All you need to know for visiting the Pyramids of Giza

Last Updated on July 28, 2023 by

The Pyramids of Giza. A bucket list destination for thousands of people. A timeless place that stimulated the fantasies of archaeologists, historians, engineers and conspiracy theorists for centuries. One of the places I dreamed to visit for my entire life. Seeing the Pyramids of Giza for the first time was a great emotional moment and I think everyone wishing to visit this place deserves to have a great experience. For this reason, in this post I’ve outlined 16 best tips for visiting Pyramids of Giza. This includes, my personal experience, photos of the best viewpoints in Giza and exclusive insight.

Essential things to know BEFORE visiting Egypt.

Visa and Egyptian currency

You will need a tourist VISA to enter the country. This costs $25 USD per person and it’s doable on line at Visa2Egypt or in person at your arrival. BE AWARE that if you decide to do it in person YOU MUST carry USD dollars in cash with you. In fact, the VISA office don’t accept any other type of currency or card payments.

At your arrival, don’t look for an immigration office but for a BANK OFFICE. This is located immediately at the right side BEFORE the line for the passports checks. Here you can buy the visa! If you do it online (as we did) be aware of fake visa websites! Trust only Visa2Egypt. Here, you’ll have to upload a copy of your passport and a photo of you in passport size (max 5MB). I received my visa in about 48 h but it may take up to one week. With your e-visa, you can go straight to the passports checks. The immigration officer will collect your paper and put a stamp on your passport. He will keep your e-visa, so every time someone ask you for the visa, he/she means the stamp in your passport.

Egypt currency is the Egyptian Pound. BEWARE that if you are travelling from the UK or Italy there is no way you can obtain Egyptian pounds before your trip. You have to withdraw the Egyptian currency at the local ATMs (there are various inside and outside the airport).

Religion and Restrictions in Egypt

Egypt is a Muslim country. Despite it is more liberal than other Muslim countries, it is advisable to bring conservative clothes. You should wear these in all the Muslim Areas (e.g. Islamic Cairo) and in the cities of Cairo and Alexandria.

Smoking (tobacco) is allowed everywhere. Many restaurants have a “non smoking area” and you can ask to seat there if you can’t bear a cloud of smoke all around.

Be cautious in street photography/videography, especially in Cairo. It’s forbidden to photograph governmental/military buildings. This applies also to historical locations/buildings used for governmental/military scope. Be careful as you can risk the prison for this!

Bringing/buying drugs in Egypt is strictly forbidden and punishable with prison. Moreover, the use of some medicines is forbidden/restricted. You should check what is or not allowed with your GP. If you are taking some specific medications bring your doctor prescriptions written in English. Keep all your medicines (also the general ones as ibuprofen) in their original package. Moreover, separate them from other products for possible inspections.

Entry Tickets and discounts in Egypt

Unfortunately you can’t buy online tickets for attractions in Egypt (e.g. the Pyramids/Luxor). If you find them online, it’s a scam!! Tickets are sold exclusively at the ticket counters outside the attractions. Moreover, to distinguish them from fake ones, the legit ones have a hologram proving their authenticity.

If you are a student you have the right of entry fee discount up to 50%. However, you have to present an ISIC card for this. Nevertheless, if you are older than 30 (in some locations 25) years old, your ISIC card is not valid! I know this is quite unfair. In fact, most PhD students (like me when I visited Egypt) are older than 25. Apparently, this is also against the ISIC rules (I did a complain about it). However, you can’t do much against this. You can try to “fight” with the guy at the ticket counter and hope for the better. My ISIC card was accepted in most sites. Nevertheless, it was categorically refused in Luxor (everywhere except the Luxor Temple) and at the Egyptian Museum.

Uber in Egypt

Uber in Egypt is safe and reliable. We used it in Cairo, Alexandria and Hurghada. However, if you see on the app that your driver accept your ride but will make you waiting more than 5 mins to reach you; cancel your booking and try again! We noticed this little scam in Cairo. Drivers super far away from us blocked our ride and took ages to reach us when another driver was nearer.

They do this because after 5 mins waiting, you are legally forced to pay 10LE if you cancel. Ergo, they get paid anyway even if they don’t come! This happened to us 5/6 times but most of the rides were completely fine. We reported this to Uber. It looks like they took the information very seriously. We received an email confirming they were taking actions against these scams. I am not sure if this is still happening.

Tipping in Egypt

Tipping in Egypt is a large part of the Egyptian culture. In fact, you are expected to tip for everything. Want to go to the toilet and need paper? Tip. Someone opened your car door? Tip. A guy inside the Karnak temple is pointing something invisible speaking to you in Egyptian? Tip. Would you like a cup of free tea? Tip. Tipping doesn’t meant that you have to run out of money in a second.

Tipping can be done responsibly and kindly so don’t let them rip you off. Some of the Egyptian guides and people we talked about it found asking directly for a tip “rude”. Nevertheless, most people are not of the same opinion and won’t be afraid of asking you money or complain the tip received is not enough.

It is up to you judging who deserve a tip or not. Before tipping, we asked to some Egyptian friends some guidance and they told us that most of the tips are around 5-20 LE. I tipped 50-100 LE only people who helped/guided us half/whole day (on the top of the price paid for the service).

It is safe to visit Egypt?

Something that concerns a good 95% of people who have Egypt in their minds for an imminent or future travel plan, is if it is safe to travel in Egypt in 2022? According to our experience, Egypt was very safe. We never felt in danger or seen anything suspicious. Every attraction (including the Pyramids in Giza) is well equipped with security scans and check points and we felt safe all the time.

Planning a longer trip to Egypt? Read my Complete guide to Egypt for more information.

Pyramids of Giza Map

Th Giza Pyramid Complex is famous with the name Giza Necropolis. This includes The Great Pyramid of Giza (or Pyramid of Khufu), The Pyramid of Khafre, The Pyramid of Menkaure and the Great Sphinx. Moreover, some other small Pyramids dedicated to the Queens, two cemeteries and a Solar Boat Museum are also part of the complex. Unfortunately, any physical map of the Giza Necropolis is available on site. To have an overview of the area, is better to download an online map. The best one I found is this posted above from Wikicommon.

Information about Giza Pyramids

When were the Pyramids of Giza built?

The Pyramids of Giza date back to c.2580 -2560 BC. In fact, Egyptologists believe they were constructed over a 20-year period during the reign of King Khufu (2589 – 2566 BCE).

Why were the Pyramids built?

I need to point out that the Pyramids of Giza are not the only pyramids in Egypt, neither the first to appear in the Egyptian territory. Indeed, it is arguable that the Pyramids in Giza were the latest and final attempt to build a majestic burial site. In 2008 it was discovered that there were over 138 pyramids all over Egypt. However, the earliest ones are those still standing in the necropolis of Saqqara and Dashur. To reply the question why were the Pyramids built, the most accredited studies argue that the pyramids’ main purpose was merely religious.

Ancient Egyptians were one of the first populations believing in the afterlife. They thought that when a king died, his spirit (kalled “Ka”) stayed with his body. For this reason, the body and its spirit needed to be protected from the outside world. The protection of the corpse and its spirit came through mummification and a burial site that included everything the king would need in the afterlife. Here come the Pyramids. A magnificent burial site protecting the King (and his family) during the afterlife.

Why the pyramids have a triangular shape?

There are many theories about why the pyramids have a triangular shape. A scholarly-accepted theory says that pyramids were modelled on a sacred, pointed stone called the benben. This used to be located in the Temple of Ra at Helipolis. The benben symbolises the rays of the sun and it was usually placed at the top of pyramids and obelisks. Another lovely (and quite romantic) theory I’ve heard from a guide in Egypt, is that the pyramids actually represent the dune of the desert.

Who built the Pyramids of Giza?

Though for a long time it was believed that the pyramids were built by slaves, recent evidence demonstrates that the people who built the pyramids were actually paid labourers, probably native from Egypt. The oldest known pyramid is the one located in Saqqara an built on 2630 B.C. This is famous as “Step Pyramid” because it’s more a traditional mastaba than a triangular-shaped tomb. The first pyramid having a triangular shape appeared in Dashur around 2613-2589 B.C. and it’s famous as “Red Pyramid” from the colour of its bricks. After many attempts, new techniques and an (estimated) force of around 20,000 workmen shaped the Great Pyramid of Khufu. This appeared as the masterpiece of the Egyptians’ burial sites.

How the pyramids were built?

For years, scholars from around the world have wondered about the exact technology used by Egyptian for the construction of the Giza Pyramids more than 4,500 years ago. A technology that, as argued by many, was so “advanced” to appear as alien. However, sometimes you don’t need aliens to be smart. And Egyptians were smart. Despite the mystery of the Pyramids construction is still partially unsolved, the most acquainted theories argue that:

1. Egyptians used some kind of superstructures to move the blocks up to their position. Nevertheless, this technique has some written historical evidence but no actual confirmation or practicability in reality.
2. Egyptians used ramps to raise the blocks. This is the most favourable theory especially after the recent finding of a 4,500 years-old ramp dating back to reign of Pharaoh Khufu. You can read the article here.

This sheds a new light on the technique used by Egyptians for the construction and development of the Giza Plateau. However, there are pieces still missing from the puzzle. It’s especially true that we still don’t know how Egyptian cut their hard stones (e.g. granite) and how they lifted blocks at the side of the pyramids.

Entrance fees for the Giza Plateau

All the prices below are in Egyptian Pound and updated to February 2022.

Site	Adult	Student
Giza Plateau general entry	200	80
Great Pyramid (Khufu)	400	180
Pyramid II (Khaefre)	100	50
Pyramid III (Menkaure)	100	50
Meres ankh Tomb	50	25
Worker’s Cemetery	400	200
Solar Boat Museum	100	50
Sphinx (exclusive tour, price not known)	?	?
Combined Ticket (Giza Plateau + Great Pyramid + Solar Boat Museum)	500	250
Pyramids Sound and Light Show	300	150

Best tips for visiting Pyramids of Giza

How do I get to the Pyramids of Giza?

Reaching the Pyramids from Cairo

The Pyramids of Giza are located in what is known as the Giza Plateau. This is a vast desert area located at about 25 km from Cairo. It usually takes from 40 to 90 minutes (according to the traffic) to reach the Giza Plateau from Cairo. An Uber/Careem ride will cost you between EGP 80-140. For this reason, if you want to visit early or avoid starting your day stuck in the crazy Cairo traffic, I would recommend to book an hotel in Giza.

Reaching the Giza plateau from the Airport

If you have just a short layover in Egypt and want to visit the last surviving of the ancient 7 wonders of the world, I would recommend to pre-book an organised tour. Egypt take some time to get used to. If you are in hurry, you won’t have the opportunity to acclimatise to the Egyptian atmosphere. There are several companies that organise layover tours of the Pyramids. A good company that we used for going to Abu Simbel and visit Saqqara / Dashur is Emo Tours. The guides we met were very knowledgeable and they have a special section for layover tour of Cairo and Giza.

Where to stay in Giza

In my opinion staying one or two days in Giza will give you a best opportunity to visit the necropolis without the stress of coming from Cairo. Most hotels in Giza are located at a walking distance from the Pyramids and, in case you don’t want a guide and undertake an independent visit of the Giza Necropolis, it’s very easy to pop directly into the tickets booth.

In Giza, there are a few luxury hotels and a great number of small but convenient medium range hotels and guest-houses. If you opt for a luxury vacation, the best place to stay near Giza is surely the Marriott Mena House, Cairo. This is a 5-star hotel featuring one of the best views of the Pyramids from the balconies of its rooms. As expected, it’s expensive and from what I’ve heard, the service is not the best you can find.

Budget stays in Giza

If you are travelling on a budget but you don’t want to renounce to a room with a view, there are a great number of low-cost stays in Giza. I feel to recommend the place where we stayed during our days in Giza. This is called Pyramids Guest House. This guest house is located in a little backstreet of Giza, super close to the main entrance of the Giza Necropolis and the Giza shopping area. Although is not visible from the main street, there are plenty of signs directing you to the right place.

The price of the accommodation is really a steal from what you get in return! In fact, we paid about £72 for a three-night stay and this included an amazing breakfast with Pyramids view every morning and free transportation from the airport to the guest house!! This is something you might want to consider when arriving in Egypt. Indeed, not many places offer this service for free. Our driver picked up us at 2 AM at the airport and drove us safely at the hotel without even asking a tip (that we gave him anyway because it was one of the sweetest men we met in Egypt!).

Bonus point! This place is so close to the Pyramids that you can watch the entire Sound & Light show without actually going there!

Tickets and opening hours of the Giza Necropolis

The Giza Necropolis is open every day from 8 am to 5 pm during wintertime (October to March) and from 7 am to 6 pm during summertime ( April to September).

Tickets are (for prices updated to Dec. 2019 see above) are sold exclusively at the ticket counter at the main entrance of the Pyramids (in front of Pizza Hut). Any site selling tickets for the Pyramids online (at least until now) it’s likely to be a scam. Some tour agencies have the option to buy tickets for the Pyramids and other attractions in advance. However, this means that you pay in advance the price of your ticket but this will be bough by your guide for you at the entrance of the attraction.

When is the best time for visiting the pyramids of Giza?

Are you wondering if it’s better to visit the Pyramids at morning or in afternoon? Well, welcome to the club. Before visiting the site by myself, I’ve searched the reply to this question everywhere but the answers provided by other travellers were pretty vague. For your information, I visited the site at both times. Ergo, I can now reply to this question now. You’re welcome!

Visiting the Pyramids at early morning

Visiting the Pyramids at early morning can have both advantages and disadvantages. Indeed, despite during the early opening time the site is less crowded, you may discover that the view of the Pyramids is not so clear. This largely depends on the winds blowing from the Sahara and the pollution around Cairo that cause haziness in the area of Giza. If you are lucky (like I was), you may have a perfectly clear morning with a majestic view of the Pyramids (the photo above was taken at 7.30 in the morning). But if you catch a hazy morning, you might have to wait a couple of hours before the sky clears and finally see the Pyramids.

Visiting the Pyramids in the afternoon

Like for the morning visit, also the afternoon has its pro and cons. If you visit in the afternoon, you have to keep in mind that temperature might be quite warm and the light might hit strong on the Pyramids, creating a game of light and shadow on the side of the tombs. The good aspect is that if you wait until the closure, the site become less crowded and on a clear day you will enjoy a beautiful golden light (see picture above! This was shot around 5.30/ 6 PM).

We started our visit just after 1 PM and we noticed that great part of the tourists didn’t go much farther than the Sphinx (this was indeed the most crowded part). The area of the Pyramids was mostly empty and it felt like we had it all for ourselves! I honestly loved our afternoon visit! I loved all the pictures that we took with the golden light behind the Sphinx! If I have to return I would probably go in the afternoon again!

So, now you know what to expect from both type of visits!

Can you go inside the Pyramids?

Yes! One can actually go inside most of the Pyramids that are open to the public. Going inside a pyramid is certainly something you want to check off from your bucket list and I (mostly) enjoyed the experience, but before you decide to venture inside one of the most ancient funerary chambers in the world, you need to consider a couple of things. If you suffer from claustrophobia or have any clinical condition that may affect you while on a closed space. Please don’t go. This might be harmful to you and once inside it might be difficult to receive help.

Remember that the pyramids were built to bury people. Ergo they are not thought for living humans. It’s very warm inside, it’s suffocating for some parts and air is pumped from outside. Spaces can be very tight in the descending tunnel(s). Some people might be finding difficult to pass, crunch or walk on four feet. Your guide (if you have one) can’t enter with you.

According to my experience, despite I loved the Indiana Jones part of actually getting inside a tomb, I had the constant feeling I was doing something wrong. As a historian and respectful custodian of the past, I did not feel much comfortable in breaking into the pharaoh’s chosen afterlife home. I know that the actual Pharaohs sarcophagi are no longer inside the pyramids but I had anyway the feeling that I shouldn’t be there. Am I crazy, am I?

How much does it costs to get inside a Pyramid?

The access to the Giza Necropolis does not include a trip inside the Pyramids. The access to the tombs has a special tickets that costs between 100-400 LE. The only necropolis that include a pyramid access is Dashur. In the necropolis of Saqqara you can enter for free in the smallest of the pyramids.

Can you go inside the Sphinx?

In theory yes. Practically not really. With “inside the Sphinx” of course is it understood the area close to the famous Dream Stele of Thutmose IV. However, the entire area surrounding the Sphinx is fenced and closed with a gate. Until some years ago, you were allowed to get a close up of the Sphinx but this is no longer possible. In fact, the closer you can get to the Great Sphinx is about 5-7 meters from the main observation point.

As far as I know, there are some private (and likely super expensive) tours of the Great Sphinx area but it looks like they are reserved to eminent visitors and almost impossible to book online or everywhere else. If you are lucky enough to get on one of those tours, well, congratulations! This is probably the opportunity of a lifetime! If you are among the other common mortals, the best you can do is getting a good zoom lens!

Can I climb the Pyramids?

Not really. Climbing the Pyramids (any of them) is currently forbidden by the Egyptian Authorities. You risk a fee or detention if caught up in the act of climbing a pyramid. However, despite this is well known, pyramid guardians, camel owners and sometimes even local police will insist you that if you pay them they will let you climb. I want you to discourage you not only from giving them any money but also from climbing the pyramids.

They are more than 3,500 years old, they are tombs! What it looks like a fun photo to take, it’s actually a damage you are causing to one of the world’s most important landmarks. Ergo do something else!

Can you ride a camel at the Pyramids?

Yes you can but be careful! There are many people who will try to scam you for camel rides AND not all the camels you will see are treated fairly. Doing a camel ride around the Pyramids is one of the nicest experience you can have in Giza and, if done correctly, it can be one of the highlights of your trip. Moreover, certain viewpoints can be visited only if you take a camel ride. Ergo, if you decide to go, open your eyes and spot the owners who really care about their camels or those who works for the riding camels scheme of Giza. To know what I am talking about read below!

Is camel riding ethical at the Pyramids?

As a lover of the animal world, I’m usually strongly against any type of animal ride. For this reasons, I was very sceptical to undertake a camel ride in any place in Egypt. It’s true that camels were used by Egyptians as a primary means of transport into the desert from centuries and still do their job when it comes to patrol the desert areas of surrounding Giza and travel small distances. Nevertheless, most camels in Giza are now used with the mere scope of entertaining tourists and not all of them are treated fairly.

What is a camel fair treatment?

With a “fair treatment” I mean that the camel should not work the entire day under the sun, be well hydrated, eat well and rest for a couple of hours after each ride. A fair ride should last maximum 30 minutes and the camel should rest for at least one hour after the ride. As you can imagine most camel owners doesn’t respect that. But not all the people are the same, there are owners who actually care about their camels and treat them more than well!

Giza Camel Riding Scheme

I wasn’t aware of this (not sure if official) scheme, until I listened to a podcast on Egypt some months before my trip. This guy was talking about an official way to ride a camel without the fear of getting scammed and/or being unethical. Following his suggestion, I searched for some “blue signs” not far from the Sphinx and I found a space where three/four camel were parked. Differently from not ruled rides, here you can’t bargain (much). There is a fixed price of 600 LE per person for a 30 minutes ride. However, because in the end in Egypt you can bargain anyway I’ve agreed a price of 500 LE. It’s much more expensive than a not ruled ride (that can last up to two hours) but you can spot the difference just by looking at the camels and how healthy they look compared to their neighbours.

I have to say that I am still unsure about my experience. We did not complete the ride till the last viewing point and I preferred to take just some pictures around with the camel. The strong feeling I was doing something wrong remained despite I am sure the camels were doing great.

Pyramids tour or independent visit?

If you want to make the most of your day trip to Giza without the hassle, it’s probably better to undertake an organised tour of the Pyramids. This is particularly suggested if you know nothing about the necropolis, don’t want to deal with (sometimes very) persistent vendors or/and feel insecure in going around alone.

On the other hand, if you want to have more freedom for taking pictures, no time limits when exploring and go at your own pace an independent tour of the Pyramids is the best option. We chose the second option and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised that we did not get annoyed so much by vendors. I was really expecting the worse after reading a couple of blogs, but apart from some camel guys and a couple of scammers near the Great Pyramid it was a fantastic and quiet visit!

What should I wear when visiting the Pyramids?

You will be surprised to discover that in Giza the clothing etiquette is very relaxed compared to Cairo. Being such a touristic place, the strict rules you need to observe in Islamic sites in Cairo are mostly lifted. You can practically wear whatever you want but I would invite you to observe always a minimum of clothing etiquette. Remember always that you are in a predominantly Islamic country.

Giza tend to be very hot during the day with temperatures rising up to 35-40 degrees in summer. However, it is surprisingly fresh at early morning and during spring time it is actually cold! In fact, I discovered that in mid April (when we visited) morning temperatures were around 15-18 degrees accompanied by a light but fresh wind that forced me to cover up with a jacket!

10 things to pack for the Pyramids

1. Hat. As you can imagine walking under the sun in Egypt is unthinkable without a hat! This will help you to cool down a little and protect your head from the excessive heat.
2. Breathable cotton/linen clothes. You will sweat a lot! Especially if you visit during the afternoon hours. So it’s better to wear breathable cotton or linen clothes. These can be maxi dresses, long skirts, blouses, capri pants, coulottes etc. I would avoid wearing denim jeans at the Pyramids. They are not very breathable and will stitch with your legs!
3. Under dress shorts (for ladies!). If your intention is that of riding a camel, is better to wear some shorts under your dress! I did it and they were life saving! In fact, camel rugs can be a little itchy against your skin and you don’t want to have an irritation on your legs for the rest of your holiday!
4. Scarf. This can have multiple uses. In the morning (during the spring, autumn and winter months) you can use it to cover up your shoulders from the cold wind. However, it is also a protection from the sand that might go in your eyes/mouth/head.
5. Solid walking shoes. Conversely to what many people think, the terrain around the Pyramids it’s very rocky. There are big and small stones coming from the excavations and tombs nearby that might hurt your feet if you don’t pay attention. It is better to wear some nice trainers or walking shoes to avoid burning your feet with the warm sand or get an injury from the rock.
6. Bottle of water. Once you get inside the Pyramids Complex there are no places where you can buy water. The better think is to bring water with you from outside. If you stay a whole day I would suggest about 2-3 L of water. The sun and heat will hit strongly and you will soon become dehydrated. Don’t risk to ruin your day!
7. Small change of Egyptian pounds. It is a good thing having a small change of Egyptian pounds with you to tip people. This might happen if you want to have a picture with a camel/ask someone to take a picture of you. People in Egypt expect to receive a tip if they provide you with a service.
8. Cross-body bag. It’s good to have a small cross-body bag with you to keep safe all your belongings. It’s better than having a backpack that will turn your back into a boiling hell.
9. Refreshing tissues/small towels. To fight the effects of the heat is better to have with you some refreshing tissues and small towels to keep you fresh.
10. Non-melting snacks. If you stay around most of the day in the Giza Necropolis you might get hungry! There are no shops/bars inside the Pyramids area, so it’s better to have a small snack with you. Of course, don’t bring chocolate snacks!

12. Best places to eat near the Pyramids of Giza

There is a great number of restaurants near the Pyramids but NOT INSIDE THE NECROPOLIS area (remember this when going!). However, with Egyptian food, you can never go wrong! Almost every place we tried in Egypt served the most delicious and tasty dishes. If you want to dine in a fancy restaurant, the best option is the 139 Restaurant at the Marriot Mena House Hotel. However, one of the best restaurants with a view you can find nearby the Pyramids is Pizza Hut! In fact, this Pizza Hut is located exactly in the front of the Sphinx and you can see it in all its glory. In the same building there is also a KFC, if you want to grab a snack on the go. They have also a sitting room on the second floor where you can enjoy the same view of Pizza Hut.

Solar boat museum. Is it worthy?

While searching info on the Pyramids, you probably have found also the Solar Boat Museum. Wandering what it is? Read below!

What is a solar boat?

The solar boat museum was built in 1985 to host one of the most incredible discoveries of the last century. Indeed, during an excavation at the foot of the Great Pyramid, an intact full-size vessel dating back to 2500 BC was discovered. It is almost certain that the vessel was built for Khufu (King Cheops) and buried with him in its afterlife home.

The name “solar boat” comes from the fact the vessel was likely understood as a solar barge. This means that it wasn’t really used to navigate but it was designed to be a ritual vessel aiming to carry the resurrected king with the sun god Ra across the heavens. In this regard, archaeologists are still uncertain about this hypothesis because the vessel shows signs of being used in water. Meaning that the boat might have had additional uses, possibly linked to funerary rituals as well.

It is worth to visit the Solar Boat museum?

Yes. You have just to imagine that this boat is likely to be the oldest and best preserved vessel of Antiquity! It is almost certain you won’t see anything similar elsewhere in the world.

How much it cost visiting the Solar Boat Museum?

The ticket to enter the Solar Boat museum is not included in the general price you pay to enter the Giza Necropolis. In fact, this is sold as a separate ticket and costs 100 LE.

Solar Boat Museum Opening Times

You can visit the Khufu ship at the Solar Boat museum every day from 9 am to 16 pm.

Visiting the Sound & Light show at the Pyramids of Giza

The Pyramids Sound and Light Show it’s a one-hour show that narrates the history of ancient Egypt and its kings in the most epic way. A cinematic Ben-Hur style narrative voice will entertain you with spectacular images projected on the Sphinx and Pyramids and a colourful light show. It is worthy? Not sure.

We’ve watched the show from the terrace of our hotel and honestly it did impress me so much. It’s nice, a bit old school but in my opinion it doesn’t worth the $19 you will pay. I think we did the best decision to watch it from the terrace because it was free, the view was amazing and we could hear all the story perfectly. However, if you love the genre this is certainly a thing you would love to do, so here some info for your visit!

How much it cost the Pyramids Sound and Light Show

The tickets to the Pyramids Sound and Light Show are sold by a private company. These are the only attraction tickets you can buy online. If you buy the ticket at the counter before the show, this will cost you LE 300. If you buy it from the website the price will be in american dollars and you will pay 19 USD. They recently introduced also a “VIP ticket” for 22,58 USD. Here you can buy also tickets for other light shows (e.g. Karnar or Abu Simbel Light Shows).

You can buy your tickets directly at soundanlight.show.

What time is the Pyramids Sound and Light Show?

The show is everyday from 19.00 pm to 20.00 pm in English language and from 20.00 pm to 21.00 pm in French language. However, check the website for updates because the show is often cancelled without any notice in case of private events and (unlikely) bad weather. In fact, during our stay it was cancelled one night on two and the weather was good. So, make your considerations.

Scams to avoid at the Pyramids of Giza

Visiting the Pyramids of Giza independently will give you a lot of freedom but (unfortunately) won’t save you from possible scammers around the area. However, when you are on your own, there are several ways you can be targeted by scammers and below you’ll find the most common scams that happened to us while in Giza. To note that with “scams” I don’t mean those people who approach you to sell you something, but the ones who want to rip you off.

The “your guide is downstairs” scam.

I am not sure if this happened to someone else or it was a coincidence that day. However, I have the suspect it was a well-planned scam. One of the days while we were in Giza, we planned a tour of Saqqara and Dashur with a guide. While we were doing breakfast one of the hotel’s managers came to us with a phone saying that our guide was downstairs waiting for us.

I was immediately suspicious because our appointment was more than one hour late but in Egypt, who never knows. So I picked up the phone and, in effect, the guy at the telephone knew my name and that I was on a tour for “the pyramids”. However, a red flag was lighting in my mind. The guy did not specify what “pyramids” we should see continued to be vague. So, I pointed out that our appointment was not at that (very early) time. In the meantime, Alessio was texting our real guide that confirmed us our appointment and the fact he wasn’t arrived yet. Ergo, who was the guy downstairs???

Because the hotel was organising tours as well (but we went with Emo Tours), I have the suspect that they tried to confuse us with this type of scam, making us go with the wrong guide and discover this when it was too late. I am not 100% sure of this. However, the fact the guy knew my name and called at the hotel instead of my phone didn’t sound as a coincidence.

How to resolve this scam situation

The first thing you must do is getting in contact with your tour operator/guide. In fact, if your tour is organised with an external company, this usually communicates with your mobile directly not with your hotel (unless you ask). Most guides will have a Whatsapp chat you can use to have instant replies, so don’t be afraid to communicate in this way! The second things you can do, is ask as many details as possible about your visit.

The guy at the phone didn’t know we were actually going to Saqqara. He continued to repeat he was our guide for the pyramids. Third thing. Never reveal too many details of your plans to anyone, even to the guy at the hotel reception when he ask. Fourth and last thing, don’t even think to go with anyone unless you are 100% sure he/she is your tour guide. Especially if you are travelling as a solo woman.

The “can you change my money” scam

This happened to us all across Egypt but while around Giza it happened two-three times. It usually starts when a guy (90% of the times a camel owner/vendor) approaches you and ask you where are you from. Well, if for example you say Italy, he will comes out with some Euro in his hands and ask you if you use them in your country. If you say yes, he will ask you if you can give him some LE in exchange of the Euro (or whatever currency) he has.

Of course the change he will propose will be totally on his favour. The better thing to do is replying that you still need the Egyptian Pounds to go around the country and you can’t exchange them in that moment.

The “go climb the Pyramid, I’ll watch that nobody is coming”.

When you are around the foot of the Great Pyramid you will probably be approached by guys who will encourage you to climb it. The most typical phrase is “go go, climb the Pyramid! I’ll watch that nobody is coming”. Let’s start with the premise that climbing the Pyramids (any of them) is forbidden. These guys know it very well. For this reason, in exchange of this favour, they will ask you money to watch that nobody (aka the Police) is on your way and to close an eye on your law infringement. Of course, we did not accept any of these offers but, unfortunately, many tourists were not of our same opinion. The worst thing, was that among these scammers of the law there were also some of the Pyramids’ guardians!

Do’s and Don’ts at the Pyramids of Giza

There are a lot of Do and Don’ts concerning the Pyramids but I will restrict the list to 5 for each category to summarise the article and be easy to remember when you are there! I will start with the don’ts!

Don’t do this at the Pyramids

1. Climbing the Pyramids. If you don’t want to do this for preserving this amazing historical landmark at least do it for your self. In fact, if you are caught up while climbing a pyramid you might end up in jail.
2. Tip someone helping you infringing the law (e.g. climbing the Pyramids). It’s wrong, it encourages wrong behaviour, harassment towards tourists and the perpetual dissemination of the myth tourist= ATM
3. Take with you objects/stones from the Pyramids. Do I really need to explain why this is wrong?
4. Undertake a camel/horse rides with came owners that are mistreating their animals.
5. Being rude towards people working at the Pyramids or approaching you for selling somethings. Not all the vendors are scammers. Most of them are just trying to gain money for their families. It’s unnecessary to be rude. Indeed, just say a firm no if you are not interested and carry on!

Definitely do’s at the Pyramids

1. Take your time. You are living a once in a life experience. Probably something you had on your bucket list since ages. Don’t rush in order to do more things. Your visit deserves all your attention.
2. Focus on the positive sides of your visit and ignore all the things that Egypt has to improve. This will help you a lot to enjoy your visit.
3. Take pictures!! You are finally touching the Pyramids, this has to be remembered forever!
4. Try to learn something new. You don’t have to know everything about the Pyramids but try to learn something that passionate you and that you can share with someone else!
5. Explore!! It’s true, you can’t climb the Pyramids but this does’t mean you can sneak around and explore the area as a real adventurer! Who never knows what you can find!

Planning a visit to Cairo? Read my DIY walking tour of Islamic Cairo!

Best view-points and Instagrammable locations at the Pyramids of Giza

To be honest, from whatever corner you will photograph the Pyramids, they will be always stunning. However, if you want some specific points that will help you to get a perfect insta shot, you need to know where to go! So I’ve listed below 4 most instagrammable spots in Giza!

1. The 6 Pyramids wide-view point (less tourists here!). From this point you can have an impressive wide-view of 6 on 9 of the Giza Pyramids. Unfortunately, it’s forbidden (for reasons of safety) to reach this point by walking towards this area. In fact, you have to go with a camel and a guide with you.
2. The 9 Pyramids view point (super touristy). This is the most famous of the Giza viewpoints and you can reach it also with a taxi/coach. We decided to skip it because it was massively crowded and I preferred see the Pyramids from a less known point of view.
3. The frontal view of the Sphinx and Great Pyramid. This point is one of my favourite photo spot! It’s a bit tricky to get. First because you need a wide-angle lens to capture both the Sphinx and the Great Pyramid. Second, because it’s now closed to the public. There are some external gates surrounding the frontal area of the Sphinx and you need to ask the permission of one of the guardians to enter (at least to enter in the afternoon). Be prepared to tip someone!
4. The classic Sphinx kissing point. This is one of the most classical shot you can get. I honestly did not take it but if you search this point it’s just at the side-corridor overlooking the Sphinx. All you have to do is find the right angle with your camera.

Best tips for visiting the Pyramids – Infographic

In order to remember the most important things for your Giza Pyramids tour I’ve created a short infographic that you can save, print and take with you before or during your trip!

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