About 2.5 million people visit the Giza pyramids every year hoping for an epic experience worthy of one of the seven wonders of the world.
But for decades, a trip to Egypt’s most famous tourist spot meant facing aggressive multitudes and street vendors.
Now, thanks to a $ 30 million renovation that rethinks the experience, seeing the pyramids finally inspires more admiration than agony.
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A bus network transports visitors around, the offers have been softened – and you can even enjoy an exquisite dinner overlooking 4,600 -year -old monuments.
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All of this officially debut on July 3 – a milestone that took seven years to be built. In 2018, the Egyptian government signed a public-private partnership agreement with Orascom Pyramids Entertainment, by Egyptian billionaire Naguib Sawiris, to reform the Giza Plateau, the area west of Cairo where old structures rise.
The company will operate the site for the next 11 years, obtaining non -ticket revenue from the sale of tickets – to which the government has an exclusive right – but VIP tours, sponsorship agreements and commercial leases on site.
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The inauguration date coincides with the long -awaited inauguration of the great Egyptian museum – the main $ 1 billion attraction located about 1.6 km away.
Together, the two projects represent some of the biggest advances so far in Egypt’s goal of bending the number of annual visitors to 30 million in a decade. It is a goal that would put him practically at the same level as Greece, making him one of the most visited countries in the world.
New gate, new rules
One of the main changes was to make the car Giza Plateau. Instead of driving on a winding road in the shadow of the great pyramid, visitors now enter a gate on a highway 2.4 km southwest.
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After going through the so-called large gate and buying tickets, visitors travel a shining hall with introductory exhibitions before boarding the new Hop-On Hop-off buses.
In a few minutes, they can land at the feet of the three colossal pyramids, each built with 80 -ton limestone blocks. The iconic great sphinx is below.
At bus stops around the site, they will find facilities that had not existed for a long time, including retired bathrooms, souvenir shops and cafes.
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And with the opening of several restaurants in recent years, you can finally ask for a meal on site.
Khufu’s, which serves a luxury version of Egyptian cuisine and has a terrace overlooking the pyramid built for Pharaoh of the same name, was classified as one of the best restaurants in the Middle and North Africa by World’s 50 Best.
The number of visitors increased almost 24% in April compared to the previous year, according to the Ministry of Tourism. The Egyptian tourist sector is already on the rise and recorded records of arrivals in the early months of 2025, so it is unclear how much the project in itself boosted the increase.
