Day 1: Arrival In Luxor — Embarkation
You will arrive in Luxor, where our representative will meet you at the airport and assist you with your transfer. Set on the east bank of the Nile, Luxor is often called the world's greatest open-air museum. You will then board your dahabiya for your first night on the river. Dinner and overnight on board.
Day 2: Temple Of Karnak — Valley Of The Kings And Temple Of Hatshepsut
After breakfast, departure to visit the Temple of Karnak, the largest religious complex ever built in ancient Egypt. For nearly two thousand years this sanctuary was the heart of the cult of the god Amun, and its priesthood amassed considerable wealth and political power. You will discover the famous hypostyle hall with its one hundred and thirty-four giant columns, the pink granite obelisks and the many sanctuaries that make up this monumental complex.
Next, visit the West Bank of the Nile and the Theban necropolis. You will discover the legendary Valley of the Kings, final resting place of the pharaohs of the New Kingdom, with a visit inside three richly decorated tombs. You will then visit the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut at Deir el-Bahari, an architectural masterpiece set against the limestone cliffs, built in honour of one of the few female pharaohs in Egyptian history.
Return aboard the dahabiya, which sets sail towards El Hegz. Dinner and overnight on board, on the river.
Day 3: Temple Of Edfu
Breakfast on board as the dahabiya continues its journey to Edfu. On arrival, you will visit the Temple of Edfu, one of the best preserved in all of Egypt thanks to being gradually buried under sand for centuries. Dedicated to the falcon god Horus, this Ptolemaic temple impresses with its monumental pylon, its vast colonnaded courtyard and its hypostyle halls where many ritual inscriptions are still legible.
Return on board for lunch, then continue cruising along the Nile, between palm groves and riverside villages. Dinner and overnight on board.
Day 4: Gebel El Silsila And Temple Of Kom Ombo
Morning sailing towards Aswan, with a stop at Gebel El Silsila. Less known to the general public, this site was one of the main sandstone quarries of ancient Egypt: the stone for many famous temples, including Karnak and Luxor, came from here. You will discover impressive quarry trenches, as well as rock-cut chapels and stelae carved by the pharaohs who came to honour the gods of the Nile.
The cruise then continues to Kom Ombo, where you will visit the double temple, an architectural curiosity dedicated to two gods: Haroeris, the falcon god, and Sobek, the crocodile god. Each has its own half of the temple, with its own sanctuaries and halls, perfectly symmetrical. Dinner and overnight on board.
Day 5: Unfinished Obelisk And Temple Of Philae
Arrival in Aswan. You will first discover the Unfinished Obelisk, left half-carved in the pink granite quarry where it was abandoned after cracks appeared in the rock. Still attached to the bedrock, it offers a unique and rare insight into the stone-cutting techniques used by the craftsmen of ancient Egypt, with tool marks still visible on the rock.
You will then visit the Temple of Philae, dedicated to the goddess Isis. This sanctuary was one of the last great centres of pharaonic worship to remain active, until its forced closure in the 6th century under the Byzantine emperor Justinian I. Partly converted into a Coptic church, the temple still bears the traces of this dual religious history. Return on board, dinner and overnight.
Day 6: Free Day — Optional Excursion To Abu Simbel — Flight To Cairo
Free day in Aswan to enjoy at your own pace the peaceful atmosphere of the town and its exceptional setting between the Nile and the Nubian desert.
As an option, you may leave early in the morning for an excursion to the temples of Abu Simbel, about 280 km south of Aswan. Built by Ramesses II around 1260 BC to commemorate his victory at the Battle of Kadesh, these two monumental temples are among the most impressive remains of ancient Egypt. They were entirely cut into blocks and rebuilt higher up on an artificial hill in the 1960s to save them from the rising waters caused by the construction of the Aswan High Dam — one of the greatest archaeological rescue operations in history.
In the evening, transfer to Aswan airport and flight to Cairo. Meet and transfer to your hotel. Dinner and overnight in Cairo.
Day 7: Giza And The Grand Egyptian Museum
After breakfast, departure for the Giza plateau to discover the three great pyramids — those of Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure — the last of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World still standing. You will also admire the Great Sphinx, the age-old guardian of the site, carved directly into the limestone bedrock. Lunch at a local restaurant.
In the afternoon, visit the Grand Egyptian Museum, one of the largest archaeological museums in the world, housing an exceptional collection of objects covering the entire history of ancient Egypt: daily life, royal power, religious beliefs and hieroglyphic writing. Return to the hotel for dinner and overnight.
Day 8: Departure
Breakfast at the hotel, then transfer to Cairo airport for your return flight, at the end of this journey that will have taken you from the temples of Nubia to the Pyramids of Giza, between peaceful sailing on the Nile and great history.
