Cairo

I owned this and for some obscure reason sold it, then acquired it again, and in my second acquisition was perplexed as to why on Gods's earth would I have gotten rid of this in the first place! Anyway, this makes me appreciate the fragrance much more, as well as understand it even more. This is perfectly blended and probably my favourite rose scent. I love rose, but find it extremely hard to find a rose fragrance for me that does not lean all the way feminine. The rose is blended so brilliantly with the Vanilla and spice, that it makes it feel like a hybrid accord of all 3, this is not a rose fragrance, but to me it's quite rose dominant with the vanilla and spice. I can probably wear this fragrance all the year round, night or day, but it would be a little bit too eccentric for the office for a man, I don’t think it would be for a woman, I'd wear it in all occasion otherwise and in all climates unless it was a blisteringly hot day. It has Penhaligon's exquisite DNA, luxurious, delicate, and akin to all other Penhaligon's it's a decent projection and longevity, a tad better than most Penhaligon's. It's very round with no sharp edges and creamy smooth. I'd buy this again, and it sits in my staple collection, alongside a handful of Creeds, PdMs and Initios. It's my number 1 Penhaligon out of approximately 21 bottles, followed by Babylon, Sartorial and Savoy Steam, when/if I acquire Lord George, it might overtake Savoy Steam :) I'd highly suggest it, it's blind buy and FB worthy, inoffensive and highly versatile. Enjoy, and God bless :)

When thinking about popular notes combined with Rose you find all of them in this scent except Oud. In Cairo - there are Saffron and Rose, Cypriol Oil, Patchouli and Labdanum blended nicely with Vanilla in a woody base. This is very balanced scent what comes to those notes and none of them is actually dominant. This is not overly sweet, it’s not so “jammy” like those ones with just Rose with Vanilla. It’s not dark scent either. Cairo is as well somewhat restrained if thinking the performance and comparing for example with gorgeous beast Radical Rose which fills the room immediately (I love it a lot). It’s not weak, don’t get me wrong, but it just doesn’t scream to get attention and the notes are in a perfect harmony with each others. Different combinations of the notes mentioned above has been done hundreds of times and considering uniqueness, it’s not found here. Anyway while searching the scent with all these notes in one I found this one being the best. The blend is not complex, nor difficult to understand which makes it very versatile and safe to wear. The longevity is great. Wonderful scent for everyday wear during autumn and winter. I can wear even a dense ouds during summertime but I think it’s leather which makes this too heavy for hot days imo. Thank you for reading, I hope my review was helpful. I would appreciate a lot if you want to follow me on IG and/or YouTube (English subtitles): @ninamariahperfumes It gives me a lot of motivation to write more. 🤗

Excellent, and Penhaligon's has finally gotten the message and is selling 10ml cylinders of the stuff under their own label, although strangely not on their websites. I seldom go into stores anymore, so I don't know if they're selling them there if you beg the salespeople to dredge one out of the back of a drawer. (Oh please, oh please, I won't tell; I'll make everyone think I had to drop $200+ at this very counter.) How many million decants sold by other people did it take them to figure it out? I wanted Cairo when it first came out, but I was really hesitant. The list of notes could go any way, and I was afraid it would just be weird. Penhaligon's has crossed the line from unusual to weird way too often in the last 20 years, in my opinion. And I swore I wouldn't buy another $50+ bottle of anything before I bought a decant first. (This is Fragrantica; most people here know what I mean.) So far anyway, I think Cairo is the best of their Trade Routes Line. For once, Penhaligon has produced a scent that smells like it might have come from Middle East and/or specifically Egypt. It's not DSH's Antiu; that's the gold standard for me on Egyptian motif fragrances. But Cairo is worthwhile and I'd buy a full bottle if I felt flush. Love the spices and patchouli. So far it's lasted about 6 hours on my skin, just from a quick squirt when it first arrived.

Another solid fragrance from the Trade Routes Collection. Cairo is definitely similar to Constantinople, the only differences being that this has a much more noticeable patchouli and saffron's sweet spiciness, whereas Constantinople focuses more on the rose and vanilla. In a way, it's like Cairo is the masculine scent and Constantinople is the feminine one, but I think both are unisex either way. For some reason the whiffs I was catching of this scent in the very early opening smelled like black olives, but that might just be me and in any case it was for about 5 minutes. Overall a very solid scent but not my pick for a rose-patchouli/oud. Performance was mediocre but once again I had issues with my sample's atomizer, I really wish fragrance houses moved away from that generic sample vial and used the one with the better atomizer (people with a ton of samples like me might know what vials I'm referring to). Projection was moderate but sillage was a bit dense despite how little I could spray on myself. Even while being outdoors I could smell myself a lot. Longevity is where the poor atomizer affects performance the most, as it's only been about four hours since I sprayed this on and it's already very weak, almost gone. I'm confident that off a decent atomizer/bottle this will last a really long time on skin.

Cairo by Penhaligons is an amazing fragrance from the British fragrance house and smells just like a rich Arabian prince and has a nice blend of Arabian rose and vanilla which may smell like oud notes like many people have mentioned but before you buy just know that there are no oud notes but it still smells very Arabic. I do love the amazing saffron note at the start and really does boost the Arabian feel of this fragrance too which smells very authentic in my opinion. Now yes the prices at Penhaligons are absolutely crazy just like Tom Ford with this costing around $300 retail but if there is one fragrance that they sell that is worth the high price point it would be this one. Penhaligions get a lot of stick about their fragrance's longevity but this one lasts a long time at around 12 hours on my skin which is amazing in comparison to Lord George which lasts around 6 hours so expect this to last a long time. I also love the projection from this fragrance as this can be smelled from a good distance away and leaves a nice Arabian scent trail when you walk around. Scent: 10/10 Performance: 10/10 Longevity: 9/10 Sillage: 9/10 Price: 7/10 Blind Buy Safe: 9/10 Overall: 10/10

Now this is quintessential rich mans/woman’s oud. There’s no Oud in it?! Well this is what people think oud fragrance smells like and want oud to smell like. Like Dubai mall on a busy day, or London’s Harrods department store on a good day. It’s sweet, clean, juicy oud. So clean smelling, but if you spray too much you get a strong smell of unscented bar soap. A rose combination that matches the quality of Dior Oud Ispahan, without all the animalistic heaviness of Dior O.I. This one can stand the heat. Like a premium hair salon product, it seems like it gets better and better as it mixes with your body heat and body chemistry. Irresistible sniff after sniff. I guess you’d wear it more for yourself to enjoy. Definitely is on the masculine side, I can imagine a high ranking Middle Eastern Sheikh with a great head of hair and beard, wonderful diplomatic crispy white smile & firm handshake, wearing this daily in his white traditional robe. This fragrance for sure forces you to dress well and to walk head held high. There’s no point wearing this in your sweats.

This is very nice - one of my favorite Penhaligon's of all. The packaging makes me so happy. As a child I was obsessed with ancient Egypt and ancient art featuring lotus and papyrus flowers just get me every time! The only drawbacks of this scent is a synthetic note somewhere, similar to ambroxan which is like a cheese grater on my sinuses. That keeps this from being a holy grail product and FBW for me. It's also a sillage monster, so keep that in mind and use extremely sparingly because it also seems to last forever and is very difficult to scrub away once it's on something, skin included. That said, I smell oud despite not being listed in the notes, and the cypriol and labdanum are especially noticable to me. It dries down to a warm, soft vanillic powder on me which leaned surprisingly feminine. It's worth a shot if you like the brand.

Very sweet from the damask rose, powdery & woody dry-down, with decent performance. For me this is initially super sharp reminiscent of something like lychee fruit, but I find it develops and mellows down beautifully over the first hour. To me, no amber notes as others mentioned, and the spicy notes are woody yet not dark, and definitely not fresh or green. Lasts an age on clothes, and can still detect after ~10 hours on the wrists & neck. Projection is not overbearing and leaves a trail in your wake for the first 2-4 hours. Perfect for autumn, winter nights, and feels a little gentlemanly on first spray, but dries down into something more unisex. That being said, a safe blind buy for both men and women, unless you're expecting floral, fresh scents.

ohhhhh on first sniff its a heady dry spice with saffron and a bit of rose that i smell...like an old spice cupboard in your granny's house. but this is not old/mature smelling. This leaves an intoxicating smell on my skin where i keep sniffing myself all day. the woody notes combine with the spicy notes to make the wearer feel exotic, sexy, powerful, beautiful and confident all at the same time. I went to purchase Halfeti for my guy, but ended up getting this one for me after spraying this on in store...i guess hubby will have to wait haha. while Halfeti is definitely a stronger punchier fragrance, Cairo is softer (but still complex) enough that women can wear without being intimidated by it. LOVE

Beautiful rose fragrance, a bit tart. Nice but not great for me. Great lasting power though. Update: I ended up with a FB and the more I wear it, the more I love it. It's exactly what I expected Halfeti to be, middle eastern rose, somewhat dark, somewhat comforting, completely mesmerizing. It's not very loud but it's not a perfume for people looking for a clean, fresh scent. There's just enough mystery in it to make it exotic, yet not unpalatable or baffling to the masses. It lasts 10 hours on me and reaches those who come near me for the first couple of hours; then it's mostly a skin scent. I have received numerous compliments on it and I'm starting to feel like I've found my holy grail at last!

I got this perfume just last week. Prior to my purchase about 2 months back, the saleslady sprayed this perfume all over my shirt since they ran out of stocks at that time. The perfume could be smelt till today in my wardrobe and it caught onto my other shirts. The longevity for this perfume is insane and the sillage is relatively good. My girlfriend liked this perfume on me. It has the right balance of woody, rosy and sweetness. The dry down is great too! This is a unique scent to me and definitely a must buy for all sweet wood lovers! There is a hint of grainy scents towards the end which actually is what Cairo is all about since you can find abundance of sand in Cairo, Egypt. 10/10 for me :D

This is the first time in my ~50 fragrance collection where I find that what I smell on the perfume and how I perceive it (in terms of season and day/night) completely contradicts what the vast majority of people here seem to get from it. To me it smells woody and sweet, dare I say almost fresh. Smells like it could work in summertime, not to mention spring. I do not get “spicy”, thick, old-school or heavy from Cairo at all. Makes me wonder whether my batch has strayed from the “regular” formulation somewhat, since my perception of this scent is so different from what people report here. Also makes me wary of wearing this during spring/summer. Might choke others out around me 😄

Magnificent rosey oud. Cairo is a beautiful creation from Penhaligon. It is made up of rose, with oudy-&-herbal nagarmotha/patchouli combo. There a slight touch of sweet spiciness with saffron, vanilla, and sandalwood. Quite oriental, quiet beautiful! Woody, warm, spicy, and only slightly sweet. Warm as the embrace of a hug. It does indeed smell like Armani Privé Rose d'Arabie as "Blacktundras" have mentioned below. However, Cario is woodier and less sweet, which I honestly prefer. This gorgeous gem is a mature cool weather wear for both sexes. I really love Cairo but that price tag ~$235 is a turnoff, especially since I already have Rose d'Arabie. "Love"

This is very seductive. The quality of the ingredients in this are clearly elite. It’s just so lovely. The top notes of rose and saffron last for ages and begin to warm and sweeten with the vanilla heart which then also lasts all the way alongside the base notes of cedar and sandalwood which again are just divine. It’s rare I can smell every individual note so clearly in a fragrance and yet it be so perfectly blended at the same time. Absolutely top notch stuff. Although generally definitely for the colder weather there’s something about this on a warm late evening that just works very well, especially if you’re dressed up and not around food.

Very creamy scent, you can cleary smell a bit of oud in the dry down. If halfeti is dry, harsher, more leathery and spicy, Cairo is sweeter, rounder, little less sillage and less longevity. I can't define Cairo as a gourmand but the vanilla and the saffron makes it powdery, warm, with a touch of sweet and in the background you catch a glimpse of something dirty/animalic. I really like it, it's very oriental and it smell luxorious, unisex and it is suitable almost for all the season, btw i recommend it in the colder seasons. It's a safe scent with a touch of twist, all the people I've had smelling it they've appreciated it. 8/10

Cairo is a lovely fragrance. I received my 100ml bottle from a Penhaligon's outlet for £140. For that price, it is a very good deal - at RRP, less so. It lasts long, around 8 hours, and projection for the first 2-3 hours is very strong on me before fading to a small scent bubble for the next several hours. Initially it has strong rose and vanilla notes with the saffron providing an interesting mix of sweet, floral and earthy. This develops into a pleasant mix of wood and vanilla after several hours. Perfect for a cool-mild but sunny day. Going a little against the grain here, but I feel it's a perfect daytime spring fragrance.

I like this fragrance very much. My nose picks up instantly the saffron and then the rose, declined in a sweet, feminine way. I don't think it's too much for people who dislike sweet perfumes, because it's subtle and the spices tone it down. It's not one of those perfumes that leave a cloud of scent when you walk, but on my skin it's very persistent, while delicate. It reminds me of an old adventure movie set in a pyramid, or Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie. I would say it smells more like the idea of Egypt we have in the west than an actual oriental fragrance, but in a good, golden age Hollywood, nostalgic way.

I love Cairo. Rose but spicy, opulent, long lasting, exotic. Delicious, rich, opulent overpowering in a gorgeous kind of way. Nice all winter and autumn, stunning in summer, like oud, without that yucky feeling. Gorgeous, one of the few fragrances from the house with longevity: I have a Gucci cardigan which I wear maybe once a year. When I decide to wear it, navy and gold, I spray Cairo all over me. At the end of the evening, I pack away my precious Gucci cardigan in its paper and box. When I open the box after 6 to 9, sometimes 12 months, I can smell Cairo on the cardigan. Absolutely gorgeous 😍

I am so happy. As an Egyptian getting this was a MUST and my family kindly got it for me on my birthday (yaaaaaaaay!). If you like Saffron and Oud YOU'LL LOVE THIS. I dont get alot of rose yes its there but it almost balances the Saffron. The Vanilla gives this some sort of elegant weight and sweetness. Basically, I dont enjoy heavy perfumes but the patchouli and rose in this balances everything. The Oudy sort of scent that it gives is a combo of the Saffron and Vanilla which (if you live in the Middle East) is very elegant and sophisticated. It kinda smells like honey as well

At the top, you'll get a strong spicy cypriol note. The heart is a close relative of Guerlain Santal Royal. The base is a rose & dirty patch dance. I also suspect their is more than that (cumin, incense, pepper, cinnamon) but it's impossible to individually spot... all is part of a majestic blend. Heavy projection in the first 2 hours, moderate for another 1-2 hours. Great longevity. Spectacular! The newest and in my top 3 from Penhaligon's! Still, I'd wait for it to show at discounter's, as the retail price tag is a bit high imo. Fall/Winter evenings, 30+