The loveliest stretch of the Nile: sail by felucca between black granite boulders and green islands, and see the Temple of Isis on Philae, colourful Nubian villages, the Nubian Museum, the Unfinished Obelisk and the Monastery of St Simeon by camel. At dawn, head to Ramesses II's giant temples at Abu Simbel (3.5 hours by road or by plane). A 3–4 night Nile cruise from Luxor stops at Kom Ombo and Edfu. No direct flight from Ulaanbaatar — connect via Cairo. Mongolian citizens get a 30-day visa on arrival ($30). Best November–February; May–September reaches 45°C.
🛂 Visa: Visa on arrival · 30 days✈ Flight: 25h☀ Best months: November, December, January, February
#ancient Egypt#Abu Simbel#Nubian culture#felucca#Nile cruise#visa on arrival
Orange — daytime average, blue — night, grey bars — rainfall, green — sea temperature. Best months: November, December, January, February.
Things to see (12)
🧸 for kids
Philae Temple (Temple of Isis)★ 4.8 (20,000)
CultureEGP 550 (students 275); Sound and Light show EGP 960; boat from Shellal ≈EGP 200–400 per boat (negotiable)7:00–16:00; shows in the evening
The Ptolemaic temple of Isis — Trajan's Kiosk, the Temple of Hathor and the last dated hieroglyphic inscription, carved in 394 AD. It was moved stone by stone to Agilkia Island in the UNESCO rescue campaign to save it from the dam's waters. A 10-minute motorboat ride from Shellal marina; Sound and Light show in the evening.
Like a well-travelled friend for a first-timer: before you go, landing, SIM, transport, money, food, safety, manners, apps, leaving — step by step.
🧳Before you goThe visa is issued at the airport, but settle three things at home: the airline, your Abu Simbel day and the season.+
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Visa: 30 days on arrival in Egypt
According to Mongolia's consular department, Mongolian citizens get an Egyptian visa on arrival at the airport: single entry, 30 days, $30 (since 1 March 2026). Connecting via Cairo, you get it in Cairo. Mongolia is not on Egypt's e-visa list. Passport valid 6+ months; print your return ticket and hotel booking.
Tip: Sources disagree — some airline systems show 'embassy visa' for Mongolians. Before buying, ask the airline in writing whether they will board you on a visa on arrival.
Abu Simbel is 280 km from Aswan: leave by road convoy at ≈4:00 for a 3–3.5 hour drive, or take EgyptAir's 30–45 minute flight. Most people spend two nights in Aswan and give one day to Abu Simbel. On the 22 February and 22 October 'Sun Festival' days tickets cost more and crowds are huge — book early.
Tip: Flying in gives you only about 2 hours at the temples, so the convoy is the more relaxed visit.
November–February is best; May–September reaches 45°C, so avoid it with children. Pack a hat, sunglasses, sunscreen, light long sleeves, and clothes covering knees and shoulders for mosques. Travel insurance with evacuation is a must.
Tip: Drones are banned in Egypt and confiscated at customs — leave yours at home.
🛬Landing and getting to townYou reach Aswan by flying from Cairo, by train, or by Nile cruise from Luxor.+
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Connecting via Cairo
In Cairo, get your visa off the international flight (QR digital visa by card $30 + $6, or the sticker at the bank counters), clear passport control and customs, then take a ~1 h 25 min domestic flight to Aswan. Allow 3+ hours for the connection.
The airport is 16 km southwest of town, near the High Dam — about 20 minutes by car. A taxi is roughly EGP 150–200; agree the total before getting in, or book a transfer through your hotel.
Overnight sleepers leave Cairo 19:20–22:36 and reach Aswan 08:35–12:00; from $110 per person in a shared two-berth cabin. From Luxor, 3–4 night Nile cruises stop at Edfu and Kom Ombo; by road it is ~3.5 hours.
📶Phone and internetEgyptian SIMs are registered with your passport, and foreign phones get a 90-day grace period.+
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Tourist SIM
Vodafone, Orange, Etisalat and WE counters stand outside baggage claim at Cairo Airport: the Vodafone tourist bundle is 5 GB/10 days ~$22.5. A regular SIM plus bundle at a shop in central Aswan is cheaper. Passport required.
Tip: Coverage drops out on the desert road to Abu Simbel and on Nile cruise boats — save maps and tickets offline.
Since 21 January 2026 phones brought from abroad are taxed, but tourists keep a 90-day exemption: inserting an Egyptian SIM registers the IMEI. Foreign SIMs and eSIMs (Airalo etc.) need no registration.
🚇The Nile, the islands and aroundThe East Bank has the town and the Corniche; the islands and West Bank hold the tombs, the monastery and Nubian villages — all linked by boat.+
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Public ferries, feluccas, motorboats
Public ferries to Elephantine and the West Bank are cheap and frequent. Hire feluccas and motorboats on the Corniche — agree the price for the whole boat, the time and the stops up front.
These lie south of town and far apart, so hire a car with driver or a taxi for half a day through your hotel. Philae is reached by motorboat from Shellal marina.
Abu Simbel is 3–3.5 hours by dawn convoy or a 30–45 minute flight. Kom Ombo (45 km) and Edfu (110 km) are on the Nile cruise route; by car, combine them in one day.
💳MoneyThe Egyptian pound (EGP) was floated in 2024; in Aswan boats, camels and the souq all take cash.+
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Tickets by card, the rest in cash
Monument tickets are mostly sold by card only. Boats, camels, taxis, the souq and tips need cash pounds — use CIB, National Bank of Egypt or Banque Misr ATMs.
Philae EGP 550, Nubian Museum EGP 400, Unfinished Obelisk EGP 220, Tombs of the Nobles EGP 200; students pay half (ISIC card). Small baksheesh for boatmen, guides, drivers and toilet attendants is customary — keep small notes.
🍜FoodNubian home cooking joins the usual Egyptian fare — plenty of restaurants with terraces over the Nile.+
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Must-tries
Nubian home cooking in the villages: okra, tagine, fresh bread and fish. Plus koshari, ful medames, ta'ameya and karkadeh (hibiscus tea) — Aswan's karkadeh is famous, and you can buy it dried in the souq.
Tip: To ask for no chilli, say 'min gheir shatta'.
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Stomach safety
Be careful with tap water, ice and raw salad; drink bottled water. You lose a lot of fluid in the heat, so carry oral rehydration salts (ORS).
Tip: During Ramadan avoid eating and drinking in public in the daytime.
🛡️Safety and healthAswan is one of Egypt's calmest tourist towns; the main danger is the heat.+
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Emergency numbers
Police 122, ambulance 123, fire 180, tourist police 126 — go to the tourist police if you are scammed, robbed or lose your passport, and get a report.
Calmer than Luxor, but boatmen, camel handlers, taxi drivers and 'guides' still start high. Buy official tickets only at the ticket office and agree every other price in full up front. Police control the road to Abu Simbel, so go with your hotel or a tour, not on your own.
Summer reaches 45°C — start sightseeing at opening and finish before noon, and carry a hat, water and oral rehydration salts (ORS). Don't swim in the Nile — there is a risk of schistosomiasis (a waterborne parasite).
If invited into a home, take off your shoes and accept the tea you are offered. Don't photograph people, especially women and children, without permission. Buying crafts is the best way to support the village.
No flash inside tombs and never touch the wall paintings. Don't photograph people, especially women, without permission; photographing soldiers, police and bridges is forbidden.
📱Useful appsRides, translation, tickets — three apps are enough.+
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Careem, Uber
Ride-hailing is limited in Aswan; if nothing turns up, ask your hotel for a car. Cars don't reach the islands or the West Bank — you need a boat.
🛫LeavingFrom Aswan you usually fly to Cairo and connect to your international flight there.+
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Getting to the airport
About 20 minutes from the centre; arrive 2 hours before a domestic flight. In Cairo, allow 3+ hours to move to the international terminal and check in. Trains from Aswan to Cairo leave 16:20–20:15.
Spend or change your pounds before leaving Egypt — they can't be exchanged in Mongolia. Exporting genuine antiquities is illegal; buy alabaster, papyrus and spices with a receipt.
AI answer: double-check anything beyond our researched facts with an official source.
★ 4.9 (30,000)
Culture≈EGP 750–820 (students ≈375–410); ≈EGP 1,200 on 22 February and 22 October; Sound and Light EGP 9606:00–17:00; road convoy from Aswan leaves ≈4:00
The rock-cut temples of Ramesses II and Queen Nefertari, fronted by four 20-metre colossi. 280 km south of Aswan on Lake Nasser; 3–3.5 hours each way by dawn road convoy (a full day trip) or a 30–45 minute flight. Every 22 February and 22 October the rising sun lights the statues in the innermost sanctuary — the 'Sun Festival', when it is extremely crowded.
The 3.8 km dam built with Soviet help and completed in 1970 — Lake Nasser on one side, the Nile on the other, with the lotus-shaped Soviet-Egyptian Friendship monument in view. 30–60 minutes is enough; usually combined with Philae. Be careful about photographing military installations on the dam.
A giant obelisk abandoned in the bedrock after it cracked — finished, it would have stood about 42 m and weighed 1,168 tonnes, the largest ancient Egyptian obelisk. A good way to show children how ancient quarrymen worked; 30–45 minutes.
CultureEGP 400 (students 200)9:00–17:00 (ticket office to 16:00); Thu–Fri also 18:00–21:00
Nubian history and culture, much of it drowned by the dam, told through thousands of finds from the UNESCO rescue campaign plus dioramas of Nubian homes and crafts. Air-conditioned with a garden — good for a hot afternoon with children.
CultureVillage free; return boat ≈EGP 200–500 per boat (negotiable)Daily; afternoon to sunset
A Nubian village of brightly painted houses on the Nile's west bank: home-made tea, henna, camels and Nubian food. 40–60 minutes upriver by boat past granite rocks and dunes. Some homes show captive crocodiles as pets — we suggest not supporting this for animal-welfare reasons.
Felucca to Elephantine and Kitchener's (Botanical) Island★ 4.7 (8,000)
RelaxFelucca ≈EGP 200–300 per boat per hour (negotiable); Elephantine site EGP 200Daily; 1–2 hours before sunset
Aswan's best moment: a traditional sailing boat between black granite boulders around Elephantine Island (Temple of Khnum ruins, the Nilometer, Nubian villages) and the botanical garden on Kitchener's Island. Plenty of boats along the Corniche — agree the price for the whole boat and the time up front. Easy with children.
Rock-cut tombs of Old and Middle Kingdom governors and officials in the West Bank cliffs. The stairs up are hard work in the heat, but the top gives a superb view over Aswan, the islands and the desert. Reached by ferry.
The large ruin of a Coptic monastery in the desert, dating from around the 7th century. Riding a camel 20–30 minutes over the dunes from the riverbank is the highlight for children. Go early or late — there is almost no shade.
CultureEGP 450 (students 225); Crocodile Museum included7:00–17:00 (to 18:00 May–Sep)
A rare 'double' temple on the Nile 45 km north of Aswan — one half for crocodile-headed Sobek, the other for falcon-headed Horus. The Crocodile Museum next door has mummified crocodiles. Every Nile cruise stops here; by car, combine with Edfu in one day.
Egypt's best-preserved temple, 110 km north of Aswan — roof, pylon and granite falcon statues intact, with reliefs of Horus defeating Seth. Nile cruises stop early in the morning; 1.5–2 hours by car from Aswan.
A long street running south from the railway station: karkadeh (hibiscus), spices, dates, Nubian baskets and scarves. Calmer than Luxor's, but you still need to bargain. Best for a stroll in the cool of the evening.
