (1.8km)
10
To Fatnas 32 DRINKING
i

Spring (6km)
ilan

25 Campione Cafe..........................28 B2
Azmi K

19
King Fuad Dreamers....................................29 B1
Sa

Sid Mosque
da

i Su 22 20 Ebad Alrahman...........................30 B2
t

leyma38
n Zeytouna....................................31 B2
16
39 Subukha
24 2 21
3 30 34 18 SHOPPING
28 Government Handcraft Shop......32 B2
Central
36 Market 26 Nada Studio Lab.........................33 B1
12 Square Siwa Traditional Handicraft........34 B2
Fortress 31 35
of Shali 6
SIGHTS & ACTIVITIES 17
TRANSPORT
House of Siwa Museum..............10 B2 Torr
5 23 ar Bicycle Repair Shop....................35 C2
Town Council Building...............11 A2 Bicycle Repair Shop....................36 B2
Bus Stop & West Delta Bus Company
SLEEPING Ticket Office...........................37 B1
Al Babinshal...............................12 B2 Microbuses to Marsa Matruh.....38 B2
Alexander Hotel..........................13 B1 Motorbike Rental.......................39 B2
27
Arous al-Waha Hotel..................14 B1 Service Taxis to Marsa Matruh..(see 21)
Cleopatra Hotel..........................15 B3
Kelany Hotel...............................16 B2 15
Palm Trees Hotel........................17 C2
Shali Lodge................................18 C2
Siwa Safari Paradise...................19 C2 To Gebel
Yousef Hotel..............................20 B2 Dakrur (2.8km)
lonelyplanet.com W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • S i w a O a s i s 359

WESTERN DESERT
east of the present town of Siwa. It was here
RESPECTING LOCAL TRADITION that in 331 BC Alexander the Great consulted
Siwans are very proud of their traditions, the oracle (see p356) at the 26th-dynasty
which are part of what makes the place Temple of the Oracle (Map p357; adult/student E£20/10;
so unique. They are particularly sensitive h9am-4pm). Built in the 6th century BC, prob-
where female modesty is concerned. The ably on top of an earlier temple, it was dedi-
least visitors can do to help preserve Siwa’s cated to Amun (occasionally referred to as
culture is to respect local sensibilities and Zeus or Jupiter Ammon) and was a powerful
act accordingly. Modest dress is appreciated symbol of the town’s wealth. One of the most
and women travellers in particular should revered oracles in the ancient Mediterranean,
make sure they cover their upper arms and its power was such that some rulers sought its
their legs, and wear baggy T-shirts over advice while others sent armies to destroy it
bathing suits when taking a dip in any of (see boxed text, p346).
the numerous springs. Do not, as the tourist Today the Temple of the Oracle sits in the
office puts it, show ‘displays of affection’ northwest corner of the ruins of Aghurmi
in public. village. Though treasure hunters have been
at work here and the buttressed temple was
poorly restored in the 1970s, it remains an
The centre of the town is dominated by evocative site, steeped in history. Surrounded
the spectacular organic shapes of the re- by the ruins of Aghurmi, it has awesome views
mains of the 13th-century mud-brick fortress over the oasis palm-tops.
of Shali (Map p358). Built from a material About 200m further along the track stands
known locally as kershef (large chunks of the remains of the almost totally ruined Temple
salt from the lake just outside town, mixed of Umm Ubayd (Map p357), also dedicated to
with rock and plastered in local clay), the Amun. This was originally connected to the
labyrinth of huddled buildings was originally Temple of the Oracle by a causeway and was
four or five storeys high and housed hun- used during oracle rituals. Early drawings
dreds of people. For centuries, few outsiders have revealed that the structure was built
were admitted inside – and even fewer came by Nectanebo II during the 30th dynasty.
back out to tell the tale. But three days of Nineteenth-century travellers saw more of
rain in 1926 caused more damage than any it than we can: a Siwan governor in need of
invader had managed and, over the last dec- building material blew up the temple in 1896
ades, inhabitants moved to newer and more to construct the town’s modern mosque and
comfortable houses with running water and police building. Today only part of a wall cov-
electricity. Now only a few buildings around ered with inscriptions survives.
the edges are occupied or used for storage,
including the mosque (Map p358) with its GEBEL AL-MAWTA
old, chimney-shaped minaret. Those who A small hill at the northern end of Siwa Town,
wander around the outskirts of the fort are Gebel al-Mawta (Map p357; adult/student E£20/10;
likely to be rewarded with glimpses of life as h9am-4pm) – whose name means Mountain
it used to be; there’s an old donkey-powered of the Dead – is honeycombed with rock
oil press back here, and you should listen tombs, most dating back to the 26th dynasty,
out for the clanging of a real-life metal Ptolemaic and Roman times. Only 1km from
smith plying his trade. the centre of town, the tombs were used by the
With each rainfall more of these buildings Siwans as shelters when the Italians bombed
disintegrate. However, Siwans are beginning to the oasis during WWII. Many new tombs were
value the uniqueness of their heritage, as well discovered at this time but were not properly
as the need to preserve it. Recently authori- excavated. In his book Siwa Oasis, Ahmed
ties have been working with an international Fakhry recalls British soldiers paying Siwan
NGO to reinforce what’s left of the fortress families a few piastres to cut away large chunks
using traditional building techniques. of tomb paintings to keep as souvenirs.
Despite the damage, some paintings have
AGHURMI survived. The best are in the Tomb of Si Amun,
Before Shali was founded in the 13th century, where beautifully coloured reliefs portray the
Siwa’s main settlement was at Aghurmi, 4km dead man, thought to be a wealthy Greek
WESTERN DESERT 360 W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • S i w a O a s i s lonelyplanet.com

landowner or merchant, making offerings and

praying to Egyptian gods. Also interesting are WARNING
the unfinished Tomb of Mesu-Isis, with a beauti- To oasis dwellers, a woman walking alone in
ful depiction of cobras in red and blue above palm gardens is provocative and she could
the entrance; the Tomb of Niperpathot, with in- find herself in trouble. Single women should
scriptions and crude drawings in the same either avoid the palms or find a companion
reddish ink you can see on modern Siwan to stroll with.
pottery; and finally the Tomb of the Crocodile,
whose badly deteriorating wall paintings
include a yellow crocodile representing the spring is a surreal experience. The thorns in
god Sobek. this rose are the mosquitoes that bite at sunset.
Because it’s far from town, women can wear
HOT & COLD SPRINGS bathing suits here without offending locals.
Siwa has no shortage of active, bubbling Bir Wahed can only be reached by 4WD, so if
springs hidden among its palm groves. you don’t have your own, you’ll need to hire a
Following the track that leads to the Temple of guide and car. Permits are needed to visit Bir
the Oracle and continuing past the Temple of Wahed (see p357).
Umm Ubayd, will lead you to the most famous
spring, Cleopatra’s Bath (Spring of the Sun; Map PALM GARDENS
p357). The crystal-clear natural spring water One of Siwa’s greatest attractions is the oasis
gurgles up into a large stone pool, which is itself, which boasts more than 300,000 palm
a popular bathing spot for locals. Women trees, 70,000 olive trees and a great many fruit
should think twice about swimming here dur- orchards. The vegetation is sustained by more
ing the day, and if they decide to brave the than 300 freshwater springs and streams, and
stares then they should only bathe with their the area attracts an amazing variety of bird
clothes on. There are changing rooms at the life, including quail and falcons.
nearby Tanta Waa café.
There’s a similar but slightly more secluded OUTLYING VILLAGES
pool at Fatnas Spring (Map p357), the small is- There are a few tumbledown villages about
land in the salty Birket Siwa (Lake Siwa) acces- 15km northwest of Siwa Town (all shown off
sible across a narrow causeway. Nicknamed the Siwa Oasis map, p357). Kharmisah has five
‘Fantasy Island’ for its idyllic setting, the natural springs and is renowned for the qual-
pool is about 6km from Siwa Town, and sur- ity of its olive gardens. Bilad ar-Rum (City of the
rounded by palm trees and lush greenery. Romans) has about 100 tombs cut into the rock
Although it is a safer place for a swim than of the nearby hills and the ruins of a stone tem-
Cleopatra’s Bath, women should not swim ple, which is rumoured to be the final resting
alone and, again, should leave their bikinis place of Alexander the Great. Both are Berber
for the Red Sea beaches. There’s a small café villages and can be reached by local bus.
among the palms, which is good for sitting About 2km west of here is Maraqi, where
and puffing on a sheesha, or drinking a cold Lianna Souvaltzis, a Greek archaeologist,
beer if it’s available. This is an idyllic place to claimed in 1995 to have found the tomb of
watch the sunset. A ministry of agriculture Alexander the Great. Her findings proved
project to try and improve the lake’s drainage controversial and the Egyptian authorities
has left the ‘island’ high and dry, so that the revoked her permit and closed the site.
café now looks out over salty mudflats rather Sixty kilometres west of Siwa Town, the
than water. town of Shiatta sits lapping at the edge of the
A favourite excursion among local guides is Great Sand Sea. There’s a salt spring here,
the cold freshwater lake at Bir Wahed (off Map thought to be all that’s left of a lake that once
p357), 15km away on the edge of the Great reached all the way to Siwa Town, where
Sand Sea. Once over the top of a high dune, an ancient Egyptian boat was discovered
you come to a hot spring, the size of a large lying 7m down, possibly used to sail to the
Jacuzzi, where sulphurous water bubbles in a Temple of the Oracle. These days, this area
pool and runs off to irrigate a garden. Cooling is mainly used by Bedouin tribes for grazing
down in the lake, and then watching the sun livestock and has some first-rate views of the
setting over the dunes while soaking in a hot desert mountains.
lonelyplanet.com W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • S i w a O a s i s 361

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There are more springs to the east of Other popular half-day itineraries include
Siwa Town (shown off the Siwa Oasis map, a tour of the springs Ain Qurayshat, Abu
p357). Ain Qurayshat is 27km out from the Shuruf, Az-Zeitun and Ain Safi (E£50 per
town and has the largest free-flowing spring person); and a tour of Siwa Town and its en-
in the oasis. Abu Shuruf, a clean spring said virons (Temple of the Oracle, Gebel al-Mawta,
by locals to have healing properties, is 7km Cleopatra’s Bath, Shali fortress and Fatnas;
further east from Ain Qurayshat in the next E£30). Overnight trips vary in length accord-
palm thicket. The clear water here is about ing to destination but a popular one-night trip
3m deep and spills into Lake Zeitun, another is to Qara Oasis (E£300 to E£500 per vehicle,
huge saltwater lake. Another 5km brings you depending on whether asphalt or desert track
to Az-Zeitun, an abandoned mud-brick village is taken). Most trips are done by 4WD, so
beaten by the sand and wind that sits alone ensure that the vehicle is roadworthy before
on the sandy plain. Hundreds of Roman- you set out and, as with any desert trip, that
era tombs have been discovered about 2km you have enough water.
beyond Az-Zeitun and are currently under Camels were recently introduced to the
excavation, although little of interest has so oasis to do desert trips. Sherif Fahmy of the
far been found. Talaa Ranch (Map p357; %010 588 6003; talaranchsiwa@
From Az-Zeitun, another 3km brings hotmail.com; Gebel Dakrur) can arrange camel tours
you to Ain Safi, the last human vestige be- to watch the sunset from the sand dunes or
fore the overwhelming wall of desert dunes a longer desert safari, though prices are a bit
that stretches for hundreds of kilometres, all steep at E£350 for a day and night or E£150
the way south to Al-Kharga Oasis. Some 30 per half-day. Abdul at Shali Camel Safaris
Bedouin families live at Ain Safi. Ranch (%010 194 1653) also organises camel
To visit these sights you’ll need your own tours, with all meals included, at a slightly
sturdy vehicle. Mahdi Hweiti at the tourist lower cost.
office (p358), and almost every restaurant
and hotel in town, organises trips. None of Festivals & Events
these sights, with the exception of Shiatta, Gebel Dakrur is the scene of the annual Siyaha
require permits. festival. For three days around the October
full moon, thousands of Siwans gather to
Tours celebrate the date harvest, renewing friend-
Almost all restaurants and hotels in Siwa offer ships and settling any quarrels that might
tours, ranging from half a day in the desert have broken out over the previous year. All
around Siwa Town to a full five- or six-day Siwans, no matter what their financial or so-
safari. Siwa Safari Paradise (p362) arranges cial standing, eat together at a huge feast after
tours using its own fleet of 4WDs, though this the noon prayer each day during the festival.
is an expensive option. The Palm Trees Hotel The festival is intertwined with Sufism, and
(p362) and Abdu’s Restaurant (p364) have each evening, hundreds of men form a circle
established a good reputation for their trips. and join together in a zikr, a long session of
The tourist office (p358) can also be a great dancing, swaying and singing repetitive songs
help in organising tours around the oasis. in praise of God. Siwan women do not attend
All desert trips require permits, which cost the festivities, although girls up to about the
US$5 plus E£11 and are usually obtained by age of 12 are present until sunset. Each year
your guide from the tourist office. Prices and hundreds of non-Siwans – Egyptians and
itineraries vary, but one of the most popu- foreigners – attend the festival.
lar trips takes you to the desert hot spring Once a year, just after the corn harvest in
at Bir Wahed, on the edge of the Great Sand late summer, the small tomb shrine of Sidi
Sea. Here you can have a simple meal or tea, Suleiman, behind the King Fuad Mosque in
then move on to the nearby spring-fed lake, the centre of Siwa Town, is the scene of a
where, in the summer, you can take a dip. moulid (Saints’ festival), known in Siwi as
Usually you will do a spot of dune driving, the Moulid at-Tagmigra. Banners announce
stop at fossil sites and see some fantastic the moulid, and zikrs are performed outside
desert vistas before returning to Siwa. This the tomb.
half-day trip costs about E£80 per person plus Occasionally on Thursday nights, after the
permission costs. evening prayer, local Sufis of the Arusiya order
WESTERN DESERT 362 W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • S i w a O a s i s Book your stay at lonelyplanet.com/hotels

gather near the tomb shrine for a zikr and they breakfast E£60-80) A modern hotel in a good lo-
don’t mind the odd foreigner watching. cation, the Kelany has 10 sparkling rooms,
spic-and-span bathrooms, hot and cold water
Sleeping and friendly management, though it comes up
Siwa has a great collection of places to bed a bit short on the character front.
down in, with everything from competitively Arous al-Waha Hotel (Map p358; %460 0028; s/d
priced budget pads to dazzling top-end op- E£51/63; a) If it wasn’t for the sand-coloured
tions. The choices here are expanding yearly, paint job, we’d swear this old hotel had es-
and the competition helps keep standards caped from a communist housing block. The
high and prices down. Many midrange and rooms at this former government rest house
top-end sleeping options can also be found are austere, orderly and spacious, though the
further afield in Siwa Oasis, around Gebel management seems a little bewildered by
Dakrur and Sidi Jaafar. walk-in guests. It’s opposite the tourist office,
The police here are jittery about people at the beginning of the Marsa Matruh road.
camping close to town. If you really want to Desert Rose (Map p357; %012 440 8164; ali_siwa@
avoid other people, you’re better off organis- hotmail.com; s/d/tr E£60/90/125; s) Overlooking
ing a trip to the desert with one of the many the magnificent dunes that stretch out to the
local operators (see p361). southeast of Siwa, this friendly and cosy little
hotel has creatively decorated, spotless rooms
SIWA TOWN in a funky octagonal building. Extremely good
Budget value, it has its own clear pool of natural spring
Yousef Hotel (Map p358; %460 0678; central market water, a roof terrace for sunset adulation, in-
sq; dm/d without bathroom E£8/16, d E£24) With the door and outdoor fireplaces and a smatter-
cheapest beds in town, Yousef is perenni- ing of cushioned chill-out areas. Guests can
ally full with backpacking budgeters. The prepare their own meals in the kitchen or eat
rooms are a bit tattered and kept barely above food prepared by the staff. The silence is only
minimum hygiene levels, but the four-storey disturbed by the barking of dogs.
rooftop has great views of the oasis and a
kitchen that guests are free to use. Noise can Midrange & Top End
be an issue. Mubarak Hotel (Map p357; %460 0883; s/d E£150/200;
Palm Trees Hotel (Map p358; %460 1703; salahali2@ a) Based in the sports complex, this modern,
yahoo.com; Sharia Torrar; s/d without bathroom E£15/25, s/d pink, curving monolith has rooms perpetually
E£35/45, bungalows E£50) This deservedly popular kept in spotless condition, access to a gym,
budget hotel has sufficiently tidy rooms, all squash courts and sauna. Pity it’s fairly char-
with screened windows, fans and balconies. acterless, usually empty and isolated at the
The shady, tranquil garden with date-palm southern end of town.
furniture is delightful (but mosquito inten- Siwa Safari Paradise (Map p358; %460 1590; www
sive), and the few ground-level bungalows .siwaparadise.com; s/d bungalow half board US$35/49, with
have porches spilling onto the greenery. air-con US$40/55, ste US$60/75; as) Laid out along
Breakfast costs E£5. a maze of garden paths, this three-star resort
Cleopatra Hotel (Map p358; %460 0421; www mainly attracts northern Europeans looking
.cleopatra-siwa.net; s/d E£18/31, with balcony E£35/45) A to sunbake by the natural spring pool. The
respectable budget option at the southern decoration is quite tacky but the rooms are
end of town. While the cheaper rooms in the cool and comfortable, so it is not a bad option
main building are a little scruffy, the quieter if other recommended hotels are full.
building out back is much neater and has Shali Lodge (Map p358; %460 1299; [email protected];
respectable, balconied rooms. Sharia Subukha; s/d US$45/60; s) This tiny, beautiful
Alexander Hotel (Map p358; %460 0512; s/d E£20/30, mud-brick hotel, owned by environmentalist
with air-con E£30/60; a) Another humble ode to Mounir Neamatallah, nestles in a lush palm
concrete and tile, the Alexander has typically grove about 300m from the main square. The
austere rooms, clean sheets and bathrooms palms are a feature of the building wherever
that have seen better days. However, it does possible and the seven large, extremely com-
boast the cheapest air-con abodes in town. fortable rooms have lots of curving mud-brick
Kelany Hotel (Map p358; %460 1052, 012 403 9218; goodness, massive exposed-brick bathrooms
[email protected]; central market sq; r E£50-70, with and lie arranged courtyard-style around a
Book your stay at lonelyplanet.com/hotels W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • S i w a O a s i s 363

WESTERN DESERT
small pool. Tasteful and quiet, this is how small its own oasis, with stunning views over the
hotels should be. Breakfast not included. salt lake of Birket Siwa and the dunes of the
Al-Babinshal (Map p358; %460 1499; s/d US$45/60) Great Sand Sea beyond. It is a truly unique
Literally attached to the fortress of Shali, this place, built by environmentalist Mounir
place continues the ecolodge footprint left by Neamatallah out of kershef, and using re-
Shali Lodge – and Adrére Amellal – owner vived traditional building techniques. It’s a
Mounir Neamatallah. The cunning architects real getaway from the regular pace of Egyptian
have seamlessly grafted this mud-brick hotel life: mobile phones are banned outside the
onto the front of Shali fort, and a maze of tun- rooms and there is no electricity, with the
nels and stairways connects the spacious and gardens lit by torches and the rooms by can-
cool cavelike rooms, making it impossible to dlelight. It offers the ultimate in spartan chic,
tell where the hotel ends and the fort begins. as gourmet dinners are eaten under the stars
Entirely made from the same materials as the or in salt-encrusted chambers. The swimming
original fort, each intimate abode has wood- pool is an ancient stone natural spring and the
floor panelling, traditional wooden-shuttered rooms and suites are palatial, yet simple and
windows and exposed palm-log supports. beautiful. Together with inventive food that
Some locals, however, are not convinced that uses produce from its own organic garden
this augmentation of their town’s landmark is and the feel-good factor of environmentally
necessarily for the better. sound luxury, Adrére Amellal has featured
in countless travel and style magazines and
SIDI JAAFAR is one of the most innovative places to stay
Taziry Ecolodge (off Map p357; %02-3337 0842, ext 115, in the country.
012 340 8492; Gaary; low season per person full board from
€70; s) This lovely hotel was designed and GEBEL DAKRUR
built by its friendly owners, an artist and an Qasr az-Zaytouna (Map p357; %/fax 460 0037; d with-
engineer, both from Alexandria. The large out bathroom E£100, s/d E£120/150) This place has
natural-material rooms are decorated with simple, clean rooms with fans, set in a large,
local crafts and Bedouin rugs, and have their hushed garden. The rooms on the 1st floor
own bathroom. Tranquil and laid-back, with have pleasant views over the garden. It’s run
no electricity and a natural spring pool over- by a German–Siwan couple.
looking the lake, it is a great place to unwind Fata Morgana Hotel (Map p357; %460 0237, 010
and experience Siwa’s magic. 294 5850; s/d E£150/200; s) The Fata Morgana has
oAdrére Amellal (off Map p357; %in Cairo several cool and spacious rooms, jazzed up
02-736 7879, 02-738 1327; www.adrereamellal.net; Sidi Jaafar, by tall, domed ceilings and curving arches.
White Mountain; s/d incl all meals, drinks & desert excursions The two-storey, stonework building here stays
US$336/448; s) Backed by the dramatic White amazingly chilled in the desert heat, and the
Mountain (called Adrére Amellal in Siwi), small, clear pool will help you cool down if
this impeccable desert retreat lies coddled in you’re still breaking a sweat. Each chamber

SAND BATHING
If you thought a soak in a hot spring was invigorating, wait until you try a dip in one of the
scalding-hot sand baths of Gebel Dakrur mountain, several kilometres southeast of Siwa Town.
From July to September, people flock here from all over the world to take turns being immersed
up to their necks in a bath of very hot sand for up to 20 minutes at a time. Local doctors claim
that a treatment regime of three to five days can cure rheumatism and arthritis – and judging
by the number of repeat customers they get they might just be onto something. There are
several places around the western slope of the mountain where you can get therapeutically
sand-dunked; Sherif sand bath (Map p357) has a good reputation. Expect to pay around E£60
for each medicinal dip, which includes several necessary hours of recovery while sipping tea
(though the tea is optional).
The mountain also supplies the oasis with the reddish-brown pigment used to decorate Siwan
pottery. Siwans believe that the mountain is haunted and claim that afrit (spirits) can be heard
singing in the gardens at night.
WESTERN DESERT 364 W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • S i w a O a s i s lonelyplanet.com

has a balcony with great views of either Gebel good. At night sheeshas are available for E£5,
Dakrur mountain or the desert expanse – top and sometimes there is live music.
marks in the bang-for-buck department. Abdu’s Restaurant (Map p358; %460 1243; central
Siwa Shali Resort (Map p357; %010 111 9730; www market sq; dishes E£5-25; h8.30am-midnight) Before
.siwashaliresort.com; s/d half board US$55/65, ste US$100; internet and mobile phones, there were places
as) One of the few places in the deserts like Abdu’s – a village hub where people gath-
that earns its ‘resort’ label, this self-contained ered nightly to meet, catch up and swap sto-
village of traditionally styled bungalows ries. This is the longest-running restaurant
snakes its way along a 500m spring-fed pool. in town and remains the best eating option
Nearly everything here is sand-coloured and around, with a huge menu of breakfast, pasta,
subdued, almost to the point of being dull, traditional dishes, vegetable stews, couscous,
but it offers all the mod cons, a restaurant, roasted chickens and fantastic pizza whipped
fitness facilities, a Bedouin-style café and to your table by the efficient service.
gift shops. Tanta Waa Coffeeshop & Restaurant (Map p357;
Tala Ranch Hotel (Map p357; %010 588 6003; www. %010 472 9539; meals E£7-25; h8am-late) This
talaranch-hotel.com; per person with breakfast E£450) This super-chilled and creatively clad mud-brick
newcomer offers a very different experience café at Cleopatra’s Bath is the perfect place for
of Siwa, with six stylish and comfortable a cool drink or tasty meal in between splashes
rooms on the edge of the desert. It prom- in the spring. The food here is surprisingly
ises generous helpings of hush and is as good, with a small selection of salads, pastas,
relaxing as things get, with the camels, the meat dishes and fruit smoothies. The lasagne
desert and the wind as the only distractions. alone, which follows a genuine Italian recipe,
Sherif can organise camel trips or safaris is worth the trip out here (E£12). Slung with
for guests, while his wife, Siham, prepares hammocks and with a background of funky
commendable Egyptian food served in a tunes (it also occasionally holds evening par-
Bedouin tent (four-course dinner E£80). ties), it’s easy to while away an entire day at
this haven.
Eating Dunes Restaurant (Map p358; %010 653 0372; Sharia
Many of the restaurants and cafés in Siwa Torrar; dishes E£8-25) With tables set under the palm
cater to tourists. With the exception of the trees and a large menu covering everything
delicious restaurant at the Adrére Amellal, from herbal tea to couscous, Dunes is just
and the home-cooked food at places such as another place to hang out and relax. The
Taziry and Talaa Ranch, which is for guests usual traveller stalwarts (from pancakes to
only, most restaurants offer a similar menu smoothies) can be found here, as well as local
of simple dishes, and the service and quality specialities such as stuffed pigeon (by special
can vary from day to day. order). Sheeshas are de rigueur and the owner
East-West Restaurant (Map p358; dishes E£4-12) can arrange special evenings with traditional
Named after the historical divide between Siwan music.
the two parts of Siwa Town, this restaurant Al-Babinshal Restaurant (Map p358; %460 1499;
serves a cheaper, more pedestrian version of meals E£8-35) On the roof of the hotel of the same
Abdu’s menu and has lethargic service. name, this might just be the most romantic
Alexander Restaurant (Map p358; off central mar- dining spot found in the oases. Moodily lit
ket sq; dishes E£5-15) Alexander serves the usual in the evenings, it’s practically attached to
budget-restaurant fare, with pizzas, veggie the fortress of Shali and has sweeping views
stews, very good chicken and, innovatively for over all of Siwa. The food is prepared by
Siwa, curries. Service can be slow here too, but the same chef as at Kenooz Siwa (below),
the food usually arrives with a smile. but unfortunately Al-Babinshal Restaurant
Nour al-Waha (Map p358; %460 0293; Sharia Subukha; does not quite live up to the promise of its
dishes E£5-20) A popular hang-out in a palm chic ambience.
grove opposite Shali Lodge, Nour al-Waha Kenooz Siwa (Map p358; %460 1299; Sharia Subukha;
has shady tables, and plenty of tea and games dishes E£8-35) This café-restaurant on the roof
on hand for those who just want to while away terrace of the Shali Lodge is a great place to
the day in the shade. The food is a mixture of hang out with a mint tea or a cold drink, al-
Egyptian and Western and while it couldn’t though the quality of the food, once the best in
be called gourmet, it is generally fresh and town, has definitely deteriorated of late.
lonelyplanet.com W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • S i w a O a s i s 365

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GAY SIWA?
Much attention has been paid to Siwa’s unique history of intimate male relations. Back when
Siwa’s citizens still lived in Shali fort, young men between the ages of 20 and 40 were expected
to spend their nights outside the fortress to tend to the fields and protect the town from attack.
These men of Siwa had a notorious reputation, not only for their bravery (they were known as
zaggalah, or ‘club bearers’), but for their love of palm wine, music and openly gay relations.
Single-sex marriages were still practised in Siwa right up until WWII, although they had been
outlawed in Egypt decades earlier.
Even though Siwa has been listed as a place to visit in several gay travel directories, the situa-
tion today is quite different. Residents of Siwa vehemently deny that local gay men exist in their
town, and international travellers coming to Siwa in hope of ‘hooking up’ have been faced with
increasingly homophobic sentiment. Siwan men are not amused at being propositioned by pass-
ing strangers – they are much more likely than foreigners to bear the brunt of antigay attitudes.
Violent attacks on local men accused of homosexuality are not unheard of.

There are several other cosy palm-garden suited for a day trip or picnic. You’ll need your
restaurants around Siwa serving the usual own transport to get here.
combination of Egyptian and Western Right in town, Zeytouna (Map p358; central market
fare, including: sq) and Ebad Alrahman (Map p358; central market sq) are
Sahara Café & Restaurant (Map p357; %010 856 two cafés facing each other at opposite ends
9532; meals E£7-20) A nice place to chill, if you can find of the square and taking turns nightly to fill
someone to serve you. up with locals smoking sheesha, downing tea
New Star Restaurant & Coffee Shop (Map p358; and slapping backgammon pieces with trium-
%460 0293; Sharia Subukha; dishes E£8-30) Also has as phant vigour. Their tables often spill out onto
a small shop selling traditional crafts. the town square.

Drinking Shopping
Many of the cafés around town are no-name Siwa’s rich culture is well represented by
places where Siwan men gather to watch the abundance of traditional crafts that are
TV and chat, but no alcohol is served. The still made for local use as well as for tour-
cafeteria at Fatnas Spring (p360) sometimes ists. Unfortunately, an estimated 98% of the
has beer. older artefacts have become collectors’ items
Campione Cafe (Map p358; %460 1719; coffee E£3- and been sold to collectors worldwide. These
6; h9am-midnight) Recently opened by an en- pieces of Siwan heritage may be lost, but
terprising Alexandrian, we can’t argue with young Siwan craftsmen are slowly starting to
its slogan: ‘life is too short for bad coffee’. It make the pieces again.
serves imported Italian coffee made with a Siwans love to adorn themselves and
bona-fide imported espresso machine and they are second only to the Nubians in
prepared any way you like it. Latte anyone? their quest for the biggest and most ornate
Dreamers (Map p358; opposite Arous al-Waha Hotel) pieces of jewellery to be found in Egypt.
Lively café open late where you can smoke a Siwan women only wear the heavy silver
sheesha on an old-fashioned sofa while watch- jewellery on special occasions these days,
ing TV with locals, or drink a juice listening but several interesting pieces are still made.
to reggae music. Siwan wedding dresses are famous for their
Taghaghien Touristic Island (off Map p357; %921 red, orange, green and black embroidery,
0060; admission E£10) If you’re desperate for a beer, which is often embellished with shells and
this small island 12km northwest of Siwa beads. The black silk asherah nazitaf and the
Town and connected by a causeway is one of white cotton asherah namilal dresses can be
the few places selling the amber nectar (for a found at the shops.
whopping E£25 a bottle). There is some hum- Baskets woven from date-palm fronds are
ble accommodation and a restaurant here, but still made here by women and girls. You can
its many shaded tables and chairs, paddleboat spot old baskets by their finer workmanship
rentals and sweet sunset vistas make it better and the use of silk or leather instead of vinyl
WESTERN DESERT 366 W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • S i w a O a s i s lonelyplanet.com

and polyester. The tarkamt, a woven plate that Matruh (E£12, four hours). These leave at
features a red leather centre, is traditionally 7am, 10am and 10pm. There’s an extra daily
used for serving sweets, the larger tghara is bus leaving at 3pm in the winter and 5pm in
used for storing bread, and smaller baskets the summer. The 7am and 10am buses also
include the aqarush and the red-and-green connect with buses to Cairo at Marsa Matruh
silk-tasselled nedibash. (1½-hour transit, if you’re lucky). There’s a
Local clays are mixed with straw and daily service to Marsa Matruh only at 1pm.
coloured with pigment from Gebel Dakrur Microbuses going to Marsa Matruh leave
to make pottery water jugs, drinking cups from the main square near the King Fuad
and incense burners. The maklay, a round- Mosque (Map p358). They are more frequent
bottomed cup, and the adjra, used for washing but not as comfortable as the West Delta Bus.
hands, are among the most popular buys, as Tickets cost the same.
are timjamait (incense burners).
There has been an explosion of craft shops SERVICE TAXI
around Siwa Town in recent years catering There is no service-taxi station, but those
to the lucrative tourist demand for this tradi- making the trip to Marsa Matruh (E£12) leave
tional handiwork. Most sell very similar items, from the area in front of Abdu’s Restaurant
but a good place to get an idea of prices and (p364). The taxis (mostly microbuses) tend to
what’s available is at the Government Handcraft leave in the early morning or after sunset, but
Shop (Map p358; opposite mosque; h9am-4pm Sun-Thu). If ask around to confirm this.
you blink, however, you might miss its erratic A new road linking the oases of Siwa and
opening hours. From there you can wander Bahariya began construction in 2005, but funds
through the many other handicrafts shops and dried up the following year and any finishing
stalls in town to compare the quality of the date is now a distant mirage. The old road,
craftsmanship, the range of what’s available which passes through some jaw-dropping
and prices. Happy haggling. desert landscapes, is asphalted, though you
One of the better handicrafts shops in Siwa, can’t tell by the awful shape it’s in, and a permit
run by Ali Abd Allah, is the Siwa Traditional (see p357) is needed to drive along it. In win-
Handicraft (Map p358; %460 1063, 010 304 1191), ter a police escort on this route is also usually
around the corner on the main market square. required. There are no buses or service taxis
He sells a wide range of quality merchandise here, but Siwan drivers are willing to make
at fixed prices. the 10-hour trip for about E£800 to E£1500
Siwa is also known for its dates and olives, per car. If you do go, ensure that the vehicle
available in shops around the main market is a roadworthy 4WD and that you have food
square. Usually someone will open a jar so and water.
you can try the olives to find the variety you
like. Everyone has a favourite brand of dates; TO/FROM LIBYA
Jawhara are particularly good. Siwans visit their families in Libya and vice
Camera film and batteries can be bought versa, but at the time of writing it is still illegal
at Nada Studio Lab (Map p358), just past the to cross into Libya and go on to the town of
telephone centrale on the main road out of Jaghbub, about 120km away, unless you travel
Siwa Town. via Sallum (see p405). Although the border
is only 50km away it is reportedly mined, so
Getting There & Away things are unlikely to change soon.
BUS
Buses depart from the bus stop opposite the Getting Around
tourist police station, although when you ar- BICYCLE
rive you’ll be let off the bus in the central mar- Bicycles are one of the best ways to get around
ket square. You can purchase tickets to Marsa and can be rented from several sources, in-
Matruh or Alexandria at the West Delta Bus cluding most hotels and a number of shops
Company ticket office at the bus stop. It’s dotted around the town centre. Getting a bike
sensible to buy your ticket ahead of time as from one of the bicycle repair shops (see Map
buses are often full. p358) gives you a better chance of finding
There are three daily buses to Alexandria a bike in good condition. The going rate is
(E£27 to E£30, eight hours), stopping at Marsa E£10 per day.
 © Lonely Planet Publications
lonelyplanet.com W E S T E R N D E S E R T • • B e y o n d S i w a 367

WESTERN DESERT
DONKEY CART To get there, take the narrow asphalt road that
Donkey carts, or caretas, are a much-used branches off the Siwa–Marsa Matruh road at
mode of transport for Siwans and can be a the rest house, 150km from Siwa. You can
more amusing, if slower, way to get around either rent a pick-up to take you there for
than bicycles or cars. Some of the boys who about E£400 or talk to the many people in
drive the carts speak English and can be fierce town offering desert safaris. For more infor-
hagglers. Expect to pay about E£25 for two to mation, see p361.
three hours or E£5 for a short trip.
Great Sand Sea
MOTORCYCLE One of the world’s largest dune fields, the
Though not as enjoyable or tranquil as bi- Great Sand Sea straddles Egypt and Libya,
cycles, motorbikes can also be rented from stretching over 800km south to the Gilf Kebir.
enterprising locals and can help you visit a lot There are 18 sand seas around the world, four
more sights if you are short on time. Ahmed, of them in North Africa. The Great Sand
who works at a handicrafts store near the pet- Sea begins south of the Mediterranean coast.
rol station, arranges motorbike rental (%016 203 A branch splits off in Libya, south of Siwa,
5959), as does Palm Trees Hotel (p362). Expect forming the Calanscio Sand Sea; the rest car-
to pay around E£100 per day. ries on southeast within Egypt. Sitting on a
rise in the desert floor and covering a colossal
SERVICE TAXI 72,000 sq km, it contains some of the largest
Pick-up trucks serve as communal taxis link- recorded dunes in the world, including one
ing Siwa Town with the surrounding villages. that is 140km long. Crescent, seif (sword) and
To get to Bilad ar-Rum costs E£1 each way; parallel wavy dunes are found here (see boxed
closer destinations are 50pt. If you want to text, p347), some of which are on the move
get to more remote sites, Mahdi Hweiti at the while others remain in place. Undulating
tourist office or any of the restaurants will be and beautiful, the dunes are treacherous and
able to help. Prices depend on haggling skills, have challenged desert travellers for hun-
the duration of the trip and the distance to dreds of years. The Persian king Cambyses is
be covered. thought to have lost an army here (see boxed
text, p346), while the WWII British Long
BEYOND SIWA Range Desert Group spent months trying to
Qara Oasis find a way through the impenetrable sands
About 120km northeast of Siwa, near the to launch surprise attacks on the German
Qattara Depression, is another oasis, Qara. army. Aerial surveys and expeditions have
This remote oasis is home to 317 Berbers who, helped the charting of this vast expanse, but
like the Siwans, built their fortresslike town it remains one of the least-explored areas
on top of a mountain. According to legend, on earth.
the harsh environment and scarce resources The Great Sand Sea is not a place to go
in the area meant that whenever a child was wandering on a whim, and you will need
born in Qara an older person would have military permits as well as good preparation.
to leave in order to keep the population at a Guides will take you to the edges of the Great
sustainable level. Whether or not this was ever Sand Sea from Siwa and many safari outfits
true, it is no longer practised, although the will take you on expeditions that skirt the area
Qarans remain small in number and their life (see p329). Remember that you don’t need to
is harsh. Unlike in Siwa, the old fortress is still penetrate far into the desert in order to feel
inhabited, but an increasing number of new the isolation, beauty and enormous scale of
concrete houses are being built down below. this amazing landscape.

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