Egypt

Everything is negotiable and everyone expects baksheesh. Carry small notes

Egypt has the oldest tourism industry on earth, in the sense that Greeks and Romans were already coming to gawp at the pyramids when the pyramids were two thousand years old. The Giza plateau is on the edge of Cairo rather than in empty desert, which surprises people, and the Grand Egyptian Museum nearby has transformed how the collection is displayed.

The Nile is the better way to see the country. A cruise or a felucca between Luxor and Aswan covers Karnak, the Valley of the Kings, Edfu and Kom Ombo, and does so at a pace that suits the heat. Abu Simbel, further south, was cut into pieces and moved uphill in the 1960s to save it from the Aswan dam, which is a story almost as good as the temple.

The practical culture takes adjustment. Baksheesh, tipping for small services, is expected constantly and small notes are essential. Persistent selling around major sites is wearing. And the Red Sea coast at Dahab and Marsa Alam offers some of the best and cheapest diving in the world, which most temple-focused itineraries skip entirely.

Annual events and festivals

• Ramadan (varies) — daytime restrictions, then lanterns, sweets and a city that comes alive after sunset.
• Eid al-Fitr (varies) — a major holiday with several days of celebration.
• Eid al-Adha (varies) — the second Eid, also a multi-day holiday.
• Abu Simbel Sun Festival (22 Feb and 22 Oct) — sunlight penetrates the temple to illuminate the inner sanctuary. Twice a year only.
• Sham el-Nessim (Easter Monday) — an ancient Egyptian spring festival predating Islam and Christianity, marked by everyone with picnics and salted fish.
• Coptic Christmas (7 Jan) — a public holiday for Egypt large Coptic Christian minority.
• Coptic Easter (Apr-May) — the most important Coptic festival.
• Moulid an-Nabi (varies) — the Prophet birthday, with sweets and street celebrations.
• Moulid of Sayyid al-Badawi, Tanta (Oct) — a Sufi festival drawing over a million people.
• Revolution Day (23 Jul) — commemorating the 1952 revolution.