Top News

For people who love to travel and take in the sights of the world, visiting the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt will be high up on the bucket list. The pyramids are ancient royal tombs dating back to around 2580 BC, and they are the only one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World still standing.

Visiting the pyramids is definitely something most people want to do if they ever get the chance, but as one group of tourists has recently discovered, it might be best to just view the stunning structures from the outside.

A TikTok video shared earlier this month by a woman named Aish shows her walking up the very steep steps inside the Great Pyramid at Giza that would typically take tourists down from the entrance to the subterranean chamber, or upwards to the Grand Gallery and the King's Chamber.

But as she made her way up the narrow corridor, a voice behind her could be heard declaring they would be "going back", as they couldn't handle the tight space.

Aish first took a few steps forward to continue moving on, but eventually agreed that she couldn't handle it either, saying: "Yeah, I think I'm going back, too. I'm going down."

In text added to her video, she wrote: "POV [point of view]: You went inside the pyramids and regret it instantly."

And in the caption, she warned that the pyramids might not be the best tourist attraction if you have claustrophobia, which is an intense fear of confined or enclosed spaces.

Commenters on Aish's video were split over her decision to turn back. Some said that she had "wasted" the experience by not seeing everything the pyramids had to offer, while others who had done the difficult climb before said it wasn't "worth" the trauma of the journey anyway.

One person said: "I did it (traumatised) and the room when you go into was not even worth it... just an empty room with an empty tomb."

But another argued: "There should be a sign saying once you enter, you commit to the entire climb."

And a third agreed, stating: "If people are claustrophobic, they shouldn't go in, because that just ruins it for everyone else then."

While many tourists dream of going inside the Great Pyramid, the confined spaces can come as a shock to many who expect the interior to be just as grand as the exterior. According to Britannica, the Great Pyramid has "very little open space" once you get inside, and it can be incredibly hot.

To enter the Grand Pyramid, you must first climb up 59 feet on the outside. From there, you travel down a descending passageway until it splits into one path that continues down to the subterranean chamber, and one that goes up toward the Grand Gallery, as well as the Queen's Chamber and the King's Chamber.

One reporter for Time Out previously visited the Great Pyramid and explained that while it was "one of the most magical experiences" of her life, she would "absolutely" never do it again.

She wrote: "The tomb itself is tiny, and there's not much to do apart from stand there feeling pink, sticky and overwhelmed, while a lone security guard offers to take your photo and tells you to keep the noise down.

"Is it one of the most magical experiences of my life? Yes. Would I do it again? Absolutely not."