THE WESTERN DESERT
DESCRIPTION:
Far away from the classic tourist routes, this expedition visits the lesser known and most interesting part of the Libyan desert in Egypt. Desert landscapes and high dunes combine with historic, cultural and geological highlights make this a journey of a lifetime.
DAY 1
Arrival in Cairo and transfer to the hotel, possibly on the Desert Road.
Meals: on one’s own
Overnight: Hotel Amarante Pyramids ***** or Hilton***** (all rooms en suite)
DAYS 2 & 3
Early morning departure of the expedition on the tarmac road to Bahariya (km 365 – time 4-5 hrs), then after lunch continue along the inner Bahariya-Siwa track bordering 4 very interesting depressions on its right and left. In the evenings “Monsieur Gautier’s Hotel” will be ready with tented accommodation in the desert.
Meals: full board (local restaurants and at the camp)
Overnight: L’Hotel de Monsieur Gautier (tents) on the first dunes of Ghard el Kebir and at El Areg
The tarmac road leading south-west runs on a flat sandy plain interrupted only by low hills and little dunes introducing the oasis, the typical ecosystem of the Western Desert. Impressive landscapes of vast plains, dunes and abandoned oases featuring interesting tombs and temples. Bahariya is a small oasis with a rich history, surrounded by escarpments which protect its lush palm grove. Sitra, an ancient depression dating back to the Quaternary, is now a salt lake surrounded by whitish dunes and falaises. Common fossil finds include shark teeth, nummolites and corals. Nuwamisa, a gentle oasis with a blue lake at the center of the palm grove. Barehin, the outstanding depression with 2 lakes separated by a small escarpment in the walls of which many tombs are still visible. El Areg and its superb location: white wind-eroded cliffs and pinnacles emerging from the yellow sand.
DAY 4
Arrival and visit of the oasis of Siwa.
Meals: full board at local restaurants
Overnight: Hotel Paradise in the centre of the oasis (upon request and with supplement The Ecolodge on the outskirts of the oasis)
The oasis of Siwa. Famous since time immemorial, Siwa is well known for its salt lakes and its 300 fresh water springs distributed around palms groves, olive trees, vegetable and fruit gardens. The most well-known is Ain el-Hammam or “Cleopatra’s Bath”, the spring where tradition says that the beautiful Egyptian queen used to take her baths. Aghurmi at the center hosts the ruins of Shali, the old fort. Visit of the world reknown Oracle of Ammon, where in 331 BC even Alexander the Great knelt. Siwa is also a resting point for thousands of birds during their long migration journeys. The Berber population live in multiple floor houses attached to one another thus giving the impression of a walled fort. At the cross-road between the Mediterranean and Black Africa, Siwa has always enjoyed an important role for trade routes.
DAYS 5 TO 7
Departure towards the Great Sand Sea in the south-east: rides on the dunes across the desert to the White Desert (western side).
Meals: full board at the camp
Overnight: L’Hotel de Monsieur Gautier (tents), 2 nights in the Great Sand Sea and 1 night in the White Desert
The Great Sand Sea is a world of sand and infinite horizons, interrupted at times only by small fossil lakes and rock formations rich in shells. This area was left unexplored until the beginning of the 20th century when British cartographers visited it and when it became the “play ground” of the Long Range Desert Group’s heroic raids. The depression of the White Desert is a true ‘delight’ of with its stunning ‘rock’ formations of inselbergs and “mushrooms”, domes and towers, in colours which vary from shining white to pink, violet, yellow and light blue, all emerging from the golden sand. This unique feature is caused by the “absorbing capacity of the soil”: it looks like chalk but is in fact limestone and fossil powder.
DAY 8
Arrival for lunch at Bahariya and then onwards to Cairo.
Meals: half board (lunch at a local restaurant, dinner on one’s own)
Overnight: the historic Helnan Shepheard Hotel**** in the city centre (all rooms en suite).
DAY 9
A few hours at leisure to explore this fascinating city before the transfer to the airport and your international flight.
Meals: breakfast only