Highlights of the Nile
Guided- 13 Nights/14 Days
This walking tour includes the Mt Sinai climb. A marvellous mix of Nile Valley splendour, compelling Sinai wilderness and Red Sea coast. In Cairo, the pyramids and Sphinx dazzle with their size and secrets, the Egyptian Museum with its treasures.
In Luxor, the intricately detailed Karnak Temple and the Valley of the Kings inspire awe as much as the Nile itself. Board your cruise boat and sail the great waterway south, to the Nubian capital of Aswan. Here there’s free time to visit Abu Simbel, before we return to Cairo to explore the labyrinthine wonders of the medieval city. Then on to the legendary Sinai- ascend Mount Sinai at dawn for an unforgettable sunrise over boundless desert. Later, relax in the chilled seaside town of Dahab, and spend more time snorkeling at the beach resort of Sharm-el Sheikh.
Itinerary and Highlights
- Day 1 Arrive Cairo. Met and transferred to your hotel.
- Day 2 Cairo – Overnight train to Luxor. Visit the Egyptian Museum, an excellent background for our visit south to Upper Egypt. Drive out to Giza, to visit the Great Pyramids and the Sphinx. Later board the overnight sleeper train to Luxor.
- Day 3 Luxor. Arrive in Luxor at dawn and transfer to your Nile cruise, home for the next four nights. Later take horse-drawn carriages to the important temple of Karnak.
- Day 4 Luxor. Rise early and drive into the Valley of the Kings. Visit three royal tombs and the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut, set in a spectacular natural amphitheatre. Our final stop is at the Colossi of Memnon. Afternoon set sail for Edfu.
- Day 5 Edfu - Komombo. Explore the town of Edfu, and the very well-preserved temple dedicated to Horus, the falcon-headed God. Cruise, enjoy typical Nile scenes, upstream to Komombo and the Temple of Sobek (the crocodile-headed god).
- Day 6 Aswan. Arrive in Aswan, Egypt’s southernmost city. The beautiful Temple of Isis, relocated on Philae Island is one of the highlights of Upper Egypt. Afternoon free to wander the Nubian bazaar, visit the museum or walk the promenade alongside the river.
- Day 7 Aswan - overnight train. Day free. Option Abu Simbel visit. Late afternoon transfer to the station for the overnight train to Cairo.
- Day 8 Cairo. See something of medieval Cairo in the form of the Khan al-Khalili Bazaar, Cairo’s oldest mosque; the Gayer-Anderson Museum; and the beautiful Ibn Tulun Mosque, a fine example of 9thC architecture. Explore the gold market, ‘perfume street’ and the spice market.
- Day 9 Cairo - Mount Sinai. Travel east towards Suez, drive through the Suez Canal tunnel and then to Mount Sinai (8 hrs).
- Day 10 Mount Sinai - Dahab. Early start to ascend Mount Sinai to watch the stunning sun rise - a steep climb (with stairs all the way), in the dark (3 – 4 hrs). Depart along the road to Nuweiba in the company of our Bedouin friends. Ride camels surrounded by spectacular mountains to a Bedouin encampment for lunch then ascend the Nawamis, to an ancient settlement of stone houses. After, drive to the coastal resort town of Dahab.
- Day 11 Sharm el-Sheikh. Drive by jeep over different types of desert and varied rock formations to Sharm el-Sheikh, a picturesque resort at the tip of the Sinai Peninsula.
- Day 12 Sharm el-Sheikh. Day free at Egypt’s most popular resort. Optional activities include most water sports plus snorkelling at the coral reef.
- Day 13 Sharm el-Sheikh - Cairo. Long drive back to Cairo.
- Day 14 Cairo. Arrangements end after breakfast.
- Day 15
- Day 16
- Day 17
- Day 18
- Day 19
- Day 20
Extension to – – 0 Nights/0 Days
Itinerary and Highlights
- Day
- Day
- Day
- Day
- Day
- Day
- Day
- Day
- Day
- Day
Cruise on the Nile