Egypt 18 Nights 19 Days Cairo Luxor western Desert alexanderia Nile cruise

Day 1 (Arrival Cairo)
 

You will be met and assisted by one of our representatives at Cairo Airport who will escort you to your hotel for a night in Cairo.

Day 2 (Cairo)
 

You will be picked up from your hotel at 8 AM to enjoy a day tour of Cairo. Your first stop will be at Giza Plateau, where one of the remaining wonders of the Ancient World, the Pyramids of Giza, still stands. You visit the Pyramids and enjoy panoramic views from the western plateau, then continue down the valley where the guardian of this Mortuary complex, the mighty Sphinx, stands with great pride. Then you will be brought to Tahrir Square, the heart of downtown Cairo. You visit the National Archaeological Museum and acquaint yourself with Egypt’s ancient history, spanning a period of over 50 centuries. The Museum has the world’s largest and richest collection of Egyptian Antiquities, among them the priceless collection of King Tut. Then you will be transferred to your hotel for a night in Cairo (Meals included: Breakfast and lunch).

Day 3 (Alexandria)
 

You will be picked up after breakfast to be driven to Alexandria (approx. 3 hours), the bride of the Mediterranean Sea. Upon arrival in Alexandria your tour starts with a visit of the Catacombs of Kom el-Shoqqafa. These tombs were tunneled into the bedrock in the age of the Antonine emperors in the 2nd century AD. They were built for a single wealthy family still practicing the ancient Egyptian religion. These tombs represent the last existing major construction for the sake of the Egyptian religion. Next is a visit to Pompey’s Pillar. This high column of 30 meter was constructed in honour of the Emperor Diocletain at the end of the 4th century. The column was originally a part of the Temple of the Serapis, which once was a magnificent structure but unfortunately destroyed. Then you will have lunch, after which you visit Fort Qaitbey. This fort was built in 1480 by a Mamluk sultan on top of the remains of the ancient Pharos lighthouse, which was destroyed by an earthquake. Material of the old tower was used to build the fort. Then you will pay a visit to the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, the Alexandrian library. This modern architectural building was inspired by the great ancient library, which was built in the late 3rd century BC. Then you will be transferred to your hotel for a night in Alexandria (Meals included: Breakfast and lunch).

Day 4 (Marsa Matruh and Siwa)
 

After breakfast at your hotel in Alexandria, you will drive to El Alamein. In El Alamein you visit the site where the great battle took place during WW II, the War Museum and the Cemetery. Then you drive on to Marsa Matruh, where you can enjoy the view of the beautiful bay and the coastline of the Mediterranean Sea. After Marsa Matruh you continue to Siwa. Siwa is an oasis that is still strongly influenced by the Berber language and traditions, and you will see that Siwa is a very unique oasis and differs much from other Egyptian oases. Upon arrival in Siwa, you will be taken to your hotel where you have dinner and spend the night (Meals included: Breakfast and dinner).

Day 5 (Siwa Oasis)
 

After breakfast you will enjoy a trip to the Temple of the Oracle, which is dedicated to the sun god Amun. It is said that Alexander the Great consulted this oracle in Siwa. After this, you will go see the 13th-century Fortress of Shali, a magnificent scenery of mud-brick buildings in the centre of Siwa. Then, you visit the Mountain of the Dead (Gebel El Mawta). Here you can see some interesting tombs with coloured paintings, like the Tomb of Si Amun, Tomb of Mesu-Isis and the Tomb of the Crocodile. After visiting the tombs you go to Cleopatra’s Bath, a natural spring and local bathing spot. Then you will go to Fatnas Spring, a small island in Lake Siwa. It is a beautiful place amid palm trees to enjoy the sunset. Later, you will be taken back to your hotel for your last night in Siwa (Meals included: Breakfast, lunch and dinner).

Day 6 (Bahariya Oasis)
 

In the morning, after breakfast, you leave Siwa to start a desert safari with an air-conditioned 4x4 Jeep. First, you will drive to the Oasis of Bahariya. Lunch is served on the way to Bahariya. Once there, you will have dinner and spend the night in a hotel (Meals included: Breakfast, lunch and dinner).

Day 7 (Bahariya and Farafra Oasis)
 

After breakfast at your hotel, you will be taken for a guided visit of the Temple of Ain El Muftella, a Roman water source and the Tomb of Bannantiu. Then you will pay a visit to the Museum of Golden Mummies. After this visit you will drive to the Oasis of Farafra. There you have lunch and continue your safari to the magical White Desert, which is the largest in the world. You will see beautiful rock formations in the shapes of mushroom and more. At night you will find a place to spend the night in the open air. Let your feet feel the sand and feel one with Mother Nature as you have dinner in the desert camp and enjoy an overnight under the stars (Meals included: Breakfast, lunch and dinner).

Day 8 (Dakhla Oasis)
 

You can start your day with a beautiful sunrise in the desert, after which you have breakfast. Then you drive to the Oasis of Dakhla, where you check in to your hotel. After lunch here, you will visit El Qasr, the oldest and still inhabited Islamic town in the Western Desert, and also the Tombs of El Mozawaka, that include fresco’s made during the Greco-Roman occupation. In the evening after dinner, you can enjoy swimming in the local Hot Springs or you can have an optional camel trek. You will spend the night in your hotel (Meals included: Breakfast, lunch and dinner).

Day 9 (Kharga Oasis)
 

After breakfast early in the morning you will drive to the village of Mut, where you can enjoy swimming in the natural Hot and Cold Springs. Its water contains iron, magnesium, sulfur and chloride and has a healing element which is good for rheumatism, colds, skin diseases and kidney stones. Then you will head on to the Oasis of Kharga, which is the capital of the oases in the New Valley. Here, you will visit one of the oldest Christian cemeteries in the world, the Necropolis of El Bagawat. In some of the tombs you can see colourful paintings of biblical scenes, such as the Exodus of Moses, the sacrifice of Isaac by Abraham and Noah’s Ark. After visiting the tombs you visit Hibis Temple, which was dedicated to the sun god Amun. You will spend the night in a hotel in Kharga (Meals included: Breakfast, lunch and dinner).

Day 10 (Luxor East Bank)
 

In the morning, after breakfast at your hotel, you continue your journey to Luxor, where you will check in to your hotel and have lunch. After lunch you will start a day tour of the East Bank of Luxor with a visit to Karnak. Karnak is a complex of temples built in different reigns, starting with the Avenue of Sphinxes, the Hypostyle Hall with its 134 gigantic columns, the Obelisks of Queen Hatshepsut and Tutomosis I, the Temple of Amon adorned with lotus and papyrus designs, the Granite Scarbeus of Amenophis III and the Sacred Lake. Karnak beats every other pharaonic monument: it is simply one of the most beautiful monuments. After Karnak you will be brought to Luxor Temple, which is dedicated to the Theben Triad of Amun-Ra, Mut and Khonsu. There you will see the granite statues of Ramses the Great. After this visit you will be transferred back to your hotel for an overnight stay in Luxor (Meals included: Breakfast and lunch).

Day 11 (Luxor West Bank and Nile cruise)
 

After breakfast you begin your day tour of the West Bank of Luxor by crossing the Nile to visit the Colossi of Memnon. With a height of nearly 18 meters, these two statues originally stood in front of the mortuary Temple of Amenophis III, of which only ruins remain. After this site you will head on to the Valley of the Kings, the most famous concentration of royal tombs. This ancient necropolis is a must-see for Luxor travelers. Here your Egyptologist tour guide can best advise you as to which tombs to visit. Also, you can choose to see the most famous attraction, the Tomb of Tutankhamun (which carries an extra charge). After visiting the tombs you will continue to the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut, the only woman ever to reign over Egypt as pharaoh. Then you will be taken to start your 5 star Nile cruise. On arrival at the cruise ship a buffet lunch will be served on board, while it makes a sail for Esna. You can spend the afternoon relaxing on the sundeck while watching the local life on the river and its banks. Afternoon tea will be served on the sundeck. During the evening the ship will sail toward Edfu. You will have dinner and an overnight on board (Meals included: Breakfast, lunch and dinner).

Day 12 (Edfu and Kom Ombo)
 

In Edfu you visit the Temple of Horus, which is dedicated to Horus, the falcon-headed god. This relatively young pharaonic temple is well-preserved and therefore very impressive. After this temple you will be taken to see the Temple of Kom Ombo, which is dedicated to the crocodile god Sobek. The temple, dating to the Ptolemies, is built on a high dune overlooking the Nile. Ptolemy VI Philometor started building the actual temple in the early second century BC. Ptolemy XIII built the outer and inner hypostyle halls. The outer enclosure wall and a part of the court were built by Augustus sometime after 30 BC, and are mostly gone. Back on board of the cruise ship, lunch will be served as it sails to Aswan. After lunch you have the chance to take a swim in the swimming pool on board and enjoy the view of the Nile. In the evening there is a Galabeya party, where everyone dresses up in traditional Egyptian costumes for dinner and games. Later that night the ship will arrive in Aswan (Meals included: Breakfast, lunch and dinner).

Day 13 (Aswan)
 

Today you can spend at leisure or you can have one of the optional excursions. The most popular excursion is to the Temple of Abu Simbel, which is available by coach or by flight. In the afternoon there is also an optional trip that takes you to a Nubian village and takes you on a Felucca boat ride to Elephant Island and Botanical Island. In Aswan you will spend your last night on board (Meals included: Breakfast, lunch and dinner).

Day 14 (Aswan)
 

After breakfast you will check out, after which you visit the High Dam, an engineering miracle used as an embankment dam situated across the Nile River, built in the 1960’s to protect Egypt from annual floods. Then you will be taken to see the Unfinished Obelisk; it is the largest known ancient obelisk which is located in the northern of the stone quarries. This obelisk is believed to belong to Queen Hatshepsut. Then, by boat, you take a tour to Philae Temple which was built in honour of goddess Isis, the chief deity of the island the temple was built on. It is considered by many to be one of the most beautiful temples in Egypt. You spend the night in a hotel in Aswan (Meals included: Breakfast and lunch).

Day 15 (Hurghada)
 

After breakfast in the early morning you will be picked up from your hotel in Aswan for a transfer by an air-conditioned car to Hurghada (approx. 8 hours). Upon arrival you will be met by one of our representatives who will escort you to your hotel. The rest of the day you can spend at leisure (Meals included: Breakfast, lunch and dinner).

Day 16 (Hurghada)
 

After breakfast at your hotel you will depart for a day of snorkeling in the Red Sea. After enjoying your snorkeling trip you will be taken back to your hotel for another night in Hurghada (Meals included: Breakfast, lunch and dinner).

Day 17 (Hurghada)
 

After breakfast at the hotel you will be taken for a full day of diving. You can enjoy two dives or you can spend your day at leisure. Afterwards you will be transferred back to the hotel for your last night in Hurghada (Meals included: Breakfast, lunch and dinner).

Day 18 (Cairo)
 

You will have breakfast at the hotel in Hurghada, after which you will be driven to Cairo (approx. 5 hours). Once in Cairo, you will be taken to your hotel to check in. The rest of the day you can spend at leisure or you can take an optional tour to the old part of Cairo. Since Egypt was one of the first countries to embrace Christianity, there is Christian heritage to be found in Cairo. You visit the Church of Abu Sergah (Church of St. Sergius and St. Bacchus), the Church of St. Barbara and the Hanging Church. Also, you bring a visit to the old Jewish Ben Ezra Synagogue. Another optional trip is the Sound and Light Show at the Giza Pyramids. You will spend the night in your hotel in Cairo (Meals included: Breakfast).

Day 19 (Departure)
 

After breakfast at your hotel you will be transferred to Cairo Airport for your departure flight (Meals included: Breakfast).


 

package Inclusions

• All Daily  Breakfast
• All Daily Lunch
• Accommodation included: 18 nights in 5 stars hotels 
• Domestic flights( Cairo- Luxor , Luxor- Cairo)
• Private tour
• All transfers by a Private air-conditioned vehicle.
• Private English Egyptology guide (other languages available at request).
• Entrance fees to all the mentioned sites.
• Free Bottles of mineral water during your tours.
• All Service charges & taxes
• all accommodation as mentioned
• All Entrance fees 

• Any Entry visa to Egypt
• Gratuities (recommended)