It was finally here. The day we began the trip that we had been planning for the last 11 months. I had booked United award tickets for us from Mumbai to Cape Town via Cairo and Addis Ababa. We left Pune the previous evening for our first flight to Cairo, EgyptAir 969, departing from Mumbai at 2:20 AM. The flight itself was uneventful, and we reached Cairo early in the morning.
The plan was to spend the day in Cairo in transit and then continue to South Africa. Since we were traveling on an award ticket, I wasn’t sure if we could get the complimentary transit stamp and hotel. So, we had applied for the transit visa in advance just in case. We were redirected to multiple lines and immigration counters, only to be told that we couldn’t exit the airport with a transit visa. Exasperated, we finally went to the EgyptAir desk for transfer customers; they arranged for us to get the transit stamp to enter Egypt and also gave us complimentary hotel accommodation for the day. Had we followed this path from the beginning, we would have been better off. Instead, we wasted money on the transit visa and three precious hours navigating the bureaucracy.
We were put up at Le Passage Cairo Hotel & Casino by EgyptAir. The hotel shuttle picked us up from the airport, and we arrived after a short drive to find a surprisingly grand property with lush gardens. The front desk staff took our voucher, noted our departure flight time, and provided our room number. While waiting for our room to be ready, we enjoyed a breakfast spread featuring local Egyptian staples and a live omelette station.
I had contacted Egyptian Sidekick about 10 days before our trip. Since we were only in Cairo for a short transit, we wanted a seamless experience. Despite our three-hour delay at the airport, our guide Mohsen and driver Ahmed were waiting for us, ready to adjust the itinerary on the fly.
We first headed to Dahshur, located about 1.5 hours from Cairo. It was incredible to see the Red Pyramid and the Bent Pyramid up close. The Red Pyramid is famous for being the first successful smooth-sided pyramid, and its reddish hue under the sun is striking. The Bent Pyramid is equally fascinating, showing a unique change in angle halfway up. This site is far less crowded than Giza; with only 2-3 other visitors, it felt like a private tour. It was surreal to crawl through the narrow passage to see the Red Pyramid from the inside. We could also see the Black Pyramid in the distance, though it remains inaccessible to tourists.
Next was Saqqara to see the Step Pyramid of Djoser. This structure is considered the earliest large-scale cut stone construction in the world. The surrounding temple complex is filled with intricate stone carvings and impressive colonnades. We also visited the Imhotep Museum, which houses a real Mummy and various artifacts that bring ancient Egyptian craftsmanship to life. It was eerie yet fascinating to see how well-preserved the remains were after thousands of years.
Due to a delayed start and the building traffic, we had to skip Memphis to ensure we reached the Giza Plateau before closing. As we approached Giza, the pyramids loomed over the city skyline. While the surrounding urban area is quite busy and chaotic, the site itself was majestic. We arrived in the late afternoon, just as the light began to soften. We declined the persistent offers for camel rides and instead walked toward the Great Sphinx of Giza. Seeing the Sphinx with the Pyramids of Giza in the background is a quintessential travel moment, though the Sphinx was slightly smaller in person than I had imagined.
Having already explored the interior of the Red Pyramid, we spent our time at Giza soaking in the views from the observation area as the sun set behind the ancient tombs. Our final stop was Koshary Abou Tarek, a world-famous spot for Egypt’s national dish. The layers of rice, pasta, and lentils topped with spicy sauce were the perfect end to our whirlwind day.
While the immigration fiasco cost us time we could have spent at the Egyptian Museum, this transit day was a dream come true. We left for our flight EgyptAir 851 to Addis Ababa exhausted but grateful for our first taste of Africa.
