📍 Monastery📸 Tourist Attraction

Monastery of Saint Macarius of Alexandria

Beheira Governorate, Egypt

4.5 (0)

Overview

Monastery in Egypt. It lies in Egypt's desert belt, best visited between October and April.

Why visit: Saint Catherine's has been continuously inhabited since the sixth century, and the Red Sea and Wadi Natrun monasteries founded desert monasticism itself.

Things to do

›Check opening days — several close to visitors during Coptic fasts
›Dress conservatively; shoulders and knees covered for everyone
›Allow for the drive: most sit well out in the desert
›Saint Catherine's pairs naturally with a pre-dawn Mount Sinai climb

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Location & MapDirections

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Travel Information

Best time

October – April; desert monasteries are brutally hot in summer

Weather

Hot desert — warm, dry winters of 18–25°C that are the only comfortable time to travel, and summers routinely above 40°C in the Nile Valley and the deserts, where midday heat is a real hazard.

Entry fee

Usually free; donations expected

Hours

Typically 9 AM – 12 PM; closed to visitors on some fast days

Est. budget

₹500 – ₹2,500

Duration

2 – 3 hours

Nearby attractions

Within

11.8 km

📍 Monastery

4.5

Monastery of Saint Pishoy

Beheira Governorate

Monastery of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria located in Egypt. It lies in Egypt's desert belt, best visited between October and April.

October – April; desert monasteries are brutally hot in summer2 – 3 hoursExplore

19.5 km

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Wadi El Natrun

Beheira Governorate

Desert valley near the Egyptian Nile delta. It lies in Egypt's desert belt, best visited between October and April.

October – April; desert monasteries are brutally hot in summer2 – 3 hoursExplore

21 km

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4.5

Paromeos Monastery

Beheira Governorate

Building in Egypt. It lies in Egypt's desert belt, best visited between October and April.

October – April; desert monasteries are brutally hot in summer2 – 3 hoursExplore