In the dense metropolis of modern Cairo, it is often hard to appreciate the wonders and wisdom of the ancients. With the right guidance, it is, however, possible to steer clear of the whirl of people in Africa's largest city, to uncover its history and understand its people, from the pyramid-builders to the stock-market traders. Explore the city's streets and grand 19th-century boulevards and you'll discover ancient mosques, Coptic churches, Arab settlements, the 10th-century palace-city, Saladin's imposing Citadel, the minarets of Sultan Hassan's 13th-century gem of a mosque. In the desert, visit the pyramids, go horse riding or simply watch the sunset over the Nile.

CAIRO MARRIOTT HOTEL
16 Saray El Gezira Street, Zamalek (00 20 2 2728 3000; fax: 2728 3001; www.marriott.com). With over a thousand rooms and vast public areas, this is the largest hotel in Cairo. There are several period rooms including an octagonal piano bar with gilded ceiling and red leather stools. Rooms have recently been renovated, and there are a number of restaurants to choose from, but if you want to get out of the hotel, there are several restaurants, bars and shops in the upmarket expat district in which the Marriott is located. £

CAIRO SEMIRAMIS
Corniche El Nil, Garden City (00 20 2 2795 7171; fax: 2796 3020; www.ichotelsgroup.com). The east bank's Cairo Semiramis celebrated its 20th birthday in 2002 with a much-needed refurb. As well as newly fitted rooms, there are some excellent restaurants, the Birdcage (Thai) and Grill (French) among them. £

CONRAD CAIRO
1191 Corniche El Nil (00 20 2 2580 8000; fax: 2580 8080; www.conradhotels.com). Located on the east bank of the Nile and opposite the northern tip of Zamalek island, Conrad Cairo incorporates modern and neo-classical style furniture within a white high-rise building. The bedroom decor is neutral but the atrium, with its central water sculpture and palm trees, is cool and quiet. The cuisine ranges from gourmet Italian to Middle Eastern and fresh seafood, while the service is immaculate in presentation and performance. ££

FOUR SEASONS CAIRO AT NILE PLAZA
1089 Corniche El Nil, Garden City (00 20 2 2791 7000; fax: 2791 6900; www.fourseasons.com). On the Nile, a short walk from the embassy district and the Egyptian Museum, the Four Season's Cairo at Nile Plaza is popular with Arab royalty and Western celebrities. There are 288 rooms and 77 suites, among the largest in Cairo, all stuffed with technology. About half have sweeping Nile views. It is hard to choose between the six restaurants, but Aqua (seafood) and Spice are both world-class. The hotel is also home to the Beymen department store, selling designer labels. This Four Seasons and its twin across the river have set new standards of service in Egypt. ££

FOUR SEASONS CAIRO AT THE FIRST RESIDENCE
35 Giza Street, Giza (00 20 2 3573 1212; fax: 3568 1616; www.fourseasons.com). Despite being small by Cairo's standards, this hotel is situated 20 minutes' drive from the Pyramids and offers its guests a large range of facilities, including a spa where you can gaze onto the Nile from your treadmill and the option of a BMW 7 Series limo from the airport. The hotel's style is elegant and expensive with crystal chandeliers, marble floors and Empire-style furniture. There is an eclectic mix of cuisine, with Mediterranean at the Seasons restaurant, oriental by the pool, tea in the lounge as well as a new Thai restaurant. The view from the rooms is either of the Nile or the Pyramids. ££

GRAND HYATT
Corniche El Nil, Garden City, Roda Island (00 20 2 2365 1234; fax: 2363 1927; www.cairo.grand.hyatt.com). This sleek, white, 'Y'-shaped tower, with lots of dark polished wood and glass faces the Nile on Roda Island. All the rooms have balconies and staff are ubiquitous and friendly. The plethora of restaurants is a little overwhelming, with Nubian village for Egyptian; Food Court for salads as well as boat cruise dinner dances. If you really want that on-top-of-the world feeling, head to the Revolving Restaurant, which at 140 metres, is one of the highest in the Middle East. ££

MENA HOUSE OBEROI HOTEL
Pyramids Road, Giza (00 20 2 3377 3222; fax: 3376 6644; www.oberoimenahouse.com). Located at the foot of the Great Pyramid surrounded by beautiful gardens, the hotel has 523 rooms and suites split between the stately 18th-century Palace Wing with its faded, Agatha Christie grandeur, and the concrete 20th-century Garden Wing. Tourists of the world have visited, from Chaplin and Churchill to Belmondo and Ralph Lauren. The Moghul Room is Cairo's best Indian restaurant; the Oasis serves lunch poolside. Swim in the pool in the shadow of the Great Pyramid. The Mena House Oberoi Hotel was featured in the The Gold List 2007. ££

NILE HILTON HOTEL
1113 Corniche El Nil (00 20 2 2578 0444; fax: 2578 0475; www.hilton.co.uk). With the Nile in front, the main square behind and the Egyptian Museum next door, you couldn't be more central. 1950s glamour, with acres of marble and glass and constant bustle in the lobby. Liz Taylor, Sinatra and co stayed here in the 1960s; now you are more likely to see Middle Eastern stars. The rooms are functional and fewer than half face the Nile. The best thing is the swimming pool and its great location. £

SHERATON CAIRO HOTEL TOWERS AND CASINO
Galae Square (00 20 2 3336 9800; fax: 3336 4601; www.starwoodhotels.com. £

SOFITEL EL GEZIRAH
3 El Thawra Council Street, Zamalek (00 20 2 2737 3737; www.sofitel.com). This is in a great location on the southern tip of the island. Formerly a Sheraton, it was redesigned in 2007 and is now as chic as can be. £

TALISMAN
39 Talaat Harb Street (00 20 2 2393 9431; www.talisman-hotel.com). In the heart of downtown Cairo, a short taxi ride from the Old City, shopping and the railway station, this small hotel offers a 'modern Ottoman' mix of Egyptian fabrics, antique rugs and inlaid furniture. There are 24 rooms of varying sizes with air conditioning, mini-bar and Internet access. A continental breakfast of pastries, fruit, cereal and eggs is served in the salon. There's no in-house restaurant but plenty of choices within a few' minutes walk (or you can order in). £

Not even the Arabian Nights storytellers enthused about Cairo's cooking, but there are fun evenings to be had. The fanciest food is served in hotels, particularly the Mena House Oberoi's Moghul Room, Aqua and Spice at the Four Seasons Cairo at Nile Plaza and Grill at Cairo Semiramis. See Where to Stay for more information on these hotels. Elsewhere, try:

ABOU EL SID
157 26th July Street, Zamalek (00 20 2 749 7326; www.deyafa.net). Decorated in Arabian Nights regalia, this popular Egyptian restaurant serves regional cuisine. Try the national dish, molokheya, a rabbit or chicken stew with garlic and onions.

ABSOLUTE
Casino El Shagara, Corniche El Nil (00 20 2 579 6511; www.deyafa.net). Under the same ownership as Tabasco and Abou El Sid, this trendy restaurant club attracts wealthy Egyptians in their 20s and 30s.

BUDDHA BAR
3 El Thawra Council Street, Zamalek (00 20 2 2737 3737; www.sofitel.com). One of the best nightspots - come here for food, ambient music and great cocktails until late.

CAFE RICHE
17 Shar'a Talaat Harb Street (00 20 2 392 9793). Founded in 1908, this Cairo institution was the former haunt of the city's 20th-century theatre and literary community. It reopened in 2000 after a being faithfully restored to its former glory with wood panelling and large windows. A spiral staircase leads to a cavernous basement bar.

CAIRO JAZZ CLUB
197 26th July Street (00 20 2 3345 9939; www.cairojazzclub.com). Nightclub, restaurant and bar, the Cairo Jazz Club offers live music most nights and is often packed so book ahead. The club operates a couples-only door policy.

LA BODEGA
157 26th of July Street, Zamalek (00 20 2 340 0543). Elegant bistro and lounge with a marble foyer and high-ceilinged rooms decked out with dark oak furniture and oriental antiques. The menu is Mediterranean.

LE TABASCO
8 Amman Square, Mohandesseen (00 20 2 336 5583; www.deyafa.net). Another popular nightspot with young locals, this bar restaurant fills up fast.

EGYPTIAN MUSEUM
Midan El Tahrir (00 20 2 579 6974; www.egyptianmuseum.gov.eg). The Egyptian Museum is best visited in the afternoon when the crowds thin. It would literally take months to see everything on display, but don't miss the golden, lapis-encrusted face of Tutankhamun and the Palette of Narmer, a symbol of the original unification of Egypt more than 5,000 years ago.

MOSQUES
There are many fascinating mosques to be explored, including the 19th-century Mosque of Mohammed Ali, nicknamed the Alabaster Mosque for its exterior stone sheathing; the Aqsunqur, or Blue, Mosque, built by Prince Aqsunqur Al-Nassery in AD 1347, so named because of its walls of isnik blue and turquoise mosaic; and the Ahmad Ibn Tulun mosque (dedicated to Egypt's ninth-century ruler) which offers one of the best views of the city. Climb the minaret and look out over the city to the pyramids across the river, the Coptic churches in the south, the Arab settlements, the 10th-century palace-city, Saladin's imposing Citadel, the minarets of Sultan Hassan's 13th-century gem of a mosque, the grand 19th-century boulevards and the forest of tower blocks of modern Cairo. It also incorporates one of the city's most beautiful and unusual structures, a massive, simple, square courtyard whose cloisters were covered with a two-kilometre sycamore frieze, inscribed with verses from the Koran. Morning mass is held in churches in Coptic Cairo on Friday, Sunday and religious holidays. Mosques are generally open for visits from 8am to 5pm.

PYRAMIDS OF GIZA
Visit the three famous pyramids of the Giza Plateau, the eternal resting places of the pharaohs of the fourth dynasty. The plateau is open daily, 7am to dusk and the pyramid chambers are open 9am-4pm. It is possible to go horseriding in the desert by the pyramids. Contact MG Stables (00 20 2 385 1241) their business card gives the address as 'By Sphinx'. Open daily, dusk to dawn.

SAIL ON A FELUCCA
Escape the crowds on a felucca, a traditional Nile sailing boat, and glide through the heart of the city. The Four Seasons Hotel Cairo at Nile Plaza has transformed the experience by adding food, drinks and musicians. Visit www.fourseasons.com.

AIRPORT
Cairo airport is 25km north east of the city centre.

AIRLINES FROM THE UK
bmi (0870 6070 555; www.flybmi.com)
British Airways (0870 850 9850; www.ba.com)

Abercrombie and Kent (0845 618 2200; www.abercrombiekent.co.uk)
Cox & Kings (020 7873 5000; www.coxandkings.co.uk)

Taxis are cheap and plentiful in Cairo and their drivers are always ready to chat, even if you won't always understand. Most rides in the city cost less than £2. Limousines, considerably more expensive, can be rented for a particular journey or a whole day at all leading hotels.

Summer is unpleasantly hot, while winter can be chilly in the evenings. The best time to visit is in the spring or autumn, when it is warm but not sticky.

DRESS SENSE
Cairo can be somewhat schizophrenic in its dress codes. Out in the street, Egyptians tend to cover up, and appreciate it when visitors follow suit. In mosques, you must go barefoot. At social gatherings, Cairenes like to dress up - the furs come out for glitzy parties and jacket and tie remain obligatory for men at the opera house. In the Western-style nightclubs, however, you will find plenty of flesh and 21st-century fashion on show.

The Tourist Information desk at the airport is open 24 hours a day, and is located in the arrivals hall, just after passport control. For general information about Egypt, visit www.tourism.egnet.net.

Always consult the Foreign Office before travelling.