A French-brokered release opened a door he hadn’t expected. He left Egypt, sought asylum in Sweden, and surrendered his passport, thinking the country—and its history—were behind him. At Uppsala and Lund he studied, wrote, and waited out the sense that something was unfinished.

He did return—not to live, but to guide. He walked travelers through Cairo’s noise, across neighborhoods he once crossed at a sprint; through Luxor’s quiet with the care of someone who knows both pride and cost. In 1999, on one of those journeys, a Swedish traveler joined the group. They fell in love, married, and two years later founded Egyptson—taking the name as their own. It was a promise as much as a brand: every journey would carry our name.

Since then we’ve arranged private journeys across Egypt—some tailored end to end, some with Sameh guiding in person, some into the silence of the desert, others to the great monuments before the crowds arrive. Through it all, Sameh never dropped his political vein. He kept writing, studying, challenging, and debating—culminating in a doctoral defense that drew national attention and heavy security.

This is who we are: a company born from grit and love, exile and return. We don’t sell checklists. We introduce you to Egypt—its people, its layers, its contradictions—like only insiders can.