Just as you touch down in Cairo international airport, one of our representatives will welcome and assist you upon customs before accompanying you on your transfer to your chosen hotel. Check-in, relax, and settle in, ready for your adventurous upcoming days!

Overnight: Cairo.
No Meals.

Rise and Shine to your first day of exploring Cairo’s Highlights. Our Nubian Adventure tour begins with a drive to Giza on the outskirts of Cairo to visit the Sphinx and the three great pyramids of Egypt. One of our local Egyptologist guides will be accompanying you on this and all of your other sightseeing tours, and you’ll find them a wealth of knowledge and full of enthusiasm about Egyptian history, and their country in general. Take in the majestic sight of these enormous structures rising out of the desert is a breathtaking spectacle. You will have the opportunity to climb down right inside the pyramids if you wish, though your guide cannot accompany you (a limited number of tickets are available for the Great Pyramid). We then head to the Egyptian Museum in central Cairo. Home to the fantastic Tutankhamun exhibit the museum hosts a huge number of other ancient Egyptian artefacts.

Overnight on board sleeper train.
Meals: Breakfast and dinner.

Upon arrival to Aswan, This morning we arrive in Aswan and transfer to our hotel overlooking the Nile which is at its most picturesque here, with lush green islands, and feluccas sailing to and from. Aswan itself is a melting pot of African and Middle Eastern cultures, most easily experienced by wandering through the busy markets. It’s also part of the ancient region of Nubia, which comprised parts of present day southern Egypt and northern Sudan around the Nile rivers. Many descendants of the Nubian people still live here and we’ll visit a local Nubian village to see their colourful houses, simple way of life and to enjoy a traditional lunch.
We continue our tour this afternoon with a visit the Temple of Philae, a beautiful island complex reclaimed from the rising waters of Lake Nasser, which we reach by a scenic boat ride. The evening is then free to look around Aswan’s spice and general markets, and to walk up and down the popular Corniche, on the banks of the Nile. An option is also available to take a camel ride through the sands on the far bank of the Nile to St. Simeon’s monastery. If you’ve chosen the Abu Simbel option then head to bed early this evening to be ready for a very early start tomorrow morning.

Overnight Aswan 5 star hotel.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch .

A new day, a new adventure with plenty of new discoveries!
An option is available this morning to visit the temples built by Ramses II at the amazing UNESCO world heritage site of Abu Simbel. We depart very early with the aim of seeing the rising sun over the temples. Transfers, guiding, and entrance fees are included. If you don’t visit Abu Simbel, then this morning is free.
We board our traditional Nile felucca at lunchtime to enjoy an afternoon sailing down the Nile. Floating down the Nile on a felucca is one of Egypt’s most enjoyable activities and you’ll be able to watch local rural Egyptian life pass you by on the banks of the river as you drift past. Our Nubian crew will sail the boat and entertain you on the way, as well as preparing meals for you. Our separate facilities boat will join with us from time to time during the day and moor up with us at night. This boat has a welcome toilet and showers on board as well as a hygienic kitchen. You sleep on the deck of the boat tonight (mattresses, blankets and mosquito nets provided). This is a fun, but basic experience, and we offer an optional upgrade to spend this night back in the Aswan hotel instead of sleeping on the felucca for those wishing some more comfort. You then rejoin the rest of the group the next morning.

Overnight onboard Nile Felucca Cruise.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner.

After breakfast on-board we leave behind our felucca crew and take a tour of nearby temple Edfu before driving north to Luxor. Luxor is built on and around the ancient site of Thebes, and has the greatest concentration of ancient ruins in the Nile Valley, if not the world. To the west, across the Nile, lies the City of the Dead, with its mortuary temples and rock carved tombs, and to the east stand the Temples of Luxor and Karnak. After lunch we’ll visit the massive temple complex of Karnak , once the religious heart of Thebes and Upper Egypt. It was linked to the town of Luxor by a long sphinx lined avenue, and the temple itself was linked to the Nile via a canal along which sailed the sacred boats of the god Amun. The entrance is via a smaller sphinx-lined avenue, built by Ramesses II, after which you enter the temple proper through the enormous pylon entrance. Inside the large Courtyard are three temples dedicated to the gods Amun, Khous and Mut. The much photographed Hypostyle Hall has an impressive 134 towering columns, each is carved with scenes of gods and pharaohs, and hieroglyphic inscriptions cover the walls. In the evening we’ll take a walking tour of the smaller Luxor Temple, which is in the centre of town and is colourfully lit up by night.

Overnight luxury 5 star hotel Luxor.
Meals: Breakfast.

We have an early start today as we cross the Nile for a tour of Luxor’s West Bank. The dusty tombs in the ancient burial site of the Valley of the Kings are still revealing their secrets today and the valley remains one of the world’s most important archaeological sites. We will descend into several of these Pharaonic tombs before also visiting Queen Hatchepsut and Medinat Habu temples, and the huge Colossi of Memnon.
The rest of the day is then free to relax in your 5-star hotel by the Nile, or head out into Luxor to explore independently. You could do some shopping or browsing in the market, take a felucca trip to nearby Banana island or visit the mummification museum. Additional ancient Egyptian sightseeing is also available if you’d like to learn more about Egyptian history. The Workers Village, Valley of the Queens and Rammesseum on the west bank of the Nile are all worth a visit. Your Egyptologist guide will be happy to arrange any extra visits you may like to do (payable locally).
Overnight at Luxor hotel.
Meals: Breakfast.

You can enjoy a welcome lie in today after several early starts. Our afternoon tour then explores the huge temple complex at Karnak. This was once the religious centre of Thebes and Upper Egypt and was linked to Luxor by a long sphinx-lined avenue. The whole complex was in turn linked by a canal to the Nile which the sacred boats of the god Amun moved through. We enter the temple through a smaller sphinx-lined avenue built by Ramesses II, before entering the immense pylon entrance. The huge Courtyard that follows contains are three chapels dedicated to the gods Amun, Khous and Mut while the remarkable Hypostyle Hall has 134 towering columns, each carved with scenes of gods and pharaohs. Hieroglyphic inscriptions adorn the walls. There is a huge amount to see here and our Egyptologist guide will give a tour of several hours followed by some free time for you to look around further.
In the evening we transfer to the station to catch the overnight sleeper train back to Cairo (approx. 9 hours).
Overnight onboard Sleeper Train.
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner.

We arrive back into Cairo this morning and then you have time to explore Cairo as you choose or you may take an optional tour instead. These include a city tour visiting Coptic Cairo, the Citadel and Mohamed Ali Mosque, or a half day tour to Saqqara, Dashour and Memphis to learn more about the history and evolution of pyramid building. Other full day options further afield include a visit to the colonnial city of Alexandria on the Mediterranean, or a trip into the desert outside Cairo to see the World Heritage Site of the Valley of the Whales at Wadi Rayan.
In the late afternoon we take a guided walk through the back streets and bazaars in central Cairo. We’ll walk through the huge Bab al-Futuh gateway and explore streets dedicated to metalwork, spices, pottery, fabric, jewelery and anything else you can imagine as we gradually enter the more touristy Khan-el-Khalili bazaar. We’ll have time for a break to try some tea and a shisha pipe and perhaps enjoy an early dinner of Egypt’s unofficial national dish, Kushari. Finally we transfer you back to your hotel.

Overnight at Cairo 5 star hotel.
Meals: Breakfast.

Your time is free today for some last minute sightseeing or shopping until we transfer you to the airport for your departure flight. If you have an afternoon or evening flight departure, then a half-day tour of Coptic Cairo and the Citadel is available today, or you could take another half-day tour to learn more about the evolution of pyramid building at Saqqara, Dashour & Memphis. tours are also available today. Check out our optional tours section for more details.
Meals: Breakfast.