Grand Egyptian Museum Opening November 1, 2025 (or will it?)
The Grand Egyptian Museum will fully open on November 1…or will it?
The Grand Egyptian Museum opening is on November 1, 2025! Cairo's new museum, the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM for short), has already opened all of its main galleries, Grand Hall, Grand Staircase, and retail space with lots of restaurants and shops. But the official opening of the Tutankhamun Galleries, and the Solar Boat Museum (the final two areas of the GEM that have not opened) will finally happen this fall during the Grand Egyptian Museum's full opening on the first of November.
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What is the Grand Egyptian Museum?
The Grand Egyptian Museum is Egypt's largest and newest museum, and it will be the biggest museum in the world dedicated to one civilization when it has its grand opening this fall. The Grand Egyptian Museum is located in Giza, right next to the Giza Pyramids and the Sphinx. When it fully opens on November 1, it will be an international event drawing millions of tourists to Egypt during the upcoming tourist season, for the first look at the more than 100, 000 objects that will be on display, with the highlight being the more than 5, 000 objects found in the tomb of King Tutankhamun, or "King Tut".
The Grand Egyptian Museum has been under construction for more than a decade, and every other announced opening date has not come to fruition, so when Egypt's Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly announced the news this August that the GEM would finally open the King Tut and Solar Boat Galleries in November, the big question is, will it actually happen?
Will the Grand Egyptian Museum open in 2025?
The Main Galleries of the GEM are already open!
I have been following the Grand Egyptian Museum closely for more than 5 years, and every single time there has been an advance announcement about the GEM's opening, it hasn't ended up happening. Various reasons have been blamed, like the Covid-19 pandemic, recent escalations between Gaza and Israel, recent escalations between Iran and Israel, construction projects out in Giza near the museum site, and more.
The Grand Egyptian Museum is currently around 60% open, and it's an amazing museum even now, despite the Tutankhamun artifacts and the ancient Solar Boat not being on display, but if someone is planning a trip to Egypt and the Grand Egyptian Museum being fully open is a must for their trip, I am still telling those travelers that they need to wait for the museum to have confirmed to be open before planning any travel. That way, if this opening does not happen, like it hasn't happened every other single time an opening has been announced, travelers will not need to cancel their trip or change plans.
And if you haven't already, follow my YouTube channel and sign up for my mailing list (at the bottom of my website homepage) to stay up to date about any announcements relating to the Grand Egyptian Museum.
When will King Tut's Mask Move?
King Tut’s Death Mask is currently on display at the old Egyptian Museum, but it will be moved soon to the GEM
The Mask of Tutankhamun is the most important ancient Egyptian artifact in the world, and at the time of writing, it is still on display at its original home in the Old Egyptian Museum in downtown Cairo.
Egypt will move the Tutankhamun Death Mask at some point from the old museum to the Grand Egyptian Museum, but we have no idea when this will happen. It will most likely happen sometime in October, to keep the mask on display for tourists as long as possible at the Egyptian Museum, but to move it in time for the GEM's Grand Opening on November 1st.
Almost all of the more than 5,000 objects from King Tut's Tomb are already in their homes at the Grand Egyptian Museum, but they have not been opened to the public - yet.
Will the Grand Egyptian Museum close down to prepare for the Grand Opening?
In May, Egypt announced (yet another) opening date for the GEM that did not end up happening, but for the first time, Egypt announced that the Grand Egyptian Museum would close to the public for a two-week period in order to prepare for the full opening. This didn't end up happening, but it might be announced that the GEM will close down for a week or two in late October in order to prepare for the November 1 event, but no one knows yet.
Is the Grand Egyptian Museum open to the public?
The Grand Egyptian Museum is already about 60% open to the public!
The Grand Egyptian Museum, at the moment, is open to the public, and even though the Tutankhamun Galleries and the Solar Boat Museum are not yet open, the majority of the museum's artifacts are on display and are visited by the public every single day!
The 12 Main Galleries of the museum have objects spanning all the way from the predynastic period (the historical time before the Pharaohs) through the time of the Greek and Romans (the time of figures like Cleopatra and Alexander the Great), with lots of objects from Egypt's Old Kingdom (the Pyramid Builders), the New Kingdom (big names like Ramses the Great and Hatshepsut), and everything in between (Middle Kingdom, Intermediate Periods, etc.).
The Great Hall has a colossal statue of Ramses II that is a highlight of the museum, plus a few other large statues and a column taken from an ancient Egyptian temple, while the retail area has the gift shop (with a great selection of local Egyptian souvenirs and high-quality products, books, clothing, and more), and great Egyptian restaurants like Zooba.
The Grand Staircase has more than 70 gigantic statues of ancient Egyptian Kings and Queens, pieces from ancient Egyptian tombs and temples, and ends with a beautiful view of the Giza Pyramids from the large windows at the staircase's top.
Grand Egyptian Museum Tickets
You can purchase tickets for the Grand Egyptian Museum directly through the Museum's website (although tickets for the full opening are not yet available), and also in person at the museum's ticket office. Visa and MasterCard are the only payment methods accepted, and the Grand Egyptian Museum ticket price is currently 1,230 Egyptian Pounds (around $25 USD at the time of writing).
Grand Egyptian Museum Hours
The Grand Egyptian Museum complex is open every single day from 8:30am - 7:00pm, with the galleries open from 9:00am - 6:00pm, and on Saturday and Wednesday the complex stays open late, until 10:00pm, and the Galleries stay open until 9:00pm.
Write a comment and let me know what you think about the Grand Egyptian Museum's full opening - do you think it will actually happen on November 1? What questions do you have about Cairo's newest museum? I love reading and responding to every comment, and I hope you can visit the GEM during your Egypt adventure!
