Mosques of Islamic Cairo

Make time to get inside some of the city’s oldest and most interesting buildings as you explore the evocative streets of Islamic Cairo. Cairo isn't a city short on mosques, and the views across the skyline from any elevated vantage point reveal countless spires and minarets clawing skywards beyond the urban fug of the teeming streets. Yet for many visitors, this is as close to the mosques as they get. Those that do make the effort to get closer are justly rewarded, for there is no quicker way to leave the dust and hassle of the city behind than to step inside one of these serene havens. Within easy reach of the Citadel lies the unmistakable double façade of the Sultan Hassan and Rifa’i mosques, which at first glance seem like part of the same structure, so similar is their outward appearance. However, while only the thinnest of paths separates the towering walls of these two mosques, so does over 500 years of history. Although the Sultan Hassan Mosque opened its doors to worshippers in around 1360, the Rifa’i Mosque was not built for another 550 years, designed to stylistically complement rather than oppose its neighbour. Both are exquisite in their conception and completion, the tiniest details of the intricately marbled floors and painstakingly carved mashrabiyya woodwork a marvel to the eye. Not far away is the stunning Mosque of Ibn Tulun, one of the oldest but most beautifully composed mosques in the Middle East. The structure is essentially a wide-open plaza that is the perfect antidote to this cramped city. With its distinctive spiral minaret inspired by the Great Mosque of Samarra, the complex feels almost suspended in time.