Photo: The Sphinx

A lion with the face of a pharaoh, the 4,500-year-old Sphinx stands guard at Giza.

Photograph by Kenneth Garrett/National Geographic Stock

The world's original tourist destination, the seat of thought and influence in the Arab world. • The first Arab country to make peace with Israel. • Paper, the 365-day calendar, and novelist Naguib Mahfouz's unforgettable Cairo Trilogy are among its many gifts to the world. • Images of pharaonic culture—mummies, hieroglyphs, the Pyramids—suffuse our contemplation of this storied land. • The Nile bisects its vast expanse. • Crumbling Cairo contrasts with graceful fishermen's feluccas drifting on a river breeze. • A country of endless contrast, grindingly poor yet rich beyond words in history.

Related Features

Egypt Map

Enlarge Map »

Places A-Z

Please enable JavaScript to see this content

My Shot National Parks

Travel News

Get More Travel News From AOL Travel »