The Nubian Queen

Our exclusive 12 day tour shows you: Cairo, Alexandria, Luxor, and Aswan, with a five-day luxury cruise on Lake Nasser to Abu Simbel. The heartland of Nubia (Land of gold) that gave birth to the brilliant 25th Dynasty of the Nubian Kings were known as the “Black Pharaohs” who were able to protect Egypt from the Assyrians (approximately until 600 BC).

DAY 1 – CAIRO – Weekly on Saturday. Year Round
On arrival, our local representative will greet you at the airport and whisk you to your hotel. Visa may 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 – Sunday- Cairo (BLD)
On your first day in Egypt we explore the wonders of Cairo: the Egyptian Museum which holds the treasures of King Tutankhamon, tour includes the Mummies Pavilion and King Tut’s Gold Treasure Pavilion; the pyramids of Giza, The Mighty Pharaoh Cheops personal Yacht Museum, and the Great Sphinx; and the Valley Temple made from huge blocks of red granite.
Lunch is included at the Mena House. Dinner is included at La Bodega Restaurant or Abu El Sid Restaurant or similar.

DAY 3 – Monday-Aswan, Board your Cruise (BLD)
After an early breakfast, we drive to the airport for the flight to Aswan, where we board our lake cruiser. Morning tour of the newly opened Museum of Nubia After lunch aboard, we visit the Temple of Kalabsha, originally constructed in Pharaonic style, but later remodeled in Greco-Roman style and dedicated to the god Mandulis. Next we visit Beit el Wali, a work of Pharaoh Ramses the Great, followed by a stop at Kertassi Kiosk, dedicated to the goddess Isis. We dine aboard our floating hotel.

DAY 4 – Tuesday – Cruising Lake Nasser (BLD)
We set out on our voyage across vast Lake Nasser, Egypt’s great man-made inland sea formed by the waters held behind the Aswan High Dam. Our luxury cruise vessel is equipped with a swimming pool, jacuzzi, Turkish (steam) bath, sauna and staff trained in massage. As we head south towards Wadi el Seboua, you have time to relax on deck, take a dip in the pool, read up on Egyptian history, and get to know your fellow travelers.

DAY 5- Wednesday – On board your Nubian Cruise (BLD)
Our first port of call is at the Temple of Wadi el Seboua, dedicated by the mighty Ramses the Great to two of ancient Egypt’s most powerful gods. Our next stop is Dakka Temple, followed by a visit to Amada and the tomb of Penout, the powerful viceroy of Nubia, one of ancient Egypt’s richest regions. Known as the “Land of Gold,” Nubia was famous for the stream of gold, ivory, precious stones and minerals which made their way from Africa to Egypt via the Nubian Nile. We dock at Kasr Ibrim.

DAY 6 – Thursday- Abu Simbel- Cruising Lake Nasser (BLD)
As the sun brightens the lakeshore we gaze at the citadel of Kasr Ibrim, a once-mighty fortress which time and weather have rendered fragile, the only structure of its kind still extant in Nubia. We learn about the history of Nubia and this fortress, then, after lunch, set sail for Abu Simbel. Arriving at the great temple, we have time to explore its colossal facade and surroundings before enjoying your dinner.

DAY 7- Friday- Abu Simbel / Aswan / Luxor (B)
Get up early today to enjoy (on your own) the extraordinary vision of the temple of Abu Simbel at dawn, when the sacred sunlight penetrates deep into its holy of holies as its architect intended. The morning sun bathes the ruddy stone in golden light, providing perfect conditions for photography. We fly to Aswan, connect with our flight to Luxor, and drive to our hotel, afternoon tour of Karnak and Luxor temples.

DAY 8 – Saturday- Luxor (B)
After breakfast, we cross the Nile to ancient Thebes, capital of the Egyptian kingdom for almost 20 centuries. We visit the tombs of the pharaohs in the legendary Valley of the Kings, including the tomb of King Tutankhamon (Entrance fee included). Then we go on to the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut in the Valley of the Queens, Deir El-Medinah, Medinet Habu and the Ramesseum. In the afternoon we enjoy a tour of Luxor Museum and then off to Karnak Sound and Light show.

In the evening, your guide will call on you for a horse drawn carriage ride through Luxor narrow streets and bazaars.

DAY 9 – Cairo / Alexandria – Sunday (BLD)
We take a short flight to Cairo and subject to flight schedule we may connect and fly on to Alexandria, or continue in your private air-conditioned vehicle from Cairo Airport with your private chauffeur and private guide on to Alexandria and your hotel. Lunch is included enroute or at your hotel. In the evening your guide will call on you for a walk downtown Alexandria and El-Raml district. Dinner is included at a local restaurant.

DAY 10 – Alexandria – Cairo – Monday (BLD)
Our full day includes Alexandria highlights: Kaytbey Fortress, where once the famous Alexandria Light House stood. The Roman Amphitheater, the Catacombs, The Greco Roman Museum & a brief stop at the site above the sunken Palace of Cleopatra. Lunch is included at a local restaurant, then it is on to the local souks and Zanket El Seta before we head back to Cairo and your hotel by by private air-conditioned vehicle or First Class air-conditioned express train. Dinner is included at your hotel.

DAY 11 – Cairo – Fayoum Oases – Home Hosted Dinner – Tuesday (BLD)
On Desert Safari for the Day – Fayoum Oases – And you thought the Pyramids were old!

The wilds of the desert begin right on the outskirts of Cairo, and continue for hundreds of miles to the east and west, through sands, rock, mountains, oases, and a surprising variety of scenery and inhabitants.

Join us for a day ranging across the desert like modern nomads. In place of camels, we’ll travel in comfortable, reliable four-by-four Toyota Land Cruisers. Your guide and drivers will meet you at your hotel, and soon you’ll leave bustling Cairo behind as you undertake the drive toward the Oasis of El Fayoum, 150 kilometers to the southwest. Hard as it is to believe, a great inland sea once covered these sands. It was a holy reserve of sacred crocodiles, symbolized by the god Sobek.

We’ll visit the temple of Kom Oshim, drive over ancient lake beds, and alongside the waters of today’s Fayoum Lake to reach the fishermen’s village of Chak Chouk. There we’ll stop for a lunch of fish caught fresh that morning. There will be time to wander the village lanes and discreetly watch the everyday activities of baking flatbread, irrigating crops from the lake’s waters, and bringing in the catch. We’ll also include the craft and pottery museum where the best works of local artisans are on display.

Then it’s into our four-by-fours again, for an off-road adventure! We’ll head alongside and across desert washes, between dunes, and over ancient lake beds for 35 kilometers to the Valley of the Whales (In Arabic: Wadi-El-Hitan). Incredibly, these great mammals once thrived – almost forty million years ago- in waters surrounded by sands. We’ll stop and gaze in amazement at their fossilized remains alongside smaller sea creatures that remain in stone. This valley was discovered in 1936, by the German geologist George Schweinfurth in the northwestern corner of Wadi El-Rayan.

The valley provides evidence of one of the major changes in this mammal evolution has been declared by the UNESCO to be a World Heritage Site. It is believed that these land based whales once had feet that may have helped them somewhat while ashore. A team from the University of Michigan discovered in the late 80’s that these Zeuglodon whales did have rudimentary feet, this was a startling discovery, suggesting that whales of Wadi -El-Hitan had recently started living in water as well These whales were not related to any of the whales we have today, rather a more slender body and may grow up to 75 feet long. Several skeletons of whales are exposed in the sand. George Schweinfurth named this extinct specie the Zeuglodon Isis Whales.

In the evening, you’ll return to your hotel in Cairo. Land transportation in air-conditioned four-wheel-drive Toyota Land Cruiser with the services of driver and English-speaking driver. Lunch is included.

Complimentary Dinner is included at a local home:
Meet the locals: This evening we’ll venture where few ordinary visitors ever tread… right into the homes of some of the people of Cairo! You’ll be invited to a family dinner, and while you enjoy wholesome home-cooked specialties, you’ll learn about and appreciate the outlook, aspirations, and way of life of your hosts. Be assured, as curious as you may be about your new friends, they’re sure to have questions about your own background. Once the ice is broken, you’ll enjoy a lively evening, and find that you have more in common than you ever suspected. Of course, if you prefer, you may enjoy a quiet evening with your travel companions by letting us know your preferences. You may wish to bring token gifts to exchange with the host family (T shirt, small souvenirs of your home town).

DAY 12 – Wednesday – Departure (B)
After breakfast at our hotel, we bid good-bye to magical Egypt as our staff escorts you to Cairo International Airport for your homeward flight.

Christmas/New Year’s (Dec 20 – Jan 5) & Easter weeks: 15% supplement to be added to any of the listed rates.

Rates include:

• All transfers in Egypt
• Guided sightseeing as per itinerary, including all entrance fees and the service of an English speaking guide
• Hotel and cruise accommodations as listed including tax, and service charges
• Domestic airfare within Egypt including tax.
• Pre-set menu meals including B = Breakfast, (or cB, Continental Breakfast), L = Lunch, D = Dinner.
• Bottled water delivered to your cabin daily while you are on board the cruise.
• Tea or Coffee with each / every meal while on board the cruise.
• 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 from/ to your home country
• Tips.
• Travel Insurance

Dining Room Reservations: Meet other passengers

Christmas/New Year’s (Dec 20 – Jan 5) & Easter weeks: 15% supplement to be added to any of the listed rates.

Please note that cabins on our Lake Nasser cruise vessels have two double beds; there are no triple-bedded cabins. A couple traveling with a child should plan to share the two double beds.