Full-Day Fayoum Oasis and Waterfalls of Wadi El-Rayan Tour from Cairo

The experience of a lifetime

I expected an okay trip because I don’t like anything fake or too “touristic” (or guides in that matter), so I was a little bit sceptic. I couldn’t be more surprised because this trip was honestly more than I could ever imagine. The guide, Zizou and even the driver was extremely friendly but not in the usual “guide” way. They acted as we were friends, we sit together and drunk coffee and talked, eat amazing traditional lunch, which we couldn’t eat anywhere else because I don’t think I’ve ever find a place like this. For a moment we forgot about that we payed for this because it felt natural, like you were on a trip with your friends. I was on a couple of similar trips and although all guides were nice and friendly, I never felt this way. So honestly I can only recommend. For us this experience was one of the highlights of our trip. + When we were interested in the train schedule he causally called the train station to confirm the data he find online. Seriously amazing guy.

Amazing visit to El Fayoum ＆ Wadi Rian

Zizou is amazing! He makes you feel smarter and connected to the history of ancient Egypt. He took several amazing photos of us. And, the way Zizou takes careful attention to detail when explaining the history or origin of an exhibit is "tourademic" (tourism and academic).😀 I would absolutely book him again, as I plan to return to Egypt. (And, Ibrahim is an awesome driver - great sense of humor, such a cool demeanor and a wonderful driver. The roads in El Fayoum are not the smoothest and Ibrahim did a great job navigating them.😅)

Fun, informative and a chance to see lovely scenery

We had a wonderful day. Our tour guide and driver, Zizou and Omar did a great job. Zizou was extremely knowledgeable and we learnt so much about the history and present day customs of the people of Egypt. I would highly recommend this tour.

A really satisfying activity not too far from Cairo

I would like to sincerely thank my guide for this tour, Zizou, and his driver Omar. Concerning the tour, everything was following the planned program : museum of Fayoum, stop to the Karoun lake, and then the waterfalls which seemed to be an absolutely magical and unreal place on this earth. The journey on boat was a happy moment, with a lot of people singing and playing music all around us. The lunch was excellent, and once again, we enjoyed a lot this moment. Zizou was a wonderful guide, explaining very well about the history of each place, and really kind. We loved the complete visite thanks to him. Omar made us laugh all the day and it was really pleasant. Thank you both of you for all the unforgettable memories you brought us that day !

First time seeing oasis

First time seeing oasis and it was definitely worth it. Lakes in the middle of the desert are gorgeous! Our guide Zizou made sure our tour would be interesting as well with the stop at a small but nice museum of Fayoum.

Long journey but worth it

Zeezu was very good guide and made our trip smooth and fun. Wasn’t great English but tried his best to make our time memorable. Museum wasn’t great as we had visited super ones like GEM/civilisation, but he was knowledgeable in local Fayoum culture which still made our visit remarkable. Water falls were great, never expected something in desert like that in the first place and boat trip was quite good. Lunch was good. My son got insect bites earlier day, Zeezu really helped us find the pharmacy straight away when I told him, great help, never forget. Definitely recommend.

Get out of Cairo and see the Valley of the Whales

It was amazing to get out of Cairo and see some of the surrounding areas! Getting to the Valley of the Whales takes a few hours by van, but our guide Hosni reviewed Egyptian history with us during this time. The Valley of the Whales itself consists of an indoor museum and an outdoor walk to see the fossils still in place - it was a very unique experience! The ride to the waterfall and boat ride was less than an hour. The included lunch was good, but overall the waterfall and boat ride felt very much like a tourist attraction. Overall I would recommend the Valley of the Whales, but maybe on a different tour that does only that stop without the waterfall.

Disappointed that the tour was not what was advertised. Would recommend you find something else

The description of this tour does NOT match what actually happened. Started off with our tour guide telling us we needed to give him $20 for the national park entrance tickets - even though the entrance tickets are advertised as included. Found out the tickets are only $5 a piece (there were two of us) so that was also an incorrect price. Only after a lot of back and forth did he finally pay for the tickets. The ride there takes about 2 hours - made longer by the guide stopping for smoke breaks and the driver stopping for snacks for himself. We did not stop at Lake Qarun (only drove past) and we did not stop at a museum, which was disappointing because we were looking forward to learning and seeing some more history. We arrived at Wadi el Rayan and looked at the waterfalls, which are okay, then were hurried along by our guide to the lake to take a rowboat out. It is NOT a felucca/ not a sailing boat. The boat ride was short - about 20 min. We were allowed to row a little bit which was nice, but overall, pretty underwhelming. Then we were taken “sand boarding” which was NOT in the description. We specifically chose a tour that didn’t include sand boarding because we weren’t interested in that but whatever. Then lunch - which was actually very nice. Chicken, rice, and bread. The seasoning was good and it was an average amount of food. This tour was advertised as a full day tour, but we were finished with the waterfalls, boat ride, sand boarding, and lunch by 12:00pm after less than 2 hours at the site. Our guide/driver wanted to immediately head back to Cairo, but only after we said we wanted to stay longer and get back at the advertised time, 4:00pm, did they allow us to stay a little longer and walk around. That part was very nice as you can walk upstream and see a couple more (small) waterfalls away from all the people. The way back was spent with the guide begging us to give him a five star review. At least they didn’t stop as much on the way back. Overall, the day was fine and we made the best of it, but we are pretty disappointed that the tour was not what was advertised, especially since it was over $100/person. We would recommend booking a different tour.

Great day out at the Whale Museum

Zizou was a great tour guide. He was very knowledgeable about this subject. The trip was very comfortable and our driver was great. The whale skeletons were amazing and I reccomend anyone to go and see this. We were also taken to the waterfalls where we enjoyed a lovely dinner.

Great day in Fayoum

Had a great trip to fayoum with Hosni & Omar, great views! Especially enjoyed the Sandboarding and the Boatride

Spectacular experience for exploring world heritage and rural areas

Had an awesome trip with Mahmoud down to valley of whales, and visiting multiple spots in the Fayoum oasis. We feel very comfortable all along the trip with no hassles. Highly recommended!

Most beautiful and amazing experience I’ve ever had.

This experience is the very best I have experienced. It was on my bucket list of things to do, to experience being in the desert and see an oasis. The experience of seeing just sand and dunes and very little life then seeing the Oasis and life it supports is just amazing. The contrast from nothing to life was as detailed as you could imagine. To top it off I had THE BEST GUIDE: ZIZOU to help me understand and navigate what I was experiencing. Zizou is an expert in this area and we couldn’t have any better. He’s intelligent, articulate and most of all very passionate about what he does. If you ever visit Cairo, you need to get Zizou to guide you and give you an experience you will never regret. Shukran gazeelan Zizou.

Great views, good guide, lots of history

The trip was pleasant and enjoyable. We saw portions of the Western desert as we traveled to the lakes. A short stop at a museum on the way helped us understand more about the inhabitants of the area and their importance to ancient Egyptian and modern Egyptian culture. Our guide Zanaty was kind, knowledgeable, and professional. He was excited to describe the culture of Fayoum and told us some of the stories and histories of the ancient Egyptians. We finished with a tasty lunch overlooking one of the lakes before we were dropped back off at our hotel.

Excellent tour guides

This tour was fantastic the tour guides were amazing. Breaking taking was on my bucket list will do it again recommend to all, so helpful, friendly, funny , and made me feel so welcome and save was on this tour with myself and daughter. . We had such a wonderful experience that we came back 2 months later and did 2 nights in the desert with them. That was another amazing tour. Can’t fault them in anyway was just unbelievable. Planing to come again have made me fall in love with Egypt

Highly recommended

If you want to escape the mad busy streets of Cairo and escape to nature then this is the tour for you. Highlight is the national park waterfall as it is beautiful, two joining lakes in the middle of the desert. Our guide Zanaty was great, very polite, knowledgeable and took care of us. It's a bit of drive from Cairo, our driver was on time and we felt safe. Driving in Egypt takes another level of skill. I would recommend this tour.

Good time in Oasis

I go to excursion with my sister, Mahmoud bahr the guide and Omar the driver. We past such a beautifull moment in a beautifull place , eat egyptian food and have fun on sandboarding! If you want to have a good time i recommend this Duo cause There are very sympathique, you don't regrette the time with us ! ;)

Very good trip

Tins was very good experience i recommande ! The travel it’s a bit long but it was amazing ! You can go it

Amazing

Excellent guide Mahmoud Badr. Very polite and with a great sense of humor. And very well educated about Egyptian history. The best tour money can buy

Amazing

We had an amazing time with our guide Mahmoud badr and driver Gizawi!!! Mahmoud had a lot of beautiful stories to tell us. This guy is a real storyteller with plenty of information about pretty much everything! Both of them were friendly, helpful and funny! We even had our little party in the van with music from both our countries. Thank you so much for the wonderful day!!

Memorable experience !

Mahmoud Badr (Infotainment Evangelist aka our tour guide) and Omar (as the Navigation Expert aka our assigned vehicle driver) on the Deluxe Travel team are extremely proficient in their respective skill sets. They brought out the best over the course of the day trip to the Al-Fayoum Oasis and the Waterfalls of Wadi El-Rayan. Tons of unscripted historical anecdotes that you wouldn’t find easily in a google search, while making it all enjoyable and recreational at the same time. Spectacular experience ! We would recommend their services without any hesitation.

A great getaway from the hectic of Cairo

We had an amazing day with our guide Bassam and driver Mahmoud. We went to an interesting museum, and then walked around the desert, mountains, lakes and waterfall. We had a very tasty lunch on a rooftop with a good view. Bassam told us many interesting things about culture and nature throughout the day.

See the Oasis and villages

This is a trip for those wanting to see the country outside Cairo and to observe people going about their rural lives. There is quite a lot of travelling time but also some short walks near the lake and the waterfall. There is the opportunity for sand boarding on the dunes and perhaps a horse or camel ride at the lake. A fabulous lunch of real Egyptian food on a rooftop restaurant with a wide view was included. Ahmad and Omar, the guide and driver, were friendly and helpful.

Unforgettable adventure!

The tour with egyptologist Mahmoud Badr and driver Omar was excellent. We saw beautiful places around the Fayum oasis, lakes and waterfalls in the middle of the desert. A great experience was the ride from the dune on the sandboard. Delicious food in the restaurant at the end of the tour, one of the best we've ever had. Mahmoud is a great guide, nice and polite. He has great knowledge about his country and told us many fascinating stories. Definitely recommend the tour with Deluxe Travel, Mahmoud and Omar!

Fantastic Fayoum Tour!

We highly recommend this tour! Fantastic experience! Our guide Mahmud Badr and driver Omar made sure everything met our wishes, and more! With great knowledge and experience, they show us many hidden gems in Fayoum and the best lunch in Egypt so far! Also they were so kind to take many great photos and videos for our trip!

Excellent trip

Our guide Mahmoud Badr and driver Omar was excellent. They tailored our trip and provided flexibility to allow us the most enjoyable time on our excursion. Mahmoud was fantastic in helping us understand the history of the area. Highly recommend to others!

Stunning day trip to the oasis

It was an amazing day trip with our tour guy Mahmoud and our driver Omar. They are professional, providing all the information and Mahmoud told us the amazing stories and Egyptian histories. The dessert view is stunning and we also gotta try the sand boarding which is fun. Highly recommended.

Great experience and 10/10 food!

We had a super fun day visiting the Oasis and Wadi el Rayan! After a few days of Cairo its really nice to see the countryside and chill down a little! The whole trip is very well organized, super clean car with AC and with best lunch we had during our whole stay! Our guide Mahmoud was 10/10 told us lot about the places and the history of Egypt, made the trip really speacial and now we have a friend in Cairo!:) Our driver Omar should probably do races, he drives great and carefully even on the bumpiest day! Definately recommend this trip!

Peaceful

After a few days of chaotic Cairo it was great to relax and find piece in this amazing environment. Sandboarding, waterfalls, good guidance and wonderful food!

Would highly recommend for a comfy day trip!

Booked this trip really last-minute and we’re so glad we did! We were pleasantly surprised by the warmth and experience of Mahmoud our guide and Omar our driver. Mahmoud explained each part of the trip in detail (the museum, waterfalls and Qarun lake). Ride was comfy and had the minibus all to ourselves. Food at a local restaurant (Zad Al Masafer) in Tunis Village was delicious, fresh grilled chicken and fish with local soups and bread. Would highly recommend.

Solo tour in Fayoum

Had a really nice time. Especially at Rayan, I could experience real egyptian-life. Full of local people having fun. The road to get there was so beautiful too.

Amazing trip to Fayoum oasis

Our guide Mahmoud Badr was very knowledgeable and super entertaining and made this a great trip. We saw the huge oasis of Fayoum, the waterfalls of el-rayan and had a really fun time sandboarding on the Sahara sand dunes. Our driver Ghazal was also great and drove us safely for hours without any problem.

Tour with a great Egyptologist

Mr Mahmoud Badr was the best guide! His depiction of Egyptian history was incredibly entertaining and educative. He showed us around two oasis and organised a delicious lunch in Tunis.

Fun day with the guide Mahmoud

the guide Mahmoud badr made the day trip really nice. We truly enjoyed his company and stories for the places we visited.

An enjoyable day trip

It is an enjoyable day to spend a day visiting Qarun Lake and Fayoum oasis. My guide Mahmoud is a very knowledgeable and experienced guide and the driver is Omar who is very kind and helpful throughout the trip.

Great knowledge and friendly

Mahmoud was very knowledgeable and a great tour build and driver Omar was also very friendly and helpful.

Nice day outside of Cairo

Overall, the tour was nice, relaxing and a nice escape from Cairo. My guide Mahmoud Badr and the driver Mahmoud Dia were very nice and attentive. They took pictures, got snacks and made me feel welcome. I liked visiting the Oasis area and driving around Fayoum. I like that it didn't feel rushed or too packed with activities. My favorite part of the tour was the food!

10 Star Tour and Guide

I LOVED this tour and the tour guide was amazing. Ahmed went above and beyond throughout the entire tour. He was personable and very knowledgeable. We chose to spend 12 hours on this tour by adding a couple of sites to it and his energy stayed high the whole time. The tour itself was also amazing. The archeological site, museum with ancient whale bones, diving over sand dunes, the waterfalland magic lake are definitely wonderful experiences to see. I think this day, although long, was my favorite day on this trip. Thanks to Ahmed and our driver Omar.

OMG...so much fun!

Ahmed! He made the experience so fun. And OMG, if he asks you if you want to do an extra safari to the ancient sea of whales, do it! We had so much fun in the desert, seeing the ancient whale remains, checking out off-the-beaten path ruins, enjoying the waterfalls, birding on a fishing boat and more. He really went above and beyond for us! The driver Omar was a really careful and considerate driver too.

An awe inspiring desert and oasis experience,

We had the pleasure of a private tour out of Cairo to the Fayoum Oasis and Waterfalls of Wadi El-Rayan. We were picked up punctually from our hotel and we soon realized we were in excellent hands with Mahmoud Badr, our guide, and our driver, Ramadan. Both gentlemen were professional, cheerful and most accommodating. Mahmoud was a wealth of information about Egypt, its culture and history and included dramatic stories about the ancient gods and historical figures. The drive through the dessert and the beautiful countryside gave us a true picture of Egyptian life out of the city and the views at the end were spectacular. We had a beautiful four course lunch before returning to Cairo at a family run restaurant and hotel and it was delicious! Overall, it was a great day minus the long drive and some road construction. Mahmoud and Ramadan were excellent hosts. Many thanks to both!

Oasis/Old Town Faiyum Tour

I booked a solo Oasis/Old Faiyum tour. I was picked up at my hotel promptly by Ahmed. We worked our way through the morning traffic to get out of town to get to the activities. I find history very interesting and thoroughly enjoyed every stop. The guide was well informed, and both he and the driver handled their jobs well. The lunch was the best that I’ve had on my trip thus far. Highly recommended.

We will recommend this tour to others

It was a great tour, with cool stops. The lunch was very tasty. Our guide Ahmed was one of the best we had during our Egypt tour.

Escape to the Desert

If you want to escape the city hustle and bustle of Cairo, head to the Fayoum Oasis and Wadi El-Rayan waterfalls! Only 1.5 hours away, the western desert was a very different scenery from our time in Cairo and Luxor, showcasing the beauty of the Egyptian desert, overlooking Lake Qarun. Although locals were in both water features (the local lake and the waterfalls), we didn’t get a chance to go into the water, which seemed appropriate. The brief “felluca” boat ride was on a small local boat (not like the sailing boats elsewhere in Cairo and Luxor) and we were only allowed within a very small area of the lake (the only part that wasn’t naturally protected by the Egyptian government), but was still a nice way to break up the day outside in the shade. We ended the day at a local outdoor beautiful restaurant, and were even able to consume some of the local lake fish (if you chose). The highlight of the trip for us was the initial museum on our way to the desert - if you’ve enjoyed the Egyptian museums, you’ll really enjoy this small museum with your guide! Overall, a fairly good escape from the usual Cairo and Luxor cities!

Great Experience at Fayoum Oasis

Great experience, tour guide was extremely knowledgeable about the history and culture. We went on a pleasant boat ride and enjoyed great food as well.

Nice day out.

Overall a good day out, away from the busy streets of Cairo. Hussein was a great guide and looked after us during the visit. Shout out to Omar the driver too. Lunch was amazing, a country restaurant with traditional Egyptian dishes.

Faiyum Oasis and water fall tour.

We met Hussein this morning, who told us stories we never knew about Egypt. We toured Kim Aushem Museum and Faiyum Oasis. Hussein was very knowledgeable about the region we visited and about Egyptian history. On our next visit, we wish to meet with Hussein again.

Hussein Elgabry is the best

I recommend this tour to do for people looking for relaxing. It’s an awesome experience and once in the life opportunity for a simple adventure which provides positive energy and history. Hussein Elgabry was amazing tour guide, super friendly, knowledgeable about Egyptian history and culture. Food was spectacular. The driver Omar his driving skills are awesome and safe.

Great day trip!

This is a nice day trip to get out of Cairo, experience some peace in the desert, and see the national park. Our tour guide Hussein was absolutely fantastic. He was super friendly, knowledgeable, and accommodating. He even gave us tips for the remainder of our travels in Egypt. One of the best tour guides we have had on our trip!!

Adventures in Cairo and more

Hussein was an amazing and knowledgeable tour guide. He attended to our every need and ensured that we were having a good time at all times. I highly recommend that you request him for your next adventure in Cairo!!!

Entertaining nature trip

Hamdin and our driver Ramadan were excellent travel companions, explained entertainingly and brought us safely to our destination.

Fayoum Oasis

I booked this experience - an off the beaten track site. The guide/driver team of Galal and Ramadam were great. The tour consisted of visiting some ruins before entering the Oasis, then visiting the oasis, then a lunch at a local resort/restaurant. Everything was planned out and Galal was very informative of not only the history, but of the present day Fayoum area. A nice change from visiting the tourist dominated sites near Cairo - we got to see some present day life in Egypt. I would highly recommend the guide/driver team of Galal and Ramandam ant the tour itself!