En route to the little-known Siwa oasis in the Libyan desert

Three weeks from Cairo to Siwa, then Alexandria and Sinai

In April 2024, we spent three weeks in Egypt, discovering Cairo, the hidden oasis of Siwa, fabulous Alexandria, and Sinai. We built this trip independently, designed to get off the beaten track, and I’ll tell you about it in three articles:

• Explore Cairo in five days, and take your time!
• En route to the little-known Siwa oasis in the Libyan desert (this article)
• Egypt by the Sea: Marsa Matruh, Alexandria, and Sinai

I’ve also written another article with a few keys to independent travel in Egypt so that you can make the most of this extraordinary country.

Siwa is classified red by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs!

Our main reason for going to the Siwa Oasis is to visit Franco-Italian friends who have settled there for a few years and who speak highly of the place.

However, we had long hesitated to go and see them as this part of the country is classified as red by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This means that it is formally inadvisable to go there. It says: “The Western Desert is a high-risk area where the armed forces have repeatedly carried out operations against traffickers. The infiltration of terrorist elements from Libya cannot be ruled out, with the risk of kidnappings.” Siwa is considered to be Syria or Yemen right now!

It’s not at all encouraging!

We looked at other sites, and the British Foreign Office classified the road to Siwa and the oasis as a green zone, i.e., limited risk! Canada and Belgium make the same recommendations.

We talk to our friends Pascale and Sergio, who live in the oasis, and reassure us. The army and police are very present, and unless we get involved in clandestine convoys trafficking people to nearby Libya, we’re in no danger.

So we decided to give it a try.

The long road from Cairo to Siwa: a nine-hour journey!

The drive from Cairo to Siwa takes almost nine hours. Although the army forbids a direct route through the desert, the only way is via the Mediterranean coast, representing a 300 km detour. For a more diversified itinerary, we decided to take part of the journey by train and then by car.

Cairo – Alexandria by train

So we take the train to Alexandria, before continuing to Siwa by car. And as I love trains, I’m delighted to be able to discover Egypt’s railroads!

In Cairo, we head for the beautiful Ramses station, located in the city center and accessible by metro. The station takes its name from the colossal statue of the Pharaoh Ramses II, which once stood in the square opposite. However, in 2006, the local authorities moved it to the Grand Egyptian Museum, near the pyramids.

The colorful station concourse features a style inspired by ancient Egypt. A beautiful glass roof extends it. Even if you don’t take the train, I’d recommend a visit. What’s more, right next door you’ll find a small Egyptian Railway Museum, which I found very interesting to visit.

To get to Alexandria, we travel on a VIP Special Express train. They boast a beautiful stainless steel body, reminiscent of the Mistral that once linked Paris to Nice. The First Class seats are plush and wide but show significant signs of wear!

After leaving the suburbs of Cairo, we cross the Nile Delta. This region has been the heart of Egyptian agriculture since antiquity. The terrain is, of course, very flat! All along the way, I realize that demographic pressure is intense, and villages and towns are already encroaching on the fields. The windows of my train are too dirty, so I don’t have any photos to share. After a two-and-a-half-hour journey, we arrive at our terminus in the pretty early-twentieth-century Alexandria station.

Alexandria Siwa by car

A driver is waiting for us at Alexandria station. We set off due west along the Mediterranean coast on a huge, empty freeway. After a three-hour journey, we turn south, straight through a stone desert of little interest.

Only a few checkpoints where we have to show our passports and have our luggage inspected punctuate our journey. It’s true that the Libyan border is only a few dozen kilometers away and is the scene of a great deal of trafficking, from the most innocent, such as household appliances, to the most dubious, such as drugs and weapons.

The journey is so quiet and monotonous that our driver has replaced his rear-view mirror with a small TV showing a Brazilian telenovela!

The Siwa oasis really exists: it’s not a mirage!

After another three hours on a boring road, we’re wondering why we’ve come to this place lost at the end of the world.

An oasis-like in Tintin

And then, finally, Siwa! We leave the rock-covered desert plateau to plunge into an immense depression where vast lakes stand out amid a lush palm grove.

Our first impression is of a veritable oasis, straight out of a Hergé comic strip! It immediately sparks our imagination. An oasis is a bit like an island, except that here, the sea is replaced by sand dunes.

We arrive in downtown Siwa, organized around a small square surrounded by charming adobe buildings.

After the hustle and bustle of Cairo, Siwa seems like a bubble of tranquillity. Our driver takes us straight to our friends Pascale and Sergio.

Our friends Pascale and Sergio

Pascale, a French woman, and Sergio, an Italian, settled in Siwa many years ago, seduced by the oasis and its rich past dating back to Pharaonic times, marked in particular by Alexander the Great’s visit to the oracle of Amun.

Sergio, passionate about Egyptology, founded the Black Lions Library in the center of the oasis at the foot of the Shali fortress, which is currently being renovated. The library houses a significant collection of works on the oasis and is open to visitors and researchers.

Pascale is a writer and blogger. Her first novel in French, “The Hidden Temple of Zerzura or the Epic of the Stone of Amon”, was inspired by the mysteries of Siwa from antiquity to the present day. Her blog pascale-bellamy.com recounts her travels to destinations such as Sudan and Saudi Arabia, which are still relatively untouristy.

Pascale and Sergio speak Egyptian, which has allowed them to build relationships with the people of Siwa. They live in a small house surrounded by a large garden with animals of all kinds, Pascale’s passion, and crops that thrive thanks to the abundant water of the oasis.

Discovering Berber Siwa

Siwa is unique in Egypt in that its inhabitants are Berbers, a people found mainly in the Maghreb, Libya, and the central Sahara. The community was isolated from the rest of the country until the early 1980s when the asphalt road to the Mediterranean coast and Marsa Matrouh was built.

A different way of looking at time in Siwa

After the frenzy of our stay in Cairo, we appreciate the calm of Siwa.

Siwa is a place where you need to take your time to soak in its atmosphere. A visit can be done in a day, but that would mean making a long journey only to leave feeling frustrated. We stayed for a week, simply wandering through the oasis and resting in our friends’ garden.

Enjoying Siwa means, for example, taking a motorcycle cab to Fatnas Island to enjoy the lovely view over a salt lake while drinking mint tea on cushions. It’s also watching the sunset over the palm trees or, in the evening, lounging in the thermal baths.

For lunch, we quickly make it a habit to go to Abdu’s restaurant in the center of the village. The food is excellent and very reasonably priced.

An oasis where we meet only men

During our stay, we meet many Siwis, but only men! Even if some give us an impression of modernity and openness to the world, Siwi society is still very conservative. Women live in seclusion in their homes and are not allowed to meet men other than those from their immediate families. When they go out, they are covered with the tarfutet, a full-body veil that envelops the entire body, including the face.

We learn that Siwi men have never met their friends’ wives! On the other hand, our friend Pascale has made friends with several Siwi women. She describes these encounters as very joyful and warm.

Water, water, but salty water!

Siwa has several large salt lakes. They give the oasis a rural feel but are also industrial in places, as salt is extracted from them. The water in these lakes is as dense as that in Jordan’s famous Dead Sea. We had a great time here!

Siwa’s freshwater comes either from local springs or, more importantly, from an n aquifer that stretches over 2 million square kilometers beneath the Sahara! It’s the largest source of fossilized water in the world, which is quite incredible.

Unfortunately, the abundance of water has led to poor management, beginning to have catastrophic consequences for the oasis. Water is extracted from the ground and irrigates the crops through canals and small locks. This method is inefficient, and the surplus water is released into the lakes, causing them to rise and leading to soil salinization. In some areas, the Siwis have even been forced to build dikes for protection—a paradox in a desert environment! The solution is to introduce drip irrigation for the crops gradually.

The magic of the desert

As uninteresting as the desert north of Siwa from the Mediterranean coast is, the part to the south is fascinating. It’s a sandy desert with rocky hills that form a magnificent landscape. It used to be possible to sleep in camps, but the authorities have banned access to the desert, except near the oasis.

Sergio takes us into his car, however, to give us a glimpse of the beauty of this desert, made unreal by a small sandstorm that covers the sky in a yellow hue.

The desert also means night. We head out with Sergio, Pascale, and a few of their Siwi friends. Lost in total darkness, we spend an evening stretched out on rugs and cushions, talking and watching the starry sky. Walking away alone, barefoot in the now cold sand, is a fantastic sensation that words can’t describe. You feel almost as isolated as in outer space!

The Siwa of a thousand and one nights

One of the highlights of our stay was a memorable evening at the Hotel Adrere Amellal.

It’s an eco-lodge located just outside the oasis, at the foot of the white mountain, that looks like a giant stone table. The hotel, built by Karshef, is lit only by candles and torches. The atmosphere is simply magical. While our dinner is affordable, the same cannot be said for our accommodation. A double room costs a minimum of 600 USD. Prince Charles once stayed here! Quite a good reference?

If you can’t afford the Adrere Amellal hotel, there are more modest but pleasant lodges, with tiny houses scattered around pretty gardens and thermal pools, such as Mountain Camp Ali Khaled.

Discovering Siwa’s long history

Siwa’s history dates back to antiquity, and we’re taking advantage of our stay to visit its most emblematic sites.

The fortress of Shali

The fortress of Shali is situated on a hill. Until the early 20th century, it was the heart of the city, where Siwis lived as a community, sheltered by thick walls to protect them from attack. All the buildings are made of a mixture of mud and salt called karshef. But in 1926, unusually heavy rains literally melted the buildings designed for a dry climate! The Siwis then abandoned the fortress to settle throughout the oasis.

Since then, the fortress has gradually undergone partial restoration, allowing us to recall its labyrinthine, lofty architecture. We climb to its summit, from where we have a spectacular view over the entire oasis.

The fortress is right next to the village center, which is gradually being renovated with karshef facades to give it back its character.

The temple of the oracle of Amun

Our next stop is Siwa’s other historic landmark: the Temple of the Oracle of Amun, which dates back to Pharaonic times. Situated on a hill, the temple is now in ruins, but the site inspires respect and imposes silence on its visitors.

The oracle was a prestigious medium known throughout much of the world. People came from far and wide to hear what the gods had to say about political or personal matters. Even Alexander the Great came to consult him, after a long journey, for confirmation that he was indeed the son of the god Zeus-Amon. More than 2,500 years after its construction, the oracle hall still stands.

The mountain of the dead

The Mountain of the Dead, Gaba al-Mawta, is another historic site worth visiting. These rock tombs dug into the mountain date back to Pharaonic, Ptolemaic, and Roman times. They were used by the Siwis as shelters when the Italians bombed the oasis during the Second World War.

In the distance, we can see the Temple of Amon on its rocky base overlooking the oasis.

Cleopatra’s Bath

My favorite place in Siwa! During our stay, we went for an early morning swim every day at Cleopatra’s Bath, located next to our friends’ house. It’s a large round pool fed by a thermal spring at the perfect temperature for cooling off. Our little ritual is emotionally charged with knowing that the great Queen Cleopatra also bathed here.

It’s a must-see for the rare tourists who visit Siwa. It allows me to photograph trendy, offbeat Instagrammers posing in front of a group of bemused young Cairenes.

Wada’an Siwa or goodbye Siwa!

Our week in Siwa is flying by. It was rich in discoveries and encounters, and we explored it in excellent conditions thanks to our friends Pascale and Sergio. Although it’s a nine-hour drive from Cairo, the oasis is well worth a visit, provided you take your time. You’ll be disappointed if you come on the spur of the moment and stop at first impressions.

We leave Siwa delighted but also worried about the fragility of this place. Poor management of water resources or an influx of new people that is too large could destroy this little paradise.

We treasure our memories of these incredible stretches of water in the middle of the Egyptian Sahara on the border with Libya.

Wada’an Pascale, Sergio, Mohammed, and the other Siwi friends we met during our short stay!