Egypt Guide
The Western Desert Oases
Al-Qasr
AL-QASR (or Al-‘Asr, as locals say) is a must – an amazing Islamic settlement built upon Roman foundations, that may be the longest continually inhabited site in the oasis and was indubitably Dakhla's medieval capital. Work on the site is being carried out by the SCA and the Dakhla Oasis Project – a multinational venture combining archeology and conservation that's been working in the oasis some thirty years; both bodies are taking pains to restore the town while maintaining its integrity. The old town crowns a ridge above palm groves and a salt lake, set back from sprawling New Qasr beside the highway, built with money earned by local men working in Kuwait. The "border" is marked by handicrafts sellers beside the New Mosque and a tour centre (daily 9am–5pm) where you can pick up a guide to lead you around and unlock certain houses. Pay him at the end – £E10 per group seems fair.
Alternatively, for an agreeably spooky experience, you can go exploring alone. Beyond the twelfth-century Nasr el-Din Mosque, whose 21-metre-high minaret has a "pepperpot" finial typical of Ayyubid architecture, you enter a maze of high-walled alleyways and gloomy covered passages. Many of the houses here have acacia-wood lintels whose cursive or Kufic inscriptions name the builders or occupants (the oldest dates from 1518): look out for doorways with Pharaonic stonework and arabesque carvings, archways with ablaq brickwork, and a frieze painted in one of the passageways.
If you fancy staying, the cheapest option is the fly-blown but friendly Al-Qasr Resthouse beside the main road ( 
092/787-6013; Price: Up to £E50). Its few rooms have clean shared bathrooms and erratic water, or you can pay £E5 to sleep on the roof, where you'll get fantastic views of old Al-Qasr. Its proprietor, Mohammed Hussein, can arrange camel trekking for £E120 per person and rents bicycles for £E5 a day in tandem with Bir el-Gabal Camp, which he also owns. Alternatively, there's the classy Desert Lodge ( 092/772-7062 or 012 734-5960, 
www.desertlodge.net ;Price: £E450-900) on a hilltop behind old Al-Qasr, with ravishing desert views, a restaurant, Internet access, library, outdoor chess and classes in yoga or Arabic calligraphy. Rates don't include breakfast.