Egypt in a Week (Aswan)

Colossi of Memnon, guarding the passage to Theban Necropolis
By Przemyslaw Idzkiewicz. (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-2.5], via Wikimedia Commons

DAY 1 – CAIRO- VIP Meet & Greet Service – Cairo Airport
Tour Starts Weekly in Cairo – Arrive Saturday ( For Daily Arrival – Please Click Here)
Our local representative will greet you at the airport and whisk you to your hotel. Visa fee is included and will be issued upon arrival at Cairo Airport.

VIP Meet & Greet Upon arrival at Cairo Airport?
Visa issued locally in Cairo (for a limited number of nationalities) no photos required. Our representative greets you at the airport and whisks you to your hotel. Visa will be issued upon arrival at Cairo Airport for a limited number of citizens such as: American, Australian, NZ, EU, Canadian, EU Singaporean and Japanese citizens. You are responsible for having your passport in order valid at least for 6 month beyond the date of your arrival in Cairo. Our local rep. will meet you with a sign that carries your name, and will be waiting for you with the prepaid visa stamps to proceed to the passports control to stamp your passports and then you claim your luggage. After you clear the passport and customs formalities and exit the terminal, our local representative will escort you by private vehicle to the hotel. Welcome fruit basket & Egyptian pastry awaits you in your room with our compliments.

DAY 2 – CAIRO – Sunday (BL)
Breakfast. Lunch. On your first full day in Egypt we show you the Egyptian Museum, including the”Mummies Room”, and King Tut’s gold treasure room, the Pyramids of Giza, the Sphinx, the Citadel of Saladin, and the Mohammed Ali Mosque, made of alabaster. Lunch is included at a local restaurant. This is a very full day, for a more balanced itinerary, you may choose the 9 or the 10 day edition.

DAY 3 – ASWAN, Board your Nile Cruise! – Monday (BLD)
Breakfast. Lunch. Dinner. We fly to Aswan (or Luxor) and board our Nile cruiser in time for a delicious lunch. Complimentary welcome fruit basket awaits you in your cabin. In the afternoon we enjoy a leisurely sail by graceful felucca on the Nile.

DAY 4 – ASWAN – KOM OMBO – Tuesday (BLD)
Breakfast. Lunch. Dinner. First we tour the awesome Aswan dams, and next an ancient granite quarry complete with an unfinished obelisk. Then we go by motor launch to the Island temple of Philae, dedicated to the Ancient Goddess ISIS. Re-embarking on our Nile cruiser, we sail downstream to Kom Ombo to visit its twin temples.

DAY 5 – EDFU – Luxor – Wednesday (BLD)
Breakfast. Lunch. Dinner. We moor in Edfu, climb aboard horse-drawn carriages, and clip-clop through the town to the Temple of Horus, Egypt’s best-preserved temple. Re-embarking, we cruise further north, evening finds us in Luxor.
Your guide will call on you in Luxor for an evening horse-drawn carriage ride throughout Luxor Souks and water-front.

DAY 6 – LUXOR – Thursday (BLD)
Breakfast. Lunch. Dinner.
We tour today as well the magnificent tombs in the Valley of the Kings, including Tutankaomn’s tomb, and the great temple of Queen Hatshepsut, we stop at the Colossi of Memnon on the way back to our cruise.

Afterward, we’ll continue on Luxor’s west bank to get a totally different perspective on ancient Egyptian life, at the ancient workers’ settlement of Deir el-Medinah. While most of the imposing stone monuments and sites of Egypt honor the lives and after-lives of royalty, Deir el-Medinah gives us unique and surprising insights into the ordinary citizens who constructed and decorated the tombs.

Here we’ll see the excavated homes shared by laborers with their domestic animals. These quarters were surprisingly large, with three good-sized rooms, courtyard, kitchen, and even storage cellars. While ancient Egypt might not have been a workers’ paradise, we’ll see that artisans and builders were highly regarded in their community. We are proud to be the only operator to offer regular visits to this singular ancient settlement in its tour and cruise programs. Evening Sound and Light show at Karnak, please bring a jacket and a flash light.

DAY 7 – LUXOR – CAIRO – Friday (B)
The gigantic Great Temple of Amon at Karnak, and the mighty Temple of Luxor are our goals in the morning, followed by a return flight to Cairo and your hotel.

DAY 8 – CAIRO – Departure – Saturday (B)
Breakfast. Our representative escorts you to the airport for your homeward flight. Bon voyage!

Rates include:

• All domestic airfare within Egypt in economy class with tax.
• All transfers in Egypt, always on a private basis.
• Hotel accommodation with tax & service charges.
• Bottled water ( one per person) delivered to your cabin daily while you are on board the cruise.
• Tea or coffee / and bottled water with each meal while on board the cruise.
• Nile Cruise with all meals, one large bottle water ( per person ) daily while on board the cruise & a welcome fruit basket
• All the shore excursions while on board the Nile Cruise and a complimentary welcome drink.
• Preset menu meals including B = Breakfast, (or cB, Continental Breakfast) L = Lunch, D = Dinner
• All guided sightseeing as per itinerary including all entrance fees. On board the cruise you’ll be part of an average 10-15 English speaking group.
• VIP Meet & Greet Upon arrival at Cairo Airport?
  Visa issued locally in Cairo (for a limited number of nationalities) no photos required. Our representative greets you at the airport and whisks you to your hotel. Visa will be issued upon arrival at Cairo Airport for a limited number of citizens such as: American, Australian, NZ, EU, Canadian, EU Singaporean and Japanese citizens. You are responsible for having your passport in order valid at least for 6 month beyond the date of your arrival in Cairo. Our local rep. will meet you with a sign that carries your name, and will be waiting for you with the prepaid visa stamps to proceed to the passports control to stamp your passports and then you claim your luggage. After you clear the passport and customs formalities and exit the terminal, our local representative will escort you by private vehicle to the hotel. Welcome fruit basket & Egyptian pastry awaits you in your room with our compliments.

Not included:

• International airfares to or from Cairo.
• Travel Insurance.
• Tips

Sample deluxe cruises and hotels:

• Cairo: Ramses Hilton, Sonesta or similar
• M/S Monaco
• M/S Monte Carlo
• M/S Lady Diana
• M/S Mojito
• M/A Queen of Hansa
• M/S Beau Soleil
• MS Adonis
• M/S Florence
• MS Renaissance
• M/S Mirage
• M/S Princess Sara

Sample First Class Hotels and cruises:

• Cairo: Shepheard’s, Oases or similar
• M/S Nile Dream
• M/S Ruby

Tourist Class Category:
First class four stars Nile cruises will be used with the Novotel Hotel by the airport or similar properties.

Cairo: Le Riad in the heart of El Moezz street in Cairo
In the heart of islamic medieval Cairo, a place acknowledged worldwide as the patrimony of humanity, Le Riad is the only one Hôtel de Charme 5 minutes walking distance from the famous souk of Khan El Khalili. Only 17 very private suites facing El Darb El Asfar and its exceptional ottoman houses. On the roof garden you will discover the 1000 minarets of Cairo and enjoy a panoramic view: the Fatimid walls, the Moquattam’s hills, the citadel of Mohamed Ali. And at your feet: mosques, sabils, madrasas, khanqas, khans mainly from mamluk time. The Riad will introduce you in an oriental dream with its typical old egyptian architecture, domes, arches, moucharabiehs, warm colors and its refined decoration mixing antiques with an amazing collection of drawings, paintings and silver jewellery. A 30 minutes drive from Cairo International Airport, the Riad is easily reachable by car.

Anakto Nubian House – Aswan:
Nesting on a ridge, AnaKato possesses an extraordinary view of the Nile all the way from Aswan to the Aswan Reservoir. A placid, tranquil environment, and the generous hospitality of the natives is so calming, its hard to imagine how one could return to the bustle of civilization.

Built as a traditional Nubian house, its unique and bright colours impose the feeling of peaceful happiness. Knowing that whomever has come to AnaKato, searching for inner peace, has reached their purpose, we welcome you into our haven, far away from any soul pollution.

The rooms are simply but tastefully furnished in the local style. With only 5 rooms the house is quaint yet cozy and familiar. Also on location is a mini-mart. The staff is friendly, love their job, and will be happy to help with any of your questions.

The legendary Tree that grows beneath the house shades a spectacular terrace, at the very edge of the cool Nile waters. We also provide a morning coffee shop and a bazaar that sells hand-made goods. Anything you will buy will help the people of the village, so you will be contributing to the community. You can relax on the little strip of sandy beach and cool off with a refreshing dip in the Nile.

There is also traditional Nubian music, dancing. And if you are in luck, and there is a wedding in the village, you may surely want to join the party, an event not to be missed! Camel rides are also available to take you to the unique, red sandy “Barbar beach.” Or if you prefer to go out into the desert for a safari we cater for that too. Also available on demand are henna tattooing and medicinal sand-burying.