Islamic and Coptic Cairo
Old Cairo is the base of our faiths’ heritage, with Coptic Christianity being Egypt’s first religion and how Islam revered Egypt, considering Cairo was the capital of Islamic faith at a point of our history. You'll be picked up from your hotel and taken with a guide to see Islamic Cairo first, experiencing the some of the oldest mosques in the world and a couple of Mosques that defined Islamic expansion and power throughout history. Before proceeding to Coptic Cairo, you'll have lunch at a local restaurant. When you arrive at Coptic Cairo, you'll experience the oldest churches in Coptic Christianity that hold a signficant status in the Orthodox world; additionally, you'll experience the rarest and earliest Christian relics in the Coptic Musuem. After you're done being stimulated in our faiths' heritage, you'll be taken back to your hotel.
Included in this experience:
A private car that will pick you up and drop you off at your hotel.
Lunch will be provided (excluding drinks).
Entrance fees will be covered.
Tour Guide & Expert Egyptologist (Available languages: English, French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian & German).
Attractions included in this Day Experience:
Learn more about these places
Islamic Cairo is the historic core of Cairo which gave our country capital its name, Al-Qahirah, which means “The Omnipotent Conqueror” since it was founded by the Fatimids when planet Mars (called the conquering star in Arabic) was rising. The area is filled with mosques from an array of the different Muslim dynasties and Islamic caliphate empires that have conquered Egypt in the past, giving the Cairo the nickname, the “City of a Thousand Minarets.” This area includes the Cairo Citadel, proclaimed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site for being the "center of the Islamic world, reaching its golden age in the 14th century." It includes the fortress built by Saladin to defeat the Crusades and the Mosque of Muhammad Ali, the founder of modern-day Egypt.
Coptic Cairo is a unique part of Old Cairo that hosts multiple churches and historical sites that relate to Coptic Orthodox Christianity. The most famous and oldest church is the Hanging Church, built on top of the Roman’s Babylon Fortress. The church is significant due to it being the first church built in the Roman basilica style, containing influences of Islamic art due to its temporary conversion to a mosque, and being the site of several reported Marian apparitions. Beside the church is the Coptic Museum, which holds the largest collection of Coptic Christian artwork and artifacts in the world.