Monastery of St. Anthony the Great

The Monastery of St. Anthony the Great is considered one of the oldest in Egypt. This is a whole temple complex, occupying an area of seven hectares. It's a Christian shrine. Anthony at a young age renounced everything worldly and settled in a cave in the mountains. A small path led to her, along which he descended daily for water. Today it is 1,700 steps to the holy place. The beginning of construction dates back to the 3rd century AD. This place became a refuge for believers in Egypt, Syria, Ethiopia. The monastery grew, developed, was the abode of believers of different religions. In the 11th century it was completely destroyed, and only centuries later the Copts rebuilt it. Today, millions of pilgrims come to this place.

In the Church of St. Anthony preserved frescoes of the 13th century. There are several healing holy springs on the territory, one of which was discovered by Anthony himself. 2.5 kilometers from the monastery you can visit the cave where the saint lived, inside it there is an altar with icons, which holds divine services for big holidays. The monastery is active, monks live in cells on its territory and in caves outside it.

From Hurghada you can get to the monastery with a tour group. The route from Cairo is not close – 290 kilometers by bus.