Ghazal Al Reem Village Brings Authentic Bedouin Culture to Cairo

Sinai is a land of near-untouched beauty, the peak of Egypt’s diverse landscape, an endless trove of adventure. Unfortunately, it’s also a six-hour drive from Cairo, making it out of reach as a regular escape for the majority of Egyptians.

In the newly-opened Ghazal Al Reem Village, however, urbanites have a slice of Sinai just a stone’s throw away from the city, one that brings Bedouin culture in all of its glory closer to home.

A project by the Ministry of Environment as part of the Eco Egypt campaign - a sweeping initiative that aims to promote and sustain Egypt’s protectorates - Ghazal Al Reem sits minutes away from the East of Cairo in the little-known Petrified Forest Protectorate, where it occupies a transformative space that takes you out of the hustle and bustle of city life.

As a restaurant, it serves authentic Bedouin cuisine, ranging from the iconic ‘Farasheeh’ bread native to South Sinai, to another Bedouin classic, Mandi, while even the entertainment comes straight out of Sinai, in the form of Bedouin wedding singers.

It’s an experience curated in fine detail by the Ministry of Environment as part of sweeping (and refreshing) efforts to highlight Egypt’s protectorates and celebrate its native cultures, bringing them closer to Egyptians and opening a whole realm of possibilities with internal tourism, as we found out when we paid a visit to what is an utterly unique set-up.