Cairo: how to get there and around
Airports, stations, ports, where the hotels are and what the numbers say, from public data rather than a brochure.
Cairo is the capital of Egypt, 23 m (75 ft) above sea level. The nearest large airport is Cairo International Airport (CAI), 15 km (9 mi) from the centre. It has 1 railway station on record, including El-Obour. Our booking partner lists 4,162+ places to stay.
Key facts
Daylight in Cairo runs from about 10 h 15 min a day in late December to 14 h 8 min in late June (computed for 30.06° latitude), which matters more than the forecast when a day is built around one flight or one crossing.
Getting there
Cairo is served by 3 airports with scheduled flights within 100 km. The closest large one is Cairo International Airport (CAI), 15 km (9 mi) from the centre, whose 13,124-ft runway is long enough for long-haul wide-body aircraft. The alternatives are Sphinx International Airport (SPX, 34 km), Capital International Airport (CCE, 57 km).
Flights to Cairo: every airport, routes and times
By rail: stations on record include El-Obour. Trains to Cairo
Buses to Cairo · Driving and car hire
Where to stay
Our booking partner lists 4,162+ places to stay in Cairo (statistics below are from the first 1,000). Of the 700 with a star rating, the largest group is 4-star (408), and 65 are five-star. Across 500 properties with at least 50 reviews, the average guest score is 8.6 out of 10. Guests have left 400,473 reviews in total.
Hotels in Cairo: the full picture, and book
Nearby cities, and how to get between them
- Alexandria, 180 km — flights · trains · buses · car rental · tours
- Giza, 7 km
- Shubrā al Khaymah, 7 km
- Port Said, 167 km — flights · trains · buses · car rental · tours
- Suez, 123 km — trains · buses · car rental · tours
- Al Mansurah, 109 km — trains · buses · car rental · tours
- Al Maḩallah al Kubrá, 101 km — trains · buses · car rental · tours
- Tanta, 84 km — trains · buses · car rental · tours
- Assiut, 320 km — flights · trains · buses · car rental
- Al Fayyum, 93 km — trains · buses · car rental · tours
Twin towns and sister cities: Frankfurt, Amman, Beirut, Istanbul, New York City, Houston, Ottawa, Beijing, Xi'an, Seoul, Stuttgart, Barcelona, Minsk, Moscow.
Common questions
Which airport serves Cairo?
Cairo International Airport (CAI), 15 km (9 mi) from the centre, plus 2 other airports with scheduled flights within 100 km.
How big is Cairo?
About 9.6 million people live in Cairo, across 528 km² (GeoNames and Wikidata).
What time zone is Cairo in?
Africa/Cairo, currently UTC+3.
What currency is used in Cairo?
The Pound (EGP). Traffic drives on the right.
How many hotels are there in Cairo?
Our booking partner lists 4,162 or more places to stay in Cairo, bookable on this site.
Which cities are near Cairo?
Alexandria (180 km), Giza (7 km), Shubrā al Khaymah (7 km), Port Said (167 km), Suez (123 km).
Where these facts come from
- GeoNames (CC BY 4.0): population, elevation, time zone, postal codes
- Wikidata (CC0): area, sister cities, visitor numbers, heritage listings, stations and ports
- OurAirports (public domain): airports, runways
- Natural Earth (public domain): map outlines
Data compiled 13 September 2026. Hotel figures are from our booking partner’s catalogue on that date. Journey times on this page are estimates from distance, not timetables; check the operator before you rely on one.