Itinerary
- Day 1
Cairo
You'll arrive in Cairo and be picked up at the airport terminal by an Ancient Egypt Tours representative. A private air-conditioned vehicle takes you to your hotel, where check-in happens at 14:00. If your flight gets in early, you can hang out in the lobby or book a pre-tour extra night for immediate access to your room. The tour operator will contact you to confirm meeting times for the following day.
- Start point
- Cairo, Al Qahirah, Egypt (Pick up from centrally located hotels in Cairo and Giza or Cairo Airport)
Optional Activities
- 2-hour open buffet dinner Nile cruise including belly dancer, local band and skirt rotation performer
- Sound and Light show
- Day 2
Giza - Aswan
Breakfast at your hotel starts the day, then your guide meets you for a full exploration of the Giza Plateau. You'll see the Great Pyramid of Khufu, Khafre's pyramid, the pyramid of Menkaure, and the Great Sphinx, plus the Valley Temple. There's a photo stop to capture all three pyramids with Cairo's skyline in the background. After lunch at a local restaurant, you head to the Egyptian Museum to walk through displays of over 250,000 artifacts, including King Tutankhamun's golden treasures. By evening you'll transfer to the train station for an overnight sleeper train to Aswan with dinner included.
- Meals
- Breakfast (Hotel breakfast in Cairo), Lunch (Lunch at local restaurant), Dinner (Dinner on sleeper train)
Included Activities
- Visit Great Pyramid of Khufu (Cheops) and 3 small pyramids
- Visit Khafre's pyramid, funeral temple, pyramid of Menkaure, and 3 small pyramids
- Visit Great Sphinx
- Visit Valley Temple
- Photo opportunity of three pyramids
- Visit Egyptian Museum (Museum of Egyptian Antiquities)
Landmarks Great Pyramid of Khufu (Cheops) Pyramid of Khafre Pyramid of Menkaure Great Sphinx Valley Temple Egyptian Museum - Day 3
Aswan
Breakfast comes on the train before you arrive in Aswan. Our representatives meet you and drive you to your hotel for check-in. From there, you'll see the High Dam, an engineering project completed between 1960 and 1970. Next on the agenda is the Unfinished Obelisk, the largest known ancient obelisk that would have reached about 42 meters and weighed 1,200 tons if it had been completed. In the afternoon, you'll sail by felucca (a traditional Egyptian sailboat) out to Agilkia island to visit the Philae Temple, which was moved there to protect it from Lake Nasser's rising waters. You'll return to your hotel in the evening.
- Meals
- Breakfast (Breakfast on sleeper train), Lunch (Lunch at local restaurant)
Included Activities
- Visit High Dam
- Visit Unfinished Obelisk
- Felucca sailboat to island of Agilkia
- Visit Philae Temple (Temple of Isis)
Landmarks High Dam (Aswan High Dam) Unfinished Obelisk Philae Temple - Day 4
Abu Simbel Day Trip from Aswan
An Ancient Egypt Tours representative picks you up early for a 3.5-hour drive to Abu Simbel. The main stops are the Great Sun Temple of Ramses II and the Temple of Queen Nefertari. Both temples were buried in sand until 1813, then relocated in 1960 by Egyptian and UNESCO efforts to prevent flooding from the Nile. Ramses II built his temple partly as a monument to himself, with murals showing his famous victory at the Battle of Kadesh. He also created the Nefertari Temple for his favorite wife (among roughly 200 total). Lunch happens at a local restaurant before the drive back to your hotel.
- Meals
- Breakfast (Hotel breakfast in Aswan), Lunch (Lunch at local restaurant)
Included Activities
- Visit Great Sun Temple of Ramses II
- Visit Temple of Queen Nefertari
Landmarks Great Sun Temple of Ramses II (Abu Simbel) Temple of Queen Nefertari (Abu Simbel) - Day 5
Aswan to Luxor
After breakfast at your hotel, you'll transfer to Aswan's train station and travel to Luxor. A guide meets you there to start your sightseeing tour at Karnak Temple, the largest place of worship ever constructed. Its ancient name Ipet-isut means 'the most sacred of places,' and multiple generations of pharaohs built it over two thousand years. You'll walk through the Hypostyle Hall with its forest of massive pillars. Next is Luxor Temple, built by Amenhotep III in the 18th Dynasty and completed by Ramesses II in the 19th Dynasty. Both temples honor the god Amun-Ra, his wife Mut, and their son Khonsu. You'll see Ramses II's Obelisk standing in front of the 1st Pylon.
- Meals
- Breakfast (Hotel breakfast in Aswan), Lunch (Lunch at local restaurant)
Included Activities
- Visit Karnak Temple
- Visit Luxor Temple
- View Obelisk of Ramses II
Landmarks Karnak Temple Luxor Temple Obelisk of Ramses II - Day 6
Cairo
After breakfast in Luxor, your guide takes you across the Nile to the West Bank. You'll start at the two colossal Amenhotep III statues (the Colossi of Memnon), then head to the Valley of the Kings where pharaohs' tombs are carved into desert rock with rich decorations and treasures for the afterlife. You'll enter 3 tombs during your visit. Later comes Queen Hatshepsut's Temple at Deir El Bahari, Egypt's only female pharaoh's impressive multi-terraced structure rising from the desert plain. There's free time in Luxor for shopping in the evening. Late afternoon brings a transfer to the train station for your overnight sleeper train to Cairo with dinner included.
- Meals
- Breakfast (Hotel breakfast in Luxor), Dinner (Dinner on sleeper train)
Included Activities
- Visit Colossi of Memnon
- Visit Valley of the Kings (3 tombs)
- Visit Queen Hatshepsut's Temple at Deir El Bahari
Optional Activities
- Shopping in Luxor during free time
Landmarks Colossi of Memnon Valley of the Kings Temple of Hatshepsut at Deir El Bahari - Day 7
Cairo
Breakfast happens on the train before you're met and transferred to your Cairo hotel. This is your free day to rest, relax, and set your own pace. You might shop around the city, explore neighborhoods on your own, or arrange optional activities depending on what interests you.
- Meals
- Breakfast (Breakfast on sleeper train)
Optional Activities
- Old Cairo Day Tour to Islamic & Coptic Sightseeing
- Day 8
Cairo Departure
You'll have breakfast at your hotel before heading to the airport. An Ancient Egypt Tours representative picks you up and drives you there for your flight home. Thanks for traveling with Ancient Egypt Tours.
- End point
- Cairo, Al Qahirah, Egypt (Drop-off at centrally located hotels in Cairo and Giza or Cairo Airport)
- Meals
- Breakfast (Hotel breakfast in Cairo)
