Aswan is a beautiful lush, green oasis which sits on the banks of the River Nile. There is an unbelievable contrast between the lush gardens along the riverbanks and the sandy desert in the near distance. It’s located in what was known as Upper Egypt in ancient times and lies about 680 km from Cairo. Unlike the hustle and bustle of Cairo it is more laid back and home to many ancient archaeological sites. One of the most significant is the Temple of Philae. Additionally, it is also a great base for a trip up to Abu Simbel which is a 3 to 4-hour drive from Aswan if you choose. Unfortunately, our schedule didn’t allow for Abu Simbel, but something we hope to see next time.
In ancient times Aswan acted as Egypt’s gateway to the rest of Africa becoming a commercial center for convoys going to and from Nubia. Many will tell you that the area is also notable for its distinct Nubian culture.
A fun fact is that many of the statues, obelisks, and building materials for temples and shrines in Egypt came from quarries in Aswan.
Things to see and do in Aswan
We flew to Aswan from Cairo arriving mid-morning. We were warned that this area is much hotter than Cairo and that it was. Temperatures during the day (early September) reached 46°C (114.8°F)! Our private tour guide Sam picked us up and suggested we stop at the High Dam prior to boarding our Nile River cruise which we had opted for as a convenient and relaxing way to travel from Aswan to Luxor.
Aswan is known for the amazingly preserved archaeological sites. However, beyond that Aswan is a city with a number of open-air marketplaces which are remarkable to see, the felucca cruises which transport you to a tranquil zone as you float down the Nile taking in its surreal views.
The High Dam
The Aswan High Dam is one of the world’s largest embankment dams, which spans 4 km across the Nile in Aswan, creating Lake Nasser, which today covers a total surface area of 5,250 sq km. When it was built in 1960s it was an engineering marvel.
Today the dam generates 2,100 megawatts of electricity, enough to power millions of homes and businesses in Egypt.
We visited the High Dam mainly because our guide was keen to show it to us and we’re both technically oriented people, however, if you have a busy schedule we would recommend skipping the dam visit, it really doesn’t add much value to your overall Egypt experience. What is interesting to note that there are crocodiles in the river south of the damn but none north of the dam. Over the years the crocodiles were captured and relocated and now cannot get through the dam.
We then continued on to Philae Marina which is a few miles south of the City of Aswan to board a boat to visit Agilkia Island and the Temple of Philae.
The only way to get to the island is to hire a water taxi which is great fun. It takes about 30 – 40 minutes. There are hundreds of boats waiting to take tourists to the island.
We were on a private tour so we arranged everything in advance, therefore, if you are travelling independently, you can pay for your entrance ticket at the marina and negotiate a price for the return crossing with one of the many boatmen.
Temple of Philae
Sitting on its own island, a mere 450 metres long and less than 150 metres wide, Philae Temple, sometimes referred to as the Pearl of Egypt, is undoubtedly one of the best-preserved and stunning temples of the Ptolemaic Dynasty and certainly one of the favourite tourist sites in Aswan. The temple features numerous magnificent monuments with beautiful reliefs with picture-perfect symmetry.
Temple of Philae is dedicated to Isis, Osirus and Horus. What makes it so stunning is its scale, and the intricacy of the hieroglyphic inscriptions carved onto all available surfaces.
Interestingly at a little over 2,000 years old, Philae is one of the youngest Ancient Egyptian temples still standing.
Stunning as Philae is today, the island you find it on isn’t the same one the Ancient Egyptians built it on all those years ago.
The Philae that the Ancient Egyptians built was originally located on a different island but had to be moved when the Aswan High Dam was built to prevent it from being completely submerged. The entire temple was dismantled and moved to its present site as part of the UNESCO effort before the 1970 completion of the Dam.
In 2023 the entrance fee was about 100 EGP for adults and 50 EGP for accredited students. The site is open from 7 am to 4 pm (October – May) and from 7 am to 5 pm (June – September). There is a separate Philae Light and Sound Show at night if you’re interested, for an additional 125 EGP.
Many photography pros have recommend arriving at this site early for some crowd-free photo-ops. We didn’t arrive early, but we did benefit from the extreme heat the day we went and that facilitated a number of crowd-free shots. Please beware that there are also several locals dressed in Egyptian wear who walk around the site trying offer you their guide services, take photos of you with your camera and just get in a shot so they can ask for money.
Take an Egyptian Felucca sail on the Nile.
When in Anwan take advantage of exploring the River Nile on a Egyptian Felucca, which is their traditional wooden sailboats. They’re powered by a single sail and no engines, and zigzag back and forth along the Nile. In ancient times they would have been the only means of day-to-day river transport. Today they’re mainly used to ferry visitors around who want a glimpse from the river.
Botanical Gardens on Kitchener Island
The Botanical Gardens are located on Kitchener’s Island, to the west of Elephantine Island, on the River Nile immediately adjacent to the city-center of Aswan Egypt.
Kitchener Island gets its name from Lord Kitchener, who was a commander of the Egyptian Army who had a deep passion for palm trees and plants, Kitchener who made it the lord’s house, transformed the entire Island into a stunning botanic garden. Today it’s called Aswan Botanical Gardens, and imports plants from the Far East, India and parts of Africa. The peaceful island covers 6.8 hectares and is filled with hundreds of exotic species of flora in addition to being home to thousands of birds.
To reach the Aswan Botanical Garden in Kitchener’s Island you must go by boat, either by the public ferries that run between Aswan, Elephantine Island, and Kitchener’s Island or by privately hiring a felucca operator which you can make it part of a Nile River experience.
Tickets to enter cost about 15 Egyptian Pounds at the time of writing this so it’s super inexpensive.
Best Time to Visit Aswan?
Aswan has been described as one of the sunniest places on earth and from May to September the temperatures reach over 40° C. Best time to visit is between October to April.
How many days do you need to visit Aswan?
If you are a travelling on your own, you could spend a couple of days, however, as we mentioned earlier, we opted for the Nile River cruise so spent one full day there before setting sail.
Getting to and Around AswanAswan is small enough to navigate some of it on foot, but to access many of the sites, you need to take a taxi or a horse-drawn carriage. One thing to keep in mind is that taxis in Aswan are not metered, so you should agree on a price before the taxi starts moving to avoid uncomfortable situations. The same advice goes for water taxis.