How to organise an unforgettable trip to the Western Desert in Egypt

Last Updated on July 28, 2023 by

When I think to my trip to Egypt, I am still firmly convinced that our visit to the Western Desert was one of the best highlights of the entire holiday. Indeed, if you think that Egypt is just temples, pyramids and beach resorts, you’re wrong. The desert areas of the country are one of the most diverse and incredible places I ever seen in my entire life. Honesty, the only thing I regret is not having spent more days exploring them! Visiting the Western Desert (that include the Black and White Deserts) is an unforgettable experience and if you are planning a visit to Egypt, I definitely recommend you to include it to your itinerary!

10 Essential things to know BEFORE going to Egypt.

• 1) 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 as they don’t accept any other type of currency or card payments. However, 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 48h but it may take up to one week. With your e-visa, you can go straight to the passports checks. Here 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 one in the passport.
• 2) Egypt currency is the Egyptian Pound (LE). If you are travelling from the UK or Italy there is no way you can obtain Egyptian pounds before your travel! You have to withdraw these at the local ATMs (there are various inside and outside the airport).
• 3) 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.
• 4) 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.
• 5) Be cautious in street photography/videography, especially in Cairo. It’s forbidden to photograph governmental/military buildings (even when they are in historical locations/buildings) and you can risk the prison for this!
• 6) Bringing/buying drugs in Egypt is strictly forbidden and punishable with prison. Moreover, the use of some medicines is forbidden/restricted. 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 and separate from other products for possible inspections.
• 7) An Online ticket store for attractions (e.g. Pyramid/Luxor) doesn’t exist (yet). if someone is selling tickets online, that’s a scam!! Tickets are sold exclusively at the ticket counters outside the attractions and have a hologram proving their authenticity (see the photo below as main example).
• 8) If you are a student older than 30 (in some locations 25) years old, your ISIC card is not valid! I know that’s unfair as most PhD students like me are older than 25 and this is also against the ISIC rules (I did a complain about it) but you can’t do much against this except fighting with the guy at the ticket counter and hope for the better. I was able to use my ISIC card in most sites but they refuse it in Luxor (everywhere except the Luxor Temple) and at the Egyptian Museum.
• 9) 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 and will make you wait more than 5 mins to reach you, cancel your booking and try again! We noticed this little scam in Cairo, drivers super far away blocked our ride and took ages to reach us when another driver was nearer. They do this because after 5 mins waiting you are forced to pay 10LE if you cancel and so they get paid anyway! This happened to us 5/6 times but most of the rides were completely fine. We reported this and Uber took the information very seriously and we received an email confirming they are taking actions against these scams.
• 10) 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. It is up to you judging who deserve a tip or not and most of the tips are around 5-20 LE ( I tipped 50-100 LE only people who helped/guided us half/whole day).

Discover how to organise a trip to Egypt here or a visit to the Pyramids here!

Where is the Western Desert?

The Egyptian Western Desert occupies two-third of the land surface of Egypt. Geographically, is located on west of the river Nile, extending west to the Libyan border, and south from the Mediterranean Sea to the border with Sudan. It covers an area of about 262,800 square miles (680,650 square km) and the most populated areas is the oasis of Siwa.

Is it safe to visit the Western Desert?

According to our experience, visiting the Western Desert was very safe and we never felt in danger. There is only one main road connecting various areas of the Black and White Desert in Egypt and this is kept under control by the Egyptian military personnel that must authorise your crossing before visiting the area.

However, you should know that worldwide FCO’s advice against all but essential travels to the Western Desert in Egypt. This because during the past years there were cases of rape, smuggling of arms and terrorism linked to the area. Particularly near the Libyan border. For this reason, you must be aware that your travel insurance (any travel insurance) won’t cover you in case of any type of accident while visiting the area and you will travel at your own risk.

Is still possible to visit the Western Desert despite the warnings?

Yes. However, because of all these restrictions, visiting the Western desert in Egypt is not simple as it looks and if you are determined to visit, you should plan this well. Despite it might sound adventurous, it’s understandable that for many people the idea of travelling in a not advisable area without being insured might sound scary and hazardous. However, this is not the case.

In fact, although deemed as “dangerous”, the Western Desert is actually pretty safe. In this regard, there are no conflicts going on in its main areas, the roads close to the Libyan Border are off limits for tourists and most of the places you will visit are actually well-known UNESCO world heritage sites, like the White Desert.

Having said so, it is always better to check the situation in advance with your local guide before venturing into the desert. Things in Egypt may change pretty quickly and if one day may be safe to go, the day after may be not. So, keep yourself aware of the situation!

Things you must know when planning a visit to the Western Desert in Egypt

There are several things you need to know before organising a trip to the Western Desert. Things I wished I knew before I went and I couldn’t find out until my trip!

1. You can’t drive or do a DIY tour in the Western Desert. As I said before, the Western Desert is a militarised area. You will pass several check-in along the way and only authorised vehicles can go through. Moreover, some areas are off-limits because of the military presence and without a guide you would’t know where to go.
2. You will need a military permit to visit. This is generally released at the check-in station of the Bahariya Oasis and is sorted out by your guide/tour operator. The only thing you should do is bring a copy of your passport.
3. It’s 100% recommended going with a local guide. Local guides know the places that are safe for tourists, are experts of the deserts roads and will ease the travel authorisation process at the check-in. Moreover, the most professional guides won’t accept payments in advance because they will check the situation is safe before travelling.
4. It’s expensive. Expect to pay no less than $400 for one night (2-days) for two people tour + travel permit. Beware of too cheap tours. They can be scams or travel without authorised vehicles. This can actually be very dangerous because unauthorised vehicles can be understood as a threat to security and be put down by military forces as happened in 2015.
5. Camping in the White Desert in Egypt is forbidden unless your tour operator is authorised. I wanted to camp in the White Desert but most companies I contacted replied me that “tourists were not allowed to camp there” and they directed me to the Black Desert. The reality (confirmed me by our guide) is that in order to camp in the White Desert (that is a UNESCO site and National Park), your tour operator has to pay a fee and the tickets for all the people camping. Most companies don’t pay these fees, ergo they are not authorised to camp.
6. Roads are very bumpy in the desert. Ergo, if you suffer from motion sickness bring some relief pills with you!
7. Don’t be afraid of being the only tourist…because you won’t! Although you will have the impression to be alone in a vast desert area, it’s likely that you won’t. When we camped, our guide told us there where other 27 tents around although we couldn’t see them!
8. Be aware of the temperature variation between day and night. Morning in the desert are very warm. We visited in April and during the day the temperature was between 35-38°. However during the night the temperature dropped as low as 10°. If you go during the winter months this can be even lower. Ergo prepare yourself for the night with appropriate clothes/thermal blankets.

What to pack for the Western Desert

Although most of the stuff will be provided by your tour operator (check always what is included in your trip and what not), you should know what is essential to pack for your trip into the Western Desert. Your bigger luggage will be stored at a convenient place along the way (for us was the Baharyia Oasis). You can carry with you only a small luggage or a backpack. We brought with us two backpack and the camera equipment. Find below a comprehensive list of items you might want to have with you for your trip.

Packing list

1. Extra snacks/food of your choice if you have intolerance/allergies. Don’t bring melting snacks because it’s very warm!
2. Extra water. Water will be provided along the way but if you drink a lot is better to have additional water with you.
3. Trekking shoes/trainers
4. Flip flops (only for the white desert)
5. A warm hoodie for the night
6. Active wear or loose fitting clothes
7. A hat
8. A nice breathable dress (if you want to have nicer pictures)
9. A swimsuit/towel if you want to bath in the hot spring
10. An insulated sleeping bag if you think the one provided is not enough or don’t want to use it
11. Sunscreen
12. Anti mosquito cream/spray (we discovered there were a lot of mosquito in the white desert!)
13. Flashlight or headlamp to move in the desert at nighttime
14. A powerbank to charge your electronics
15. Travel documents (passport/insurance/contacts etc.)
16. First aid kit
17. Medications
18. A plastic bag for taking away your own trash
19. A lighter
20. Camera equipment (if you have one)

Sustainable tourism

Our tour operator strongly encouraged sustainable tourism. This means to not leave any garbage, burn toilet paper, do not take piece of stones/crystals with you, recycle water and unused food and respect the environment.

What to visit in the Western Desert

As you can imagine, an area that covers 262,800 square miles is quite huge to visit. Especially if you have only a few days. There are different type of Western Desert tours that go from two-days to two-weeks (depending on the company). I don’t recommend doing a day trip because it will take about 5 hours to reach the Bahariya Oasis from Cairo and an additional two hours to reach the White Desert. It’s not worthy and you will stay 90% of the time in the car!

Some of the main attractions in the Western Desert are the White/Black Deserts, the Crystal Mountain, the Djara Cave, the English Mountain and the famous Siwa Oasis.

For reason of time, (and money), we chose a two-days tour called “Crystal Mountain”. This included a visit to the hot springs of the Bahariya Oasis, hiking in the Black Desert, a stop to the Crystal mountain, an overview of the Aqabat Valley, camping in the White Desert and sand boarding.

We went with a local company called Western Desert Tours and I couldn’t recommend them more!

The Bahariya Oasis Tour

The Bahariya Oasis will be the first and last place you will visit on your trip to the Western Desert. The oasis is located at about 365 Km from Cairo and it covers a wide area of 2000 square kilometers. The Oasis includes many villages but the main one is El Bawiti. Here are based many Bedouins working as local guides for the desert. One of the reason why the Oasis is famous, is because of its numerous hot springs!

Things to do at the Bahariya Oasis

Baharya Oasis was for us a sort of “base camp” before venturing into the desert. Here you will switch your car with a 4×4, leave your luggage behind and prepare for the trip.

Have lunch at a traditional Bedouin House

When we arrived at the Baharyia Oasis we were welcomed at a traditional Bedouin house. Here, a delicious home-made lunch was waiting for us before our adventure in the desert! As I said before, the house was our base camp. So, we stored here our luggage and prepared here for the trip. When we returned from our days in the desert, another delicious lunch was waiting for us. We took a shower in the designed facilities and head back to Cairo.

Visit the Hot Springs of the desert

The words “hot springs” and “desert” don’t sound quite right seen together. Indeed, if I think to hot spring, I think to Japan or Iceland. Certainly not to the Saharian Desert! But Egypt is a crazy land full of surprises and as soon as we left the Bawiti, our second stop was a hot spring in the middle of the desert!

Actually, after observing the volcanic geology surrounding the area, the hot springs looked quite natural and I found this discovery amazing! You can choose to bath or not in one of the small and warm pools. However, for this time, we decided to skip it. Instead, we accepted the offer of a nice mint tea from a local Bedouin who worked in the area.

This Bedouin house was completely different from the one we visited in Bawiti. This was raw and beautiful at the same time. The warm light filtering from the thatched roof gave me a great sense of peace and relaxation. Something I really needed before the long trip. The mint tea was, of course, delicious! Bedouins have a special way of doing it and unfortunately I couldn’t catch their secret!

The Black Desert

At less than one hour from the Baharyia Oasis lies the Black Desert. The Black Desert in Egypt is an immense expanse of volcanic land that resemble more an alien landscape than a terrestrial one. After visiting this place, I am still convinced that all those pictures I saw online don’t make justice to the mind blowing scenery you will have in front of you.

The Black Desert is famous for its countless volcanic mountains that extend on the horizon as far you can see. These are made principally of dolerite rocks, but at the base you can find also chalk, cenomanian sandstone and iron.

The Black Desert was our first “real” stop in the Saharian desert and I honestly din’t know what to expect. When we arrived, the guide told us “go and explore! To have a better view, you should climb the mountain to the top”. Easy to say, less easy to do.

Climbing the volcanic mountains in the Black Desert. What you need to know

Climbing those black volcanic mountains in the Black Desert is not difficult per se. I would say that the climbing is more tricky due to certain environmental factors. Among the things you should know there is:

1. The higher you go, the more slippery the “path” becomes. You’ve heard me. Chalky rocks are quite crumbling and there is not much friction you can do with your feet when the climb becomes steep. Ergo, be prepared with good trainers and please leave at home your flip flops.
2. It’s unbearably warm. If you suffer with high temperatures, this climb might not be for you. You will likely reach this part of the desert around 14.00/14.30 PM. Therefore, climbing a mountain with 45° degrees and no shade/wind might be extremely hazardous. This might affect your well-being and make you feel sick/dehydrated. If you know in advance that you can’t bear the sun/temperature, ask your guide to go at another time.
3. You have about 30 minutes to reach the peak and return. Because this is just a stop on your way to the White Desert, you will have about 30 minutes for your climbing. This means that you should be quite fast and avoid stopping on the way. You should consider all the previous information and your physical state before undertake the climb.
4. You are on your own. Your guide won’t climb the mountain with you. This means that you will be on your own up there and if something happens, you won’t get immediate help. Of course, they will search for you if after a while if you don’t turn up, but if you are alone it’s better to be at your 100% before climbing.

My double climbing attempt

As I said before, I didn’t know what to expect from our visit to the Black Desert. When we first arrived, I felt very unprepared for the climbing. It was extremely warm, I was wearing denim (OMG! Who wears denim in the desert?) and I left my water bottle in the car. I managed to climb for about 15 minutes but then I started feeling very dizzy and I couldn’t bear the heat anymore. You can imagine my disappointment. I’ve asked the guide for a second climbing opportunity at a different time and we agreed to return on the way back a little earlier.

For the second attempt of climbing the volcanic mountain at the Black Desert I was more prepared. I wore a breathable dress, I brought with me water and food and felt super confident in my climbing abilities. The climb wasn’t difficult as the first time and even a couple of degrees less during the day made a huge difference for the climbing. We reached the top in less than 15 minutes and enjoyed the most incredible panorama.

Lesson learned: don’t be afraid to admit your limits and ask for a second opportunity!

The Crystal Mountain

When I heard of the Crystal Mountain in Egypt I was expecting to find something like the Superman’s Fortress of Solitude. However, the Egyptian version is much more sober although seemingly secluded. Indeed, the Crystal Mountain is nothing less than a ridge formed between the oases of Baharyia and Farafra.

In effects, the crystals are there. Pushed out of the earth surface end shaped by million years of erosion. Some of them are incredibly sharp, some other look like grey stones. Most of these crystals are quartz and you are warned to not take them away or attempt to break them from their base! They took ages to form and you would damage a piece of Egyptian geological history. There are thousands of crystals on the ground surface but it’s forbidden to take them away.

One of the most interesting thing we saw in this part of the desert, (in addition to the crystals), were the thousands of years old remaining of marine life, fruits and wood preserved by the volcanic ash. Indeed, this place, before being a desert, was actually a vast grassland with abundant water surfaces. It’s incredible how traces of a so distant past are still so visible and touchable all around!

The White Desert of Farafra

The White Desert was the highlight of our Western Desert tour. A couple of years ago I’ve seen this place in the movie “Cairo Time” and since then, I fell in love and it was on the top of my things to visit in Egypt.

The White Desert (locally known as Sahara el Beyda) is located in the Farafra depression, a 980 km²  geological depression characterised by white chalk rocks shaped by the sandstorms of the Sahara. Indeed, the landscape looks totally out of a science fiction movie and it’s quite surreal to be there surrounded by white rocks and absolute silence.

I have to say, in Sicily we have some white chalk location (i.e. The Turkish Staircase. You can read a blog about this here) but they are mixed with local Mediterranean landscape. In Egypt, these rocks extend as far as you can see and you have the full feeling of being on another planet! You can do a day trip from Cairo to the White Desert in Egypt, but this is not recommended as it’s quite a long drive. The best thing to do is organise a White Desert camping with your tour operator.

What to do in the White Desert

If you think that in a desert there isn’t much to do. I’ll prove you wrong. We made possible that our time in the White Desert was full of activities to avoid low moments and enjoy our time with our new Bedouin friends. How to use your time, of course, is up to you but I warmly recommend to relax and avoid overthinking.

Enjoy a sunset walk into the desert

We arrived at the White Desert during the late afternoon after a brief stop at the Valley of Agabat. While the Bedouins were setting up the camp for the night, we had some free time to explore the area and chase the best place where to watch the sunset. The sunset in the White Desert is something spectacular. Those rocks that are shiny white during the morning suddenly turn into pink shades, blessed by the incredible colours of the sky. One of the best sunsets I’ve seen in my life!

Taste a delicious Bedouin dinner by the fire

As the night approach, temperature will start falling and you might start being a little chilly. Indeed, my suggestion is to change clothes before is completely dark (otherwise you won’t see anything except your feet). Bedouins will be busy preparing the dinner. They usually don’t need any help with this because the space is limited and they are kinda jealous of their recipes. However, you can offer your help anyway (this will be appreciated).

We opted for a traditional Bedouin dinner with chicken, roasted vegetables and rice. If you are vegetarian, you should tell your preferences before the trip. During the dinner look out for the Desert Foxes! They will approach your camp when smelling the delicious food!

After dinner, most people prefer going to sleep as it’s very dark outside. However, we caught the occasion to know more our Bedouin friends. We set up near the fire and they narrated us stories of the desert and about their adventures. We told them our story and then discussed about many things with a warm cup of delicious mint tea. It was very relaxing and funny. The Bedouins then started singing some desert songs in front of the fire and it was really amazing! Our camp was so loud and festive that some other Bedouins from a nearby camp joined us saying that their tourists were terribly boring and already sleeping in their tents!

Plan a desert stargazing for the night

It took a while for the sky to be dark, especially because there was a beautiful full moon. However, we managed to set up everything for stargazing. I was expecting better pictures, honestly, but the moon light was so strong that this (above) was the best we could get! I warmly suggest you to try anyway. In case of no moon light you will catch much more stars!

After various attempts, we decided to call for the night and go finally to sleep. You can opt for two sleeping options. First, sleep under the stars with the Bedouin. Second, have your own tent. I admit that if the sky was super dark, I would probably attempt to sleep under the stars. However, because of the moon and also because I did not feel super comfortable in sleeping nearby them, I preferred to have my own tent to share with my husband.

The night was quite chilly. However, you will be provided with some camel blanket to keep you warm.

Hunt for the most peculiar desert rocks

The night passed quietly and the morning arrived fast with its warm temperatures. At breakfast time (around 7.30/8.00 am) it was already 25°. After a delicious refilling breakfast you will have plenty of time to explore the desert on your own. The Bedouins will set off the camp and in the meantime you can go hunting for the most peculiar rocks! Don’t be afraid of getting lost, the Bedouins will search for you when they finish with the camp. However, if you have a very bad sense of direction, you can follow the 4×4 tracks on the sand.

You can explore for about half an hour. After that, your guides will pick you up for a last ride in the desert.

Bonus stop. Sandboarding in the Western Desert

If you have spare time the day after your camping in the White Desert you may choose to go sandboarding while returning to Baharyia. Sandboarding is very fun and safe to do (so don’t worry if you never done before). You can decide if go down the dunes in a standing position or seated. Because our sanboard was partially broken we had to go seated but it was super fun! Especially when I lost the control of the board and rolled down the hill!

However, after a couple of attempts both me and Alessio were finally mastering the art of sandboarding and enjoyed our last time in the desert!

After this two incredible days we returned at the Baharyia Oasis, took a refreshing shower and had a last delicious meal before heading again to the chaotic Cairo. It was an incredible experience and we hope to go back again in the future!

If you have any question about travelling in the Western Desert don’t hesitate to ask!

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