Cairo? What is there is see other than Pyramids?

I will be on day trips from Sharm el Sheikh

How far from Cairo is the equivalent journey?

From Sharm it will be about 8 hours to Cairo by bus. I think there is way more to say in Cairo then just the pyramids. To me the piramids were the most dissapointing part of Cairo. The city is sprankling and fresh. There are people on the streets almost 24/7. I would just walk around and explore it on your own pace. It has a lot of great restaurants and on every corner you can smoke the sheesha (recommendable because you get to talk to the locals very easy). I would recommend to explore the old city of Cairo (the area is called Khan-el-Khalili or Islamic Cairo). It is really a chaos and everything you can imagine is sold here. The beautiful big Al-Ahzar mosque is worth a visit. There is also a very nice old teahouse in this area called Al-Fishawi, don't miss that one out, it is amazing. Also the Egyptian museum is worth a visit (but first visit the pyramids). I would advice you to stay in Ismalia house at the Tahrir square. Its a budget place and you don't pay more then 10 euro buts the location is awesome. The hotel is on the 8th floor and you should reserve roomnumber 805. It has a huge balcony and offers an amazing view on the busy Tahir square, the Nile and the Egyptian museum. The Tahrir square is one of the most important squares in Cairo. Have fun!