Menkaure closed, Khafre reopened

What changed at the Giza pyramids on 11 September 2026?

The Pyramid of Menkaure closed for routine maintenance and the Pyramid of Khafre reopened. No end date was announced for the closure.

Egypt Independent reported the decision on 11 September 2026: the Supreme Council of Antiquities closed Menkaure as part of "a routine rotation system for maintenance" and opened Khafre to visitors. Global Arab Network covered the same rotation the next day.

The idea behind the rotation is simple: thousands of visitors a day bring heat and humidity into narrow stone passages, and each interior gets a rest for cleaning and repairs. The Great Pyramid of Khufu is not part of this swap. It stays open, with its own ticket.

Nothing changes outside. Your 700 EGP plateau ticket still covers the walk around all three pyramids, the Panorama and the Sphinx terrace.

What do you see inside the Pyramid of Khafre?

A long passage down into the bedrock, then a plain burial chamber with a gabled limestone roof, a granite sarcophagus and Belzoni's name painted on the wall.

Khafre is the middle pyramid, the one that still has a cap of smooth casing stones near its tip. The way in is a sloping passage, low enough that you go down bent over, which then levels out and runs to the burial chamber. The chamber is about 14 m long and cut partly into the rock, with a pitched roof of big limestone slabs.

It is bare. The granite sarcophagus is sunk into the floor, and on the wall the Italian explorer Giovanni Belzoni painted his name after he got in, in 1818, and found the chamber empty (route described here). There are no inscriptions and no paintings. What you get is the weight of the stone above you and, on a good day, a chamber with only a handful of people in it.

Budget 15 to 20 minutes inside. It is warm and stuffy, less of a climb than the Great Pyramid, and still not for anyone who hates tight spaces.

How much do the pyramid interiors cost in 2026?

The Great Pyramid costs 1,500 EGP and Khafre about 200 to 300 EGP, both on top of the 700 EGP plateau ticket. Menkaure is closed.

The plateau ticket is on the Ministry's e-ticket portal: 700 EGP for a foreign adult, 350 for a student. Interior tickets come on top and are card only, like everything at Giza since June 2023. Two Viator operators state the 1,500 EGP Great Pyramid price in their exclusions this month, and 2026 guides agree.

For Khafre, published 2026 figures run from 100 to 280 EGP depending on the source, so plan on a few hundred pounds. Either way it is a fraction of the Great Pyramid, which makes Khafre the cheap way to say you have been inside a pyramid at Giza.

My tour includes the "third pyramid": what happens now?

Ask the operator before your date which interior they will take you into. Khafre is the open alternative; the Great Pyramid costs far more.

Three listings on this site still sell Menkaure by name. The private tour with interiors has two options, "All incl & inside 3rd pyramid" and "inside great and third pyramid". The Giza, Saqqara and Memphis full day lists "Entrance to the third Pyramid of Giza" in its single all-inclusive price, and the private tour with a camel ride includes an "Entry fee to the third pyramid" in its all-inclusive option.

None of that is a scam. The listings were written before the rotation, and a good guide will simply walk you into Khafre instead. Still, send a message through Viator and get the answer in writing: which pyramid, and is the ticket included. If you wanted the Great Pyramid anyway, ask what the upgrade costs on the day. Expect to pay the gap, since 1,500 EGP is several times the Khafre ticket.

Not happy with the answer? Every tour here cancels for free up to 24 hours before, so you can switch to an option that names the Great Pyramid.

Eight options from a car and guide to the Great Pyramid with tickets. Ask which interior the "3rd pyramid" options use now.

★ 5.0 · 4 to 5 hours · from $15

Explore the private Giza tour with interiors → Tour details

Is the Great Pyramid worth 1,500 EGP instead?

For the Grand Gallery, yes. If you only want to tick off "inside a pyramid" and save money, Khafre does that for a fraction of the price.

The Great Pyramid route goes in through the Robbers' Tunnel, up the Ascending Passage (about 1.2 m high, you climb doubled over), then into the Grand Gallery, a corbelled hall about 8.6 m tall, and finally the King's Chamber with its empty granite sarcophagus. Allow 30 to 45 minutes. It is hot and humid, and guards often stop photos in the passages.

Our take: the Grand Gallery is the best interior space at Giza, and Khafre has nothing like it. Bad knees, a bad back or claustrophobia? Skip both and spend the money on Meresankh III, a painted tomb on the east side of the Great Pyramid. Our guide inside the Great Pyramid covers the climb and the queues.

How long will Menkaure stay closed?

No date was announced. Plan as if it stays shut this winter, and treat a reopening as a bonus.

The announcement gave no end date, and the Council does not publish a rotation calendar. Under the rotation, a reopening for Menkaure would most likely mean another closure somewhere else on the plateau.

Check before you go. The ticket office at the visitor centre sells whatever is open that day, and your guide will know. For the full ticket picture, see Giza tickets and prices in 2026.

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