Signature Egypt and The Nile 2024 - 2025

Tour the Giza Plateau, the site of the ancient pyramids of Mycerinus, Chefren, and the Great Pyramid of Cheops. Explore the interior of one of these legendary pyramids. Ride Like a Local on camelback. Then, view the Great Sphinx, the ancient world’s largest monumental sculpture, carved from a single ridge of limestone. After lunch, return to your hotel and enjoy time at leisure. Meals: Breakfast, Lunch Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Fly to Luxor and journey to the Temple of Karnak. Walk through the Great Hypostyle Hall, with its expertly aligned columns. Board your luxury Nile cruise and enjoy lunch on board. Afterward, explore the west bank of the Nile and the Necropolis of Thebes, the burial site of the Great Pharaohs of the New Kingdom. Discover the Valley of the Kings and step inside the tomb of Tutankhamun. You also visit the Valley of the Queens (Biban el-Harim). Later, explore the Temple of Hatshepsut. Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Cruise north on a scenic route — far from other ships and crowds — to the Temple of Hathor at Denderah. Sail back to Luxor. This afternoon, return to the east bank of the Nile, this time visiting the city of Thebes and the striking Temple of Luxor. Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Continue cruising to Edfu and the Temple of Horus. Join your chef on board for a local cooking lesson. Later, disembark at Kom Ombo (“Hill of Gold”) to visit the Greco-Roman temple dedicated to Haroeris (the sun god) and Sobek (the crocodile god). Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Cruise to Aswan and ride a motorized boat to Philae Temple on the island of Agilika. This sacred complex was dedicated to the Goddess Isis and reflects a fusion of three great civilizations — Egyptian, Greek, and Roman. The temple was dismantled and then painstakingly reassembled when the Aswan High Dam was constructed. Built-in the 1960s, the dam spans the Nile River, more than two miles across, and incorporates 16 times the amount of material that went into the Great Pyramid at Giza. It provides irrigation and hydroelectric power to much of Egypt, and the reservoir that formed behind it, Lake Nasser, is 340 miles long. Proceed to the impressive granite quarries and site of the Unfinished Obelisk. Illustrating the skills of Egypt’s stonemasons, this monolith is one-third taller than any other ancient Egyptian obelisk. Later, Ride like a Local around the Aswan islands in a felucca, weather permitting. Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Today, bid farewell to your luxury Nile cruise, disembarking to fly to Abu Simbel. There, discover the commanding twin temples of Ramses II and his wife, Queen Nefertari. Four statues of the pharaoh, each, dominate the former’s facade nearly 70 feet tall. Perhaps even more impressive, this entire site was disassembled and moved here to save it from the floodwaters caused by the Aswan High Dam. Return to Cairo for an afternoon at leisure. Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Visit the Egyptian Museum of Antiquities, home to the largest collection of ancient Egyptian artifacts, including treasures from Tutankhamun and items dating to 4000 BC. After lunch at a local restaurant, explore the Mosque and Madrasa of Sultan Hassan, built-in AD 1356 and among the finest examples of early Mamluk architecture. Next, walk from the twin-towered Bab el-Foutouh, a fortified gate in Cairo’s Old City walls, to Khan el-Khalili Bazaar, one of the city’s major souks (open-air marketplaces). Browse the tightly packed stalls displaying everything from spices and leather goods to jewelry and vegetables, all on a street that has hardly changed for centuries. Bargaining is expected, so prepare to negotiate. Then, return to your hotel for an evening of leisure. Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Drive to Memphis, the capital of the ancient kingdom and now home to an open-air museum and a giant statue of Ramses II. Continue to Sakkara, the site of hundreds of tombs and 14 pyramids, including the Step Pyramid of Djoser. This evening, gather with your fellow guests to reflect on your journey through Egypt and along the Nile at a farewell dinner hosted by Your Egypt Tours. Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

After breakfast, transfer to the airport and depart. Meals: Breakfast