Cairo

I’m looking forward to any vrbo or hotel suggestions!

I cant recommend any tours, but would suggest the Grand Egyptian Museum and the Giza pyramids and the Sphynx as must sees.
There are many things to see that I suggest getting a guide book and working out your interests.
There are areas which are great just to wander - souks (markets) for one.
Watch out crossing the road - Cairo is said to have the worst traffic in the world.
There are three main hotel areas - Garden City, downtown and Pyramids/Sphinx - this last is slightly out of the centre.
I suggest you look on booking.com and find one that suits. Any hotel will organise an aitport pickup.

Thank you!

I have done two private tours with Djed Egypt (https://www.djedegypt.com), and they were excellent. Although they specialize in longer tours, I believe that they can also arrange multi-day tours in Cairo. When I traveled with them, they included transfer to and from the airport in the price.

Also, our guide on both visits to Cairo was Moustafa Mohsen, and he is absolutely superb. He left Djed last year and started his own tour company. I think the world of Moustafa, and would wholeheartedly recommend him. His TripAdvisor link is here: https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g294201-d29019174-Reviews-Adven_Tours-Cairo_Cairo_Governorate.html. I can get more contact info if you want.

I also did a private tour of Jordan and Israel with Egypt and Beyond (https://www.egyptandbeyondtravel.com/index.php?page=company_profile). I think they were the people who arranged the travel for Rick Steves when he did a show on Egypt a few years ago. Once again, they were excellent.

Whatever you do, don't try to rent a car in Cairo. The traffic is absolutely insane there.

As for things to do in Cairo:

• The Great Pyramids, the Sphinx and the Grand Egyptian Museum are essential if you have never been to Egypt before. That will take a whole day.
• It's pretty common to do a one day tour of Cairo that includes the Citadel and the Muhammed Ali mosque, the Coptic quarter, and the Khan el Khalili market.
• Saqqara is *huge." We did a brief visit to the Step Pyramid at Saqqara as well as the Red Pyramid and the Bent Pyramid at Dashur on our first trip. On the second trip, we opted to spend a whole day at Saqqara, and I learned a lot during that full day at Saqqara.
• I have mixed feelings about the new Museum of Egyptian Civilization in Cairo. The mummies that used to be in the old museum are there now. Go if you want to see the mummies, but otherwise I would skip it.
• I am not sure what is going on at the old downtown museum now that the GEM is open. I absolutely loved the old-fashioned ambiance of the old museum when I visited.
• Some less common small things that I have enjoyed in Cairo include trying Koshari at Abou Tarek in downtown Cairo and visiting the Nileometer in Cairo.

We stayed at Mena Marriott next to the Great Pyramids on both of our trips to Egypt. I would stay there again if finances allowed. In general, I would recommend higher end hotels in Cairo or Giza for security reasons. I am not adventurous enough to try an AirBnb or VRBO in Cairo. (Luxor is another story.)

You have already acquired some great advice, but I will add a bit more.
I have been to Egypt three times and found it very special, the history is amazing and Egyptian people are great.
I suggest booking a tour for your trip.

You do not want to wander on your own. On a tour you will have an armed guard and your guide will know where to take you.

You don't have time to go south, but you can see a lot in the Cairo/Giza area. Giza is on the west bank of the Nile and where you find the Great Pyramids and the new Egyptian Museum. Also, you can see the Step Pyramid (the original pyramids) that are a bit north of Cairo. Also, if interested, you might wish to visit the Christian area of the city and visit the church were the Holy Family resided.

Your tour company will likely put you in a four or five star hotel, no worries, hotel rates are not high in Egypt.

Also, don't eat any street food or drink where you don't open the bottle yourself.

some info on the Grand Egyptian Museum

The Grand Egyptian Museum, outside Cairo, has been delayed by revolutions, wars, financial crises and a pandemic. At long last, here’s a look inside.