As imposing music beings to play and the Great Pyramids of Giza are dramatically illuminated with different coloured lights, the bellowing voice of the Sphinx shouts out, "You have come tonight to the most fabulous and celebrated place in the world! Here on the plateau of Giza stands forever the mightiest of human achievements. No traveller, emperor, merchant or poet has trodden on these sands and not gasped in awe!"
The Pyramids Light and Sound Show, while not a must for any trip to Egypt, is a whole lot of fun and a great way to spend an evening, and certainly one for the bucket-list for anyone who lives in Cairo. Over an hour, the show takes you through the construction of the pyramids and their secrets narrated by the Sphinx and of important tales narrated by various pharaohs and figures. The light show, unchanged for decades (maybe since it starting in 1961), is gloriously cheesy, dated and incredibly enjoyable, and after the sun has set and the cool desert breeze starts to roll in, spending an hour sitting down and admiring the illuminated pyramids and listening to the Sphinx's entertaining tales can be surprisingly relaxing .
Some may recognise the Pyramids Light and Sound Show from the 1977 classic James Bond: The Spy Who Loved Me, in which it features quite prominently in one of the film's most dramatic sequences. Amazingly, the Pyramids Light and Sound Show seems not to have changed a bit since 1977! But again, this is why it's wonderful and strangely enjoyable.
There are several daily showings in many different languages, but don't worry if you can't make a showing in your language, as there are normally headsets available in numerous languages for you to wear and the staff are incredibly helpful. However, be warned that the Arabic version is very hard to follow, even for native Arabic speakers, because of its, although beautiful, very complicated classical Arabic.
You can find show times and book tickets online from the official website by clicking here.