Half-day Tour in Churches of Cairo
Description
This 5-hour tour will take you to the most famous Churches in the city of Cairo. Explore old Coptic Cairo with its famous Hanging Church, in addition to other renowned churches such as the Church of Santa Barbara, the Church of Saint George and the Church of Saint Serguis. You will be accompanied by a professional guide.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Advancing through the alleyways of the old city, you'll get the chance to visit the Church of Saint Sergius and the Church of Santa Barbara, before continuing on to the Ben Ezra Synagogue and Saint Simon's Church, which is carved into Mokattam Hills.
You will be picked up by a professional guide, who will then drive you through the narrow lanes of Old Cairo to get to the southern fringes, where Coptic Cairo is located. Hanging Church of the Virgin Mary, located on top of the water gate. The church dates from 7th century. It has magnificent dark interiors with cedar paneling, with wooden ark ceiling and a marble pulpit supported by 12 pillars.
The church of St. Barbara is among the churches of Old Cairo of historic importance. It was originally dedicated to St. Cyrus and St. John who were worshipped for their healing powers. A small church at the northeastern corner of the building commemorates these two martyrs.
The Church of St. George is a Greek Orthodox church within the Babylon Fortress in Coptic Cairo.[1] It is part of the Holy Patriarchal Monastery of St George under the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria and all Africa.[1] The church dates back to the 10th century (or earlier). The current structure was rebuilt following a 1904 fire,[2] construction was finished in 1909.[3] Since 2009, the monastery's hegumen has had the rank of bishop with title Bishop Babylonos
Originally a coptic church was transformed in 11th century to Jewish synagogue. According to Jewish tradition this is where the prophet Jeremiah preached in 11th century while Copts believe it is the site where baby Moses was found in a basket.
In this church it is believed that the holy family have rested during their exile in Egypt. In the Chapel of the convent of St visitors wanting to be blessed can be wrapped by chains by the nuns.
The Monastery of Saint Simon, also known as the Cave Church, is located in the Mokattam mountain in southeastern Cairo. Seven churches and chapels are hidden within a series of caves inside the Monastery; the Virgin Mary and St. Simon Cathedral is the largest church. Inside the spacious caverns, beautiful engravings cover the walls, each representing stories from the Bible. St. Simon’s Hall, a large seating arena that accommodates 2,000 people for spiritual meetings, sits on the upper level. The Monastery also includes an education center, an area for children, as well as a school for the deaf. Now considered one of the largest Coptic monasteries in Egypt, the grandeur of the churches hidden within the heart of the Mokattam Hills belie their relatively recent construction.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
- Centrally located Cairo and Giza hotels - Due to the church services on Fridays and Sundays, the pick up time will be 10.00 am from Centrally located hotels on those days only.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
- Children must be accompanied by an adult
- Friday due to morning prayers and mass pick up time will be 10.00 am
Reviews(255)
Our tour guide Zizou was sensational! From the start of the day he was punctual and friendly. He was very accommodating and made sure to include the younger people in our group as well! The knowledge he shared was explained so well and with a lot of passion which reflected back on the sphere! Next time I visit Egypt I will be considering other tours he offers and will definitely recommend to those visiting!
Brilliant tour, knowledgeable tour guide, friendly welcoming respectful and he Accommodated the short time we had due to our circumstances and still covered all the site seeing’s with a thorough explanation answering all of our questions, Hosny was the best thing of our tour. Mentioning Hisham the driver was polite following rules and decent. Hassan the Manager was also helpful and he managed to schedule the trip despite our late booking less than 12 hrs before the time as we called him midnight Thank you All for the experience we had today “Unforgettable”
We had the best day experience with our tourguide Zizou from Deluxe Travel. He is very knowledgeable of the places we visited. He went extra mile to bring us to place we want to see to complete our day and bring us to souvenir shop to buy what we like ( not included in the tour).He gladly took all our family pictures. I highly recommend Zizou and Deluxe Travel for your half day tour of Coptic Churches in Cairo
Zizou is an excellent person and tour guide; he explained everything about the primary churches in Cairo very knowledgeably. Even though the Cave Church was closed today, he tried to make the day worthwhile by going to other places instead.
It was a fascinating tour with a very well informed guide. The locations that we visited and the accompanying information enhanced our stay here in Cairo.
Fascinating. Very informative, a part of Cairo and Egypt that it’s easy to overlook. Good tour guide who knew his stuff.
We had a lovely half-day with Hosny, who introduced us to the Coptic quarter with its multiple churches. We got to attend the service at the Hanging Church - what a unique experience! The Coptic museum is an absolute treat, with no other visitors and plenty of items on display. We’ve booked the museum tickets a day in advance.
We had a wonderful day with our Tourist Guide Hosny: After visiting the Coptic summer and winter cathedral, we went to the Coptic quarter near Nile river and first visited the Jewish Synagogue, which was a Coptic church before. Then we arrived at St Barbara’s and St George‘s churches, thereafter visiting the Coptic museum, and then the hanging church. Finally, he came to the Cavern Church, also known as Abu Serga. In the end he dropped us at Khan el Khalili Basar, where we did some shopping. After all, it was a great experience; Hosny guided us. skilfully through these vibrant and extremely lively areas. Many thanks to him and his driver as well as to the organises.from Deluxe Travel!
Amal was great, excellent communication , on time, and very knowledgeable!
Our guide was incredibly knowledgeable about the different churches we visited. Loved the whole experience.
