Middle East and North Africa: 10 spectacular sights off the beaten track
The Middle East and North Africa have plenty of world-famous attractions – Petra and the Pyramids, the Valley of the Kings and the souks of Marrakesh, the mi…
In antiquity, Upper Egypt started at Memphis and ran as far south as Aswan on the border with Nubia. Nowadays, with the designation of Middle Egypt, borders are a bit hazy, though the Qena Bend is generally taken as the region’s beginning and Aswan is still effectively the end of the line.
Within this stretch of the Nile is the world’s most intensive concentration of ancient monuments – temples, tombs and palaces constructed from the onset of the Middle Kingdom (c.2050 BC) up until Roman and Byzantine times. The greatest of the buildings are the cult temples of Abydos, Dendara, Karnak, Esna, Edfu, Kom Ombo, Philae and Abu Simbel, each conceived as “homes” for their respective deities and comprising an accretion of centuries of building. Scarcely less impressive are the multitude of tombs in the Theban Necropolis, most famously in the Valley of the Kings, across the river from Luxor, where Tutankhamun’s resting place is merely a hole in the ground by comparison with those of such great pharaohs as Seti I and Ramses II.
Monuments aside, Upper Egypt marks a subtle shift of character, with the desert closing in on the river and dom palms growing alongside barrel-roofed houses, designed to reflect the intense heat. One of the greatest pleasures to be had here – indeed one of the highlights of any Egyptian trip – is to absorb the river-scape slowly from the vantage point of a felucca. This is easily arranged in Aswan, whence you can sail downriver with no fear of being becalmed; Nile cruise boats and dahabiyas provide a more luxurious experience. While cruises can be booked at short notice in either city, better deals are usually available in Aswan.
Book through Rough Guides’ trusted travel partners
The latest articles, galleries, quizzes and videos.
The Middle East and North Africa have plenty of world-famous attractions – Petra and the Pyramids, the Valley of the Kings and the souks of Marrakesh, the mi…
1. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas In 1971, fuelled by a cornucopia of drugs, Hunter S. Thompson set off for Las Vegas on his “savage journey to the heart of …
Africa is a continent of wild open savannahs, terracotta sunsets, thousands of vibrant green hills and rugged coastlines. Here, you can be chugging along on …