Cairo Fayoum Whales valley western desert
Cairo Fayoum Whales valley western desert Alongside its monuments and temples, Egypt also boasts some stunning desert scenery and we visit several different regions on this tour.
We get away from the tourist trail and see fossilized whale skeletons resting on the desert sands, the wildlife surrounding a freshwater desert lake, and the weird rock formations in the White Desert.
Two separate desert camps are included making for a truly memorable experience.
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Itinerary Day 1: Arrive in Cairo
Meet and greet at the airport and transfer to your hotel.
The rest of the day is free for you to settle into the hotel and relax after your journey.
- Day 2: Cairo to Wadi Hitan
Our desert adventure starts today, and we drive out of Cairo to the Fayoum region, once the bread basket of the whole Middle East.
We visit the Meidum Pyramid en-route and tour some sites in Fayoum before driving into the beautiful desert scenery of Wadi Hitan where camp under some cliffs with beautiful views over the rock formations and sands below us.
- Day 3: Valley of the Whales – Desert drive to Bahariya Oasis
We rise this morning, and explore the World Heritage Site of the ‘Valley of the Whales’ just below us.
This is acknowledged as the most important site worldwide for learning about the history of whale skeletal development, and hundreds of fossilised whale skeletons as well as mangrove roots and crab tunnels have been found in the sand.
Many of these are now displayed on the sand surface and we take a walk of a few kilometres through the desert to view these.
We then stop at the freshwater desert lake of Wadi Rayan, and the nearby Springs Oasis before driving through barren and rocky desert to the large depression, salt lake and villages of the Bahariya Oasis.
- Day 4: Bahariya Oasis tour – White desert safari.
Our day starts with a tour of some interesting sites around the Bahariya Oasis, before boarding our jeeps and heading out for our desert safari.
We drive over some huge sand dunes, and see the ‘Crystal Mountain’ and some spectacular cliff and sand scenery before arriving in the
White Desert itself.
Here there are strange rock formations formed by wind and sand erosion and we make a basic camp for the night under one of these and sleep under the stars (bedding and blankets are available, but you’ll need a sleeping bag in the winter months).
- Day 5: Farafra and Bahariya Oases
We finish our jeep safari this morning by driving to the small Farafra Oasis.
Here we look around the old town with traditional mud houses, some with inscriptions from the Koran still written on the walls.
We then drive back to the Bahariya Oasis where we have time to explore the center, and bathe in one of the hot sprints nearby.
- Day 6: Drive to Cairo
Tour tour leaves Bahariya this morning and we drive back to Cairo, arriving around lunchtime. the afternoon is free for you to do some final shopping or sightseeing in Cairo, perhaps enjoying the spectacular Sound and Light show at the Pyramids in the evening, or taking a dinner cruise on the Nile.
- Day 7: Cairo – Tour ends.
The tour ends today and your time is free until we transfer you to the airport for your flight home.
Cairo Fayoum Whales valley western desert tour describtion
Alongside its monuments and temples, Cairo Fayoum Whales valley western desert also boasts some stunning desert scenery and we visit several different regions on this tour.
We get away from the tourist trail and see fossilized whale skeletons resting on the desert sands, the wildlife surrounding a freshwater desert lake, and the weird rock formations in the White Desert.
Two separate desert camps are included making for a truly memorable experience.
Cairo Fayoum Whales valley western desertAfter arriving in Cairo,
we start the tour by heading to the Fayoum region with a stop en-route to tour the Meidum Pyramid, one of the very first attempts at pyramid building.
Fayoum
is home to Egypt’s most fertile soils and we’ll see a wide range of agriculture irrigated by an ancient system of canals and water wheels.
We visit some of the interesting sites in Fayoum and then drive out past Wadi Rayan and into the desert to Wadi Hitan, home to the Valley of the Whales.
This World Heritage Site is considered to be the most important place in the world to see fossilised whale skeletons and to see how they evolved.
It is also surrounded by stunning desert cliffs and scenery and we are very keen to encourage responsible tourist visits here.
We spend a night in traditional Bedouin style tents at the foot of the cliffs here and enjoy a hearty local meal before drifting to sleep.
Cairo Fayoum Whales valley western desertWe explore the site on foot the next morning, and then drive back to the Wadi Rayan protected area, where a wide range of wildlife can be found surrounding a beautiful freshwater desert lake and one of the few true springs oases in Egypt.
Next we head out into the Western deserts and the lush green oasis of Bahariya.
We tour some of the interesting sites in the Oasis, including the symmetrically shaped Pyramid Mountain,
and then board 4×4 jeeps and head out into the desert.
We stop at the strange Crystal mountain and head off-road into the White Desert with its strange, unearthly rock formations and vast open plains.
Our night spent camping under the stars here is a real highlight of any visit to Egypt.
Cairo Fayoum Whales valley western desertWe finish our safari by driving through the Black Desert to see the famous “flowers of the desert” before arriving in Farafra, the smallest and most peaceful of the desert oases, where we see traditional houses and an ancient way of life.
On returning to Bahariya,
we can explore the town further and enjoy a relaxing dip in one of the hot spring that dot the oasis. You then return to Cairo to finish the tour.
If you would like to do some sightseeing in the Nile Valley along with the desert sections of this tour, then please check our Pharaohs & Deserts tour.