NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Egypt has been described as the place where civilization began and the memories never end.
This is the land of the pyramids, the Sphinx and the Nile, where King Tut ruled and where Marc Antony's love for Cleopatra's ignited a war with the Roman Empire.
"Everybody goes to Egypt because it's old," said Sean Rocha, a contributing writer to Fodor's Egypt travel guide. "But it's old on a scale most of us can barely comprehend. It makes what we think of as ancient look fairly contemporary." 
Tourism had fallen off due to terrorist attacks upon tourists in 1997, but officials at the U.S. State Department say conditions have improved there. Rocha, who lived in Egypt for three years, said it is one of the safest countries on earth.
"Tourism is absolutely booming," Rocha said, "and it's recovering much faster than people expected."
Excitement about Egypt's past received another jolt earlier this month, when archeologists working at the Valley of the Golden Mummies found more tombs and mummies to follow up last summer's first discoveries.
But there's more to the country than just antiquity. Rocha said there are jazz concerts and contemporary art shows, so you don't want to give short shrift to the modern side of this most ancient place.
Things to see
Travel experts say the fall and winter are good times to visit Egypt due to the heat of the summer months. You can start planning your trip at the Egyptian Tourist Authority and the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism Web sites, which contain information about major points of interest, such as Cairo, the largest city in Africa.
From the Great Pyramid to the Egyptian Museum to the Camel Market, Cairo offers a variety of cultures within in one city. 
"In the history of Cairo," Rocha said, "each new round of invaders would, instead of destroying the city, build a new one upwind of it."
Other places to see include Luxor, which is described as the world's largest open-air museum. Here, travelers will find a wealth of ancient monuments, including the Temple of Luxor and the Valley of the Kings, where the tomb of Tutankhamen was discovered in 1922.
Alexandria, founded by Alexander the Great, is Egypt's second largest city and one of the most prominent summer resorts in the Middle East.
The southern city of Aswan, located on the Nile, is a favorite winter resort, and, in addition to its ancient wonders, is near the Aswan High Dam. One of the largest dams in the world, this massive structure stands 375 feet high, 11,811 feet long and has a hydroelectric capacity of 10 billion kilowatts.
A trip to Egypt also offers travelers a chance to broaden their experience. Travel writer Edward Hasbrouck said changes in the Mideast political climate have allowed people to visit Egypt, Israel and Jordan and get a feel for the area, instead of just one place.
"These countries," he said, "are making quite an attempt to sell themselves to the world as an integrated region that can be seen in one trip."
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Down the Nile
The Egyptian tourist Web sites also lists tour operators who conduct tours to Egypt.
"For us, Egypt has been our most popular destination this year," said Trevor Saxty, sales manager at Adventure Center, a tour company in Emeryville, Calif. "It's also very affordable. The prices are just outstanding."
The current currency exchange rate has one U.S. dollar equal to about 3.55 Egyptian pounds. 
Adventure Center is one of several companies organizing tours to Egypt. The company's nine-day "Pyramids, Temples and Tombs" tour starts at $860, without airfare, and leaves ten times during the year. Among the company's other tours is the Nile Felucca Sailtrek, which includes a four-day sail in a traditional "felucca" sailboat and a donkey ride to the Valley of Kings. Tours run ten or 16 days and start at $355 without airfare.
Be aware that passengers on the felucca sleep on the deck, so while this mode of transportation is relatively inexpensive, you probably won't confuse this vessel with the QE2.
Park East Tours in New York offers several Egyptian vacations, including the ten-day "Nile Odyssey," which includes a cruise ship ride on the Nile to Luxor and Aswan. The tour costs $2,995 including airfare.
The Egyptian Connection in Fresh Meadows, N.Y. has a variety of Egyptian vacation plans. The Pharaoh's special offers 12 nights in Egypt for $1,266, not including airfare, and includes four nights in Cairo, a four-night cruise on Nile, and four nights in Aswan or Luxor.
Things to know
While tours are one way to see Egypt, Rocha encouraged travelers to avoid groups, maintaining they only take people to the big spots and miss all the fascinating things in between.
"In Cairo," Rocha said, "the best things are on the way. The tourist sights are magnets for the worst in a human being. They're quite direct and aggressive."
Westerners traveling to Egypt should be aware of a few facts. The U.S. State Department Bureau of Consular Affairs information sheet about Egypt said that while there have been no terrorist attacks on tourists since 1997, extremists have been active in the Nile Valley Governates of Minya, Assuit, Sohag, and Qena. 
The State Department encourages Americans to seek advice from the Consular Section of the U.S. Embassy, licensed tour operators and the police before traveling to these areas. The U.S. Embassy periodically receives information on extremists' intentions to target tourists and American interests in Egypt and U.S. officials urge Americans to be vigilant while in Egypt. Drug enforcement policies are very strict and anyone convicted of smuggling or selling marijuana, hashish, opium, LSD or other narcotics can face the death penalty.
Roads can be hazardous, the Bureau report said, especially at night outside the cities, as vehicles often travel with few or no lights. And travelers should know that unescorted women are vulnerable to sexual harassment and verbal abuse, the report said.
"There isn't any kind of physical aggression," Rocha said, "but it can seem very threatening. The western women I knew living in Cairo almost never had a problem. It's a highly complex society and you have to learn the mores—how to walk, how to act." 
-- Click here to send e-mail to Rob Lenihan
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