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White Desert  City Tours
Select Egypt tour operators and travel agents in White Desert providing White Desert Travel, White Desert Tours,
budget and Luxury White Desert holidays, White Desert packages


The Western Desert Oases

For the Ancient Egyptians civilization began and ended with the Nile Valleyand the Delta, known as the "Black Land" for the colour of its rich alluvialdeposits. Beyond lay the "Red Land" or desert, whose significance was eitherpractical or mystical. East of the Nile it held mineral wealth and routes to the Red Sea coast; west of the river lay the Kingdom of Osiris, Lord of the Dead - the deceased were said to "go west" to meet him. But once it was realized that human settlements existed out there, Egypt's rulers had to reckon with the Western Desert Oases as sources of exotic commodities and potential staging posts for invaders. Though linked to the civilization of the Nile Valley since antiquity, they have always been different - and remain so.
Siwa Oasis, far out near the Libyan border, is the most striking example: its people speak another language and have customs unknown in the rest of Egypt. Its ruined citadels, lush palm groves, limpid pools and golden sand dunes epitomize the allure of the oases. The four "inner" oases of Bahariya, Farafra, Dakhla and Kharga lie on the "Great Desert Circuit" that begins in Cairo or Assyut - a Long March through the New Valley Governorate, where modernization has affected each oasis to a greater or lesser extent. While Bahariya and Farafra remain basically desert villages, living off their traditional crops of dates and olives, Dakhla and Kharga have become full-blown modern towns. The appeal of the awesome barrenness, most of it
gravel pans rather than pure "sand desert".
Much nearer to Cairo (and suitable for day excursions) are two quasi-oases: the Fayoum and Wadi Natrun. The Fayoum is more akin to the NileValley than the Western Desert, with many ancient ruins to prove its importance since the Middle Kingdom. Though a popular holiday spot for Cairenes, it doesn't attract many foreign tourists except for hunters and ornithologists. Wadi Natrun is significant mainly for its Coptic monasteries, which draw hordes of Egyptian pilgrims but, again, comparatively few foreigners.

The desert

Much of the fascination if this region lies in the desert itself. It's no accident that Islam, Judaism and Christianity were forged in deserts whose vast scarps and depressions displayed the hand of God writ large, with life-giving springs and oases landscape was once savanna, it was reduced to its current state millennia ago by geological process and overgrazing by
Stone Age pastoralists.
The Western Desert, which covers 681,000 square kilometers (over two-thirds of Egypt's total area), is merely one part of the Sahara belt across northern Africa. Its anomalous name was bestowed by British cartographers who viewed it from the perspective of the Nile - and, to complicate matters further, designated its southern reaches and parts of northwestern Sudan as the "Libyan Desert". Aside from the oases, its most striking features are the Qattara Depression, the lowest point in Africa,
and the Great Sand Sea along the Libyan border, an awesome ocean of dunes that once swallowed up a whole army. Further south, the Gilf Kebir and Jebel Uwaynat feature some of the most magnificent prehistoric rock art in Egypt, and were the setting for the events in the book and film The English Patient.
All the practicalities of visiting the oases (including the best times to go) are detailed under the respective entries in this chapter. The most comprehensive source of historical, ethnographic and geographical information is Cassandra Vivian's The Western Desert of Egypt: An Explorer's Handbook (last updated in 2000; a new edition is due in 2007), which includes many useful maps and GPS waypoints, and is available from good bookshops in Cairo.

Visiting the desert: safaris

Organized desert safaris are the easiest and often the only way to reach some of the finest sites in and beyond the oases. There are local operators in all the oases, whose contact details appear in the text. As more are based in Bahariya than anywhere else, this is the best place to arrange safaris at short notice, particularly to the White Desert. Longer trips (4-19 days) to remoter sites such as the Great Sand Sea, the Gilf Kebir or Jebel Uwaynat must be booked weeks or months ahead. Safaris to the Gilf and Uwaynat are restricted to spring and autumn and may sell out six months beforehand. Sadly, some safari outfits fail to respect the environment, leaving rubbish behind or encouraging tourists to remove flint arrowheads or spay water on rock paintings so that they look clearer in photos.

 
CAIRO CLASSIC TOUR 
As of 45 Euro per person, 1 day.
Pyramids - Sphinx - Egyptian Museum.

Memphis and Sakkara
As of 60 Euro per person, 1 day.
Memphis - Sakkara - dahshur.

CITY TRIP CAIRO
As of 30 Euro per person, 1 day.
Aqueduct - Nilometer - the Ziggurat - Al-Azhar Mosque.
 
ISLAMIC AND COPTIC CAIRO
As of 25 Euro per person, 1 day.
Citadel - Mohamed Ali Mosque - El Azhar Mosque – Coptic Cairo

SPECIAL CAIRO
As of 110 Euro per person, 3 days .
Memphis - Sakkara - Pyramids - Sphinx - Egyptian Museum - Citadel - Mohamed Ali Mosque - Khan EL Khalili Bazaar - Dinner on a cruising boat on the Nile.
 
Private Pharaonic Village Tour
As 25 Euro pro Person, 3 Tage
The Pharaonic Village is a wondrous and exciting place, whose history is almost as colorful as the one

Nile River Dinner Cruise on the Nile Aquarius
As of 20 Euro per person, 2 hours
Entertainment - River Nile cruise- Hotel private pick up and drop off- open buffet dinner
 
Cairo Sound and Light Show - The Giza Pyramids
As of 22 Euro per person, 2 hours
In operation since 1961, the Sound and Light show at the Giza Pyramids is a highlight and a "must do" for most visitors to Egypt

 
Wadi Al-Hitan (Valley of Whales) Fayoum Oasis
1 night / 2 days
As of 00 Euro per person
Wadi Al-Hitan (Valley of Whales) Fayoum Oasis
 
Private Tour to Fayoum
As of 50 Euro per person, 2 hours
we visit the huge wooden waterwheels, another incredible engineering feat by the ancient Egyptians, though less known than the mighty Pyramids. The waters of the Bahr Yusef are distributed throughout the oasis from Medinet, the capital of the Fayoum
 
jeep select egypt Sakkara Over Day by Jeep
As of 50 Euro per person, 8 hours
Sakkara - Camel caravan - Dahshour Pyramids - Abu Sir Area
 
Discover White Desert

The richness and variety of Egyptian landscape is endless. At least if you ever decide to visit the White Desert, that's the message you'll get.
White Desert Attractions 

White Desert attractions and sightseeing attractions in White Desert. Book White Desert attraction tours with Select Egypt.
White Desert Holidays

special discount holiday packages offers for White Desert travel. We give you tailor made holiday deals for White Desert travel.
WhiteDesert Tours & Excursions

special discount holiday packages offers for White Desert excursions. We give you tailor made holiday deals for White Desert travel.
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White Desert Hotels

Choose from White Desert hotels with huge savings. Whatever your budget, compare prices and read reviews for all our White Desert hotels.
White Desert Map

Shallow water levels allow for modest vegetation and wildlife. One example is the Cairo University Oasis which comprises only one palm and a few green trees,
White Desert Monuments

The best monuments of White Desert. Information about White Desert monuments, landmarks, historic buildings and museums in White Desert.
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