Standard excursions in Egypt were developed and approved in the early 80s, when the first hotels were just being built on the Red Sea coast.
They were intended specifically to introduce tourists to the most famous monuments of the ancient Egyptian civilization: the Giza pyramids in Cairo, the Valley of the Pharaohs, where Tutankhamun’s tomb is located, and the temples of the Sun God in Luxor. Over the years, the pyramids themselves, of course, have remained unchanged, but the flow of tourists has increased thousands of times, and such a mass character dictates special conditions.
20 years ago, only a few buses left Hurghada for the places of excursion pilgrimage every day, and now there are more than a hundred. In addition to foreign tourists, there are also Egyptians themselves. And if in Giza this crowd does not interfere with viewing the colossal pyramids, then an excursion to the Valley of the Pharaohs has become a real headache for both tourists and guides. Of the dozens of tombs located there, most are closed to tourists. They are either dangerous (there are cracks in the vault), or too beautiful and valuable to take crowds of people there, or are under restoration. And of the open tombs, only a few are popular with guides. These are the ones that are well preserved, conveniently located, and also beautiful and large enough for tourists to appreciate the colossal work done by the ancients. Each guide tries to take the group to such monuments.
And what is a tomb? A tunnel and halls cut into the rock. Imagine what it is like: first, you have to stand in line in the sun before the entrance, and there are no awnings or umbrellas there. Inside, there are dozens of groups and dozens of guides speaking different languages. This entire dense mass of people slowly descends – to the chamber where the sarcophagus stands or stood. Those who are already returning push through this crowd. At best, it feels like the Moscow metro at rush hour…