Cairo International Book Fair

Key facts

The Cairo International Book Fair is held every winter by the General Egyptian Book Organization (GEBO), the public book body under the Ministry of Culture. Its 58th edition runs from 20 January to 2 February 2027 at the Egypt International Exhibition Center in New Cairo, the new city east of the capital. Qatar is guest of honour, as part of the Egypt–Qatar cultural year.

The fair is open to the general public, who come to buy books and meet authors. Egyptian, Arab and foreign publishers had until 31 October 2026 to register.

A record crowd in 2026

The 57th edition, from 21 January to 3 February 2026, was the largest in the fair's history. It announced 1,457 publishing houses from 83 countries, with Romania as guest of honour and the writer Naguib Mahfouz as personality of the year. It closed with 6,200,849 visitors, a record. Romania handed over to Qatar at the closing.

Getting to the fair

The Exhibition Center is a long way from the historic centre and the Nile: allow for the journey by taxi or with a car and driver during the day. The programme of talks, the opening hours and the entry arrangements for 2027 are published by the General Egyptian Book Organization as the opening approaches.

In late January Cairo is in its cool season: the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) normals give daytime highs of 19 to 25 °C from November to March. Cairo is then 2 hours ahead of London. The fair fits well into a stay in Cairo and Giza: the pyramids and the Grand Egyptian Museum one day, the fair another, historic Cairo a third. To stay, the Four Seasons Nile Plaza is on the Nile, the Marriott Mena House at the foot of the pyramids.