Giza Pyramids & Grand Egyptian Museum: Private Tour with Photos

5.00

(199 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

“Don’t blink or you’ll miss it,” our guide laughed as we drove past a donkey cart wobbling through Giza’s morning traffic. I was still half-asleep, clutching bottled water, but then those pyramids just appeared—no warning, no build-up. They’re bigger than you think. The air felt dry and a bit chalky, like old paper, and our guide (Ahmed) started pointing out little things I’d never have noticed alone—like how some blocks are pockmarked from centuries of wind. He knew all the best angles for photos too. At one point he made me stand awkwardly sideways (“trust me!”), and somehow my shadow lined up perfectly with the Sphinx in the background. Still makes me laugh looking back.

I didn’t expect to feel so small standing under those stones. There were camels everywhere—one tried to nose into my bag for snacks—and Ahmed explained how people still debate exactly how these things were built. We wandered around for a while; he let us linger when we wanted (I could’ve stared at that skyline for hours), but also gently nudged us along when crowds got thick. The Sphinx looked both stern and tired up close. I tried saying its name in Arabic; Ahmed grinned and shook his head—probably butchered it.

The Grand Egyptian Museum was next—honestly, you could spend days there if you wanted. It smells faintly like stone dust and something sweet (maybe incense?), and Ahmed seemed to know every artifact’s backstory by heart. He pointed out tiny details on statues I would’ve missed: worn toes, faded paint, little chips from ancient tools. By the time we left, my phone was full of photos (thanks to Ahmed’s camera skills) and my head was spinning with stories about pharaohs and lost dynasties. It’s a lot to take in all at once, but that’s kind of what makes it stick with you.