Private Tour: Memphis and Sakkara

Cairo, Egypt

Discover Memphis and Sakkara, two of Egypt's most important archaeological treasures. Sakkara is home to the oldest pyramid in Egypt, and Memphis was the former capital founded in 3,100 BC.

Memphis, founded around 3,100 BC, is the legendary city of Menes, the King who united Upper and Lower Egypt. Early on, Memphis was more like a fortress from which Menes controlled the land and water routes between Upper Egypt and the Delta. Having probably originated in Upper Egypt, from Memphis he could control the conquered people of Lower Egypt.

A 20 - 30 minute drive away from the Pyramids of Giza, Sakkara, home of Egypt's oldest pyramid. Built by Imohotep for pharaoh Zoser in 2650BC, the famous Step Pyramid is well preserved. Your guide will give you a brief history of the site before allowing you free time to walk around the perimeter of the impressive structure.

Sakkara is one section of the great necropolis of Memphis, the Old Kingdom capital and the kings of the 1st Dynasty as well as that of the 2nd Dynasty. are mostly buried in this section of the Memphis necropolis. Three major discoveries have recently been made at Sakkara, including a prime minister's tomb, a queen's pyramid, and the tomb of the son of a dynasty founding king.

This is a private tour allowing you to determine the amount of time spent at each site during the tour. In addition you will have the chance to visit a Papyrus Institute to see how this famous artwork is made and have the chance to purchase genuine items if you wish. If you do not want to include this visit, just inform your guide on the day.

USD $48.00

Traveler Reviews

Review by: Rard	November 2011
The Private Tour Given was Amazing. My tour guide was excellent ,and gave very interesting facts while on our exploration. He even recommended and assisted with the photography. He was the absolute best.

Review by: Patrick S	June 2011
A good experience

Review by: PETER B	May 2011
A must do tour. It was well organised and again our guide Henry was most informative. Sakkara and Memphis are well worth a visit. The tour takes one out into the Delta countryside which is a pleasant contrast to the busy chaos of Cairo.

Review by: Jennifer L	January 2011
Sakkara is an amazing place, the very first pyramid built in Egypt. We loved the place, and the trip. Memphis was also interesting. However, our guide didn't seem to know all that much (our 9 year old, who was obsessed with Egypt, had told us everything our guide told us), and wasn't all that helpful. I imagine it depends on the guide how good a tour you get. Some guides are probably heaps better.

Review by: Tim	November 2010
Excellent.

Review by: franny	November 2010
Hi this was a fabulous tour. Our guide Hannan was so good nothing was too much trouble. I hope that you will tell her how pleased we were with everthing she did. Please also tell other people that she is the best guide you have. thank you for the lovely day

Review by: Stanley S	September 2010
Had the same driver and tour guide for all tours in Cario. Nice.

Review by: Michael S	August 2010
A great small trip out of the city and into more history of Egypt! Guide was very knowlegable and friendly! Highly recommend this tour!

Review by: Anonymous	July 2010
Good experience.Knowledgable guide.

Review by: Michael B, Australia	May 2010
Would recommend that you do Dashur, then this tour and then the Giza pyramids so that you get everything in historical order.

Review by: Anonymous, Canada	May 2010
The guide, Ahmed was superb. Very knowledgeable. Spoke English very well. We really enjoyed both of these tours.

Review by: Francyne K, United States of America	May 2010
This was a very interesting tour but I hoped they had included Dashur as well since there really isn't THAT much to see in Memphis. But our tour guide really made the trip for us. She was informative, educated and accomodating in every way. We had a great time with her and she was a delite!!!

Review by: ALAN C, United Kingdom	May 2010
Excellennt tour with excellent guide and driver. Very informative and plenty of free time. Guide happy to talk about all things Eqypt and so could learn a lot about Eqyptian culture, life, eccomy etc.

Review by: DEBORAH R	May 2010
Excellennt tour with excellent guide and driver. Very informative and plenty of free time. Guide happy to talk about all things Eqypt and so could learn a lot about Eqyptian culture, life, eccomy etc.

Review by: Heather H	May 2010
This was a very interesting tour but I hoped they had included Dashur as well since there really isn't THAT much to see in Memphis. But our tour guide really made the trip for us. She was informative, educated and accomodating in every way. We had a great time with her and she was a delite!!!

Review by: Anonymous	February 2010
Memphis and Sakkara alone are really not worth a private tour - you will spend on each for like 15 minutes and driving to them 2 hours. Tour started nice the guide was funny and promised to tell additional info on other practical stuff. When I said that I did not want to go to the papyrus shop the attitude changed. Talk in English stopped and she started chatting in Arabic with the driver. Also on sights she just automatically explained everything in the shortest time possible and gave me "free time" to wonder around myself. She asked about the papyrus shop about 10 times more. The only time she smiled again was when I gave her a good - and an undeserved - tip ath the end of the tour. The downside in Egypt is the unbelieveable hassling and conning of tourists. Therefore you will need a guide and a driver even if it is expensive - otherwise you WILL end up spending even more. If I was the tourist minister of Egypt I would stop the con artists and fake guides entering these historical sights. They give Egypt a bad name. After 3 days I was completely digusted in the tipping and hassling and wanted to go home - and I have been to many places. A small bribery to a tourist police will get you enter areas only archeologists should get in. Before anything changes you may want to use the services offered here.

Review by: Michael B, United States of America	January 2010
I would like to thank both Viator and the tour operator for an outstanding job. The guides did an outstanding job and made the tour very enjoyable. Like at the Great Pyramids, be aware of individuals that want to give you free gifts. They are not free, and they will hassle with you for money. Avoid these individuals no matter how friendly and sincere they seem to be. Our guide warned us of these individuals. I also recommend visiting the carpet factories when leaving the Step Pyramid. Great values and they create employment for the poor people in the area.

Review by: Martin B, United Kingdom	November 2009
The trip that we took was good, although given how relatively little there was as Memphis I wish we'd been given the opportunity to spend more time at Sakkara. There was some pressure put on us to go to a "carpet school" and a resuaratnt for lunch, although we had made it very clear from the outset that we didn't want to do these additional activities.

Review by: Julie T	October 2009
We had the same guide as our Giza Pyramids tour , which was nice... but there wasn't a whole lot to see. If you had to choose this or Giza, I would pick Giza. I'm glad we didn't do both on the same day either. We went to a rug making school afterwards, but we could have done without.

Review by: Diana T	July 2009
It was an interesting location if you can't get to Luxor, but definitely not a must do. If you want to see the pyramid, probably better to take a cab than pay for a driver and tour guide.

Review by: Margaret Sheila B, United Kingdom	June 2009
A brilliant day, very informative.

Review by: MARGARET SHEILA B	June 2009
A brilliant day, very informative.

Review by: Thomas W, Germany	April 2009
Excellent tour guide! Very knowledgeable!

Review by: Giorgio B, Brazil	April 2009
We had a great guide who explained the history of the visited places in good English. The van was a comfortable one. They were punctual. Be prepared to face a chaotic and jammed traffic.

Review by: Anonymous	April 2009
Much cheaper to just take a cab. Even with the guide we were hassled to buy stuff. At the end of the day, I asked 3 times to go to my hotel. Each time I was refused, only to visit a papyrus shop and glass blowing shop. I felt like I was being held hostage. Again, the driver and guide, each needing to be tipped.

Review by: PaTricia M, United States of America	March 2009
Our English speaking guide was great.

Review by: Robert S, United States of America	March 2009
Entrance inside is free, but be prepared to tip the old man if you want to get out.

Review by: Patricia F M	March 2009
Our English speaking guide was great.

Review by: Cindy S, United States of America	December 2008
The tour we had was fantastic. To see the sights and the info that our Egyptologist provided was amazing. Our guide was able to point out the original paintings and explain what they meant from either the drawings or on a Kartush. We did find it difficult to keep all of the different dynasties separate and know which Pharaoh was with which Pyramid. We probably should have studied a little more before our trip so we could have better understood everything we saw. Our guide spent extra time with us and took us to a small local restaurant to experience authentic Egyptian food! We couldn't have asked for anything else. A private tour is the only way to see Egypt. I wish I could give the guide and the tour more than four stars.

Review by: Cynthia S	December 2008
The tour we had was fantastic. To see the sights and the info that our Egyptologist provided was amazing. Our guide was able to point out the original paintings and explain what they meant from either the drawings or on a Kartush. We did find it difficult to keep all of the different dynasties separate and know which Pharaoh was with which Pyramid. We probably should have studied a little more before our trip so we could have better understood everything we saw. Our guide spent extra time with us and took us to a small local restaurant to experience authentic Egyptian food! We couldn't have asked for anything else. A private tour is the only way to see Egypt. I wish I could give the guide and the tour more than four stars.

Review by: Anonymous	November 2008
Good guide to Memphis and step pyramid - too keen to get us into sales outlets.

Review by: Joseph I, United States of America	September 2008
Great!

Review by: Anonymous, United Kingdom	January 2008
Both the guide and driver were excellent. Her English was excellent and she was really helpful and had a pleasant disposition. Comfortable transport and plenty of space for the 6 of us.

Review by: Joseph C, Ireland	December 2007
The tour I had was fantastic. To see the sights and the info that my Egyptologist provided, it was more than worth it. No trip to Cairo or surrounding area is worth it without going on this trip. Very well priced too compared to some other not so good companies!!

Review by: Surath S	December 2007
Much less crowded than Giza, but Darsher is probably more interesting.

Review by: Clarence C, United States of America	July 2007
The tour leader was very helpful and showed great initiative. Transportation was efficient and the guide was extremely knowledgeable and flexible. All in all it was a very memorable experience.

Review by: Anonymous	July 2007
The tour leader was very helpful and showed great initiative. Transportation was efficient and the guide was extremely knowledgeable and flexible. All in all it was a very memorable experience.

Review by: Anonymous	July 2007
Very friendly and helpful staff. Willing to help in everything you need. Really enjoyed tour.