Country(ies): Egypt
Tour type: Private
Group size: Min: 1 | Max: Any
Accommodation: 5-star hotels & 5-star deluxe Nile cruiseboat
Meals:
Transport: A/C Minibus, 5-star deluxe Nile cruiseboat & flights
Highlights: The Pyramids & Sphinx, Egyptian Museum, Luxury Nile Cruise, Valley of the Kings, Medinat Habu Temple, Temple of Karnak, Red Sea beaches & snorkelling
From ancient times the Nile has been regarded as the lifeblood of Egypt, while the Red Sea Riviera is increasingly famous for its beaches and excellent snorkelling and scuba-diving. This tour combines a luxury Nile Cruise from Aswan to Luxor, 5 days at a top level Red Sea resort, with time in Cairo to visit the Pyramids, Sphinx and Egyptian Museum. So travel with us and cruise down this great river, experiencing the wonders of ancient Egypt as you go, and enjoying all the comfort, luxury and variety that modern Egypt has to offer.
You start your Egyptian adventure in Cairo with a visit to one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, the great pyramids at Gisa. We also visit the famous Egyptian Museum with its vast collection of historic Pharaonic exhibits, not least the treasures found in Tutankhamun's tomb.
A domestic flight then takes you south to Luxor where you take tours to both the East & West banks of the Nile. Visits include the Pharaonic tombs in the Valley of the Kings, Queen Hatchepsut's temple, and the colourful Medinat Habu temple, which really gives an idea of what Egypt's temples used to look like. On the East bank we visit Luxor temple in the middle of town, and the huge temple complex at Karnak.
From Luxor, you slowly make your way upriver on board a 5-star deluxe level cruise boat. You can relax on the sun-deck and watch rural Egyptian life go by during the day, before enjoying a variety of cuisines for dinner on board in the evening. En route you will stop at the important temples of Komombo and Edfu before finally reaching Aswan.
We send our own Egyptologist guide on board the boat with you so you are not joining the large boat groups for the tours, and book upper deck cabins whenever available (no extra supplement).
The beautiful town of Aswan is situated beside the cascading waters of the Nile. Here you can relax and watch myriad feluccas sail lazily around the many small islands or experience traditional Egyptian life with a stroll along the mazy streets of the town’s colourful bazaar. We take you on a visit to the lovely island temple of Philae and you have the option of a tour out to Abu Simbel, with its remarkable temple to Ramses II, painstakingly dismantled and rebuilt when Lake Nasser was created.
A short journey by road takes you back to Luxor for a night before you travel overland to the Red Sea Riviera resort town of Hurghada, where you have 5 nights in a 5-star beach resort (extra days can be added here if you wish). You can try some snorkelling, scuba-diving or a glass-bottomed boat trip over the world-famous reefs, take a jeep trip into the desert, visit the ancient Roman quarries, or just relax in the hotel and on the beach.
From Hurghada, we fly back to Cairo for a final tour of the city including visits to the Citadel with its collection of mosques and palaces, Coptic Cairo's ancient churches and narrow alleyways, and a final exploration and time for shopping in the Khan-el-Khalili bazaar. The tour ends with a transfer to the airport for your flight home.
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Hotel Gala Dinners
Many of Egypt's hotels and Nile cruise boats arrange a very special gala dinner with entertainment in the evening on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve. Payment for these is often optional on Christmas Eve (24 Dec) but may be compulsory on New Year's Eve (31 Dec), whether you attend or not. Prices can range from around US$50 to over US$150 per person. Final decisions on prices and whether dinners are compulsory are made relatively close to the time. We aim to always select hotels that make their Gala Dinners optional, though this is is not always possible. Gala dinner prices are therefore not included in our prices above, but will be added to your booking if they become required. More information is available on request.
Seasonal prices for this tour are given below. We can also customise the itinerary to fit your personal requirements. Please contact us for details and prices.
The hotels and accommodations listed below are the ones we most often use on this tour. From time to time we may exchange these for similar properties at the same level. In general, specific hotels cannot be guaranteed on our group tours, but you may select your preferred options if you are booking a tailor-made trip.
Mena House Hotel
Cairo
Overlooking the Pyramids, this luxury hotel is split into the tradition Palace wing and more modern Garden wing, and includes a full range of services.
Steigenberger Nile Palace Hotel
Luxor
This hotel, formerly Le Meridien Luxor, is a modern hotel built in 2001. It is ideally situated right on the banks of the Nile and is within easy reach of all the major sites of Luxor.
Nile Cruiseboat
Luxor
A luxury Nile Cruise boat is a superbly appointed, floating, 5-star hotel. The cruise boat has many of the facilities of a normal hotel, including restaurants, bars, shops, a relaxing sun deck and swimming.
Tia Heights Makadi Resort
Hurghada
With a 600 yards private beach, this 5-star resort occupies a prime location on Makadi Bay. Overlooking the Red Sea Mountains, it boasts a lagoon-style pool, spa and a diving centre.
Le Riad Hotel de Charme
Egypt
This lovely small boutique all-suite hotel is situated in the heart of bustling Old Cairo within walking distance of the Khan-el-Khalili bazaar. All suites are individually designed and decorated and the hotel also features a roof terrace restaurant.
Our tours are designed to include all that you need to enjoy a really special time in the destination youre visiting. However, we do also offer some extra options to complement the tour and add some additional sightseeing or activities, or some extra time at either end of the tour.
All accommodation based options (e.g. Single supplements, extra nights, cruise upgrades) should be booked and paid for in advance so that we can make the appropriate arrangements. Other options may either be booked and paid for in advance or while you are on the tour, though we recommend booking in advance to ensure there are no issues with availability.
Many options are priced the same throughout the year, but some may incur single or high season supplements - full details are given on the tour reservation form or on request.
The detailed Tour Notes below have been written to give you some more detailed information about how the tour runs, what to expect, and how to prepare for your holiday. We recommend downloading an up to date copy of these shortly before you travel in case of any changes.
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Egypt Experience & Country Reviews
Product Review
Posted 29th of Mar 2019
Important Egyptian sites were available to visit. They were visited.
Product Review
Posted 27th of Mar 2019
This was a great trip and worth every penny. Our Egyptologist tour guide was 'Big Mo' which made all the difference. He was knowledgeable, kind, and hospitable. He made sure we had a solid introduction to each tour site and then was available for more detailed information if we wanted. Book a tour with 'Big Mo' if at all possible!
Product Review
Posted 27th of Mar 2019
Excellent value—I purchased it initially on Groupon and Egypt Uncovered allowed us to make additions.
Product Review
Posted 26th of Mar 2019
Excellent tour. From the moment we landed in Cairo until we left, we were well taken care of. We experienced so much of Egypt -- from temples and pyramids and tombs to a bonfire dinner and sing-a-long on an island. Our guide (Waleed) was exceptional. His love and knowledge of Egypt was evident throughout the tour. He helped Egypt come alive for us. We were very pleased with the tour.
Product Review
Posted 26th of Mar 2019
Perfect adventure! Food, Tours, Service, Guides, even transportation!
Product Review
Posted 26th of Mar 2019
With all we did and the amount of travel, I was shocked at how cost effective the tour company made it. You get your money's worth after you think about busses, felucca sailboat, overnight train, hotel rooms, and the amazing tour guide.