Western Oases Travel Guide

Bizarre rocks, wandering dunes, and palm groves

The road through the endless sea of sand toward the Western Oases takes you into a strange world at the very edge of civilization. Even today it is hard to persuade Egyptians to leave the fertile, but densely settled Valley of the Nile. West of the Nile there are groves of palm and olive trees, as well as springs with water bubbling right up out of the ground. But to reach them, you must drive hundreds of kilometers through some of the hottest, driest areas on the face of the earth--the Libyan or Western Desert. The closest oasis to Cairo is Bahariyya, about 350 km away. From Bahariyya, you can take an excellent highway in a broad arc to the other oases--to Farafra, in three hours, on to Dakhla in an additional four hours, and, finally, three more hours more will take you to Kharga Oasis. From the road you will view a magnificent display of nature: bizarre rock formations or majestic wandering dunes that constantly shift in shape and hue. The pharaohs ruled the oases from the Nile, and they later fell under the sway of Greeks, Persians and Romans. All of them left behind fortresses, temples and graves whose ruins have been attracting explorers for centuries. The traditional inhabitants of the oases are of either Bedouin or North African Berber origins. Buses for the oases depart daily from the Turgoman Bus Depot in Cairo. All of the oases offer tours by camel, four-wheel-drive vehicles or taxi, and these may be booked in the hotels and coffee shops.

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