Nilometer

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Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles104 reviews
Excellent
48
Very good
45
Average
10
Poor
0
Terrible
1

arwa76
55 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2023 • Friends
It’s an interesting place and concept. The place is small so you’ll spend around 15 minutes inside it. At the entrance, we requested and paid for 3 tickets (EL 60, 20 per adult as foreigners); however, the person in charge gave us only 2 tickets and said it’s ok!! He insisted to come with us to explain and we gave him a tip for that. On our way out, he said that he wants the tickets back. It turned out that he sells the same tickets for more than one person and steals the money of his own employer. A very shameful behavior which makes you sad for Egypt.
Written April 29, 2023
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achidz
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia250 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2022 • Couples
So glad I came across this online. We walked from Coptic Cairo and it took us over a gorgeous footbridge. The grounds are peaceful, and the nilometer and the structure it’s housed in is really impressive! 40 per person, and a tip for whoever unlocks the door to the nilometer!
Written February 22, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Nana
Cairo, Egypt5 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2021 • Solo
Nilometer it was built during the time of the Abbasid Caliph Al.Mutawakil by the engineer Ahmed Ibn Muhammed Alfaraghani.
_to measure the level of flooding of the Nile till the High Dam.
_location : Manial . Al Today island
Written June 30, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Manal
Cairo, Egypt8 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
May 2021 • Family
Pleasantly surprised! It’s very small but the ceiling is amazing and the architecture very interesting. The only problem was it was closed when we arrived and we had to go look for someone to open it for us. The guy was lazy and demotivated and wanted a tip.
It was also too dark to see details down the well. We asked for more light but the guy said there was none. From other reviews I know there must be but he was not willing to do any effort.
Written June 21, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

NRP57
St Lucia51 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2020
Set back at the end of a side street, there is little you can do other than a quick walk around and look. Worth the trip but only plan on 15 minutes there
Written February 13, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Brun066
Florence, Italy12,580 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2019
Like almost all people of medium culture, even before any visit to Egypt I have heard about Nilometers. I also know the large Roman mosaic of Palestrina (Italy), depicting the Nile and where a beautiful well-shaped Nilometer is also clearly visible. Finally, on a previous trip, I visited the Nilometers in Elephantine and in Kom Ombo.
This one in Rodah (according to the chronicles, built in 715 and rebuilt in 861 AD) is certainly the most beautiful and elaborate among the Nilometers I have seen, and is a "not to be missed", even with all the wonders that there are to see in Cairo and its surroundings .
After the trip, however, I got the curiosity to understand if and how this medieval Nilometer had on-site ancestors in the Pharaonic era (which is often understood); and if there is evidence of this.
So I came across the highly documented article by Étienne Drioton (former curator of the Egyptian section at the Louvre museum), "Les origines pharaoniques du Nilomètre de Rodah" (1952).
From this writing it's clear that actually a Nilometer located in the nearby area should be the oldest in Egypt (it would even date back to the predynastic era, ie before 3100 BC). But it's important to know that it - according to the religious texts examined by Drioton - was not located here in Rodah (where after all the diggings carried out didn't reveal such ancient remains), but in Per-Hâpi; location to be identified with Helwan, 20 km further south.
It's evocative to imagine the Pharaoh who, having heard from his officials of the arrival of the flood, lays his hands on the river intimating "get up, Nile", thus arousing amazement and reverence in his subjects. But this image is no less effective if the scene is believed to take place in Helwan instead of Rodah.
Written March 23, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Lori M
California1,763 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2020
at first I didn't think it was going to be so interesting, but it really is!!!! the guard let us go down the stairs to the bottom. the decoration of this structure is amazing, especially considering it was a functional building (why bother with so much beautiful detail?) so interesting to see the simple engineering which helped solve an enormous problem. we all loved it. worth a look - and it won't take a lot of your time. also note, on the wall is a drawing made by one of Napoleon's scientists.
Written February 24, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Egyptology
Cairo, Egypt41 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2019
this was a great place to visit especially for those who dont do more than Cairo , the Nilometer is a amazing piece of engineering that allowed the farmers in the Nile Delta know whether the year would bring famine o floods and is a great explanations about how cubits (measurement was invented) the building is topped with a intricately decorated dome that was added later on but adds to the atmosphere inside this amazing structure.

Also take advantage and visit the Manial Palace next door originally a villa built for a French noble family and then sold to the Prince Mohamed Ali who redecorated it to suit his tastes , it has great gardens ( which can only be viewed from the Palace) and interesting small mosque with lovely blue tiles from Turkey and some interested wooden decorations inside the living quarters .

all in all both visits together take around 2 hours and Roda Island can be combined with a visit to to Zamalek island to see some of the old belle epoque villas that today mostly house foreign embassies , if you do carry on to Zamalek stop off at the Loft Gallery where the souvenirs are better quality than the bazar and really good prices .
Written July 2, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Basil M
Houston, TX353 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2019 • Family
As we planed to Visit Manila Palace with Grandchildren and this Nilometer is near and Unique for all of us so we went to see what’s about First it’s a historical building it’s used to calculate the River Nile level especially during Floods it’s a very short visit but educative
Written June 5, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

FrenchTraveller001
Paris, France790 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
May 2019 • Friends
This Uzbek construction used to measure the level of the Nile river before the Aswan dam was built. Taxes were based on the level of water, thus providing farmers with assistance.... or taking money from them. A really interesting architecture!
Written May 29, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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NILOMETER: All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)

Frequently Asked Questions about Nilometer