Featured places to visit in Aswan are those attractions which you are likely to see in several, if not all of our Nile cruise packages, including our multi-destination tours such as our Egypt and Jordan tours or our Egypt and Morocco tour packages. Generally speaking, there are 5 places to visit in Aswan that fall into this category:
The Rock Cut Temples of Abu Simbel
Dating all the way back to the 13th century BCE, the rock-cut Temples of Abu Simbel are not only one of the very best places to visit in Aswan, but instead, the site is one of the best places to visit in the whole of Egypt. These two indescribable temples are not actually located in Aswan itself, but if you visit them as part of one of our Nile cruise packages, you will visit the temples from Aswan. The site is located roughly 230 kilometers from the center of Aswan, and for this reason, it is not featured in all of our tour packages.
These two massive temples were created to serve two purposes. They were to serve as places of worship, and they were also to serve as lasting monuments for Pharaoh Ramesses the Great, as well as his wife, Queen Nefertari. Today, the Abu Simbel temples are the second-most recognizable ancient site in Egypt.
The Ancient Temple of Philae
As with the Abu Simbel temples, the Temple of Philae is without question one of the very top places to visit in Aswan, and it features in practically each and every one of our Nile cruise itineraries. Built between 380 BC and 690 AD, the Temple of Philae, which is also called the Temple of Isis, once stood on a different location; on an island known as Philae. When the Aswan High Dam was built, Lake Nasser got flooded, and several ancient structures disappeared beneath the surface. However, all of the very best ones were rescued and relocated to higher ground before the dam was completed.
The Temple of Philae was dedicated to the goddess Isis, and was once one of the holiest temples in Ancient Egypt before finally being abandoned during the 6th century. The site is also one of the top places to visit in Aswan after the sun goes down because there is a spectacular nightly Sound and Lights show at the site.
The Kom Ombo Temple Complex
No list of places to visit in Aswan would be complete without a mention of Kom Ombo Temple. This incredible ancient complex features in all of our Nile River cruises running between Aswan and Luxor. One of the most fascinating aspects of the temple complex is the fact that it is believed to be the one and only temple that was built for, and dedicated to two different gods during the Ptolemaic dynasty.
Although it is a single temple complex, it essentially consists of two identical halves so that each of the two gods could have their own half. In this case, one half was dedicated to Sobek the crocodile god, while the other half was dedicated to Haeroris the falcon-headed god.
The Unfinished Obelisk
While the Unfinished Obelisk might not be one of the most riveting places to visit in Aswan, it remains a very popular attraction, and one which also features in most of our Nile cruises packages. The obelisk, in its current form, is already bigger than any other obelisk ever discovered in Egypt, and had it been completed, experts have estimated that it would have been 120 feet high, and would have weighed approximately 1,200 tons.
Unlike with other obelisks, those working on this particular one attempted to carve it directly out of the granite bedrock. However, by the time they reach the stage where it is now, cracks began to appear and the project was abandoned because it was believe that the cracks were due to a flaw in the granite. These days, experts know better, and it is now clear that the cracks were a direct result of the quarrying technique that was being used at the time.
The Aswan High Dam
When it comes to more modern attractions, then the Aswan High Dam is without question one of the most impressive places to visit in Aswan. When this dam was built between 1960 and 1970, it quite literally changed the face and future of Egypt. It effectively put a stop to frequent flooding that used to decimate entire crops along the banks of the Nile. It also ensured that there would be a stable and reliable source of water for irrigation within the agricultural sector, and last but not least, installed hydroelectric motors produce a significant amount of clean and sustainable energy for the country.
Interestingly, a similar dam was already being considered by the British back in 1889. Plans back then were abandoned because building the dam would inevitably have led to the destruction of numerous ancient monuments as a result of the lake that would have formed. Finally, in the second half of the 90s, the decision was made to build the dam, and organizations from all over the world, including Egypt, set about rescuing the best ancient monuments by moving them to higher ground. With the dam finally completed, Egypt was soon home to one of the world’s biggest manmade lakes, Lake Nasser.