The Grand Egyptian Museum, Cairo’s new museum: construction complete by the end of September, hopefully open in November, 2022!
On Monday, May 16, we got an important update on Cairo’s new museum, the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM), including dates for when the museum will be finished! This means we are one step closer to hearing the announcement of the museum’s official opening date!
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Me with a tour group in March, 2022
The Grand Egyptian Museum: exterior finished in June, interior, September
According to various news outlets, like Egypt Independent, Egypt Today, and Cairo Scene, the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities met on Monday, May 16, and talked about the progress of the GEM’s construction and opening. They shared that the GEM’s exterior will be completed by June 30, 2022, and the interior of the museum finished on or before September 30, 2022.
A shot I took of the GEM’s exterior, under construction, in December 2021
When will the GEM open?
We cannot be sure yet, but this most likely means that Egypt is still on track for opening the Grand Egyptian Museum sometime in November of 2022, like they announced they would do last fall. This opening timeline makes sense, because it would be over one month after the completion of all the museum’s construction and installations, and it would also coincide with the 100th anniversary of the discovery of Pharaoh Tutankhamun’s tomb, the landmark Egyptological discovery of our times, and the objects that will be the focal point of the new museum.
We need to remember though that the GEM has been “announced” to be opening numerous times, and that each time it has been delayed. Egypt is notorious for over-promising and under-delivering when it comes to dates and timelines, and this could be the case with these announced dates for the construction’s completion. However, Egypt is under immense pressure to open the GEM as soon as possible, to encourage more and more tourists to visit Cairo and help bring back tourism (one the most important parts of Egypt’s economy) after a serious Covid-19 slump, and to complete a project that President Sisi has taken on as one of the major achievements of his term.
Objects like the golden Tutankhamun Funerary Mask will serve as anchor pieces for the new Grand Egyptian Museum
Over the coming months, be on the lookout for:
An official announcement of the GEM’s opening, along with announcements about festivities surrounding the museum’s openings (Egypt loves to throw a big party!)
A parade to move the most important artifacts from the Tutankhamun collection (like the golden funerary mask) from the original Egyptian Museum in Tahrir Square to the GEM. I am guessing they will do something as grandiose as the Phraroah’s Golden Parade (this happened in March 2021 to move 22 royal mummies from the Tahrir Square museum to the new National Museum of Egyptian Civilization)
Increased prices for plane tickets, tours, and hotels throughout Egypt: once the GEM’s opening is announced, prices are going to skyrocket as lots of travelers book their Egypt adventures! Be ready to pull the trigger on a trip if you want to be one of the first travelers to experience the GEM!
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Will you go to Egypt as soon as the GEM opens, or wait? Let me know in the comments below!
