The Pyramid of Khafre is the second-largest pyramid at Giza and the centrepiece of Khafre’s funerary complex, which also includes the Great Sphinx. Khafre was the son of Khufu and the fourth ruler of Egypt’s Fourth Dynasty. His pyramid sits on slightly higher bedrock than Khufu’s, which gives it the optical illusion of being taller, even though it stands 2 metres shorter at 136.4 metres. Khafre’s pyramid is the only Giza pyramid that still wears its original polished limestone casing at the apex, the unmistakable cap that crowns every classic Giza skyline shot. Most visitors see Khafre’s pyramid as part of a Cairo Pyramids, Saqqara and Memphis day tour that also covers the Great Pyramid of Khufu, the Great Sphinx, and the Saqqara necropolis south of the city.
Khafre (also spelled Khafra and called Chephren by the Greeks) was the son of Khufu and his queen Henutsen. He ruled Egypt for an estimated 25 years between roughly 2570 and 2545 BCE. His pyramid was built immediately after his father’s, on the south-west diagonal of the Giza Plateau, with construction probably taking 15 to 20 years.
The pyramid’s funerary complex is more complete than Khufu’s. It includes the upper mortuary temple at the pyramid’s east face, a 494-metre causeway leading down the eastern slope, and the Valley Temple where Khafre’s body was ritually purified and mummified before entombment. The Valley Temple is the best-preserved Old Kingdom temple in Egypt and contains the famous diorite statue of Khafre with the falcon god Horus protecting the back of his head, now in the Egyptian Museum at Tahrir Square.
The Great Sphinx, carved from a single ridge of bedrock immediately east of the causeway, was almost certainly commissioned by Khafre and is widely believed to bear his portrait. The Sphinx Temple at the Sphinx’s paws is contemporary with Khafre’s Valley Temple and built of the same limestone blocks quarried from the same bedrock pit.
The pyramid was first opened in the modern era in 1818 CE by the Italian explorer Giovanni Belzoni, who tunnelled in through the original ancient entrance on the north face. Inside, he found the empty granite sarcophagus sunk into the floor of the simple burial chamber. The walls bear a graffito Belzoni left to record his discovery, still visible today. Khafre’s mummy, like his father’s, has never been found.
The surviving casing at the apex is the most distinctive feature of any Giza pyramid. Roughly 30 metres of original Tura limestone still cling to the top. The lower casing was stripped by the same Mamluk and Ottoman builders who took Khufu’s. The cap survived because the slope angle at the top of an Egyptian pyramid makes the highest blocks impractical to extract without scaffolding.
The surviving limestone cap is the obvious headline feature. Look from any angle around the base to see how much smoother the apex blocks are compared with the rough exposed core blocks lower down. The original pyramid would have looked like the cap, all the way to the ground.
The interior burial chamber. With the inside-pyramid ticket you enter via Belzoni’s restored ancient passage on the north face, descend a short ramp, then walk a horizontal corridor to the simple rectangular burial chamber. Khafre’s empty red granite sarcophagus is set flush with the chamber floor. The visit is shorter and less crowded than Khufu’s, and the chambers feel similar in scale.
Khafre’s Mortuary Temple at the pyramid’s east base is the largest Old Kingdom mortuary temple still partially standing. The massive granite pillars and basalt floor slabs survive in the inner sanctuary; the outer courtyards are foundation-only.
The 494-metre Causeway running east toward the Valley Temple is partially restored and walkable along its lower section. It originally had a roof and inscribed walls.
The Valley Temple of Khafre at the Sphinx is the single best-preserved Old Kingdom temple in Egypt. The interior chambers are built of polished red Aswan granite and Egyptian alabaster, with no inscriptions, just monumental architecture. The vaulted entrance hallway and the T-shaped pillared hall are the highlights. The Valley Temple opens to the same Sphinx enclosure visitors enter for the Sphinx itself.
The subsidiary queen’s pyramid (G2-a) sits south of the main pyramid and is largely collapsed but identifiable.
The eastern panorama from the Khafre causeway gives one of the best Giza compositions, with Khufu’s pyramid framing the view to the north and the Sphinx visible below to the east.
Khafre’s pyramid is at the centre of the Giza Plateau and reached through the same single main entrance as the Khufu and Menkaure pyramids. From central Cairo allow 30 to 45 minutes by car; from Cairo International Airport 45 to 60 minutes; from New Cairo or Heliopolis 60 to 90 minutes.
Opening hours: 08:00 to 17:00 daily (October to April); 07:00 to 19:00 (May to September). The Khafre pyramid interior is open 08:00 to 16:00 with last entry at 15:30.
Entrance fee (2026, subject to change): plateau entry of approximately 540 EGP (around $11 USD) covers walking access to all three pyramids’ exteriors. The interior of the Khafre pyramid carries a smaller separate ticket than the Khufu interior, around 200 to 300 EGP. The Valley Temple of Khafre is accessed via the Sphinx enclosure, which is included in the plateau ticket.
Best time to visit: mid-morning between 09:30 and 11:00 is often the quietest window inside Khafre’s chambers, because most tour buses queue first at Khufu and head to Khafre second. The lighting on the surviving cap is best at golden hour, 60 to 90 minutes before sunset.
How long to allow: 30 to 45 minutes for the Khafre pyramid exterior including the mortuary temple ruins. Add 20 minutes for the interior if you have the ticket. Allow a separate 30 minutes for the Valley Temple plus Sphinx visit.
Photography: permitted throughout the exterior. Cameras are restricted inside the Khafre pyramid (phone photography is technically tolerated).
Accessibility: the Khafre causeway and Valley Temple have flatter, more even ground than the rest of the plateau and are partially wheelchair-accessible with assistance. The pyramid interior involves a steep short ramp and is not wheelchair-accessible.
Enter Khafre’s interior instead of Khufu’s if the queue is long. Most tour groups queue at Khufu and skip Khafre. The Khafre interior costs less, has a similar chamber experience, and the line is usually 10 minutes versus an hour for Khufu.
Walk the full causeway down to the Valley Temple. Most tour groups drive between the main pyramid and the Sphinx and miss the causeway entirely. The 494-metre walk takes 10 minutes and gives you a sense of the original ceremonial scale of the complex.
Spend serious time in the Valley Temple. The polished granite pillars and alabaster floor are unique in Egypt, and many visitors blow through it in 5 minutes on the way to the Sphinx. Give it 20 to 30 minutes.
Photograph the cap from the south. The clearest shot of the surviving casing is from the south-west panoramic viewpoint, with the angle of the limestone block visible against the desert sky.
Pair Khafre with the Sphinx the same hour. They are architecturally and historically inseparable: Khafre commissioned both, the Sphinx faces east toward sunrise on his causeway, and the Valley Temple is the temple of the Sphinx. Visiting them together gives the right context.
Khafre’s pyramid is part of every standard Giza visit. The three best options:
Every Egypt Day Tours visit to Khafre’s pyramid includes private air-conditioned transport, plateau entry tickets, a licensed Egyptologist guide, bottled water, and pre-purchased Khafre interior tickets if you ask for them at booking.
We entered Khafre instead of Khufu because the line was nothing. Same kind of chamber experience, half the cost, no crowds inside. Our guide knew the trick.
The Valley Temple of Khafre is the underrated marvel of Giza. Polished granite pillars, alabaster floor, no inscriptions, just pure architecture. Our Egyptologist made us slow down and look up.
Walking the causeway from the Khafre pyramid down to the Sphinx made the whole site click. You see how they were built as one complex. Worth doing on foot, not by bus.
Khafre’s pyramid is actually 2 metres shorter than Khufu’s at 136.4 metres versus 138.5 metres, but it sits on bedrock about 10 metres higher on the Giza Plateau. From most viewpoints around the plateau, the higher base makes Khafre appear taller. Both are visually similar in mass; the surviving cap of casing at Khafre’s apex also draws the eye upward.
Yes. A separate inside-pyramid ticket (cheaper than the Khufu interior ticket, typically 200 to 300 EGP in 2026, subject to change) lets you enter via Belzoni’s restored ancient passage on the north face, descend a short ramp, and stand in the simple burial chamber beside Khafre’s empty granite sarcophagus. The visit takes about 15 to 20 minutes.
The pyramid was built around 2570 BCE for Pharaoh Khafre (also called Chephren by the Greeks), the son of Khufu and the fourth ruler of Egypt’s Fourth Dynasty. Khafre also commissioned the Great Sphinx, which sits on the eastern edge of his pyramid complex and is widely believed to bear his portrait.
Roughly 30 metres of original polished Tura limestone casing still clings to the apex of Khafre’s pyramid. The lower casing was stripped by Mamluk and Ottoman builders in the 14th and 15th centuries to construct mosques and palaces in Cairo. The cap survived because the steep slope angle at the top of an Egyptian pyramid makes the highest blocks impractical to extract without elaborate scaffolding.
The Valley Temple is the ceremonial temple at the eastern end of Khafre’s causeway, where his body was ritually purified and mummified before entombment. Built of polished red Aswan granite and Egyptian alabaster, it is the single best-preserved Old Kingdom temple in Egypt. The temple opens to the same Sphinx enclosure visitors enter for the Great Sphinx itself.
Allow 30 to 45 minutes for the pyramid exterior and mortuary temple, plus 15 to 20 minutes for the interior if you have that ticket, plus a separate 30 minutes for the Valley Temple and Sphinx enclosure. A typical Khafre + Sphinx combined visit runs 90 minutes as part of a longer Giza day.