2-Day St. Catherine and Moses Mountain Tour from Cairo

A couple nights driving, one predawn climb, a couple ancient sites

A 2-day guided tour from Cairo to St. Catherine combines a night drive south, a 3-hour pre-dawn climb of Moses Mountain to watch the sunrise, and visits to St. Catherine Monastery and the Burning Bush. The package includes hotel, an air-conditioned vehicle, a guide, dinner, breakfast and all pickup and drop-off from your Cairo hotel. Minimum age is 18.

Step-by-step itinerary

Day 1: Cairo to St Catherine

• Pick up from Cairo hotel
• Drive to St Catherine
• Check into hotel
• Dinner and overnight stay

Day 2: St Catherine to Cairo

• Wake up early and drink tea
• Climb Moses Mountain for sunrise
• Descend from Moses Mountain
• Visit St Catherine Monastery and Burning Bush
• Return to hotel and refresh
• Enjoy breakfast
• Drive back to Cairo hotel

The experience

Your guide picks you up from your Cairo hotel around 1am and drives you south in an air-conditioned vehicle for roughly 8 hours to St. Catherine. You check into a 4-star hotel, have dinner and sleep. The next morning starts at 1:30am with free tea at the hotel, then at 2am you begin the climb of Moses Mountain. A 3-hour walk uphill to reach the summit before sunrise. The descent takes less time, and by mid-morning you're back at the hotel to shower and eat breakfast.

After breakfast, the guide takes you to St. Catherine Monastery and the Burning Bush, both within the same compound. You then drive back to Cairo, arriving at your hotel in the late afternoon. The entire tour is led by a guide who speaks English, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and 26 other languages, so language is not a barrier. All entry fees to the Monastery are included in the price.

What’s included

• Hotel for one night.
• air-conditioned vehicle for all transport.
• entry to St. Catherine Monastery.
• guide for the full 2 days.
• dinner on day one and breakfast on day two.
• pickup and drop-off from your Cairo hotel.

Before you book

Days and timesEvery day

Book up toStart time

AgesAdult (18 and older) · Under 18: can't be booked

GroupPrivate

Live guideEnglish, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Arabic, Bangla, Burmese, Cantonese, Chinese, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Filipino, Finnish, Greek, Gujarati, Hakka Chinese, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Japanese, Javanese, Korean, Kurdish, MNP, Malay, Malayalam, Marathi, Norwegian, Pashto, Persian, Polish, Punjabi, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak, Swedish, Tamil, Telugu, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Urdu, Vietnamese, Wu Chinese and Xiang Chinese

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup included.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.

Prices and times updated 6 days ago

Good to know

Low physical effortWheelchair accessible

Operated by Sun Of Egypt Tour

Is this one for you?Book this if you're ready for a 1:30 am wake-up to climb Moses Mountain for sunrise, then visit the Monastery. The tour handles the overnight drive from Cairo and all logistics so you only need to show up at your hotel.

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Top questions

What languages is the tour guided in?

Live guide in English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Hindi, Javanese, Chinese, Wu Chinese, Slovak, Serbian, Swedish, Korean, Kurdish, Cantonese, Tamil, MNP, Gujarati, Czech, Telugu, Punjabi, Thai, Polish, Hebrew, Danish, Bangla, Xiang Chinese, Chinese, Malay, Pashto, Filipino, Croatian, Hungarian, Hakka Chinese, Ukrainian, Urdu, Malayalam, Marathi, Greek, Finnish, Burmese, Arabic, Vietnamese, Japanese, Persian, Romanian, Dutch, Norwegian, Russian and Turkish.

What time do I start climbing Moses Mountain?

You begin the climb at 2am on day two, aiming to reach the summit before sunrise. The climb takes approximately 3 hours, so you'll be descending as daylight arrives.

Is the hotel included in the 2-day tour price?

Yes, one night in a 4-star hotel in St. Catherine is included, along with dinner on day one and breakfast on day two.

How long is the drive from Cairo to St. Catherine?

The drive takes approximately 8 hours each way. You depart Cairo around 1am on day one and return to Cairo on day two after visiting the Monastery and Burning Bush.

What is there to see at St. Catherine Monastery?

St. Catherine Monastery houses the Burning Bush, a site sacred in Christian, Jewish and Islamic tradition. The Monastery itself is one of the oldest functioning monastic communities in the world, and entry is included in your tour.

Do I need to be fit to climb Moses Mountain?

The tour is suitable for all physical fitness levels. The climb takes 3 hours at a steady pace, and you're climbing in the cool of early morning, which makes it manageable for most people.