After decades of anticipation, the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) is finally—and fully—open to the public, thanks to the debut of its long-awaited Tutankhamun galleries. The new exhibition, which gathers every one of the boy king’s treasures under one roof for the first time since the discovery of his tomb 103 years ago, marks the completion of the vast museum complex more than two decades after it was first conceived.
Stepping inside the 5 million-square-foot space—the largest archaeological museum in the world dedicated to a single civilization—travelers are greeted by a fitting guardian: a 36-foot-tall, 82-ton granite statue of Ramesses II. The ancient pharaoh has stood sentry here since 2006, one of the first artifacts moved to the site. Now, he presides over more than 100,000 other relics spanning five millennia of Egyptian history, finally revealed in their full glory.
And to celebrate the full opening, EgyptAir, the national carrier of Egypt, is offering up to 40 percent off international flights to Cairo that are purchased on or before November 7, with travel valid until March 10, 2026.
The Grand Egyptian Museum is a stone’s throw from the pyramids of Giza, on the outskirts of Cairo.
Courtesy of the Grand Egyptian Museum
Delayed by political uprisings, financial instability, a pandemic, and nearby wars, the museum finally opened fully (it has been offering visitors a sneak peek of 12 exhibits unrelated to King Tut since late 2024) more than 20 years after construction first began on the monumental project.
Fronted by an alabaster and glass facade decorated with hundreds of cartouches (ovals that encircle Egyptian hieroglyphs with the names of kings and queens), the new museum isn’t meant to replace the Egyptian Museum, a two-floor institution in downtown Cairo that first opened in 1902, but rather to give the country’s many tens of thousands of archaeological finds more breathing room.
“Over the years, artifacts started piling up in the basement, in the attic, in storage rooms, and it became too much,” said Marwa Abbas, an Egyptologist who currently works with AmaWaterways, a cruise company that operates sailings on the Nile River, with predeparture tours in Cairo. “It was decided that a new museum would open to house new excavations and allow curators to better organize findings by theme, creating better understanding.”
An astonishing variety of historic artifacts are on display at the Grand Egyptian Museum, which has been in a soft opening phase since February 2025.
HitchLens/Shutterstock
The more than 5,000 objects that had been discovered in the tomb of Tutankhamun (better known as King Tut) have recently moved from the Egyptian Museum to two massive exhibit halls at the GEM. The artifacts include the boy king’s throne, royal jewelry, two golden sarcophagi, his iconic gold funerary mask (made with nearly 25 pounds of solid gold and considered to be one of the foremost pieces of Egyptian art), and many items that have never before been displayed. Though Tut ruled for only a short time, this tomb was well concealed and, unlike most others, wasn’t raided. When it was rediscovered in 1922 by British archaeologist Howard Carter, it offered scholars rare insight into ancient Egyptian culture and traditions.
Beyond Tut’s trove, a separate annex displays two royal boats discovered near the Great Pyramid in 1954, which have also been opened for viewing at the time of the grand opening.
A statue of Queen Hatshepsut in the Grand Egyptian Museum, where galleries are organized by themes (society, kingship, and beliefs), and into distinct historic eras.
Courtesy of Grand Egyptian Museum
From the central atrium, where Ramesses II stands, rises a grand staircase dotted with dozens of statues of some of Egypt’s most famous pharaohs, leading to a landing where guests are greeted with an unobstructed view of the 4,600-year-old Pyramids of Giza, a little more than a mile away; eventually, the plan is to develop a walkway between the two.
Then, it’s onward to the galleries, arranged by three pillars—society, kingship, and beliefs—which are further divided into four periods: the Old Kingdom, the Middle Kingdom, the New Kingdom, and the Greco-Roman period. They’re arranged to allow visitors to take a thematic or chronological tour if they so choose. Among the exhibits are thousands of years’ worth of old manuscripts written on papyrus paper, mythology carved into stone pieces, ceremonial tools and jewelry, a 3,100-year-old wig made from real human hair, a replica of the Rosetta stone, and royal mummies (including a mummified crocodile). Concise and well-lit explanation placards are offered for each piece or collection of objects in Arabic, English, and Braille.
The pyramid motif is repeated throughout, from the cut of the window panes to the shape of the stones in a water feature situated between the security area and the main building outside. Beyond the exhibits are a food hall and multiple gift shops selling a range of mementos.
Tickets are available online or at the on-site ticket booth (where only credit cards are accepted) for 1,450 Egyptian pounds (about $30.75, based on current conversion rates) for adults and 730 pounds (roughly $15.50) for children and students ages 6 to 25; entry for children under 6 is free. Guests can also purchase optional 90-minute guided tours, offered in English or Arabic, for 1,950 Egyptian pounds (roughly $41.50). The GEM’s galleries are open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
This story originally published in April 2025 and was updated on November 4, 2025, to include current information.
