%2C_Petra%2C_Jordan.jpg?width=1800)
MIDDLE EAST & NORTH AFRICA
Middle East & North Africa
From Istanbul and the Nile to Morocco’s medinas and Jordan’s Petra, first learn the customs around prayer times, dress and Ramadan.
City guides
Start with a city
Every city guide has a timeline, stories of local figures, must-see sights, festivals and local etiquette.
_Sultanahmet_Mosque_(Blue_Mosque)%2C_having_6_minarets_(25457308960).jpg?width=800)
İstanbul
Istanbul
2 places
A thousand-year imperial capital spanning two continents: Byzantium, the Ottomans and the Bosphorus
القاهرة Cairo
Cairo
3 places
'The Victorious City': Islamic Cairo, Khan el-Khalili and the pyramids of Giza
الأقصر Luxor · 古称底比斯
Luxor
1 places
Thebes, 'City of a Hundred Gates': Karnak and the Valley of the Kings
أسوان Aswan
Aswan
2 places
Ancient Egypt's southern gateway: Nubia, Philae and Abu Simbel
مراكش Marrakech
Marrakesh
3 places
The 'Red City': the night market of Jemaa el-Fnaa and the old city at the foot of the Atlas
.jpg?width=800)
فاس Fès
Fez
1 places
A thousand-year-old university and a labyrinthine medina: al-Qarawiyyin and the tanneries
.jpg?width=800)
أبوظبي Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi
3 places
'Father of the Gazelle': from pearling village to capital of the UAE
البتراء Petra · Wadi Musa
Petra (Wadi Musa)
2 places
The rose-red Nabataean city, and the Valley of the Moon to the south
Arabic coffee
Pale coffee with cardamom, served with dates — the Gulf's gesture of hospitality.
.jpeg?width=800)
Louvre Abu Dhabi
A history of human civilisation under Jean Nouvel's 'rain of light' dome, arranged by theme rather than by region.
Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque
82 white domes and the world's largest hand-knotted carpet — the culmination of contemporary Islamic architecture.
Old Dubai: Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood
Wind-tower houses built by Persian merchants in the 1890s, and the spice and gold souks of Deira across the creek — Dubai before oil.