Egypt, the land of the Pharaohs, is unique. More than 16 million people call it home; it's chaotic, exotic, smelly, dusty, and also beautiful. No where else on earth can you find the wealth of antiquities, the pyramids and the vast temples and monuments – contained in this one country. But the destination offers more than just the wonders of antiquity. Your visit to Egypt can be rounded off by a cruise down the Nile and a beach vacation at the top notch Red Sea and Sinai resorts.
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Added to this, the Red Sea Riviera provides miles of sandy beaches, clear blue water, beautiful coral reefs, wide ranging water sport facilities and hotels that pamper to the nth degree. With Nile cruises, camel rides, jeep safaris, hot air balloons and numerous other pursuits, Egypt draws many tourists to its shores. All of this and much more is just a five hour flight from the UK.
Egypt is consistently the top destination for world travel each and every year - and not surprisingly so. The country uniquely bridges the African and Asian continents across the Suez Canal by possession of the Sinai Peninsula. This key positioning has guaranteed Egypt a major role in the strategic and historic relationships between the east, west, north and south of Africa, Europe, Asia and the more direct Middle East beginning more than 5000 years ago when the first Kingdom of Egypt was unified. In addition to a most remarkable past, Egypt offers the eager traveler thriving international cities, lavish Red Sea resorts, fabled oases and literally hundreds of miles of ancient pharaoh monuments along the Nile River Valley.
The adventure that is Egypt never ends! That is why it is a shame if you come to Egypt, especially for the first time, and miss the grandiose sites, such as the Pyramids of Giza, Abu Simbel or the west bank of Luxor, to name but a few. There are so many travellers who fly direct to Upper Egypt to see Luxor and Aswan, hoping that they will be stumble across the Pyramids as well, and then they realize that they have to travel 720Km to Cairo, where the Pyramids actually are, and end up paying $400 extra to travel and see one site, which is most probably about half of what they paid for their entire trip!
Cairo has probably never been described as dull, so in my opinion it is worth spending more than just a couple of days. The unification of the Kingdoms of Lower and Upper Egypt around BC 3180 marks the point from when Egypt became a significant power. This event is credited with Menes, who thus became the first Pharaoh. Menes went on to establish a new capital at Memphis, just to the south of where Cairo stands today.
No country in the Middle East and North Africa ranked among the world’s top ten tourism destinations in 2005. Egypt and Saudi Arabia both ranked among the top 30, however, with arrivals of over 8 million each. These two are followed by the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Tunisia, Morocco, Bahrain, Syria and Jordan. However, in terms of receipts, Lebanon is ranked second only to Egypt, followed by Saudi Arabia.
The individual inbound country forecasts for the main tourist destinations within the Middle East show that Egypt will remain the region's largest tourist receiving country. By 2020, it is expected that there will be over 17 million international tourist arrivals to the country.
This is an edited extract from Discover Egypt, by Anthony Sattin, et al. (c) Lonely Planet, 2010.
Egyptians call their country "Um el donya", translated as "the mother of the world". Here lies an embarrassment of attractions and sites; yet beyond the pyramids and tombs, Cairo and Luxor, glitzy Sharm el-Sheikh and the Red Sea, there are still areas where tourists are only just beginning to discover.
Egypt is a fascinating land which boasts of a rich history and a colorful culture. The pyramids are only the beginning of the amazing traces of an ancient civilization that was unique, totally dedicated, creative, organized and fruitful. It is amazing to see the degree of sophistication and ingenuity that the ancient Egyptians employed in the building of their prolific monuments. Now, through the marvel of modern technology, you can visit Egypt, both past and present! You can actually "surf" the ancient world!
One such spot is Egypt's other strip of coastline, along the Mediterranean, which shares its borders with Gaza in the east and Libya to the west.
Alexandria, 200km north-west of Cairo, is undoubtedly the jewel of the Egyptian Med. It's easy to see why, with its quaint colonial hotels and tea rooms such as Cafe de la Paix.
The shiny architectural gem that's New Bibliotheca Alexandrina is a commemoration of the original Library of Alexandria, the biggest library in antiquity. This joint venture between the Egyptian government and UNESCO holds the collection that was founded by Ptolemy I in about 300BC. In a few years' time, a US$140-million ($180-million) underwater museum that will include submerged artifacts of Queen Cleopatra's palace is due to open, too.
Many date from the time of Ramses the Great, Egypt’s megalomaniacal pharaoh, who filled the Nile Valley with statues of himself in the 13th century B.C., culminating in the colossi of Abu Simbel.
Ramses was only the latest Egyptian pharaoh to invade and subjugate Nubia, carrying off its gold, ivory and cattle, but also recruiting its men for his armies.
Archaeologists discover second sphinx-lined road in Luxor dating back to fourth century
They were buried beneath Egypt's shifting desert sands for centuries and more recently entombed by unsightly urban sprawl.
But now the remains of hundreds of ancient sphinxes have been unearthed in Luxor and - once renovated - are due to go on show to tourists from next February in a huge open-air museum.
The latest remarkable discovery came when jubilant Egyptian archaeologists found the 12 sphinxes along a road linked to an already discovered ceremonial route known as the Sphinx Alley. Read full story
Newly Discovered Twelve sphinxes dating back to the fourth century have been found in Luxor
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