Top 10 Egypt Festivals and Events
1- Ramadan
Ramadan is the Islamic month of fasting. During daylight hours observant Muslims must not eat, drink or smoke. The fast is broken at sunset with iftar (breakfast), a meal usually enjoyed with all the family. Although tempers can be frayed during the day (especially when Ramadan falls during summer heat), it is a festive time with many people out on the streets until the early hours of the morning. The celebrations peak with Eid al-Fitr, a three-day feast to mark Ramadan’s end.
2- Pharaoh’s Rally
Taking place every October, this is a grueling week-long, 3,100-km (1,900-mile) motor vehicle race (including cars and motorbikes) through the Egyptian desert, with the Pyramids as both starting and finishing point. Major car manufacturers and competitors come from all over the world to compete.
3- Cairo International Film Festival
Film Festival An often chaotic and disorganized celebration of the local and international film takes place in November or December every year in various cinemas across the capital. Film Festival is usually attended by a bevy of the Arab world and international film stars. The festival is hugely popular with local Egyptians because the festival screenings’ censorship laws are relaxed and international films are screened uncut.
4- Abu Simbel Sun Festival
On 22 February and 22 October every year, the sun penetrates 55 m (180 ft) into the innermost chamber of the Sun Temple of Ramses II at Abu Simbel. It illuminates three of the quartet of statues of seated gods that lie deep in the innermost chamber.
5- The Prophet’s Birthday
Also known as the Moulid an-Nabi, this major holiday celebrates the birth of the Prophet Mohammed. The streets burst into color and noise. Like all Islamic holy days, it follows the Islamic calendar, which is about 11 days shorter than the Western calendar. As a result, Islamic holidays move forward every year compared with the Western calendar.
6- Imam Hussain Birthday
A moulid is a saint worshipping festival taking the form of riotous street parties, complete with chanting, dancing, music, fairground rides and sideshows. It lasts several days, culminating in the Leyla Kebira, meaning “Big Night”. One of the largest is focused on the Mosque of Al-Hussein in Islamic Cairo.
7- Eid al-Adha
This is a commemoration of Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son as an act of obedience to God. During the two-day holiday, Muslims slaughter a sheep or goat and distribute the meat among the poor. It is also a time for visiting family and friends, and for exchanging gifts.
8- Moulid of Abu al-Haggag
This festival honors Luxor’s patron saint, whose mosque sits on top of Luxor Temple (see p21). Giant floats travel through the densely packed streets, and there is drumming, ritualistic stick fights and horse races. The moulid occurs the month before Ramadan and so the date changes each year.
Taking place every January or February, this is the biggest cultural event on the Egyptian calendar, attracting publishers, authors, and buyers from all over the world. Crowds turn up for the events programme of talks, reading, debates, and lectures, and for the many stalls selling everything from DVDs to street food.
10- International Egyptian Marathon
International Egyptian Marathon Organized every January or February when it is about as cool as it ever gets in Upper Egypt, this marathon is held on the West Bank at Luxor. The start and finishing point is the Temple of Hatshepsut.
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