Discover The Palaces of Cairo

Our tour of Discover the Palaces of Cairo was wonderful. Our guide farouk (El roqa) was so informative and friendly, and he made the experience one to remember, and our driver, Reyad, was great, maneuvering through the insane Cairo traffic with ease. We will definitely use this company again!

This tour is on the lower price end compared to similar offerings and does a good job for what it is. I was mostly tired of dealing with Cairo taxis and Ubers and wanted a no stress way to visit the palaces. This tour met those requirements. The tour operator is very efficient in communications and scheduling. There was a tour guide and separate driver which seemed a bit excessive for the tour. The guide was friendly but did not speak English all that well and had limited knowledge. Visiting the palaces filled in some gaps in 20th Century Cairo & Egyptian history not covered by the major museums. The Mohamed Ali Palace (Manial Palace) in particular was both interesting and beautiful

From the number of other tourists we chatted to on arrival in Cairo about this tour, we wondered why no-one had heard of the palaces and that they weren’t on people’s itinerary. In our view, they all missed out. The three palaces were all very different: one in the design of an Indian palace, one with over 300 bedrooms for the ruler’s wives and one with most ornate mix of Moorish and Arabic architecture. And yet… hardly any western tourists? Our guide Hakiem, and our driver for the day, Nasser, met us at our hotel out by the GEM and in Cairo’s traffic it took almost an hour to reach New Cairo/Heliopolis and the Empain Palace. There were different options available to choose during the day and we opted to have some authentic lunch in the city, near Tahrir Square and down a very narrow side street at a koshary restaurant. It was a great experience, as was the whole day. From start to finish it took about 7 hours and our team of two from Emo tours could not have been more helpful. NB most tours tend to be on a private basis, and your guide and driver will be with you all day, making sure that you get quickly into sites and that the vehicle is very close upon exit. Driving is manic but everyone seems to understand where the others are going… the lines on the main roads are purely for decoration… so you just have to trust!

The choice of visiting the Palaces of Cairo surprised many people we spoke to whilst at the hotel, who seemed not to know about them. We were delighted with our choice. Communication was good with the company pre-arrival, and Hakiem our guide, and our driver for the day Nasser, arrived on time in their car. We had expected a larger group but were delighted to find that the majority of Emo Tours (booked through Viator) are private. Nasser was an expert in the traffic! We stopped first at the Baron Palace, or Empain Palace which looks like an Indian palace thanks to its specific design by the Belgian Empain. Second stop was the Abdeen Palace, with its 300+ bedrooms for the ruler’s wives… stunning architecture and decoration. After a stop for lunch with Hakiem at a bustling authentic koshary restaurant near to Tahrir Square (a chosen option, and glad we did), we headed for the nearby Prince Mohamed Ali Palace. Again, a completely unique experience to witness the grandeur of the old country. At all times, Hakiem and Nasser asked if there was anything extra we needed to see or do, and transported us safely back to our hotel out by the GEM. The ride was very comfortable, safe and Hakiem shared information about sights we passed as we travelled. The traffic is busy in Cairo, and the first stop took almost an hour to reach so worth consideration if time is tight. What surprised us is that whilst these palaces were so incredibly beautiful and well maintained, the number of foreign tourists there were very, very low… most of them were from Egypt. Overall, this trip made our holiday one of the best we have had, and we would highly recommend the tour and the team’s services.

Amazing few hours! Another side of Cairo that shouldn’t be missed! Lunch was special. We were picked up by 9 am and even after an extra stop we were back by 2

The grounds of each palace are amazing! Our guide needs a little more work on his history! But overall a wonderful experience! Lunch was exceptional!

This was an excellent tour for us on our first trip to Cairo! And, the communication from the company via WhatsApp was very timely and efficient. Osama was a knowledgable guide and very personable and friendly, as was our driver, Ahmad who navigated the crazy Cairo traffic very well. We also combined this tour with the tour of the GEM (at least the grand staircase and reception hall, which are all the is open yet). Plus, they arranged a wonderful lunch at the Caviar Seafood restaurant with a view of the pyramids!

The palaces were beautiful. Our guide was very nice. We would have given this 5 stars if the guide provided more information and allowed us to take our time through the palaces. The guide did not share much knowledge about the Palaces and we felt very rushed at some portions. However, we really appreciate the experience and would recommend this tour to others!

Our guide was wonderful!!!! He moved at a good pace explained everything and took us to an authentic popular Egyptian restaurant for lunch He was great and so was the driver and anyone who gets the guide we had would be blessed!!!! And the palaces were beautiful and full of so much history and excellent things to see I totally recommend

A fantastic experience for a short amount of time. Our guide Islam Tigo was very knowledgeable about the history of the palaces and gave us time to explore on our own. Abdeen palace was a standout as its museum contains some of the most unique items you will ever see (won't spoil it). Lunch was equally great at a buffet restaurant to cap it all off. All in all, a highly recommended tour.