Private Guided Half-Day Tour to Dahshur from Cairo

Enjoy a leisurely breakfast before meeting your private Egyptologist guide at your hotel at 9am. He'll escort you to your air-conditioned minivan – complete with free Wi-Fi – for the hour-long journey out to the desert at Dahshur.

Admire the remarkable Bent Pyramid, which stands over 340 feet (104 meters) high, with its weirdly angled sides, and capture shots against the desert sands. This was likely a first attempt by the pharaoh Sneferu, father of Khufu, almost 3,600 years ago.

Next, visit the Red Pyramid, the first smooth-sided pyramid known to history, and almost as vast as Giza's Great Pyramid of Khufu: Sneferu's architects seem to have mastered their calculations by the time they built this one. Should you wish to climb up to the entrance and descend the narrow, 4-feet (1.2-meter) tall tunnel that leads to his vaulted burial chamber, you can do so independently, as guides are not allowed inside. Please note this isn't suitable for people with asthma or claustrophobia.

Finally, your guide will show you the ruins of the mortuary temple, where the pharaoh's body was prepared for mummification, and the pyramidions, the decorative caps which originally topped the pyramids. You'll be back at your hotel around 1pm, traffic depending.