Siwa

Precious few visitors to Egypt get as far as Siwa, but when they do it is one of the places they will never forget. The oasis town is nearer to the Libyan border than it is to Cairo, and its traditional influences shine through in a far more striking way than some of the cosmopolitan cities. Donkeys remain the most common form of transportation, and a tarmac road to the town was only constructed in the latter part of the twentieth century. That did not deter Alexander the Great, who came here in antiquity seeking the Oracle. The remains of the Oracle are still in evidence, as are the remains of the mud-buildings of Shali, the old Town which was ravaged by floods in the 1980s, and saw the locals move to safer, though less characterful, dwellings nearby. Of course, just outside the town are magnificent Saharan dunes to explore, as well as the shimmering oasis waters and fresh springs which are the source of much of Egypt’s mineral water.