12 Rare Photos of Iconic International Celebrities Visiting Egypt

We all know how Egyptians love nostalgia. Phrases like El zaman el gamil (the good old days) and 3ala ayamna (back in our days) are ingrained in our day-to-day conversations. And just as we love reliving the good old days, we also love celebrities, especially the ones that come to Egypt. Remember all that hype over Will Smith’s pyramid photos?

Although we’ve been trying hard to get people to visit Egypt, there was once a time when a trip to the Pyramid’s was on everyone’s bucket list, including some of the world’s biggest celebrities.

So, in the spirit of nostalgia, here are some vintage photos of celebrities on their trips to Om El Donia.

Agatha Christie
Although she is most known for her thrilling crime novels, Agatha Christie had a lifelong interest in archaeology. Her trips to Egypt inspired the novel Death on the Nile. Here she is pictured enjoying a meal with a view at the Pyramids sometime in the 1930s.

Charlton Heston Not to brag but, Egypt was responsible for Charlton Heston’s first Golden Globe nomination for his role as Moses in the hugely successful movie the Ten Commandments. The movie was filmed in several locations in Egypt including Mount Sinai, circa 1956.

Amitabh Bachchan
Amitabh Bachchan doesn’t shy away from expressing his love for Egypt and its people. He’s visited several times, the most recent being in 2015. Here he poses with fans at the Pyramids in 1991.

Sun Ra
Sun Ra’s fascination with Egypt ran deep; so much so that his name was inspired by ancient Egyptian god of the sun, Ra. He visited Egypt in 1971.

Elizabeth Taylor
Cleopatra came home. Elizabeth Taylor visited Egypt in 1979, long after her iconic 1963 film, Cleopatra.

Frank SinatraWe might not have been able to convince Coldplay to come perform here, but we did get the legendary Frank Sinatra to perform at the Pyramids in 1979.

Jerry Garcia
The 70s seem to have been a good decade for celeb visits to Egypt. Jerry Garcia was here in 1978 with his band, Grateful Dead. They even recorded an album here.

Marlon BrandoThe Godfather himself. Marlon Brando visited Egypt in 1967, and even the Don couldn’t resist a trip to the Pyramids.

Sofia Lauren
The Italian bombshell visited Egypt on number of occasions. This photo is believed to have been taken sometime in the late 50s.

 Che GuevaraThe revolutionary came to Egypt in 1959 and even met with then-president Gamal Abdelnasser.

Muhammad AliThe Greatest came to Egypt in 1964 and took this iconic photo.

Louis ArmstrongPerhaps one of the most iconic photos is this one of legendary Jazz musician Louis Armstrong playing for his wife at the Pyramids in 1961.