plr

Most tour groups seem to allow just a few hours (half-day, between breakfast and lunch or similar) for this museum. Would love to hear from those who have visited, as to whether this seemed really to be enough time for such an incredible collection. And if not, I wonder what would be the best plan for "seeing the rest" with another guide on a free half-day.

Is it reasonable to hire a private guide, and tell him/her what has already been viewed, then asking what would be recommended for continuing on? Museums are such a laberynth that the valuable extra half-day could be a massive waste of time if not guided, I would think. All opinions welcome!

Casual_Cairo

Your idea of hiring a private guide and telling them what you've already seen and what you maybe want to see is a good one. You will need to find an excellent guide though, and not just go for the cheap ones that are there at the Museum, as they may likely ONLY know well the stuff that they have memorized, which of course will be the stuff that you already saw. You will need one that understands and speaks your language well enough to really understand what you need and want from your time and money.

The museum is large, and has so much to see. You might even be able to do it alone IF you first go to some bookstore (I recommend the American Univ. in Cairo bookstore) and buy a copy of their Cairo Museum book. It is hardcover and black with a picture of Tuts mask on the cover.
It is a good book, but even it must be studied first to see what is the most interesting pieces to you in the museum. With the book, you can locate what room any item is in and there is a decent description about the item in the book - you will not find any information like that in the museum without a guide.

I hear there are adequate audio guides now you can rent. I haven't done one to know what they cost or how good it is, but it's perhaps an option.

afterall

Like the British Museum, and so many other seminal collections - one visit is not enough.

You need to go twice at least.

Personally I find having a guide inhibiting but acknowledge that is the favoured approach here on this forum. I'd go by yourselves the first time, and take a guide on the second.

plr

Thanks again, Casual Cairo Debbie, for your valuable suggestions. I will contact you off-forum to ask about arranging such a guide. And upon Googling the guidebook, it surely looks comprehensive at about 630 pages--and is available in paperback at the museum. Now I'll have to decide whether to get it ahead of time so I can try to plan the time and pack it along to guide myself, or just wait till I get there to pick one up.

Like "Afterall," I have always been one to travel independently...and Always end up frustrated that there is Never enough time for exploring museums even partly adequately. It's hard to know in advance what to seek to view, so invariably I end up wondering about all that I missed for lack of a full week inside.

sandi

There is so much to see that a few hours is nowhere near enough. And, it does seem the tour groups are there in force in the morning. The guides all seem to route the tourists the same way, so you never have quiet time without groups around or nearby.

When I realized this and suggested we go to the top and work our way down, instead of how it appeared we'd be doing bottom to top... the guide said something to the effect "but this should be done in order" to which I replied and which I think went over his head though he did get it - "but everything is old, very old... one dynasty out of order won't make much difference." I could see the smile on my friend's face.

And, so we went upstairs where it was quiet and worked our way down, bypassing many of the crowds, except the Tut Exhibit (air conditioned) but as I had seen when it was NYC stayed outside, beside there's a large Egyptian section at the Met in NYC where I hang out often; also the Mummy Room (again with air conditioning*) being the busiest regardless what time. If time allowed in our schedule, we definitely would have returned on our own one late afternoon or maybe even two afternoons.

*hope you've got the drift that the museum is NOT air conditioned and with crowds can get warm quickly.

I would go with guide first and once you have a feel for the place and wish to see more, return again in an afternoon with a specialist guide or the handy guidebook Debbie mentions.

plr

Thanks for your suggestions, Sandi.I wonder if my tour group would think me obnoxious if I suggest that we reverse the order of the guided part to avoid the crowds.

Well I went ahead and ordered 2 guidebooks, the first of which CasualCairo Debbie recommended:
"The Illustrated Guide to the Egyptian Museum in Cairo" edited by Bongioanni, Croce, and Accomazzo; and "The Treasures of Luxor and the Valley of the Kings" by Kent R. Weeks.

Although these twin guides came to a total of nearly $50 on Amazon, and although they weigh a total of 4.2 lbs (about as much as my total carryon weight usually is!!)--these are a terrific pair of books! Tons of great glossy photos of what's in the museum and of the interiors of the tombs, temples & monuments in the VOK & Luxor. I could never haul these along with me, but their value is beyond just planning what I want to be sure to see. The photos are so wonderful and numerous that I will not even worry about taking 1000 photos as I usually do, nor buying a bunch of souvenir books and postcards for the places that photos aren't allowed.

I now also have a way to try to make the time pass while I anxiously await my journey in February!

I do plan to spend an extra half-day after my tour group hits the museum, and likely will hire an expert guide for this, through Debbie of Casual Cairo.