Egypt's most remote inhabited oasis: the oracle temple consulted by Alexander the Great, hot springs bubbling from the Sahara, and a Great Sand Sea that glows amber at sunset.
Your Journey Route
Seven hundred kilometres west of Cairo, tucked against the Libyan border, Siwa is Egypt's most intact traditional oasis. Its mud-brick old town, its oracle temple where Alexander the Great received his divine mandate, its natural freshwater springs and the ten-thousand-square-kilometre Great Sand Sea at its edge make it unlike anything else in North Africa. This eight-day trip is structured around three full nights at a locally owned ecolodge, a Great Sand Sea jeep safari, and a final drive back through the night to Cairo in time for your international connection.
Your guide meets you at Cairo International Airport and transfers you privately to your hotel. After the long journey the rest of the day is yours to relax, with a short briefing on the adventure ahead.
A full day among Cairo's greatest sights: the Great Pyramids of Giza, the Sphinx and the Valley Temple, followed by lunch and the Grand Egyptian Museum with its complete Tutankhamun collection. An early night ahead of the desert drive.
You leave Cairo early and drive west along the Mediterranean to El Alamein, site of the decisive WWII battle, where you visit the war museum and Commonwealth cemetery. Continuing past the coastal town of Marsa Matruh, you turn south into the desert and arrive in the palm-filled oasis of Siwa by evening, with dinner at your lodge.
A full day exploring the oasis. You wander the mudbrick ruins of Shali Fortress, visit the Temple of the Oracle at Aghurmi where Alexander the Great once sought counsel, and the Temple of Amun. After a swim in Cleopatra's Spring and a look at the Mountain of the Dead, you watch the sun set over the salt lakes from Fatnas Island.
The highlight of the trip: a 4x4 safari deep into the Great Sand Sea. You crest towering dunes, hunt for marine fossils on the ancient seabed, swim in the hot and cold springs at Bir Wahed and try your hand at sandboarding, before a Bedouin dinner and tea around the fire as the stars come out.
A last Siwan morning to visit the market for olives, dates and handmade crafts before the long drive back across the desert and coast to Cairo, arriving in the evening. The night is free to rest ahead of your final day.
A relaxed free day in Cairo to do as you please. Options include a guided walk through Old (Coptic) Cairo, shopping in the Khan el-Khalili bazaar, or a felucca sail on the Nile at sunset. Your guide is on hand to arrange whatever appeals.
After breakfast and any last free time, you are transferred privately to Cairo International Airport in good time for your flight home.
Add a detour to Abu Simbel on the way to or from Siwa via the Marsa Matruh coastal route, combining the desert oasis with Ramesses II's colossal rock-cut temples.
Upgrade from the ecolodge to a night camping among the Great Sand Sea dunes under an uninterrupted canopy of stars, with a Bedouin camp dinner and sunrise in the sand.
Rent a sandboard and ride Siwa's 100-metre dunes under the guidance of a local Bedouin. Equipment hire is arranged through your guide on the morning of the safari.
Extend one night at Marsa Matruh, a pristine turquoise Mediterranean cove on the coast road between Siwa and Alexandria, before the final drive back to Cairo.
Upgrade from the standard ecolodge room to a suite-style private villa with its own terrace, direct garden access and enhanced personal service throughout your stay.
A specialist ornithology guide joins you at the salt lakes for a morning session with flamingos, herons and the rich variety of migratory birds that winter on the Siwa wetlands.
Approximately 7–8 hours from Cairo, departing around 10pm and arriving at sunrise. The road is a modern desert highway and the 4WD vehicles are comfortable with reclining seats. Most guests sleep for part of the journey and find arriving in Siwa at dawn to be one of the trip's highlights.
Siwa is a safe, peaceful community with a long history of welcoming visitors. It sits well within Egypt's western frontier zone. Our guides are Siwa-based locals with deep knowledge of the area. Egypt's border zone extends west of Siwa, but the oasis itself and all visit sites are considered completely safe.
Built from local palm wood and clay in traditional Siwan style, the ecolodge is comfortable and designed around the landscape rather than imposing on it. Rooms are cool in summer (thick clay walls), heated by electric blankets in winter, and set within a date palm garden. Full board includes three meals daily of local Siwan cooking.
The jeep safari involves bumpy desert terrain and is moderately demanding. All other parts of the itinerary are gentle. If the safari is a concern, it can be replaced with a calmer lake circuit. Please tell us your requirements when booking.
Yes. Day 1 includes an optional Giza Pyramids visit before the overnight departure. We can also arrange a Giza morning on Day 5 before the airport transfer if your flight is in the afternoon.
October through April is ideal. Summer in Siwa can exceed 40°C. The Great Sand Sea is best visited in cooler months when walking the dunes is comfortable. Spring (March–May) sees wildflowers around the oasis edges.
Not in a single loop, but we can build a Siwa and Nile Cruise combination itinerary over 10–12 days. Contact us for a custom quote.
Sunscreen, sunglasses, a wide-brim hat, a light layer for the overnight drive (desert nights are cool), and comfortable shoes for walking on sand. The ecolodge provides blankets and towels.
Jeeps, dunes, starlit camps. Not the typical Egypt.
The Great Sand Sea at golden hour rivals any landscape on earth.
Small group feel, private guide and off-the-beaten-track authenticity.
The most romantic, private and otherworldly Egypt experience available.
Every journey we build is private, guided and crafted around you. Tell us your travel dates and group size and we'll send you a personalised itinerary within 24 hours.
