A night in the desert
White Desert Camping: 2 Days from Cairo
Bahariya, the Black Desert and a night among the chalk formations of the White Desert.
This White Desert camping tour from Cairo takes you to one of Egypt's strangest landscapes: a plain of chalk formations carved by the wind into mushrooms, spires and animal shapes, white against the sand, with a night to see them under the stars.
You leave your Cairo hotel at 7 am for the drive of about four hours to Bahariya Oasis. After lunch in a local restaurant, you switch to a 4x4 with your Bedouin driver and head out to Crystal Mountain, a ridge of glittering quartz, and the Agabat Valley, before entering the White Desert National Park. Camp is set among the formations, with a barbecue dinner cooked by your Bedouin crew and a night under a sky with almost no light pollution.
In the morning, after breakfast, you drive through the Black Desert, whose hills are capped with dark volcanic stone, and stop at the natural hot spring at El Haize. After a break in Bahariya you return to Cairo, arriving around 5 pm.
Meals, the camp equipment, the 4x4 and park entrance fees are included. The desert is cold at night from November to February: bring warm layers.
- Travel time
- About 4 hours each way between Cairo and Bahariya, then 4x4 in the desert
- Time at sites
- The afternoon of day 1 and the morning of day 2 in the desert
- Group
- Private: your party, up to 15
- Transport
- Air-conditioned vehicle from Cairo; 4x4 jeep in the desert
- Departure
- 7:00 am from Cairo; back around 5:00 pm on day 2
- Meeting point
- Your hotel in Cairo
- Guide languages
- English
- Best time to go
- October to April; nights are cold in winter
- Intensity
- Moderate
What the day includes
- The chalk formations of the White Desert National Park
- Crystal Mountain and the Agabat Valley
- The Black Desert
- A barbecue dinner and a night under the stars
Places you visit
- White Desert National Park
- Bahariya Oasis
- Crystal Mountain
- Agabat Valley
- Black Desert
- El Haize
Included
- One night of desert camping with all equipment
- Breakfast, lunch and dinner
- Hotel pickup and drop-off in Cairo
- Air-conditioned transport from Cairo
- 4x4 jeep with an experienced Bedouin driver
- Entrance fees where applicable
- Taxes and service charges
Not included
- Optional activities not in the itinerary
- Tips
- Travel insurance
- Entrance tickets
- Included: entrance fees where applicable
- Optional / extra
- Optional activities not in the itinerary
- Cancellation
- Ask when you enquire.
- Tour format
- Private
Day by day
Day 1
Cairo to the White Desert
7 am pickup and a drive of about 4 hours to Bahariya. Lunch, then by 4x4 to Crystal Mountain, the Agabat Valley and the White Desert. Barbecue dinner and camp.
Day 2
Black Desert and back to Cairo
Breakfast in camp, then the Black Desert and the hot spring at El Haize. A break in Bahariya and the drive back to Cairo, arriving around 5 pm.
Questions about this tour
What is the camp like?
A simple desert camp set up by your Bedouin crew, with bedding and meals provided. Tell us if you need anything specific.
Is it cold at night?
Yes, from November to February temperatures fall sharply after dark. Bring warm layers.
Is there a minimum age?
Children from 7 years old can join.
How much does it cost for my group?
Prices are per person and fall as the group grows: 1 person $150; 2–4 people $150 each; 5–7 people $120 each; 8–10 people $100 each. All prices are in US dollars.