Memphis (Mit Rahina)

Tickets and tours: all the options

Entry to the Memphis open-air museum is a single ticket bought at the gate, paid by card in Egyptian pounds; the official ticket website also sells it, but there is no timed entry. The ticket covers the garden of statues and the hall of the colossus; the rest of the ancient city lies under fields and palm groves and is not part of the visit.

No product on GetYourGuide is sold for Memphis alone. It is almost always a stop of about an hour on a day trip from Cairo or Giza that also includes Saqqara, often Dahshur, and sometimes the Giza pyramids. Group tours use a minivan with a guide; private tours give you a car, driver and Egyptologist, and many add lunch at a local restaurant. Some include a felucca ride on the Nile or an evening dinner cruise. Check what is included: entry fees, lunch and tips are often extra, and some tours stop at carpet or papyrus shops on the way.

The sensible choice is a private or small-group day covering Saqqara, Memphis and Dahshur, which visits the oldest pyramids in a logical order. Travellers on a budget can hire a taxi in Cairo for the day.

A short history

Tradition credits the founding of Memphis to the king Menes around 3100 BC, at the point where the Nile valley opens into the Delta. Its Egyptian name meant the White Walls, and it was the capital of the Early Dynastic Period and the Old Kingdom, when the pyramids from Giza to Dahshur were built as its cemetery. The temple of Ptah, Hut-ka-Ptah, gave the Greeks the word from which Egypt comes. Memphis stayed a great city until Alexandria and later Christianity eroded its role, and medieval Cairo was built partly with its stone. The colossus was found in 1820, Flinders Petrie dug here from 1908, and UNESCO listed the area in 1979.

Getting there

Mit Rahina lies on the west bank of the Nile in Badrashin district, about 20 km south of central Cairo and 15 km from Giza. There is no convenient public transport for visitors, so almost everyone comes by tour, private driver or taxi; ride-hailing cars from Cairo or Giza are inexpensive, but agree the waiting time if you want to go on to Saqqara. The drive takes 45 to 60 minutes depending on traffic. Saqqara is about 4 km away and Dahshur about 10 km to the south. Cairo International Airport is around 1.5 hours away, and Sphinx International Airport west of Giza is closer. Parking is beside the museum gate.

Rules and what to bring

Do not touch or climb on the statues, and stay outside the railings around the colossus. Photography is allowed; drones are forbidden throughout Egypt without a permit. The garden has some palm shade, but bring a hat, sunscreen and water. Toilets and a small cafe are near the entrance, and souvenir stalls line the approach, where sellers can be persistent; a polite, firm refusal works. Carry small notes in Egyptian pounds for tips.

When to go

The best months are October to April, when days are warm and dry. From May to September midday temperatures in the Nile valley often pass 35 degrees, so start early. Spring can bring dusty khamsin winds that haze the air.

Memphis is usually visited as part of a circuit. Many tours go to Saqqara first and stop here in late morning or at midday, when coach groups crowd the colossus hall for short periods. Arriving at opening or in the last hour before closing gives a quieter visit. Friday is the Egyptian weekend and brings more local families, and the Ramadan period shortens opening hours. The site closes at 5 pm, close to dusk in winter, so if you are combining it with Saqqara and Dahshur, plan to reach the more distant sites first. An hour is enough for the museum, and a full day covers it with the other sites.