Best Time To Visit Cairo > Weather, Temperature & Season

What is the best time to visit Cairo?

October to April is the best time to visit Cairo, with November to February the pick: about 19°C to 25°C by day, which is the only stretch when a full day at Giza is comfortable.

Rain is not a factor. Cairo takes about 25mm in a whole year, all of it between December and March, and none at all from May to September.

March to May brings the khamsin, a dust-laden desert wind that hides the pyramids in haze and pushes the thermometer past 40°C. Cairo's all-time high of 47.8°C was set in May, not in July.

June to August averages about 35°C by day and stays near 24°C at night. It is dry heat, not humid, and it is the cheapest time to come. Pair Cairo with Luxor, which is hotter still.

Monthly Weather in Cairo

Month	High/Low (°C)	Rain
January	19°/ 9°	0 days
February	22°/ 10°	0 days
March	25°/ 12°	2 days
April	29°/ 14°	0 days
May	36°/ 18°	0 days
June	38°/ 21°	1 days
July	38°/ 22°	0 days
August	38°/ 22°	0 days
September	35°/ 20°	0 days
October	32°/ 19°	2 days
November	28°/ 16°	0 days
December	22°/ 11°	1 days

Cairo Travel Packages

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7 Nights / 8 Days

Best Of Egypt Tour - 7 Nights 8 Days

Cairo(2N) → Hurghada(2N) → Aswan(3N)

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₹104,000/person

7 Nights / 8 Days

Egypt Tour Package - 8 Days 7 Nights

Cairo(2N) → Hurghada(2N) → Aswan(3N)

Sold By: Flying Feet Adven...(4.8 )

₹103,000/person

9 Nights / 10 Days

10-Day Egypt Explorer: Pyramids, Nile Cruise, Luxor & Red Sea

Cairo(3N) → Hurghada(2N) → Nile Valley(3N) → Cairo(1N)

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₹118,000/person

9 Nights / 10 Days

10-Day Egypt Explorer: Pyramids, Nile Cruise, Luxor & Red Sea

Cairo(3N) → Hurghada(2N) → Nile Valley(3N) → Cairo(1N)

Sold By: Probesten Tours(4.8 )

₹118,000/person

9 Nights / 10 Days

Egyptian Sun and Fun Tour for 9N/10D

Cairo(1N) → Nile Valley(3N) → Hurghada(3N)

$920/person

6 Nights / 7 Days

Egypt Package: 6 Nights with Cruise

Cairo(3N) → Nile Valley(3N)

$ 1,050

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$920/person

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More about Best Time to Travel to Cairo

Peak Season in Cairo: November to February

November to February is the best window. January averages about 19°C by day and 10°C at night, cool enough for a jacket after dark and the only time Giza in the afternoon is pleasant.

It is also the busiest and priciest, especially over Christmas, New Year and Coptic Christmas on 7 January. The Cairo International Film Festival runs 12 to 21 November.

Spring and the Khamsin: March to May

March to May is when the khamsin blows. It is a hot southerly wind carrying sand off the desert: visibility drops, temperatures push over 40°C and humidity falls to 5% or less.

It does not blow every day, but when it does the pyramids vanish into brown haze and photographs are ruined. Cairo's record 47.8°C was a May khamsin day. Sham el-Nessim, the spring picnic holiday after Coptic Easter, packs the parks and the Nile corniche.

Summer in Cairo: June to August

June to August averages about 35°C by day, and August nights stay near 24°C. It is dry heat: the city records essentially no rain at all across these months.

Prices are at their lowest and the queues are short. Do Giza and Saqqara at opening and spend the middle of the day in the Grand Egyptian Museum, Khan el-Khalili's covered lanes or a mall.

Autumn in Cairo: September and October

September and October are the shoulder, and October is the better of the two. Days ease from the low thirties to the high twenties and the khamsin season is over.

22 October is one of the two Abu Simbel sun alignments, so an Upper Egypt leg times well from here. Crowds and rates are still below the winter peak.

Best Time of Day for the Pyramids

Be at the Giza gate when it opens. The light is best in the first two hours, the coach groups arrive from mid-morning, and there is no shade anywhere on the plateau.

In summer that is the difference between a good morning and heatstroke; in winter it is the difference between an empty Sphinx and a crowded one. The sound and light show runs after dark year-round and is the other good hour.

Ramadan in Cairo

Ramadan moves about eleven days earlier each year. In 2026 it runs roughly 18 February to 19 March, with Eid al-Fitr around 20 to 22 March. In 2027 it starts on 8 February.

Sites and hotel restaurants run normally; many local cafes close or shorten hours during daylight. The evenings are the reason to come rather than avoid it, with the streets and the lantern-lit lanes at their best after iftar. The Eid holiday itself fills domestic transport.

Best Time to Visit Cairo by Interest

Pyramids of Giza and Saqqara: November to February, at opening time
Grand Egyptian Museum and Coptic Cairo: any month, and the obvious hot-day plan
Khan el-Khalili and Islamic Cairo: October to April, evenings
Nile felucca at sunset: October to April
Cairo International Film Festival: 12 to 21 November
Cheapest and emptiest: June to August
Months to plan around: March to May, for khamsin dust