Heaven along the Nile

Click above, for a satellite view of the Club
Click on any picture for a detailed view



It doesn’t get much better than this: the Royal Club Mohamed-Aly has the reputation of being the most stylish spot on the Nile, and with good reason. Amidst lush gardens overlooking the river’s eternal waters, you would be forgiven for imagining you had been transported back to a more genteel time: a time of cocktails by the pool, elegant lunch or dinner parties by the Nile shore, tranquil afternoon teas, and lavish celebrations. Strolling through the gardens, you will come across one of the country’s most important individual collections of memorabilia, much of it dating from the period of Egypt’s “liberal experiment” (1923-1936): royal portraits and historical documents, rare coins, antique carriages and vintage automobiles. You might pause for a moment’s reflection in one of the alcoves of the King Fouad Clubhouse, and gaze out through the latticework screen at the palm groves before returning to the garden and crossing Badi’a bridge for a romantic walk on the secluded Mahroussa Island. At Club Mohamed-Aly, the fine art of farniente is very much alive...

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N.B: Royal Club M-A is open from 9 am to midnight, seven days a week. It may be closed partly or totally for private parties and special events.
Please consult this site periodically, and/or call 012-22113681 for membership, our upcoming events or your queries and reservations.
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El Mahroussa Island


















Cleopatra and Alexandria light house


Khedivial Yacht "Farida" - Authentic 19th century Steam Ship

"Sultan Hussein" Pool & Café

Pack of Cards
By Madame Sosostris
Al-Ahram Weekly - 8-14 June 2000

My good friend Maged Farag has launched his very popular summer programme and is inviting you to party at the Royal Club Mohamed Ali where he boasts that he can accommodate up to 4000 guests. Well I do not think that Maged means that all of them should turn up at once but to tell you the truth on hot days, I have often had the sneaky suspicion that they had done just that. Still, the gardens are so extensive, and the pool so large that no matter how crowded, one seems to always be able to find a little corner in which to relax with a good book, or watch the pretty white egrets dive for fish in the Nile.






Posted by Bob-i-Licious - Sun. 1 October 2006

Friday, A friend of mine invited me to go to a great place along the Nile, with swimming pool and palmtrees. As she described it, Heaven along the Nile. Fair enough. That was a Go. After a few taxi rides and subway discovery, we arrived at the Mohamed Aly’s Royal Club. Indeed a great place. And the landscape from the Nile was insane. We spent (with some other friends of me) the all afternoon there. Got burned, got wet and got happy.



Michaela Cabrera, The Daily Star, July 15, 2006

If you’re up for a 45-minute taxi ride to Giza, you can enjoy a warm day in the classy Mohamed Ali Club. Reminiscent of colonial days wherein English officers took their afternoon tea and read novels by the Nile, this Giza oasis is romantic and relaxing.

Guests have access to the large two-level pool, a museum that houses art and artifacts from the khedive period and an exhibit featuring a collection of vintage cars. But the club’s main attraction is its location right by the Nile, in view of sailing feluccas and fishermen seeking an afternoon catch. Women can swim freely in string bikinis and lounge by the pool’s cascades without disapproving looks from Arab tourists and conservative locals. Amidst palm trees in a well-manicured lawn, guests can enjoy meals from a menu serving pasta, pizza, barbeques and burgers.

El-Salamlek Museum & Library

Where history is made bearable!

An Ottoman and a gentleman
By Pascale Ghazaleh
Al Ahram Weekly - 7-13 September 2000


... the royal flag, a wood sculpture of the crescent and three stars, portraits of Kings Farouq and Fouad, military uniforms from the pre-Revolution era... Perhaps the most devoted collector of such mementos is Maged Farag, who has produced volume after volume of pictures and words related to the royal family. Printed on heavy pale grey paper and bound in luxurious deep green leather, the Royal Albums feature "real" photos of banquets, weddings, receptions, dignitaries and royals at work and at play... They could almost be one's family albums, left lying carelessly on the coffee table. Farag has also amassed a large collection of royal memorabilia, including a carriage, several uniforms, and portraits galore, as well as a plethora of medals and books, letters and firmans...

Prince Farouk - Supreme Scout of Egypt

Radio Cairo calling!

The Royal Albums of Egypt
Researched, Compiled, Designed & Published by Maged Farag

1939, The Imperial Wedding
1866, The Khedivial Post
1952, The Last Protocol
1869, Inauguration of the Suez Canal
1898-1998, National Bank of Egypt
The Palace
L'Egypte Illustrée par les Peintres du 19eme Siècle
The Nile & The Delta Barrages

1939, The Imperial Wedding

Pack of Cards
By Madame Sosostris
Al Ahram Weekly - 11-17 May 2000

Maged has managed to make the study of history pleasurable, writing lightly about important episodes of Egypt's past illustrating the narrative with a large number of rare period pictures . That he did it all single handed, is one more proof that he is, as I always, said a rather special person. And for budding historians who are dying to publish your research, this is your golden opportunity to approach him with the product of your intensive historical cogitation.


Old news
Al Ahram Weekly
20-26 April 2006

"Egypt's history is a long chain of Pharaonic, Persian, Greek, Roman, East Roman, Arab, Ottoman, French, British, Royal and Military links, according to Maged Farag, the force behind Misr Al-Mahrousa. Most are more or less adequately covered. The weakest link, indeed, is the pre-1952 period; some 40 years or so became taboo and you couldn't even mention them outside a specific ideological framework. Someone had to stick his neck out, break the taboo and maintain the continuity..." A visually as well as historically compelling record produced on high-quality paper and containing some of the rarest photos of the period it dealt with, the resulting, bilingual publication of 128 pages had appeared 29 times, once a month, before it was discontinued in 2003. "When I first thought of founding the magazine, I already realised reading was not among the habits of the average Egyptian -- something that was particularly the case with history, since it has a reputation for being boring. That's why I tried to present it in an attractive way; and in fact my pictorial archive came in handy.

H.H. Khedive Ismaïl Pasha

The highest order in the Kingdom of Egypt, The Mohamed-Aly Collier.
Conferred by H.M. King Fouad I on H.M. King George V

Marriage contract of Mohamed-Aly's niece - 1899 ten pounds note

Mohamed-Aly Pasha, by David Roberts

Construction of the Delta Barrages (Al-Kanater Al-Khayreya), 1847


Plain Talk
By Dr. Mursi Saad El-Din
Al Ahram Weekly - 6-12 July 2000

History is not only the business of historians. Equally, it can be written by individuals whose love for their country makes them take the trouble of searching deeply into its past. They visit museums, libraries, record offices, newspaper archives and private correspondence.

One such figure is Maged Farag, a controversial intellectual who has developed just such a passion. I say "controversial" because his activities have been interpreted in a number of ways, one being a nostalgic yearning for royalty. But Maged is really only an Egyptian enthusiast, always seeking to put the past in perspective. His own record library, for one thing, stands up to, and surpasses many official reference libraries.

H.M. King Farouk I

Majestic Celebrations at the Royal Club

Setup by Mahmoudaki

Une Promenade Royale

Une Promenade Royale
Hala Fares
Al Ahram Hebdo - 13/8/2000

A 13 km sur l'autoroute de la Haute-Egypte et sur une superficie de 42,000 m2, se trouve l'un des plus beaux clubs privés de l’'Egypte. Diar Mohamad Ali, un nom qui suggère tout un programme. Il veut dire en effet « Domaine de Mohamad Ali ». Il s'agit du premier club privé en Egypte qui représente non seulement un centre de loisirs, mais qui raconte aussi une période de l'histoire égyptienne.

En 1990, le Dr Magued Farag, propriétaire du club, a eu l'idée de le réaménager de manière à servir de village touristique, mais avec une fonction différente des autres établissements du genre. « Diar Mohamad Ali est différent des autres clubs, là vous pouvez vous détendre sur la pelouse autour de la piscine et en même temps vous plonger dans la lecture de l'Histoire », explique M. Samir Mourad, directeur exécutif du projet.

Le club comprend un bâtiment de trois étages. Il est prévu d’y installer un restaurant, un club-house pour les invités VIP et une bibliothèque qui renferme des livres, des documents et des manuscrits, tous racontant l'histoire de l'Egypte contemporaine de l'époque de Mohamad Ali en 1805 jusqu'au règne du roi Farouq en 1952. Le jardin est orné de statues, de canons. Le drapeau royal flotte partout dans ces lieux nostalgiques.


Des journées splendides sont organisées très souvent au club à l'occasion de la publication des livres de Dr Farag, qui portent essentiellement sur l'histoire de l'Egypte contemporaine. « A l'occasion de la publication d'un de ses livres, on a amené un chef turc âgé de 80 ans pour imiter les plats préparés le jour du mariage de la princesse Fawziya avec le Shah d'Iran. On a fait une journée splendide.

The Khedivial Ball

Pack of Cards
By Madame Sosostris
Al Ahram Weekly
15-21 April 1999

I do hope that you have been hanging on to grandma's ball dress and grandpa's tarboush -- they are mandatory if you wish to attend the very lavish ball organised by my dear friend and king of extravaganza Maged Farag at the Mohamed Ali Club. Maged is so keen on his Egyptian début de siecle theme that he has hired a tarabishi who will be in attendence to iron -- or lend -- partygoers the proper headgear. No such arrangements have been made for the 1920s gowns, though, and I am afraid that the ladies will have to come equipped with their own boas.

Kongit Sinegiorgis, Saadeddin Shazli, Maged Farag, Mette Ravn,
Pål Thorson, Vivi & Christer Sylven

Pack of Cards
By Madame Sosostris
Al Ahram Weekly - 13 - 19 May 1999

Like a bee sampling the nectar of many flowers, I filled my chalice at a ball fit for a king, launched in style by my dear friend, perfect host Maged Farag, who welcomed his guests in a white tuxedo jacket and red tarboush at the Mohamed Ali Club (which, incidentally, is transforming into the most sought-after venue in Cairo). I am really not at liberty to tell you all the wonderful things that made this evening so extra special, because Maged told me that those who did not turn up as prescribed did not deserve to know. Well... maybe I can cheat a little and share a few tidbits: The ambassador of Sweden, His Excellency Christer Sylven, was wearing a tarboush in the colours of his country, blue with a yellow tassel, Ambassador of Norway Mette Ravn did not stray off the beaten track and neither did Nader Riad, chairman of Bavaria company, but His Excellency Daniel C Kurtzer, ambassador to the United States, opted for the less provocative, tarboush-less look, while Her Excellency Kongit Sinegiorgis, ambassador of Ethiopia, wore the loveliest white ensemble with bright trimmings imaginable; impeccably elegant as ever, the problem of the tarboush never arose with her of course. Arbiter of elegance Naguib Abdallah arrived in a gold embroidered frock coat to go with his classical tarboush and was accompanied by a mysterious and gorgeous woman in a stunning long dress; elegantly understated as usual, veteran diplomat and former ambassador to the US, Ashraf Ghorbal sported a no nonsense dark suit and standard tie with his tarboush. General Saadeddin El-Shazli looked absolutely thrilled when his old friend and brother-in-arms Major-General Munir Shash walked in, apparently an unexpected and pleasant reunion. That is all, dears: enough is enough. From now on, mum is the word.

Dancing at the Club M. Aly's Khedivial Ball
to the tunes of Cairo Symphony Orchestra

Lady of the harem arriving at the Gezira Palace (now Cairo Marriott Hotel)