Royal Carriages Museum
๐ Location: Bulaq, Cairo, beside the Nile corniche ย ยท ย ๐บ Focus: Royal coaches and harness ย ยท ย ๐๏ธ Tickets: ~150 EGP foreign adults
Re-opened to the public in 2020 after years of restoration, the Royal Carriages Museum holds the official state and family coaches used by the Egyptian royal family from Muhammad Ali Pasha (1805) through to King Farouk (1952). It occupies the original royal mews in Bulaq โ a 19th-century neo-classical building that was designed precisely for this purpose by Khedive Isma'il in 1863.
Around 80 carriages are on display, plus harnesses, saddles, ceremonial uniforms, portrait paintings and photographs. The most spectacular piece is the Coronation Coach (al-Alamat) built in Paris in 1862 for the visit of Empress Eugรฉnie to inaugurate the Suez Canal โ an enormous glass-and-gilt vehicle pulled by eight horses. Other stars include hunting coaches for the royal women's strict purdah, miniature carriages built for the royal children, and the open-topped Victoria that King Farouk used for parades.
Highlights
- Coronation Coach of 1862, made in Paris
- King Farouk's parade Victoria
- Children's miniature carriages
- Royal harnesses and ceremonial uniforms
- The 1863 stable buildings themselves
Visiting
- Opening hours: 9 am โ 5 pm
- Tickets: ~150 EGP foreign adults
- Best time: combine with a Nile-side walk and the Museum of Islamic Art
- Nearby: Bulaq Abu El-Ela, the Nile corniche