Egyptian Sacred Retreats

We invite you on a mystical journey to discover the magnificent beauty and spirit of Ancient Egypt. Embrace the heart of the Egyptian culture, land and people. Explore the monuments, sail down the Nile in a dahabiyah, camp in a Bedouin tent under the stars, dive in the Red Sea and walk in the steps of the Pharaohs.

Cairo, Egypt's sprawling capital, is set on the Nile River. The city's metropolitan area is one of the largest in Africa and the largest in the Middle East. Cairo has been a center of the regions political and cultural life. It has the oldest and largest film and music industry in the Middle East as well as the world's second oldest institution of higher learning Al- Azhar University. Many international media businesses and organizations have regional headquarters in the city. In the heart of Cairo is the Tahir Square and the vast Egyptian museum, a trove of antiquities including royal mummies and gilded King Tutankhamun artifacts.

The city is ancient and new, East and West. The pyramids of Giza are the site of the iconic pyramids and the Great Sphinx, dating to  226 BC. They are near Memphis and Heliopolis where Plato once studied. Between these extremes are other architectural monuments, dating from Roman, Arab, and Turkish times. In addition to department stores, cinemas, hotels, and townhouses, Cairo contains a bazaar in a medieval city endowed with more than 400 registered historical monuments - including mosques, mausoleums,  massive stone gates, dating to 130 BC. The city's historic core was designated a UNESCO world heritage site in 1979.

The Cairo zoological gardens in Al-Jizah contain extensive collections of rare tropical animals in a garden setting. Nasr city is the site of Cairo Stadium and has numerous playing fields in a country where Soccer/Football reigns.  Other recreational activities include sailboat trips up the Nile as well as numerous river front cafés, restaurant boats and nightclubs.

This sweeping necropolis and pyramid field of Memphis, the first capital of Egypt, has been an important historical site for 5,000 years of Egyptian history. It is located 20 miles south of Cairo. Saqqara , a Unesco world heritage site, features numerous pyramids, including the world famous step pyramid of Djoser, which is the oldest complete stone building complex known in history. It was built by Imhotep who was  it’s arctitect. It remained an important complex for burials and ceremonies for more than 3000 years.

The Crystal Mountain is near the Bahrariya and Farfra Oases in the Western Desert. The Arch Ridge includes a unique structure made entirely of calcite crystal standing up out of the desert. There are tours of both the White and Black Deserts where you can camp and sleep under the stars in a beautiful oasis style hut. 

A Mediterranean Port city in Egypt, Alexandria was founded by Alexander the Great in 331 BC. It was home to Queen Cleopatra and the Pharaohs Lighthouse, ranking among the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The temple of Serapis, the Serapion, was part of the legendary library of Alexandria, which was the largest most prosperous city in the world. Alexandria attracted scholars, scientists, philosophers ,artists, and historians. Today the library is reincarnated in a disc shaped ultramodern Bibliotecha Alexandrina. The city also has Greco-Roman landmarks, old world cafés and sandy beaches. It has a 15th century seafront Kait Bay Citadel is now a museum.

The lost Egyptian city of Heracleion was found underwater off the coast of Alexandria It was the port of entry for all ships coming to Egypt from the Greek world. Divers and archaeologists have found the remains of more than 64 ships buried, gold coins, statues, slabs of stone from Greek and ancient Egyptian times, sarcophagi, and  700 ancient ship anchors. This is an underwater glimpse of ancient Egypt.

Luxor was established on the shore of the great Nile river and surrounded by both mango plantations and desert. Luxor is known as the city of “A Hundred Doors”. It has a half million inhabitants and also the world’s greatest open-air museum, containing some of the largest and most striking ancient monuments ever constructed.

The history of Luxor dates back to 3,200 B.C. Thebes started to grow as a city, becoming the religious and political capital of Ancient Egypt during the 18th Dynasty, in 1,550 B.C.

Luxor has been ruled by some of the most famous and important Pharaohs such as Rameses II, Seti I, Tutankhamun, and Hatshepsut - the first female Pharaoh. Today most of their tombs, monuments and temples still remain very well-preserved: a true testament for a desire of immortality for eternity in sandstone and granite. 

Today's city surrounds graceful Luxor Temple and Karnak Temple. The royal tombs of the Valley the Kings and the Valley of the Queens where Queen Nefertari’s’s tomb which is called the Sistine Chapel of Ancient Egypt are on the Nile’s West Bank. The area also holds Hatshepsut Temple, Ramesseum, Medinet Habu Temple, the Colossi of Memnon, Ramesseum and Howard Carter’s House who discovered King Tutankamen’s tomb. Experience sunrise on a Hot Air Balloon , Horseback riding in the desert or a Sunset cruise on a  Felucca on the Nile.

Head down the Nile on a Dahabiyah, a traditional sailing ship, for a cruise to Aswan and see the sites along the way. Edfu Temple, Kom Ombo, The Temple of Isis at Philae, Elephantine Island and spectacular Abu Simbel. The ships have elegantly furnished private cabins and sundeck to enjoy the scenery and the weather.

Dendera Temple is where the temple of Hathor is housed. She was a goddess in the Egyptian Pantheon who personified joy, feminine love and motherhood. It is said to mark a holy place even by the standards of ancient Egyptians. This is 40 miles north of Luxor on the Nile. Abydos Temple which is also nearby housed the original 'Flower of Life’ and was a sacred place to Egyptians believed to be where Osiris was buried.

There are a number of temples dedicated to Osiris. Included on the walls of Abydos was the Kings list containing the names of 76 Kings of ancient Egypt predating Seti I the builder of the temple. Early rulers who were considered illegitimate such as Hatshepsut and Akhenatun were conveniently omitted from the list.

aswan

Aswan is a busy market and tourist center on the Nile River. It  has been southern Egypt's strategic and commercial gateway since antiquity. It contains significant archaeology sites like the The Temple of Isis at Philae near the landmark Aswan Dam, and Elephantine Island. It has a famous old town of Souk and the Nubian Museum. Majestic Abu Simbel, located in the village of Nubia, has 2 temples with four colossal statues of Rameses and a second temple he built dedicated to his Queen Nefertari and honoring the Hathors.

The red sea

The Red Sea is a branch of the Indian Ocean that climbs northwest to where the Sinai Peninsula divides into two long, narrow gulfs: the Gulf of Suez and the Gulf of Aqqaba. In ancient times it served major trade routes. In trade between India and the Middle East the Red Sea was fastest and safest passage. It holds an abundance of marine life, including beautiful coral, amazing turtles, graceful dolphins, schools of lionfish, napoleon and barracudas. The Red Sea is a world class snorkeling and diving location, where visibility is generally 40 meters (130 feet).

Hurghada

El gouna

Marsa Alam

Sharm el-Sheikh

dahab

general information