Private Wadi El Natrun Coptic Monasteries Tour from Cairo Discount Tickets

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Get your discount tickets for the Private Wadi El Natrun Coptic Monasteries Tour from Cairo, save up to 18% !

Overview

About 100 km northwest of Cairo, in a desert depression off the road to Alexandria, sit four of the oldest working monasteries on earth. Wadi El Natrun has been a center of Christian monastic life since the 4th century, when hermits came out to the desert to escape Roman persecution and founded a way of life that shaped monasticism worldwide. On this private day tour your guide takes you into the surviving monasteries, with their fortress walls, ancient churches, and monks who still live and pray there today. You see frescoes, relics, and keeps built to withstand raiders, all still in use after 1,600 years. It is a calm, reflective day, about 6 hours with the desert drive included. Ideal for travelers drawn to early Christian history and a quieter side of Egypt few visitors reach.

Pickup Information

Please share your hotel name and address when booking. Your guide will meet you at the hotel lobby in the morning for the approximately 3-hour drive each way to Alexandria. This is a full-day tour with about 6 hours of total driving and 4-5 hours of sightseeing. Comfortable shoes and a light jacket for sea breezes recommended.

Language Offered

German-GUIDE

Russian-GUIDE

English-GUIDE

Italian-GUIDE

French-GUIDE

Spanish-GUIDE

Itinerary

1. The Monastery of the Great Saint Anba Bishoy
You enter the Monastery of St. Bishoy through thick mudbrick walls into a quiet world of churches, gardens, and a tall stone keep where monks once sheltered from desert raiders. Founded in the 4th century, it still holds the relics of St. Bishoy and a community of monks who live here today. Your guide explains the rhythms of monastic life and the wall paintings inside the old church. The hush of the place, broken only by chanting, is the point.
Duration: 90 mins
2. The Monastery of the Great Saint Anba Bishoy
A short drive brings you to Deir al-Suryan, the Syrian Monastery, named for the Syrian monks who once lived here. Inside, the Church of the Holy Virgin holds frescoes and a carved wooden door more than a thousand years old, and an ancient tree said to have sprung from a saint's staff still grows in the courtyard. Your guide walks you through the layers of Coptic and Syriac heritage preserved here. It is one of the best-kept of the Wadi's monasteries, still active and welcoming.
Duration: 90 mins

Inclusion

Bottled water

All Service charges & taxes

Hotel pickup and drop-off in private air-conditioned vehicle (Cairo hotels)

Licensed Egyptologist guide with knowledge of Coptic history

All entrance fees to the Wadi El Natrun monasteries

Exclusion

Gratuities

Lunch, beverages beyond bottled water, personal expenses, and anything not listed as included

Cancellation Policy

Check mark icon Refundable tickets

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

  • 100% refund if cancelled 1+ days before the start date
  • 0% refund if cancelled less than 1 day(s) before the start date

Additional Info

Wheelchair accessible

Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller

Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap

Transportation options are wheelchair accessible

All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible

Suitable for all physical fitness levels

May be operated by a multi-lingual guide

Please note: pickup reconfirmation is required upon booking, please refer to voucher for further details

Supplied by Egypt Day Tours

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