When the doors are open.

Egyptian sites and museums broadly run a uniform calendar — longer hours in the cooler months from October to March, earlier closures in the high summer. Fridays are shorter; Ramadan shifts daytime hours into a narrower window.

Museums

The principal Cairo museums and the museums of upper Egypt and Alexandria.

Archaeological sites

1. Giza necropolis & the Sphinx 07:00 – 17:00 winter; 07:00 – 19:00 summer.
2. Saqqara & the Step Pyramid 08:00 – 17:00 daily.
3. Karnak temple complex 06:00 – 17:30 winter; 06:00 – 18:30 summer. Sound & Light evening.
4. Luxor temple 06:00 – 21:00, illuminated at night.
5. Valley of the Kings 06:00 – 17:00 daily.
6. Hatshepsut, Deir el-Bahari 06:00 – 17:00 daily.
7. Medinet Habu 06:00 – 17:00 daily.
8. Philae temple, Agilkia Island 07:00 – 16:00 daily.
9. Abu Simbel 05:00 – 18:00 (04:30 on solar-alignment days).
10. Edfu & Kom Ombo 07:00 – 16:00 daily.

Ramadan adjustment

During the holy month, most sites compress to a daytime window of approximately 08:00 – 15:00 or 08:00 – 16:00. Evening hours at NMEC and at Tahrir are sometimes shifted later, beginning after sunset. In 2026, Ramadan begins on or around 17 February.

The first hour after opening is the only hour worth describing. By nine, the buses have arrived.

Sound & Light evenings

Three sites operate evening sound-and-light programmes, rotating by language.

• Giza Two shows nightly, English plus one rotating language. Begins at sunset.
• Karnak Three shows nightly, walking-tour format through the temple. English, French, German, Arabic.
• Philae Access by boat across the southern Aswan reservoir. Two shows nightly.

2026 holidays affecting access

1. 7 January · Coptic Christmas NMEC and Coptic Museum closed.
2. 25 April · Sinai Liberation Day Most sites open; some museums on shortened hours.
3. 1 May · Labour Day Most sites open.
4. 22 February & 22 October · Abu Simbel solar alignment Site opens 04:30 on both mornings.
5. End of Ramadan & Eid al-Fitr Friday-style shortened hours across the network.

Hours are reliable in Egypt. The crowd is the variable. Plan for the hour, not for the queue.

Last verified: May 2026. Hours are operator-published values from the Supreme Council of Antiquities; readers planning a tight itinerary should reconfirm directly with the institution shortly before travel.