iExplore Egypt Experience(Trip #36981)

Tour Overview

An experienced Egyptologist accompanies you on every leg of this luxurious Nile cruise. Explore Egypt's ancient temples, from the mysterious Sphinx to the awe-inspiring Temple of Kom Ombo. Highlights include a desert camel ride, a tour of the once-flourishing city of Memphis, the opulent Grand Palace of Giza, exploring the treasure-filled tombs of the Valley of the Kings, and a tour of the Temple of Luxor, dedicated to the god Amun.

Day by Day Itinerary

Egypt Experience (9-day): Featuring 4NT Nile Cruise Luxor - Aswan

Day 01: Cairo, Egypt
Arrive Cairo and transfer to your hotel for overnight. Cairo, one of the world’s largest urban areas, is constantly full of life and movement with honking horns, children playing, and merchants selling their wares.
Overnight, Cairo

Day 02: Cairo
Full day excursion to Giza, Sakkara and Memphis. First visit the Great Pyramids of Giza, the only present-day survivors of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The Pyramids rank among the world’s greatest tourist attractions and never lose their ability to inspire and overwhelm visitors. A visit to Egypt would not be complete without a ride on a “ship of the desert” and so you will have an opportunity to mount your individual camel for a short ride across the sands of Giza to the Sphinx. Enter the temple of the mysterious Sphinx, an ancient figure shrouded in legend and mystery. Continue to Sakkara where you will see the famous Step Pyramid of King Zoser, the first freestanding stone structure in the world. Next, visit Memphis, where you will see the ancient capital that once stood as a flourishing metropolis during the time of the Pharaohs. Return to the hotel and enjoy the evening at leisure.
Breakfast
Overnight, Cairo

Day 03: Cairo - Luxor
Transfer to the Cairo Domestic Airport to board your flight to Luxor. Upon arrival in Luxor, transfer to your cruise boat, moored in private dock. The staff will assist you with check-in. Visit the West Bank of Luxor and explore the Valley of the Kings, a vast City of the Dead where magnificent tombs were carved into the desert rocks, decorated richly, and filled with treasures for the afterlife by generations of Pharaohs. You will also have the chance to visit at least one tomb in the Valley of the Queens. Rising out of the desert plain in a series of terraces, the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut (Ancient Egypt’s only female Pharaoh) merges with the sheer limestone cliffs that surround it, as if nature herself had built this extraordinary monument. On the way back to the river Nile, your road passes by the famed Colossi of Memnon, known in Ancient Greek times for their haunting voices at dawn. Lunch will be served on board in the main restaurant.
This afternoon your Egyptologist will guide you on a tour of the East Bank of Luxor, starting with the strikingly graceful Temple of Luxor dedicated to the god Amun. Return to your cruise for afternoon tea on board in the lounge. Gourmet menu on board for dinner. Overnight in Luxor.
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Overnight, Cruise Boat

Day 04: Luxor - Esna
After an early breakfast buffet on board visit the Temple of Karnak, built over more than a thousand years by generations of Pharaohs. The great "Hypostyle Hall" is an incredible forest of giant pillars, covering an area larger than the whole of Notre Dame Cathedral.
At 9:00 am you will sail to Esna and enjoy lunch onboard. Afternoon tea will be served in the lounge. Tonight you will be greeted by your Boat Manager, who will introduce you to the boat staff and review on-board facilities and your cruise program for the next few days. Complimentary Egyptian wine and local beer will be served, together with freshly prepared canapés. Gourmet menu on board for dinner. Overnight on board in Esna.
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Overnight, Cruise Boat

Day 05: Esna - Edfu - Kom Ombo
Breakfast buffet on board this morning. The Temple of Esna is located in the center of town and very close to the River Nile. This morning your Egyptologist will guide you round the Greco-Roman Temple which is dedicated to the ram headed God Khnum, the God of creation. The beautifully preserved Great Hypostyle Hall was built during the reign of the Roman Emperor Claudius; it was excavated from the silt that had accumulated through centuries of annual Nile floods and is about nine meters below present-day street level.
Lunch on board, while you cruise to Edfu. This afternoon, explore the largest and most completely preserved Pharaonic – albeit Greek-built – temple in Egypt, the extraordinary Temple of Horus at Edfu. Afternoon tea will be served during the cruise to Kom Ombo.Tonight’s dinner on board will be an “Egyptian Night” costume party for all guests, with a chance to dress up in traditional Egyptian “galabeyas”. Dinner will be a lavish buffet of Egyptian specialties, followed by oriental music and dancing for everyone.
Overnight on board in Kom Ombo.
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Overnight, Cruise Boat

Day 06: Kom Ombo - Aswan
Breakfast buffet on board. Visit the Temple of Kom Ombo, dedicated to the crocodile-god Sobek. The temple stands at a bend in the Nile where in ancient times sacred crocodiles basked in the sun on the riverbank. Lunch on board while you cruise to Aswan. This afternoon, your Egyptologist guide will escort you to visit the Aswan High Dam, Egypt’s contemporary example of building on a monumental scale. Philae Temple: Take a short motorboat ride to visit the romantic and majestic Philae Temple on the Island of Agilka. Next we proceed to the Granite Quarries, which supplied the ancient Egyptians with most of the hard stone used in pyramids and temples, and still hold a huge unfinished obelisk. Return to your cruise for afternoon tea. Tonight’s dinner will be a formal gala with white-gloved waiters serving gourmet cuisine. Overnight on board in Aswan.
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Overnight, Cruise Boat

Day 07: Aswan - Cairo
Breakfast onboard, followed by cruise disembarkation. Morning (weather permitting) take a ride on a felucca, a typical Egyptian sail boat, around Elephantine Island, Lord Kitchener’s Botanical Gardens, and the Agha Khan Mausoleum. Transfer by coach to the Aswan Domestic Airport.

Abu Simbel Excursion (extra cost for Silver priced trip):
An airport representative will assist you with check-in for your short flight to Abu Simbel. Arrive Abu Simbel and board a shuttle bus for transfer to the temples of Ramses II and his queen Nefertari. A local Egyptologist will provide a narrated tour of Abu Simbel. Return shuttle to Abu Simbel airport to board your scheduled flight to Aswan and connecting flight to Cairo.

Board you scheduled flight to Cairo. Arrive Cairo, you are met and transferred to your hotel for check-in and overnight.
Breakfast
Overnight, Cairo

Day 08: Cairo

The Museum of Egyptian Antiquities: Your Egyptologist will escort you today on a fascinating tour of 7,000 years of Egyptian history with a visit to the Egyptian Museum of Antiquities. The Museum houses the world’s greatest collection of Ancient Egyptian artifacts, including 12 rooms filled with golden treasures from the world-famous tomb of the boy-king Tutenkhamun.

Coptic Cairo: Your Egyptologist will guide you today round the highlights of Coptic Cairo. There you will find the remains of the old Fortress of Babylon, built at the time of the Romans in Egypt to protect the country from invading enemies. The walls of the fortress enclose the Church of St. Sergius, which is built on a crypt considered to be one of the resting places of the Holy Family during their flight to Egypt 2,000 years ago. You will also see the “Hanging Church”, supported by only one column, and boasting incredible paintings inside. Visit the Synagogue of Ben Ezra, from the time of the once thriving Jewish community in Egypt under the leadership of Rabbi Ben Ezra. Inside were discovered the so-called “Geniza Documents”, which showed an unparalleled source of information about life of the Jews in Egypt’s past. You will also enter the Coptic Museum, which displays a wonderful collection of medieval statues, bells, bone carvings, frescoes, icons and colorful textiles.

Islamic Cairo: Tour fascinating Islamic Cairo, including the beautiful and graceful Mohamed Ali Mosque and the ancient Citadel, a spectacular medieval fortress perched on a hill above the city. Originally built by Salah El-Din in 1176 to fortify the city against the Crusaders, the Citadel was modified and enlarged over the centuries by subsequent rulers and today is a complex of three mosques and four museums. Proceed to the fascinating Khan El-Khalili Bazaar – reputed to be the largest bazaar in the Middle East. Originally founded as a watering stop for caravanserai in the 14th century, the bazaar has now grown to vast proportions. As you wander through the labyrinth of narrow streets you will find workshops and stalls selling all manner of things from woodwork, glassware and leather goods to perfumes, fabrics and Pharaonic curiosities.
Return to hotel and the rest of the day is at leisure.

Breakfast
Overnight, Cairo

Day 09: Cairo - Depart
Transfer to Cairo International Airport to check-in for your homebound flight.
Breakfast