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I look to my right. Mud domes, hundreds of them, backed by the modern buildings of the city. A mosque’s minaret stands tall behind them.
To my left, more domes. Hundreds more, maybe thousands, stretching off just about as far as I can see into the desert haze. The occasional wall disrupts the pattern of half-circles, separating one tomb from another.
Ahead of me the lane I’ve just walked up extends to the green fields of the fertile Nile Valley, with the river lazily rolling through it.
This is the incredible Zawiyyet Al Mayyiteen, the City of the Dead, a massive cemetery just outside El Minya, Egypt.
My traveling companion and I had decided to stop in El Minya on our way North from Luxor back to Cairo. Most people either fly or take the train and skip everything in between, but we’re both the kind of travelers who like to get off the beaten path now and then, and, quite frankly, we’d had about enough of the major tourist sites in Egypt by this time.
It is important to note that El Minya is in the area that the Egyptian authorities don’t really want tourists to go. That whole ‘Middle Egypt’ area along the Nile between Luxor and Cairo is a bit out of bounds for foreigners, due to Islamic insurgencies in the 1990s and more recent riots, political protests, and clashes between Muslims and Coptic Christians. At the time we went (March 2010) things were calm and nobody stopped us from going. However, I’m quite certain that the police were keeping pretty close track of us, and a lot has happened since then in Egypt so things may have deteriorated. If you plan to go, check the political and security situation carefully first. You may have to have a police escort the whole time you’re there.
When we arrived we set off to find the hotel we’d booked, which was actually on a boat. We were wandering around in the dark on the waterfront looking for it when we got mobbed by a group of young women, chattering away in Arabic and random bits of English, colourful headscarves flying in every direction. They were so excited to see us, but more and more girls joined the crowd, until they were actually overwhelming me to the point where I had to start yelling at them to back off!
But El Minya is a friendly and charming city. There are lovely park areas to walk in by the riverside, and smiles and hellos are abundant. People did not try to rip us off here as they did elsewhere in Egypt, and requests for baksheesh were not nearly as frequent!
We only stayed one night in El Minya, and happily spent our time wandering the streets and stopping in tea shops to sit and watch the world go by. The one major thing we did was visit Zawiyyet al-Mayyiteen cemetery, otherwise known as the City of the Dead.
Zawiyyet al-Mayyiteen is 7km away from El Minya and we weren’t sure how to get there, so we went back to the train station to see if there was some tourist information. We found an office, which wasn’t exactly an information centre but possibly more of an administration or security office, and the man there quizzed us about where we were going, how long we would be there, which hotel we were staying in, how long we were staying in town, how we were planning to leave, did we have our tickets booked, and just about anything else he could think of. Finally, he produced a driver for us, who was happy to take us to the cemetery for a small fee. Yay!
This place is incredible. It stretches for four kilometres north – south between the bank of the Nile and the cliffs behind, and for about 300 metres up the hillside. If you climb up the hill, all you can see is a sea of white clay domes, each covering a tomb. It is said to be the largest burial ground in the world.
If you look closely, you can see that not all the domes are the same. Some are smooth clay, some staggered brick. Some have holes in the top while others don’t, and a few have clay ‘bars’ crossing over the hole. Some are built atop an exposed brick building, but other buildings are smoothed over with clay or even painted bright colours. Most are crammed tightly together, sharing walls, but a few have a sort of yard attached.
Lanes wind in among the graves, and it would be easy to get lost in here, if it wasn’t for the cliff at the back and the blazing sun giving directions. We wandered up one of the main alleys to the hillside for a better look.
It’s still a working cemetery, for both Muslims and Christians, so there are plenty of people around. They go visit their deceased relatives and have a picnic in the tomb, hang out for the day, and occasionally people might even live there if they have nowhere else to go. Unlike some cemeteries, it’s actually quite a cheerful place!
As cemeteries go, Zawiyet al-Mayyiteen was pretty amazing, and our visit to El Minya was short but definitely a highlight of our trip to Egypt. If you ever find yourself in Egypt traveling between Cairo and Luxor, this place is definitely worth a stop!
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Hiya Jenny,
I have just discovered your post about this amazing place and it honestly has to be one of the most informative pieces of writing I can find on Zawiyyet al-Mayyiteen. Thankyou!
I have a few questions if you don’t mind me asking.
We have a tour booked at Easter time traveling from Cairo – Luxor – Cairo. We wanted to do an ‘Out of the ordinary’ site seeing trip and think that this is right up our ally.
We are 4 20 year old Aussies ( 3 girls, 1 man, two very blonde) and thinking of getting a driver to drive us down for a few hours. Do you have any tips? Safety etc…
Hi Maddi, thanks for stopping by! I’m glad you enjoyed my post. I’m going to put a disclaimer on everything I say here by telling you that I was there in 2010, before the Arab Spring or anything else negative happened in Egypt, so I’m really not sure about the security or safety situation now. For that you might want to consult someone who has been more recently.
Are you thinking of doing it as a day trip from Cairo then? You could always do what we did, and just make it a stop off the train either going South or North (assuming you’re taking the train, of course, and if you’re on a tour that may not be so easy). I would think you’d be ok safety-wise as long as you get a reliable driver – maybe ask your hotel or tour guide to arrange one for you. You’ll probably get quite a lot of attention (especially the blondes), but I (traveling with my boyfriend at the time) never felt in any danger there. Our driver came and wandered around the cemetery with us, which maybe helped a bit, although I’m not sure how much he actually knew about the place (his English was pretty limited). If you can get a local guide that may be a good idea as I’m not sure your driver from Cairo would know where to go or what the best parts to see are.
Having said that, if you do go without a guide, be very careful. We had an incident in the big cemetery in Cairo where some kids (yes, kids!) started harassing us pretty badly, throwing rocks, etc, and the adults nearby just yelled at them and turned away again so the kids just continued. To the point where we were actually a becoming afraid and jumped in the nearest taxi just to get away. Possibly that’s just because it was Cairo instead of a smaller place, but if you start to feel at all uncomfortable (anywhere!), leave the situation immediately. Maybe the same thing would have happened in El Minya if our driver hadn’t been with us?
Anyway, if you can get there, it’s amazing. Let me know how it goes!
Last November we did Dandera, 2 hours north from Luxor, and we wanted to do Minya, but the armed escorts we had to have freaked us out, please rethink it for now….
Yeah, I would definitely check the security situation before going! I went in 2010 and while we weren’t in any danger, we did feel that we had to be cautious. Things change in Egypt very quickly, so do your research and keep on top of the news.
hi, planning my trip there for this spring. Seems like Google’s satellites decided they didn’t like this spot. I just cannot find it on the satellite map, it sends you 74 km away if you search by name. Can you offer some help regarding exact coordinates?
Thanks
Jeffrey
Hi Jeffrey,
Sorry for the delay in replying. I just saw this comment now! Try 28.062390, 30.818771, which should land you near the Northwestern corner of the cemetery. I think I was around that area, and I suspect the mosque near this point is the one in my photos. Scroll south and a bit east from here and you can see the endless domes going for quite a ways.
Please check the security situation carefully before you go, and let me know how it goes! I’d love to hear about your trip!
Jenny
I had the same trouble as Jeffrey, thank you for giving the coordinates! I can’t believe you gave them only 5 days ago. What are the odds!
Wow Colemen, that’s super lucky! Glad I could help. Enjoy your trip and stay safe!
Same coordinate issue here 😀 I was going to ask but then I saw the question! Google map seems to send you in a different location every time you click enter!!! lol 🙂
Yeah, Google Maps is really confusing on this one. I hope the coordinates I gave can help! Good luck!
Hi Jenny, your introduction to Zawiyyet al-Mayyiteen Cemetery is very thorough and helpful!
I tried to find an organized tour on the tour platforms but none was found. Would you be so kind to share the contact information of the driver ?
We plan to visit there this April. Hopefully it goes well and we will let you know how it is 🙂
Hi Corinne, I’m sorry I’m just seeing this comment now! I’m not really keeping up with my blog these days, as you can probably see. I’m pretty sure our driver was just produced for us by the man in the office at the train station. I definitely don’t have his contact info, I’m sorry! I hope you found a way to get there!
Hi Jenny, I was Googling village of El Minya and was totally blown away by your photos! There’s such strength in your shots, the scenery looks so bright and stunning, and the choice of angles is truly impressive! You also captured the warm and positive side of the people there. Wishing you safe and happy travels!
Thank you for your lovely comments Wai! Happy travels to you too!