Tourism

The most famous oases of New Valley Governorate are (from west to east): Farafra, Dakhla and Kharga. Each one has numerous tourist attractions such as ancient rural villages, natural sites and archaeological sites dating back to different periods of human history (from prehistoric to modern times), as well as water gushing from natural springs or wells. These wells, extracting trapped water, can be modern or ancient, drilled by the Egyptians and Romans. The underground water of the natural springs and the wells is believed to originate in the rains of Equatorial Africa that saturate and penetrate the ground moving towards north (Vivian 1990).

Kharga oasis

The archaeological and tourist sites to visit in Kharga oasis are:

• Qasr Kharga: it is the hub of the New Valley; interesting sites are the Kharga Archaeological Museum, the Mabrouk fountain, the suk and Darb el Sindadiyya (the original village of Qasr Kharga).
• Hibis Temple: it is the largest temple in Kharga oasis and is also the best preserved structure in Egypt from the Saite and Persian periods; it is located 2 kilometres north of Qasr Kharga, on the paved road to the airport;
• Necropolis of El-Bagawat: it is the most ancient Christian necropolis in Egypt;
• Temple of Nadura: it is another of the temples/forts which were built to protect the oasis;
• Qasr al-Ghweita: it is the Fortress of the Beautiful Garden, a large mudbrick fortress that probably once served as headquarters for the garrisons of Roman troops stationed in the Kharga Oasis;
  
• Qasr al-Labekha: it is one of the most spectacular forts and temples in Kharga;
  
• Ain Umm al-Dabadib: it is an important Roman settlement whose the most spectacular ruin is the aqueduct;
  
• Dush (Kysis): it was an ancient border town that held a garrisoned fortress to protect the community and the south-western frontier of the Roman Empire;
  
• Qasr el-Zayyan: here there was an ancient village, whose main remains today are a Roman temple;
  
• Deir al Munira: it contains ruins of an ancient fortress, a temple and a necropolis;
  
• Ain Manawir: it contains the remains of extensive underground aqueducts known as qanats, constructed by the Persians in the 5th century BC;
  
• Ain al-Dabashiya: there are the ruins of a village together with an area for grain processing and an ancient pigeon house;
  
• Qasr Mustafa Kashef: there are ruins of the Coptic periodconsisting of monastic buildings, a church, two Roman temples and a travellers’ lodge;
• Ain al-Tarakwa: it is an unexcavated site whose main ruins is a sandstone temple;
• Hassan Fathy Village: it is an abandoned village thatwas built in the 1960s to house a new agricultural community in the Kharga oasis;
• Rock inscriptions and graffiti in the mountain of Gebel al-Teir;
• Other fortresses
• Other necropolis and tombs

Among the natural sites in Kharga oasis there are:

• Valley of Melons: its name derives from the unusually shaped stones that are found here, resembling Egyptian watermelons;
• Several natural springs and drilled wells
  

Ticket prices

Prices of the tickets per each site (if applicable) are indicated in the description of the site itself. The inclusive ticket allows to visit the following sites:

• Necropolis of El-Bagawat;
• Al-Zayyan temple;
• Qasr al-Ghweita;
• Temple of Dush;
• Hibis temple.

The price of the inclusive ticket (years 2019-2020) is: 120 EGP (foreigner), 60 EGP (foreigner student), 10 EGP (Egyptian), 5 EGP (Egyptian student).

Some lodges and hotels in Kharga oasis are: Basata Lodge (Kharga), Solymar Pioneers (Kharga) and Qasr El Bagawat Hotel (Ezbet Halfa).

Dakhla Oasis

The archaeological and tourist sites to visit in Dakhla oasis are

• Mut: it is Dakhla’s capital and is known for the old part of the city, which is an example of the traditional Islamic town built with sun-dried mud bricks;
  
• Qasr Dakhla: it is one of the oldest inhabited areas of the oasis and it contains several houses from the Mamluk and Ottoman periods, still preserving the traditional wood decorations on the doors;
  
• Qila Al-Dabba: it is a large necropolis, whose the most important features are the large mudbrick mastaba tombs of a number of 6th Dynasty (Old Kingdom) high officials;
  
• Necropolis of Muzawwaqa: it served the nearby town of Amheida and was in use from at least the Ptolemaic period; the walls of some of the tombs are decorated with exquisite full colour paintings;
  
• Bashindi: it is an ancient cemetery where it is said that there is the tomb of a medieval sheikh called Pasha Hindi;
  
• Deir al-Haggar: there is a sandstone temple built by the Roman Emperor Nero in the 1st century AD;
  
• Ain Asil: it is the site of probably the most important settlement in the oasis in the Old Kingdom and contains remains from three building phases including houses, large structures and an enclosure wall surrounding the area;
  
• Asmant el-Kharab (Kellis): itwas one of the largest settlements in the Dakhla oasis in the Roman period; today there are remains of private houses, large administrative complexes, farmhouses, baths, churches and aqueducts;
  
• Ain Amur: the site contains remains of a temple dating back to the Late Period; it was surrounded by a thick mudbrick wall that also enclosed the spring called Ain Amur;
  
• Bir el-Shagala: it is an archaeological site located in Dakhla oasis. The price (years 2019-2020) to enter the site is: 60 EGP (foreigner), 30 EGP (foreigner student), 10 EGP (Egyptian), 5 EGP (Egyptian student);
  
• Budkhulu: it is an old mudbrick town whose remains date back to the Islamic era; the most interesting remains are the ones of a Turkish cemetery;
  
• Qalamun: it was the administrative center of the oasis during the Mamluke and Ottoman periods; among the remains of the old village there are winding streets, an Ayyubid mosque and some houses;
  
• Balat: it is an Islamic village where the old city is still preserved; 5 kilometres (3.1 miles) south of Balat the cemetery of Ain Tirghi was found;
  
• Tineida: it is the easternmost village in the Dakhla Oasis and the first or last, point of civilization, depending on whether the visitor is coming. The tombstones contained in the small cemetery are worth a visit;
  
• Gedida: it is a village founded 200 years ago and its name means “new”;
  
• Other remains (of temples, cemeteries and basilicas);
  
• Rock inscriptions

Among the natural sites locate in Dakhla oasis, there are:

• the Fish Pond: it is an artificial lake on the paved road between Qasr to Mut; it is a popular site for birdwatchers (CISS Inventory 2010);
• several hot springs and drilled wells

Some lodges and resorts in Dakhla oasis are: Desert lodge, Tarfa lodge and Bedouin Camp.

Ticket prices

Prices of the tickets per each site (if applicable) are indicated in the description of the site itself. The inclusive ticket allows to visit the following sites:

• Necropolis of Muzawwaqa;
• Deir Al-Haggar temple;
• Qila al-Dabba;
• Ain Asil;
• Al-Qasr Ancient Islamic City;
• Bir el-Shagala.

The price of the inclusive ticket (years 2019-2020) is: 120 EGP (foreigner), 60 EGP (foreigner student), 10 EGP (Egyptian), 5 EGP (Egyptian student).

Farafra Oasis

Farafra Oasis is mostly known for its spectacular natural sites; among the most important ones there are:

• White Desert: it is the main tourist destination of Farafra oasis; it consists of a desert with fine sand and strangely shaped chalk pinnacles;
  
• Black Valley: it is an area that begins 96 kilometres (60 miles) outside Qasr Farafra. Surrounded by high yellow dunes, it extends for over 43 kilometres (27 miles). Its name derives from the fact that the ground is covered by billions of tiny black stones, mostly pyrite, that turn the terrain completely black. However, if digging just below the surface, one can find white powdered sand (Vivian 1990);
• Crystal Mountain (or Gebel al-Aziz): it is a large rock formation of quartz with a hole in the middle. It is a small mountain less than ten meters. It is located on the paved road between Baharyia and Farafra. The thousands of crystal-like pieces of rock embedded in the stone sparkle in the sun (CISS Inventory 2010; Vivian 1990). Site coordinates: N 27 39 718 E 28 25 761;
• Marble Labyrinth: it is a maze of limestone rocks and sand sheets, located 150 kilometres (93 miles) outside Qasr Farafra. Nearly impenetrable, the sharp stones cut tires and the place can be explored only through a twisting and turning route on the soft sand, avoiding sharp stones (Vivian 1990);
• Several hot springs and drilled wells

• Qasr Farafra is the only inhabited village in the entire depression of Farafra Oasis.

See the Gallery "Black Desert, Crystal Mountain and White Desert". 

Some hotels and camps in Farafra oasis are: Badawiya Farafra Hotel, Rahala Safari Hotel and White Desert Camp.

Suggested contacts to arrange a trip/tour to New Valley

General Authority Tourism Promotion

Contact person: Mohsen Abdull Moneam Mohamed
Position: Director of Egyptian General Authority for Tourism Promotion
Mobile phone: +2 01001806127 / +2 01226866299
E-mail: mohsen_dl@yahoo.com

Read our interview to Mohsen Abdull Moneam Mohamed in the MSEI blog and discover more about New Valley as tourist destination!

"Visit New Valley" Agency

Contact person: Mahmoud Kenawy
Position: Director of Visit New Valley
Mobile phone: +2 01009201570
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/Visit.New.Valley/