Places to visit in Aswan, Egypt
13 places to visit in Aswan, Egypt, each with LOQAH's carefully crafted stamp of its own: Abu Simbel Temples, Monastery of Saint Simeon, Philae Temple and more. Stand at any of them with the app open and the stamp is yours, confirmed on site, in your Aswan volume.
4 UNESCO World Heritage sites · 6 Famous places to visit · 3 Hidden gems
UNESCO World Heritage sites in Aswan (4)
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Abu Simbel Temples
Two temples cut into the rock by Ramesses II, one for himself and one for his queen Nefertari, on the shore of Lake Nasser near Sudan. In the 1960s they were sliced into blocks and raised above the waters, and twice a year the sun still reaches the inner sanctuary.
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Monastery of Saint Simeon
A ruined Coptic monastery of stone and mud brick on the desert ridge of the west bank at Aswan, long abandoned. Its high walls make it look like a fortress, and it is reached on foot or by camel from the river.
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Philae Temple
A temple complex of the goddess Isis on an island in the Nile above Aswan, reached by boat. When the dams threatened to drown it, it was taken apart and rebuilt on nearby Agilkia island, where it rises straight from the water.
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Temple of Kalabsha
A temple to the Nubian god Mandulis that once stood about 50 kilometres south of Aswan. As Lake Nasser rose it was taken apart and rebuilt on a site beside the High Dam, where it stands on the water's edge.
Famous places to visit in Aswan (6)
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Elephantine Island
An island in the Nile at Aswan, part of the city, with Nubian villages and the ruins of an ancient town. Its Nilometer, steps cut down to the water, was used to measure the river's flood, and the excavations are part of a World Heritage Site.
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Kom Ombo Temple
An unusual double temple on a bend of the Nile, built under the Ptolemies between 180 and 47 BC, with twin sanctuaries for the crocodile god Sobek and the falcon god Haroeris. The town's name means Mound of Gold, and mummified crocodiles are kept nearby.
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Lake Nasser
A reservoir created by the Aswan High Dam, one of the largest man-made lakes in the world, reaching south into Sudan. Its quiet desert shores are known for fishing and for cruises between the rescued temples of Nubia.
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Mausoleum of Aga Khan
The tomb of Aga Khan III, built in pink granite on the west bank hills above the Nile at Aswan. It was placed in Egypt because this was once the seat of the Fatimids, an Ismaili dynasty, and Aga Khan IV now rests here too.
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Temple of Edfu
A temple of the falcon god Horus on the west bank of the Nile, built between 237 and 57 BC and one of the best preserved in Egypt. Its walls are covered in inscriptions on myth and ritual, and granite falcons guard the entrance.
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Unfinished Obelisk
The largest known ancient obelisk, still lying in the granite quarry at Aswan where it was being cut. It was abandoned when the stone cracked, and the marks of the workers' tools show exactly how obelisks were carved out of the bedrock.
Hidden gems in Aswan (3)
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Aswan High Dam
One of the world's largest embankment dams, built across the Nile between 1960 and 1970 to control floods, store water for farming and make electricity. It holds back Lake Nasser, and from the top the lake stretches south to the horizon.
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Kitchener's Island
A small oval island in the Nile at Aswan, less than a kilometre long, once owned by Lord Kitchener. It is now the Aswan Botanical Garden, shaded by palms and trees from around the world, and reached by felucca.
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Nubian Museum
An archaeological museum in Aswan opened in 1997 after the UNESCO campaign to save the monuments of Nubia. It tells the story of the Nubian people and the lands lost under Lake Nasser, with a garden of rocks and water outside.
Collecting in Aswan
What are the best places to visit in Aswan?
LOQAH lists 13 places in Aswan. The best known include Abu Simbel Temples, Monastery of Saint Simeon, Philae Temple, Temple of Kalabsha and Elephantine Island. Each has a stamp of its own to collect when you are there.
How many LOQAH stamps are there in Aswan?
13, and more are added over time. Each place has LOQAH's carefully crafted stamp of its own.
How do I collect a stamp in Aswan?
Open LOQAH at the place and get its stamp. LOQAH checks where you are once, at that moment; at the place itself the stamp is confirmed on site, with a gold badge.
I have been to places in Aswan before. Can I add them?
Yes. In Earlier trips, choose Aswan and swipe through its stamps, or import your Google Timeline. Each one goes into your volume with the date, if you know it.
More in Egypt
Collect your first stamp.
LOQAH is free on iPhone and Android, in India and 20 more countries, with more countries on the way. Stand at a place, collect its stamp, and keep every trip in a passport that grows.