Aug 11, 2021
Cairo at nighr - We had a great experience touring Cario with our tour guide Mustafa. He navigated the area for us and made us feel comfortable. Being from out of the country, that means very much to us. I would highly recommend this tour with Mustafa to anyone.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jan 20, 2020
A Great Way To Experience Cairo At Night... - Ahmed was my guide and provided a well paced and knowledgeable tour! He was flexible with what I wanted to see. He is a very personable and funny guy who will give you a great tour.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jul 29, 2019
Private Guided Night Tour of Cairo with an Insider - Tour guide: Ahmed Maged
Company: Tree of Life Tours
Private Guided Night Tour of Cairo
I went to Cairo for a weekend of photgraphy centric tourism. With that in mind and to maximize my short time, I sought out tours that I thought would scratch that itch. Using the Viator website, I discovered the aforementioned tour (one of several similar), but selected Ahmed Maged's tour specifically because of some of the photos on the site.
The tour covered a felucca ride on the Nile, the Cairo Tower, and then a bit of meandering through the Khan al Khalili bazaar and old Islamic Cairo.
Ahmed and his driver picked me up at my Hotel, and we drove downtown, the driver expertly getting us there by liberal usage of horn and flashing the high beams which apparently acts as a sort of force field. If you've never experienced Cairo traffic, just arriving somewhere safely makes the sights more beautiful, the smells more delightful, and the songs of birds more pleasing to the ear. You feel like you have a new chance, a new beginning...verily, you feel more alive than ever before. But back to the tour.
I explained to Ahmed that I was interested in trying to capture some shots of the City at the Blue Hour (just after sunset until it's totally dark), and he worked the schedule so that we could try that. That meant that we cut our felucca ride a bit short. Point being, he was happy to work with me to get the opportunities to shoot what and where i wanted.
Cairo Tower is an impressive spire near Zamalek with expansive views of the city. By the time we got there, we were close to the optimal time for photos. As we got out of the car, we were greeted with a HUGE line. But, with his intimate knowledge of the ins and outs of local tourism, he knew the secret to access: buy a 100LE ticket (around USD5) for elevator access to the cafe at the top. I gladly sprung for the pass, and off we went.
I briefly felt guilty walking past hundreds of people waiting to go to the top, but realized that we'd be there all night if we hadn't gotten the cafe pass. And it's available to anyone who wants it. A minute or so ride to the top, a few flights of steps, and we were out looking across the city.
In the dusk with reflections of neon on the river Nile, the city was absolutely gorgeous. Not quite like a disco (as sung by Natacha Atlas and Trans-Global Underground), but it's a fantastic way to see the city.
After getting all the shots I was interested, we moved to the cafe. The price of admission included up to 100LE of cafe items (standard cafe fare of coffee, cakes, drinks, etc.). It was a form of credit, and essentially, if you had a cup of coffee and a dessert, you could stay under that limit and feel like you ate for free. Very nice, and a continuation of the views via the windows.
We finished up, descended, and hopped back in the car to grab some shwarma which we ate in the historic Al Fishawy cafe. A haunt of Egyptian movie stars and directors, it's world renowned and has been in operation since the early 1700s. We hung out there afterward and sipped on some tea and second hand smoked hubbly bubbly. Eventually, we left and wandered around the Khan al Khalili for an hour or so.
We found our way out of the market area, and back onto the streets of Islamic Cairo, which, on a Friday night, were bustling with people enjoying an evening out. Families were dining, market stalls sold fresh juices and snacks, and there was generally an atmosphere of congenial fun. Ahmed again showed his knack for finding great photo vantages, and I spent a happy couple of hours working on compositions and crafting photos that I think I'll be proud of.
Following this, we headed back to Giza and he dropped me off at my hotel. All in all, it was a long day, with a tour in the morning, and the night tour as well. But, as I laid my head on my pillow after a refreshing shower, I reflected on the whirlwind tour, and looked forward to importing and processing the photos I'd managed to make.
Ahmed was fantastic. He was patient, and more than willing to wait while I refined a particular scene. At one point, he was drafted into service to spin a lighted baloon while I worked on getting a steady non-tripod low light shot again and again and again. He is friendly, knowledgeable, and had a wealth of information about the places we visited. Even better, he was so willing to craft the tour to meet my photographic expectations, and at no point was I detoured into a papyrus/perfume/crafts shop to meet his "cousin," a technique that is all to common in the area.
All in all, it was a fantastic way to spend the evening, and absolutely was worth every penny that I spent (I was a solo traveler, and the price tends to be more than with a group). While not technically a photography tour, Ahmed was familiar enough with concepts of composition that I was able to craft some shots that I will be very proud of, once I download and process them over the next couple of days. A few mobile phone samples are below in the meantime.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jun 24, 2019
Excellent trip - We were tired because we had a long morning tour, but our tour guide, Ahmed Maged (Tree of Life day tours), was kind enough to accommodate and let us start an hr later. The boat tour on the Nile was amazing during sunset, very relaxing. We went to Cairo tower and then had amazing koshari dinner, where he talked us through all the steps of preparation. Tasted great! We went to the bazar and he was an expert at taking us exactly where we needed to go. He is an excellent photographer and knew exactly which angles to capture.
Overall we were very pleased and highly recommend this tour to anyone !
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jun 5, 2019
An amazing night out on the town - My wife and I booked a private tour of Cairo by night with Tree of Life Day Tours company. Our guide, Ahmed, really went over and above to give us a great time. He was flexible and allowed us to tailor our schedule and timing so that we could enjoy the experiences that we wanted to - he also accompanied us on activities that were not part of the original schedule e.g. Cairo tower, sunset felucca ride (We did the extra activities at our own cost and shortened time at other activities). Ahmed accompanied us and continued to tell us about the places as if it were part of the original booking - we really had a great time with him - it was like a night out with a friend. He speaks English very well, and his knowledge and explanation of the sites was very thorough. I highly recommend this tour company/guide to anyone looking to see the city.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jun 3, 2019
Cairo Night Tour - We did the Cairo Night tour with The Tree of Life tour company, our guide Ahmed Maged was great. He was very nice and hospitable and had great knowledge of the history and buildings in Cairo, highly recommend doing a tour with him.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jun 2, 2019
Tour with Ahmed - I met Ahmed in the lobby of my hotel at 5pm, met with our driver, and we started our tour.
Our first stop was the felucca ride which was peaceful and allowed me to see the island and both western and eastern parts of the city. I got to know Ahmed a bit since it was the two of us on the boat.
After the felucca ride, we went to the top of the Cairo Tower where he pointed out and told me about all of the major attractions/businesses in the area (Citadel, football club, etc). The sun was still up and there wasn’t too much dust so I was able to see the Pyramids in the distance. He took photos of me while at the top and back at the entrance/exit of the tower with Ramadan decorations.
Ahmed could tell that I was so excited to go to the market and we picked up sandwiches at Gad on the way there. I had let him know I’ve been in Egypt for the past 8 days so instead of the usual chicken/beef shawarma options, he suggested I try something different and delicious. I was skeptical at first so I asked him what he suggests, and he said beef liver. I’m a huge fan of chicken liver, foie gras, and pate but I’ve never had beef liver. He got me a different sandwich Incase I didn’t like it.
After getting our dinner, we went to the souk and sat at El Fishawy to eat. He had picked up sandwiches, fries, and pickled veggies for us to share. Aside from the water, I ordered a mango drink (not part of the tour so I paid for it out of pocket).
I told Ahmed I wanted two galabeya for my partner so he had someone come by with options. After reviewing the options, I chose two outfits that he would like. Also while sitting, he called someone so that I could get a Henna. That took about an extra 40 minutes to complete and dry.
After my Henna dried, Ahmed took me around El Fishawy and took photos of the rooms. When we left El Fishawy, he guided me through the market, through El Moez, and gave me the history of some of the different architectures.
While walking around, we stopped at two(!) juice places. I mentioned earlier I love sugarcane juice so he brought me to a store that made it fresh. It was so delicious and the man making the juice even made sure I was happy with it. When I finished my sugarcane juice, Ahmed asked me if I have room for coconut milk and of course I did! We walked a couple minutes to another store where I took a coconut milk to go.
We walked through one of the original doorways back out to the street where he let me know how people defended themselves if intruders got too close.
Ahmed was a great tour guide and our driver (sorry forgot his name!) was fast and safe. Ahmed made sure I was enjoying myself and also took plenty of photos without me having to ask him.
Thanks for a great experience!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jun 2, 2019
Wonderful tour with Ahmad as our guide! - We truly enjoyed our tour with Ahmad. Cairo didn’t disappoint. The tour was fun and memorable. Loved the view from the tower but be prepared for windy conditions. We didn’t get to try kashari dinner due to Ramadan. Instead got some sandwiches and sat in the old cafe in the Bazaar. Favorite thing was the boat ride at sunset on the Nile. We plan to come back for more tours.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
May 18, 2019
Good introduction to Cairo - Arrived in Cairo midday and found the tour a perfect way to get started & get to know the city. The felucca sail on the Nile was nice & relaxing with lovely scenery & the views from the top of the tower amazing. We were however disappointed that it was advertised as dinner & we had a chicken roll which we ate when we arrived at a drinks cafe in the Khalili Bazarr. We however enjoyed it and our guide Ahmed Maged was very good & happily took lots of photos for us.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Nov 30, 2022
Cairo Night Tour too quick and too little information. - Guide was friendly. Dinner was great. The walk through the market was too quick. More information about sites would have been appreciated.
Review provided by Viator