Golf guide • Egypt • Greater Cairo

Golf in Cairo: from desert fairways to the foot of the pyramids

Cairo has three major desert courses on either side of the city: to the west, Greg Norman's Allegria, ranked number one in Egypt, and NEWGIZA, laid out in a former quarry facing the pyramids of Giza; to the east, the Lakes Course at Katameya Dunes, designed by Nick Faldo. Golfers come to play in the morning and spend the rest of the day with Tutankhamun, on the Giza plateau or in Islamic Cairo. The best months are mid-October to November and February to April.

Plan this tripUpdated 11 October 2026

Cairo is home to more than twenty million people, and its golf has been built in the desert on the edge of the city. The courses fall into two clusters with the whole metropolis between them: to the west, along the Alexandria road, Allegria and NEWGIZA are half an hour from the pyramids of Giza; to the east, in New Cairo, Katameya Dunes spreads its lakes and palms half an hour from the airport. Paspalum or Bermuda grass, ochre sand, dry air: this is target golf, where accuracy counts for more than length.

The other half of the trip happens in town. The Grand Egyptian Museum, opened on 1 November 2025 two kilometres from the pyramids, displays more than 5,300 objects from the tomb of Tutankhamun. In Fatimid Cairo, Al-Muizz Street lines up mosques and madrasas all the way to the Bab Zuweila gate. In the evening the Nile takes over, seen from a terrace in Garden City or the deck of a felucca.

Five or six nights are enough for three courses and two half-days of sightseeing, provided you split the stay in two: the east first, near the airport, then the west and the pyramids. Crossing the city easily takes more than an hour, so never try to play both sides on the same day. Keep an evening for Islamic Cairo while you are in the east, and a sunrise on the Giza plateau while you are in the west.

The courses

Green and flag beside a lake with dressed-stone banks, pale sand bunkers and palm trees at dusk

The Allegria Golf Club

Architect: Greg Norman
Opened 2010
18 holes
Par 72

Greg Norman's first course in North Africa, Allegria opened in 2010 in the heart of a residential district of Sheikh Zayed, west of Cairo, and tops the Egyptian ranking of Top 100 Golf Courses. On almost flat land, the sand has been reshaped into rolling contours; lakes, streams, rocks and beach-style bunkers line the fairways, and the 8th and 13th share a vast double green. Managed by Troon, it is known for its quick greens and suits mid-handicappers and low handicappers alike. In April 2026 it hosted the Alps Tour for the first time.

Signature hole. The 14th, a short downhill par 4: a rocky stream runs down the right and ends in a water bunker. You can go for the green from the tee, or lay up to the left for an untroubled par.

Official website

NEWGIZA Golf Club

Architect: Thomson Perrett & Lobb
18 holes
Par 72

The final design by Thomson Perrett & Lobb, led by Tim Lobb, NEWGIZA winds through a former limestone quarry eight kilometres from the pyramids. The quarry's sheer walls, more than fifteen metres high, have been kept alongside several holes; sandy waste areas take the place of rough, and the terrain grows more dramatic on the back nine, around the lakes. Opened in late 2018, it regularly hosts the Alps Tour's New Giza Open, first played in 2019. It is the most spectacular of the three, for golfers who enjoy elevation changes and strategy; take a buggy.

Signature hole. The 4th, a par 3 that drops some thirty metres to a green split by a central spine, with the pyramids of Giza as the backdrop.

Official website

Katameya Dunes, Lakes Course

Architect: Nick Faldo
Opened 2010
18 holes

Nick Faldo's first project in North Africa, designed with Schmidt-Curley and opened in 2010, the Lakes Course at Katameya Dunes has turned a stretch of New Cairo desert into an oasis: lakes, streams and waterfalls, some 4,000 trees, palm-lined fairways, raised tees and quick greens guarded by pinkish-ochre sand. It measures 7,435 yards from the black tees, within a 27-hole club. Target golf, ideal for mid-handicappers who enjoy playing over water.

Signature hole. The 8th, a 210-yard par 3 from the black tees, is played over water.

Official website

Where to stay

Marriott Mena House, Cairo

Built in 1869 as a hunting lodge for Khedive Ismail and a hotel since 1886, the Mena House has welcomed Arthur Conan Doyle, Winston Churchill and Agatha Christie at the foot of the Giza plateau. The historic palace wing is closed for renovation: ask for a garden-wing room with a balcony on the pyramid side, and have breakfast on the terrace before the plateau opens at 7am. It is the base for the western leg, for Allegria and NEWGIZA.

Villa Belle Époque

In Maadi, a suburb of villas and gardens founded in 1907 on the banks of the Nile, this 1920s house has just thirteen rooms, set around a pool planted with mango trees, lemon trees and century-old palms. Ask for a pool-side room with a balcony or patio, and have the house book you the high tea by the Nile that it arranges. The best base for the eastern leg: Katameya Dunes is half an hour away by the Ring Road.

Immobilia

In central Cairo, the Immobilia building, completed in 1940 and then the city's tallest, was home to Omar Sharif and the singer Leila Mourad. Egypt Beyond has restored four Art Deco apartments there, furnished with antiques from the Maghreb and the Levant, with a butler and a driver from 9am to 6pm. Ask for El Sheikh, the most ornate, or The Embassy for its view. The entrance hall is austere, and a tee time before 9am needs another car.

Arcaded terrace in pale stone with mashrabiya screens and lit lanterns, a palm garden and pool at dusk

Where to dine

Khufu's

Within the Giza plateau site, Khufu's was named the best restaurant in the Middle East and North Africa in MENA's 50 Best 2026, a first for Egypt. Chef Mostafa Seif reworks rural Egyptian cooking: mu'ammar rice with smoked beef, molokhia with rabbit, duck in a dukkah crust. Breakfast and lunch face the pyramids; in the evening, dinner is at Khufu's Bistro.

Andrea El Mariouteya

On the New Giza road, close to NEWGIZA, the same family has been grilling chicken over charcoal since 1958, now in a hilltop garden facing the pyramids. Order the oregano chicken, the quail, the chicken livers and the mezze with hot homemade bread. The natural lunch after a round at NEWGIZA.

Koshary Abou Tarek

Born from a street cart in the 1950s, Abou Tarek fills a multi-storey building in the city centre devoted to a single dish: koshari, rice, lentils, pasta and chickpeas under tomato sauce and fried onions. Add the da'a, a garlic vinegar, and the chilli sauce, then a rice pudding. Noisy, fast and full of office workers and families; check the posted price.

Beyond golf

The Grand Egyptian Museum

Opened on 1 November 2025 two kilometres from the pyramids, the Grand Egyptian Museum displays more than 5,300 objects from the tomb of Tutankhamun, including the golden mask. Allow around two hours for the Tutankhamun galleries. Timed tickets are sold only on the official website, and the galleries stay open until 9pm on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Giza, Saqqara and Dahshur

The Giza plateau opens at 7am: arrive at opening time, ahead of the heat and the groups; an electric bus links the visitor centre with the pyramids and the Sphinx. Half a day to the south is enough for Djoser's Step Pyramid at Saqqara, then the Bent and Red Pyramids of Dahshur, listed with Giza as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Hire a driver and be back before dark.

Islamic Cairo

Al-Muizz Street, the old spine of the Fatimid city, runs for a kilometre from Bab al-Futuh to Bab Zuweila, past mosques, madrasas and the Qalawun complex, completed in 1285. It leads to the Khan el-Khalili souk, which grew out of a fourteenth-century caravanserai, and to El-Fishawy, a café open for more than two centuries, where you drink mint tea amid the passers-by.

Carved minarets and ribbed domes above ochre old-town rooftops in the golden evening light

When to go

The best months are mid-October to late November and February to April: 21 to 30 degrees in the afternoon, cool mornings and almost no rain. December and January stay mild, but the mornings are cold and the days short. In spring the khamsin, a dry, dust-laden wind, can blow for a day or two. From May to September the heat goes above 30 degrees and golf is played only at dawn. Ramadan moves about ten days earlier each year and currently falls in winter: check the dates, as the city then moves to a different rhythm.

Getting there

Air France and EgyptAir fly direct from Paris Charles de Gaulle to Cairo (CAI) in around four and a half hours. From the airport, allow half an hour to New Cairo and an hour to Giza or Sheikh Zayed, longer at rush hour. French travellers can get a visa on arrival, paid in cash, or an e-visa from the official portal. Once there, a private driver is essential.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best golf course in Cairo?

Allegria, designed by Greg Norman and opened in 2010, is ranked number one in Egypt by Top 100 Golf Courses. NEWGIZA, laid out in a former quarry facing the pyramids, is the most spectacular of the three.

Can you play golf with a view of the pyramids?

Yes. At NEWGIZA, the par-3 4th is played with the pyramids of Giza as the backdrop. The historic nine-hole course at the Mena House, at the foot of the plateau, is due to be redesigned by Robert Trent Jones II, so check that it is open before you travel.

When is the best time to play golf in Cairo?

From mid-October to November and from February to April, with afternoons between 21 and 30 degrees and almost no rain. In summer, golf is played only at dawn.

Do you need a handicap to play golf in Cairo?

At Katameya Dunes a certificate is required, with a maximum handicap of 36 for men and 45 for women. At NEWGIZA, players without an official handicap may only play at off-peak times, with a caddie or a partner who holds an official handicap.

Do you need a visa for a golf trip to Egypt?

Yes. French travellers can get a tourist visa on arrival, paid in cash in dollars or euros, or an e-visa from the official portal visa2egypt.gov.eg, at least seven days before departure.

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