Religious heritage
Islamic Cairo, Coptic churches and desert monasteries, the Holy Family route and Egypt's historic synagogues.
In Egypt, pharaonic temples stand alongside some of the world’s oldest monasteries, early churches and synagogues, and the mosques and madrasas of medieval Cairo. In the Bible, Egypt is where Joseph rose to power, where Moses was born and where the Holy Family took refuge. Islam arrived in the 7th century and made Cairo a great centre of learning, home to Al-Azhar, one of the oldest universities still operating. Egypt still has a large Coptic Orthodox Christian community, and the surviving synagogues belonged to a Jewish community that lived here for more than two thousand years. The sites below are working places of worship or protected monuments, so dress modestly, check opening times locally and respect prayer times.
01
Islamic Cairo and great mosques
<p><a href="https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/89">Historic Cairo</a> is a UNESCO World Heritage Site with hundreds of mosques, madrasas and minarets. The highlights are the Mosque of Ibn Tulun, Al-Azhar, the Sultan Hassan and Al-Rifa'i mosques, Al-Muizz Street, and the Muhammad Ali Mosque at the Citadel. Visitors are welcome outside prayer times. Remove your shoes, and women should cover their hair.</p>
02
Coptic Egypt and monasteries
<p>Coptic Cairo, inside the old Roman fortress of Babylon, has the Hanging Church, the church of Abu Serga, the Coptic Museum and the Ben Ezra Synagogue, all within a few minutes' walk. Beyond Cairo you can visit the desert monasteries of Wadi El Natrun, St Anthony and St Paul near the Red Sea, and <a href="https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/954">St Catherine's Monastery</a> at the foot of Mount Sinai.</p>
03
The Holy Family route
<p>Coptic tradition records the stops the Holy Family made while fleeing from Herod. The route runs from the Sinai coast across the Delta, through Cairo (Matariya, Old Cairo, Maadi) and up the Nile Valley to Gabal El Teir and the Monastery of Al-Muharraq near Asyut. Egypt promotes these sites as a pilgrimage route, and several are working churches and monasteries.</p>
04
Jewish heritage
<p>The Ben Ezra Synagogue in Coptic Cairo, where the famous Cairo Geniza documents were found, reopened in 2023 after restoration and is part of most Old Cairo visits. In Alexandria, the Eliyahu Hanavi Synagogue was restored and reopened in 2020. Visiting hours there have been irregular, with passport checks at the entrance, so confirm access locally before you go.</p>
Last checked October 2026. Sources: whc.unesco.org, whc.unesco.org, egymonuments.gov.eg, jewishpress.com, egyptindependent.com.