Beyond Giza: Saqqara, Dahshur & the First Pyramids (2026)

Almost everyone sees the Giza pyramids and stops there. The travellers who drive a little further south, to Saqqara and Dahshur, often end up preferring them, because this is where the pyramid was invented and then perfected, and you can frequently have the place to yourself. If you have a spare half-day in Cairo, this is the best use of it. See the area on the interactive map.

Saqqara and the Step Pyramid

Saqqara was the necropolis of ancient Memphis, Egypt's first capital, in use for more than three thousand years. At its centre stands the Step Pyramid of Djoser, built around 2670 BC by the architect Imhotep, the first person in history we know by name as an architect. It is the oldest large stone building on earth and the prototype from which every later pyramid descended: six stacked stone platforms, a first attempt at a stairway to the sky. Recent restoration reopened its interior passages.

Around it, the tombs of the nobles hold some of the finest carved and painted reliefs anywhere in Egypt, often better preserved and far less crowded than anything at Giza, with vivid scenes of hunting, fishing, farming, music and daily life, the colours still clinging to the limestone. The Serapeum, a vast underground gallery of giant granite sarcophagi built for sacred Apis bulls, is eerie and extraordinary. New discoveries are made at Saqqara almost every year, so it feels like a living dig as much as a monument.

Dahshur: the Bent and Red Pyramids

A little further south, Dahshur holds the two pyramids of Sneferu, Khufu's father, that record the very moment the true pyramid was figured out. The Bent Pyramid visibly changes angle partway up, where the builders lost their nerve as cracks appeared and reduced the slope to avoid collapse. The Red Pyramid beside it is the first successful smooth-sided pyramid in history, the direct ancestor of the Great Pyramid at Giza. You can usually climb down inside the Red Pyramid, into a series of corbelled chambers, and on most days there are almost no other visitors. It is one of the quietest great sights in Egypt.

How to visit

Saqqara and Dahshur are about a 45-minute to an hour's drive south of the Giza plateau, and they combine easily into a half- or full-day trip, very often with Memphis, an open-air museum where a colossal fallen statue of Ramesses II lies in a viewing hall. A private car and guide is the simplest way, and many operators offer a "three pyramid fields" day covering Giza, Saqqara and Dahshur together. Go in the morning for cooler air and the best light, and bring water; there is little shade. Pair it with Giza and the Grand Egyptian Museum, and see the Cairo travel guide for how it all fits a stay.