Luxury Cairo & the treasures of the Nile

This morning, enjoy a full-day, privately guided tour of the brand-new Grand Egyptian Museum, the largest museum in the world to house one civilisation. After, you'll continue on to visit the pyramids at Giza, Saqqara, and Dahshur. Visit the Bent Pyramid at Dahshur, one of the earliest examples of pyramid architecture, before working your way back to Cairo, visiting the stepped pyramid of Saqqara and the behemoths at Giza.

Enjoy a full-day tour around Cairo with your private guide and driver. Arguably, the highlight is viewing the treasures of the Egyptian Museum. You also spend time visiting the Citadel for the best views of the city, then continue to the backstreets of Coptic Cairo and the ingenuous Hanging Church.

This morning, your private driver takes you to the airport for your flight to Luxor. If you would like to spend more time in Cairo, ask your specialist to book an evening flight for you. If you would prefer to spend the day relaxing at your luxury hotel in Luxor, you will board an early morning flight and head south. We would recommend spending the night before your cruise in Luxor, as you will need to board your Nile cruise by lunchtime the following day.

After embarking on your luxury Nile cruiser, you enjoy a delicious lunch and get acquainted with the many facilities on board. In the afternoon, you have a small group guided tour to the East Bank temples of Karnak and Luxor. The boat will dock in Luxor for the first night.

This morning, take a tour of Luxor's West Bank. Explore the Valley of the Kings, where you can descend into tombs decorated with surprisingly bright hieroglyphics, as well as the Colossi of Memnon and Deir el-Medina — an ancient Egyptian village which was home to the artisans who worked on the tombs in the Valley of the Kings during the 18th to 20th dynasties of the New Kingdom period. After lunch, the rest of the day is spent sailing to Esna, where you spend the night.

Spend the morning visiting the Temple of Horus in Edfu. Your guide leads you through its hypostyle halls, explaining the colossal struggle between Seth and Horus in ancient Egyptian mythology and how the temple celebrates this. Then sail to Kom Ombo where, after lunch, you visit the lesser-known temples of Sobek and Haroeris, Ptolemaic temples which, unusually, are dedicated to two different gods. The boat will dock overnight at Kom Ombo.

Today, after sailing on to Aswan, you visit the High Dam and learn about its construction and the consequences for this area of Egypt. You also take a short boat ride to visit the Temple of Philae. Your guide explains how UNESCO took measures to save it from flooding. As a temple, it's celebrated for having its own special ambience as a shrine to the goddess Isis. Afterwards, you visit the centrally located Nubian Museum, where you can learn about the history of the Nubian people of southern Egypt.

After breakfast, disembark your cruise boat and check into The Old Cataract, a historic hotel built in 1899 with views across Aswan and the Nile. Today, you have a day at leisure to explore Aswan under your own steam. You might like to visit Kitchener Island to explore its Nubian village architecture. There are also several souqs, which are great for shopping and ambling around. Otherwise, you could just relax at The Old Cataract and enjoy its extensive gardens.

You have an early start today as you board your flight from Aswan to visit the incredible temples at Abu Simbel. You are accompanied by a private guide during your tour of the temple complex who explains the significance of the great Sun Temple which was built by Ramesses II to impress his power and majesty on the Nubians who lived in southern Egypt. You fly back to Aswan in the afternoon and spend your final evening in Egypt at leisure.

This morning, you will have some time to relax at the Old Cataract before your flight back to Cairo. You will need to spend the final night in Cairo due to the time of your international flight the following day. Speak to your specialist and discuss whether you would prefer to spend the majority of your last day in Aswan or Cairo. Your local representative will collect you from your hotel and drive you to Aswan Airport for your flight to Cairo. In Cairo, you will be met by a local representative who will transfer you to your hotel close to the airport for your final night in Egypt.

Today you will bid farewell to Egypt and fly home. Your driver and a local representative will collect you from your hotel and take you to Cairo International Airport.