14-Day Egypt Heritage Tour with Nile Cruise and Alexandria

• Meet your tour guide after arriving at Cairo International Airport, where a representative will assist you with arrival procedures and take you to the hotel. At the hotel, the tour manager will help with a smooth check-in and review your holiday itinerary with you to establish and confirm pick-up times for each tour.

Enjoy welcome drinks.

Overnight in Cairo.

• Have breakfast and head to the Giza Plateau to visit one of the seven wonders of the ancient world - the Great Pyramid of Khufu (Cheops) and the 3 small pyramids. You will continue to explore the rest of the Giza Plateau, including the sight of Khafre's (Kaphren) pyramid - Khufu's son and the second-largest pyramid on the Giza site - the remains of the funeral temple, the pyramid of Mankawra (Mykerinus), and 3 small pyramids.
• Proceed to visit the Great Sphinx, the head of a pharaoh with a lion's body, which dates from the time of Chephren.
• Visit the Valley Temple, which belongs to the pyramids of Chephren. This temple definitely served two functions: first, it was used for the purification of the mummy of the king before burial; second, it was used for carrying out the mummification process of the king. After visiting the pyramids, continue across the plateau for a photo opportunity of the three pyramids rising from the sands, with the Cairo skyline in the background. Have lunch at a local restaurant.
• Head to the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities, commonly known as the Egyptian Museum, in Cairo. It is home to an extensive collection of ancient Egyptian antiquities dating back about 5,000 years of art and is considered the world's largest and most valuable collection of Egyptian art. More than 250,000 original artifacts are presented, with a representative amount on display while the rest are in storage, and the Egyptian Museum is filled with thousands of pharaonic artifacts, including the golden treasures of King Tutankhamun. Fascinating objects such as jewels, headdresses, alabaster vases, and toys from ancient Egypt are all on display. Many priceless statues and other artifacts kept in his tomb for more than 3,500 years before their discovery in 1922, when the tomb was excavated, can also be seen in the Egyptian Museum. It is one of the first stops on most people's itineraries when travelling to Egypt. This distinctive museum, which houses a vast store of priceless objects from earlier times to the Greco-Roman period, is worth seeing.
• Transfer to the train station for your overnight sleeper train to Aswan.

Dinner on the train.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

• Have breakfast on the train. Our representative will meet and assist you, then transfer you to your hotel in Aswan.
• Have a free day in Aswan.

Overnight in Aswan.
Meal: Breakfast

• Have breakfast at your hotel.
• Enjoy a free day in Aswan. (Optional tour)

Overnight in Aswan.
Meal: Breakfast

• Have your breakfast on board the 5-star Nile cruise to Aswan before lunch.
• Have lunch and visit the world-famous High Dam, an engineering miracle constructed between 1960 and 1970. It aimed to increase economic production by further regulating the annual river flooding and providing water storage for agriculture and, later, generating hydroelectricity. The dam had a significant impact on the economy and culture of Egypt.
• Move to the Unfinished Obelisk. This obelisk is believed to belong to Queen Hatshepsut, one of the rulers of the 18th dynasty and the royal wife of King Tuthmosis II. The Unfinished Obelisk is the largest known ancient obelisk, located in the northern region of the stone quarries of ancient Egypt in Aswan, Egypt. It is unknown which pharaoh created this structure. It is nearly one-third larger than any ancient Egyptian obelisk ever erected. If finished, it would have measured around 42 m and weighed nearly 1,200 tons.
• Head to the beautifully located Temple of Philae on Isis Island and the Granite Quarries, which is dedicated to the goddesses Isis and Hathor. Enjoy afternoon tea, dinner, and a Galabya party on board.

(Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner)
Overnight in Aswan.

• Sail to Kom Ombo and visit the temple shared by the two gods Sobek and Haroeris, standing on high ground overlooking the Nile. The Temple of Sobek and Haroeris in Kom Ombo, also known simply as Kom Ombo Temple, dates from about 180 BC during the Ptolemaic era, with additions made in Roman times. The temple at Kom Ombo was also built under Ptolemy VI. Since this bend in the Nile was a favoured spot for crocodiles to bask in the sun and threaten locals, it is natural that the temple would be dedicated to Sobek, the crocodile god. But it is unusual in having a double dedication: it also honours Haroeris, a form of the falcon-headed god Horus. The hypostyle halls were added under Ptolemy XIII (51-47 BC), and the Roman emperor Trajan (53-117 AD) added the forecourt and outer enclosure walls.
• Head to Edfu. Have breakfast served on board, and then visit the majestic temple dedicated to Horus. The Edfu Temple is the second largest temple after Karnak, known in Greco-Roman times as Apollonopolis Magna. The temple was dedicated to the falcon god Horus and was built during the Ptolemaic period.
• Proceed to Luxor. Enjoy dinner and a Galabya party on board.

Overnight in Luxor.
(Meals: Breakfast, Afternoon tea, Lunch, Dinner)

• Have breakfast on board and cross to the West Bank to visit the Valley of the Kings. It was created and used from approximately 1539 BC to 1075 BC. It contains some 60 tombs, starting with Thutmose I and ending with Ramses X or XI. The site's official name was The Great and Majestic Necropolis of the Millions of Years of the Pharaoh, Life, Strength, Health in The West of Thebes, or the Great Field. The most famous tomb is KV62, the Tomb of King Tutankhamun. Howard Carter made the discovery of King Tut's tomb in 1922. Tutankhamun's tomb was the first royal tomb to be discovered that was still largely intact.
• Continue the tour to visit the Hatshepsut Temple at El Deir El Bahary. This impressive temple was dedicated to Queen Hatshepsut, the only female pharaoh. It rises out of the desert in a series of terraces and merges with the sheer limestone cliffs surrounding it.
• Proceed to the two colossal statues of Amenhotep III. The Colossi of Memnon are the two massive stone statues of Pharaoh Amenhotep III. For 3,400 years, they have sat in the Theban necropolis across the River Nile from the city of Luxor. The original function of the Colossi was to stand guard at the entrance to Amenhotep's memorial or mortuary temple. Excursion to the Temples of Thebes on the eastern bank.
• Cross to the East Bank and explore Karnak Temple, the largest place of worship ever built. In ancient Egypt, the power of the god Amun of Thebes gradually increased during the early New Kingdom. After the short persecution led by Akhenaten, it rose to its apex. In the reign of Ramesses III, more than two-thirds of the property owned by the temples belonged to Amun, evidenced by the stupendous buildings at Karnak. Although badly ruined, no site in Egypt is more impressive than Karnak. It is the largest temple complex ever built by man and represents the combined achievement of many generations of ancient builders. The Temple of Karnak is three main temples, smaller enclosed temples, and several outer temples located about three kilometres north of Luxor, Egypt, situated on 100 ha (247 acres) of land. Karnak is the site's modern name. Its ancient name was Ipet-isut, meaning "The Most Select (or Sacred) of Places."

Overnight in Luxor.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

• Have breakfast on board before disembarkation, then transfer to your hotel in Luxor.
• Have a free day in Luxor. (Optional tour)

Overnight in Luxor.
Meal: Breakfast

• Have breakfast at the hotel, then depart for Sharm El Sheikh by private air-conditioned car.
• Arrive in Sharm El Sheikh and check in at your hotel.
• Have a free day in Sharm El Sheikh.

Overnight in Sharm El Sheikh.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

• Have breakfast at the hotel.
• Enjoy a free day in Sharm El Sheikh. (Optional tour)

Overnight in Sharm El Sheikh.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

• Have breakfast at the hotel.
• Enjoy a free day in Sharm El Sheikh. (Optional tour)

Overnight in Sharm El Sheikh.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

• Enjoy breakfast at the hotel. Our representative will transfer you to Sharm El Sheikh Airport for your flight to Cairo.
• Arrive in Cairo, where our representative will meet and assist you, then transfer you onward.
• Depart for your hotel in Alexandria by private air-conditioned car and check in.
• Have a free day in Alexandria.

Overnight in Alexandria.
Meal: Breakfast

• Have breakfast and visit Montazah Palace and Gardens, including Salamlek Palace, Haramlek Palace, and a garden of 317 acres of huge trees and flowers, with two 5-star hotels - Helnan and Salamlek.
• Head to see Pompey's Pillar. It was constructed in honour of Emperor Diocletian at the end of the 4th century. Originally from the Temple of Serapis, it was once a magnificent structure rivalling the Soma and the Caesarean.
• See the Catacombs, the largest Roman cemetery consisting of three levels cut into the rock. Have lunch at a local restaurant in Alexandria.
• Drive along the Corniche to see the whole city, passing over the bridge of Stanley, a landmark of modern Alexandria, and then proceed to see the Qaitbay Citadel, which was built on the site of the ancient pharaohs' lighthouse of Alexandria.
• Proceed to the new Library of Alexandria, the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, now the biggest library in the world with 8 million books, and also see the site of the lighthouse, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.
• Drive back to your hotel in Cairo.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Overnight in Cairo.

• Have breakfast, and the representative will transfer you to Cairo Airport.

(Meals: Breakfast included)