There’s so much to see and experience that you don’t necessarily have to be a happy camper to enjoy the desert. And with sand stretching from the Western Desert to the oases of Bahariyya, Farafra, Dakhla and Kharga, you don’t even need a long weekend to try your hand at desert exploration.

What makes taking a desert day trip so special is that you don’t have a fixed itinerary and can explore as much as you want — as long as you know where you’re heading and how to get back to where you started. You move at your own pace and don’t have to worry about waiting for others as you would with a tour on a bus. If you find a place particularly interesting and want to explore some more, or take a short hike, you can easily do so.

To make sure you get a chance to enjoy the whole day, you need to rise and shine early enough to drive during daylight and get back on the road by sunset. Don’t follow this advice and you risk getting lost in the desert at night, so aim to head out by 7:00 or 7:30am. It is best to take a four-wheel drive (4WD) to make the ride smoother and safer for the passengers. If you’re traveling in a group, make sure that at least one of you knows their way around using a GPS (global positioning system) device.

Start the trip by heading to Fayoum, approximately 90 kilometers from Cairo. The road into Fayoum is well-paved, but to make use of your 4WD and get an early start to the adventure, get off the road shortly after reaching the main highway.

The vast Western Desert has a lot to offer, including Wadi Al-Hitan, Kasr El-Sagha and Dimah El-Siba, but if you have nothing specific in mind and just want to enjoy nature, grab a copy of your kids’ geology book and note all the beautifully formed rocks and minerals that have taken millions of years to form. You should easily be able to pinpoint natural patterns like ripple marks in the sand, various types of sand dune, and different colors in the rocks showing what they are made of.

Wadi El-Hitan is a 30-kilometer drive west of Lake Qaroon and one of the largest fossil graveyards in Africa. Wadi Al-Hitan translates to ‘Valley of the Whales,’ so named because it features fossilized skeletons of primitive whales. There are also fossils of ancient species of shark, Dogfish and some land mammals.

Associated Press No need for a compass or GPS when a Bedouin guide is leading the way.

The fossils date as far back as 31–40 million years, which is the late Eocene and the Oligocene epochs. Back then, the Fayoum area was a delta for a number of rivers coming from the east, with the sea to the north.

The Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency protects the location of the whale bones with barriers, leaving them firmly placed in the sand where they were found. Approximately 250 whale skeletons have been found in this area and there is tight security over the unearthed skeletons to prevent thievery. Wadi Al-Hitan is a must-see and a break from the monotony of the desert. On weekends, you’ll see gangs of expats with 4WDs spending the day inside day-use tents to keep out of the scorching sun. It’s illegal to camp overnight in this national park, which closes at 5pm.

Also located west of Fayoum is Kasr El-Sagha, which snuggles up on the side of Gabal Qatrani range. Kasr El-Sagha, or what remains of it, is a small temple that dates back to the Middle Kingdom.

If you go south of Kasr El-Sagha, you’ll find the remains of the Ptolemaic cities of Dimeh El-Siba and Kranis. Few tourists visit here, but they’re definitely worth checking out. Children in particular enjoy these sites, where they can play around, exploring the ruins and pretending they are action heroes.

If you’re setting up a convoy of cars you should plan beforehand where you’d like to stop. We recommend walkie-talkies as well, since mobile networks don’t stretch into the desert.

Unless you are traveling with a guide, bring your own food and shelter. There aren’t any pit stops that you can make along the way for drinks or water, so make sure you bring enough to last you the entire day — especially when it comes to water, since it’s easy to get dehydrated in the desert. If you decide to go during the winter, realize that it can still get very hot around noontime, so don’t let that morning weather fool you.

If you own a Jeep, then you should definitely join the Jeep Club (Tel: +2 (010) 101-5337 info@jeepclubegypt.com www.jeepclubegypt.com), which allows you to meet other people as well as learn off-road driving techniques. The Jeep Club organizes day and overnight trips throughout the year.

If you’re not too sure about taking the risk of driving into the desert, there are tour companies that will organize the trip for you and take you out for the complete and ultimate desert experience in the Black or Western Deserts. Companies such as Eden Garden Tours (Tel +2 (012) 731-1976) or Pan Arab Tours (Tel: +2 (02) 418-4409) give you the option of going out for just the day or for an entire weekend. Either way, your group will end its day with a traditional Arab barbecue with music, an open fire for grilling and other sources of entertainment. Costs vary depending on itinerary. et