Where to watch the 2027 eclipse
Thirteen places in Egypt see the Sun disappear completely. Seven more that everybody assumes are fine (Aswan, Hurghada, Cairo, Giza) do not. Here is the whole list, honestly ranked, with the exact figures for each.
Every Egyptian location, ranked
Local time is EEST (UTC+3) on Monday 2 August 2027. “Sun” is the Sun’s altitude above the horizon at mid-eclipse; higher is better, and everything here is high.
| Place | Totality | Begins | Ends | Sun | Region |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sohag & Abydos | 6m 22s | 12:58:49 | 13:05:10 | 81° | Nile Valley |
| Luxor | 6m 20s | 13:02:08 | 13:08:29 | 82° | Nile Valley |
| Berenice | 6m 20s | 13:10:49 | 13:17:09 | 81° | Red Sea Coast |
| Bahariya Oasis | 6m 17s | 12:50:21 | 12:56:38 | 79° | Western Desert |
| Qena & Dendera | 6m 09s | 13:01:39 | 13:07:48 | 81° | Nile Valley |
| Asyut | 6m 06s | 12:56:56 | 13:03:02 | 81° | Nile Valley |
| Esna | 5m 47s | 13:02:52 | 13:08:39 | 82° | Nile Valley |
| Edfu | 5m 32s | 13:04:10 | 13:09:42 | 82° | Nile Valley |
| Siwa Oasis | 5m 31s | 12:42:36 | 12:48:07 | 76° | Western Desert |
| Marsa Alam | 5m 27s | 13:08:08 | 13:13:35 | 81° | Red Sea Coast |
| Minya | 4m 07s | 12:55:40 | 12:59:47 | 80° | Nile Valley |
| Kom Ombo | 3m 42s | 13:06:03 | 13:09:45 | 83° | Nile Valley |
| El Quseir | 2m 19s | 13:06:47 | 13:09:06 | 81° | Red Sea Coast |
| Aswan | none | 99.84% covered at 13:08:27 | 83° | Outside the path | |
| Hurghada | none | 98.51% covered at 13:05:09 | 80° | Outside the path | |
| Sharm El Sheikh | none | 95.51% covered at 13:05:08 | 79° | Outside the path | |
| Giza Pyramids | none | 95.19% covered at 12:55:47 | 78° | Outside the path | |
| Cairo | none | 94.77% covered at 12:55:53 | 78° | Outside the path | |
| Alexandria | none | 93.31% covered at 12:51:43 | 76° | Outside the path | |
| Abu Simbel | none | 92.04% covered at 13:08:42 | 85° | Outside the path | |
How to choose
The honest answer is that any of the thirteen Egyptian locations in the top block will give you a spectacular eclipse. Six minutes versus five and a half minutes is not the difference between a great day and a wasted one. What actually decides it is where you can get a bed, how you will move on the morning itself, and how well you cope with 42°C.
If you want the longest possible totality
Sohag (6m 22s) sits closest of any Egyptian city to the point of greatest duration, just 9 km off the central line. Berenice matches Luxor at 6m 20s in near-complete solitude. Both come with thinner tourist infrastructure than the alternatives.
If you want the best overall experience
Luxor, comfortably. Six minutes twenty seconds, the Sun 82° overhead, the greatest concentration of monumental architecture on Earth, an airport, a railway and enough hotel stock to matter. The trade is that everyone else has worked this out too.
If you want to be comfortable
Marsa Alam. 5m 27s, resort infrastructure, direct international charters, and a Red Sea breeze that makes August far more tolerable than the Nile valley.
If you want empty desert
Bahariya Oasis (6m 17s) is the most accessible six-minute site from Cairo. Siwa (5m 31s) is the most atmospheric place in the country to watch anything at all.
The mistake almost everyone is about to make
Aswan (99.84%), Hurghada (98.51%), Cairo (94.77%) and Giza (95.19%) are the four places most visitors to Egypt actually stay, and not one of them is in the path. A 99% partial eclipse has no corona, no stars, no darkness, and never a moment when it is safe to take your glasses off. From Aswan the path edge is about 15 km away; from Hurghada about 65 km; from Cairo about 175 km. Book the drive now, not on the day.
Inside the path: Egypt
Sohag & Abydos
Almost exactly on the centre line, with the longest totality of any Egyptian city.
Full guide → Total: 6m 20s Nile ValleyLuxor
Ancient Thebes on the centre line: the single best place on Earth to watch this eclipse.
Full guide → Total: 6m 20s Red Sea CoastBerenice
A remote Red Sea outpost that catches a full six minutes of darkness.
Full guide → Total: 6m 17s Western DesertBahariya Oasis
Black Desert dunes, hot springs and more than six minutes of totality.
Full guide → Total: 6m 09s Nile ValleyQena & Dendera
Six minutes of totality above the best-preserved zodiac ceiling in Egypt.
Full guide → Total: 6m 06s Nile ValleyAsyut
Upper Egypt’s largest northern city, comfortably inside the path.
Full guide → Total: 5m 47s Nile ValleyEsna
A newly restored temple of painted ceilings, an easy day trip south of Luxor.
Full guide → Total: 5m 32s Nile ValleyEdfu
The Temple of Horus, falcon god of the sky, under a vanishing sun.
Full guide → Total: 5m 31s Western DesertSiwa Oasis
Palm groves, salt lakes and the Oracle of Amun near the western frontier.
Full guide → Total: 5m 27s Red Sea CoastMarsa Alam
Totality over coral reefs: the best resort coast inside the path.
Full guide → Total: 4m 07s Nile ValleyMinya
The northern gateway to the path, four minutes of totality and easy access from Cairo.
Full guide → Total: 3m 42s Nile ValleyKom Ombo
The last temple town inside the path, right on the southern edge.
Full guide → Total: 2m 19s Red Sea CoastEl Quseir
An old Ottoman port that just scrapes inside the northern edge of the path.
Full guide →Close, but outside the path
Deep partial eclipses. Worth understanding precisely, because the fix is usually a short drive.
Aswan
99.8% covered: heartbreakingly, agonisingly outside the path.
Full guide → 98.5% partial Partial Eclipse ZoneHurghada
Egypt’s biggest Red Sea resort sits just north of the path, but a short drive fixes that.
Full guide → 95.5% partial Partial Eclipse ZoneSharm El Sheikh
South Sinai catches a 96% partial: close, but the ferry to Hurghada beckons.
Full guide → 95.2% partial Partial Eclipse ZoneGiza Pyramids
The Great Pyramid under a crescent sun, and why you should still travel south.
Full guide → 94.8% partial Partial Eclipse ZoneCairo
A deep 95% partial over the capital: impressive, but not totality.
Full guide → 93.3% partial Partial Eclipse ZoneAlexandria
Mediterranean Egypt sees a 93% partial eclipse.
Full guide → 92.0% partial Partial Eclipse ZoneAbu Simbel
Ramesses II’s colossi see 92% of the sun covered.
Full guide →The rest of the path
Egypt gets the best of this eclipse, but the umbra crosses eight other countries on its way from the Atlantic to the Indian Ocean.
Benghazi
Over six minutes of totality on the Libyan coast.
Full guide → Total: 5m 58s Beyond EgyptJeddah & Mecca
The umbra crosses the Red Sea into the Hejaz for six more minutes.
Full guide → Total: 5m 39s Beyond EgyptSfax
Tunisia’s second city sits squarely on the path.
Full guide → Total: 4m 50s Beyond EgyptTangier
Morocco’s northern coast gets nearly five minutes of totality.
Full guide → Total: 4m 48s Southern SpainCeuta
The Spanish city in Africa, closest to the central line, with the longest totality in Spain.
Full guide → Total: 4m 38s Southern SpainTarifa
Where the umbra first touches Europe, on the southern tip of Spain.
Full guide → Total: 4m 30s Southern SpainBolonia & Baelo Claudia
A Roman town on a wild beach: the longest totality on the Costa de la Luz.
Full guide → Total: 4m 27s Southern SpainGibraltar
The Rock, a British territory inside the path, with nearly four and a half minutes.
Full guide → Total: 4m 26s Southern SpainAlgeciras
The ferry port of the Strait, with a big hotel stock and well over four minutes.
Full guide → Total: 4m 24s Southern SpainZahara de los Atunes
A small village on a huge open beach, well inside the path.
Full guide → Total: 4m 24s Southern SpainLa Línea de la Concepción
The Spanish town at the foot of the Rock, with east-facing beaches.
Full guide → Total: 4m 16s Southern SpainBarbate & Los Caños de Meca
Tuna town, pine cliffs and Cape Trafalgar, with over four minutes of totality.
Full guide → Total: 4m 06s Southern SpainVejer de la Frontera
A white hilltop town with a wide view east over the plain, and more than four minutes of totality.
Full guide → Total: 4m 05s Southern SpainSotogrande & San Roque
Marina, golf and quiet beaches at the east end of the Campo de Gibraltar.
Full guide → Total: 4m 01s Southern SpainConil de la Frontera
Long Atlantic beaches and four minutes of totality in a lively summer town.
Full guide → Total: 3m 37s Southern SpainEstepona
The first Costa del Sol town inside the path, with well over three and a half minutes.
Full guide → Total: 3m 29s Southern SpainChiclana & Sancti Petri
La Barrosa beach and Sancti Petri, with three and a half minutes of totality.
Full guide → Total: 3m 21s Southern SpainMedina Sidonia
A hilltop town above La Janda, on the A-381, with over three minutes.
Full guide → Total: 3m 17s Southern SpainMarbella
The big resort town of the Costa del Sol, with over three minutes of totality.
Full guide → Total: 3m 10s Southern SpainFuengirola
A beach town on the Costa del Sol train line, with three minutes of totality.
Full guide → Total: 2m 54s Southern SpainCádiz
A 3,000-year-old port city inside the path, with trains, beaches and almost three minutes of totality.
Full guide → Total: 2m 01s Southern SpainCabo de Gata
Volcanic coast and the driest skies in Europe, with two minutes of totality.
Full guide → Total: 1m 51s Southern SpainAlmuñécar
The Costa Tropical resort town, with almost two minutes of totality.
Full guide → Total: 1m 50s Southern SpainMálaga
A major airport city just inside the northern edge of the path.
Full guide → Total: 1m 42s Southern SpainNerja
Cliffs, coves and the Balcony of Europe, close to the northern edge of the path.
Full guide →