Egypt and Jordan a la Indiana Jones

Ultra Deluxe Edition -Private Egyptologist
An 18- day In- Depth touring of Egypt and Jordan

Abu Simbel Temples in Nubia The Ancient Land of Gold

Indiana Jones himself couldn't squeeze more adventure into this journey:Alexandria Cairo , Memphis, Sakkara and the Pyramids, a cruise on the Nile, the fabled temples and tombs of Luxor and Thebes, diving in the Red Sea, the mountains of Sinai, and a trek to the mysterious ruins of Petra in Jordan. Extend to Jerusalem
Departure : Daily , subject to availability

DAY 1- CAIRO
( click here if your prefer to start in Amman Jordan)
Our Egypt-based staff greets you in bustling Cairo airport and escorts you to your hotel .
Private Car / Driver. Complimentary Egyptian visa fee (valid for American, Australian, NZ, EU & Japanese citizens. Passports must be valid for at least 6 month upon arrival).
Choose from :
Four Seasons Hotels - Standard room
Mena House - Palace section - Pyramids view room
Hyatt Hotel Club Level Room or Conrad Hotel Junior Suite
Always subject to change

Visa will be issued upon arrival.
As you exit the gate, you will pass through a door or two , down some stairs , then walk for 2-5 minutes , until you pass the duty free shops, at the end of a wide corridor , you will see the security officers. There you will be met by a local representative, who will be holding a sign with the name you prefer to use for the sign .

Our local representative will then take your passport to obtain a stamp from the cashier / bank window and escort you to speak with the passport officer. He will escort you through another last check on your passport as you exit the passport control, into customs area, he will assist you in collecting your luggage and clearing customs . After exiting the terminal, our local representative will escort you (private vehicle) to the hotel

DAY 2 - CAIRO (BL)
Your exploration of the ancient world begins today! First stop is the Egyptian Museum, with its treasures of the ancient pharaohs: mummies, statuary, precious stones and metals. We'll also stop at the Citadel of Saladin and the Alabaster Mosque. Then it's on to the legendary Khan El Khalili Bazaar district. Lunch is included at a charming local restaurant.

private air conditioned car/driver/guide Egyptologist .

DAY 3 - Alexandria (BL)
After breakfast we leave Cairo in a private air conditioned vehicle, private chauffeur and private Egyptologist .
We drive across northern Egypt & the Nile Delta heading northwest for Alexandria: Full day tour of : the National Museum, the Catacombs, the Roman Amphitheater, Qayet Bey Fortress built on the same site of the ancient wonder of the world : the famous Alexandria Light House.
Enjoy lunch at a local restaurant before we head for brief stop at " El Selsela" the site of the Underwater reserve where Cleopatra Place was discovered, as well as Caesar Kiosk , then its off to the new site for the Alexandria Library , then it is off to Wadi El Natroun monastery almost midway to Cairo , where early Coptic Christians retreated here to escape the Roman persecution in the 4th century AD. The Egyptian Pope of Alexandria is always chosen from the Monks of wadi El Natroun. You will always have on board the vehicle today as we head back to Cairo : Bottled water , soft drinks , with our compliments free of charge. Reach Cairo early evening and your hotel.

DAY 4 - CAIRO- Dahshour, Memphis, Sakkara (cBL)
private air conditioned car/driver/guide Egyptologist .
A morning tour takes us to Giza and the mysteries of the Pyramids and Sphinx.
Then it is on to the time capsule treasure of Dahshour, the newly-opened pyramid field south of Cairo: DAHSOUR - we'll motor to the edge of Cairo, to Dahshour, the newly-opened pyramid field south of Cairo. We visit the great pyramid of Senfru, father of Cheops, and other structure:

The "Discovery" of Dahshour:
For almost half a century, the great field of huge pyramids near the desert village of Dahshour, 25 miles south of Cairo, has been off limits to the public. Confined within the perimeter of a military base were many pyramids, including the great 4500-year-old pyramid built by Senfru, father of Cheops. Senfru's pyramid, the largest in Egypt until his son built Giza's Great Pyramid, is rhomboidal in shape: it tapers more distinctly on its upper half. All the pyramids were coated in thick plaster at one time. Most have lost these protective, decorative sheaths, but Senfru's--miraculously--is still in place.

After lunch at a local restaurant : The afternoon is for Memphis and Sakkara, including the Step Pyramid of Zoser & Nobles tombs/Mastabas.

DAY 5 - ASWAN ABU SIMBEL - Aswan (B.drinks. D)
After a very early breakfast , we fly to Abu Simbel via Aswan .
In Abu Simbel :Private Guide/Egyptologist in Abu Simbel.
Your private air-conditioned and private chauffeur will be waiting for you in Abu Simbel.
In the larger temple, colossal figures of Ramses are seated with the gods and attended by his queen and daughters. The smaller temple is dedicated to Queen Nefertari, who appears as Hathor, the goddess of love, joy and fertility, symbolized by the benevolent cow. We explore these fine temple , after which retire to a comfortable hotel for refreshments. Fly back to Aswan, and the legendary Old Cataract Hotel in Aswan, Nile view room, always subject to availability , the hotel will be closed in 2008 for renovations. Dinner is included at the hotel in Aswan.

DAY 6 - ASWAN - Nile Cruise (BLD)
Breakfast is included at the hotel . Morning tour of the Nubian Museum ,then on to the water front and the Nile cruise pier in time for a late lunch on board your Nile Cruise , where we settle you into your cabin on your Nile steamer. Complimentary welcome fruit basket awaits you in your cabin. In the afternoon we enjoy a leisurely sail by graceful felucca on the Nile.

DAY 7 - KOM OMBO (BLD)
Private air conditioned car/driver/guide Egyptologist .
Tour the awesome Aswan dams, and next an ancient granite quarry complete with an unfinished obelisk. Then we go by motor launch to the the Island temple of Philae , dedicated to the Ancient Goddess ISIS :

The Mystery of Isis

Two millennia ago the Mediterranean world was enthralled by the mystery of Isis:

"I, Isis, am all that has been, that is or shall be; no mortal man hath ever seen me unveiled."

Called Aset by the ancient Egyptians, the goddess was a Madonna in the Mediterranean tradition that stretches far, far back to the primitive Mother Goddess from Anatolia, home to some of the oldest human communities on earth.

Re-embarking on our Nile cruiser, we sail downstream to Kom Ombo to visit its twin temples.

DAY 8 - EDFU and LUXOR (BLD)
Private air conditioned car/driver/guide Egyptologist .
We moor in Edfu to tour the Temple of Horus, best-preserved in all of Egypt. Then we'll continue beside the Nile , we cruise to Esna , go thru the locks. Evening finds us in Luxor.

DAY 9 - LUXOR (BLD)
Private air conditioned car/driver/guide Egyptologist .
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.

The gigantic Great Temple of Amon at Karnak, and the mighty Temple of Luxor are our goals in the afternoon

DAY 10 - The Capital of the Pharaohs (B)
After breakfast we check -out , and continue on to 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. Off to Medinet Habu and the Ramesseum before we head to your hotel for tonight :

Choose from : Al-Moudira Hotel on the West Bank , or the Old Winter Palace, always subject to availability

DAY 11- SHARM EL SHEIK - RED SEA (B)
Now that you've seen the best of the Egypt of the Pharaohs, our guides escort you to the airport. You'll fly over the Sinai Peninsula and land at historic Sharm El Sheik on the Red Sea ( non-stop or via Cairo depending on the day of the week) . You're at the beach and free to swim, or explore under the waters.

DAY 12 - SHARM EL SHEIK (B)
Relax! Today is set aside as a strategic mid-journey break. Spend some time in the sun, but don't miss your chance to snorkel or dive under Red Sea waters for an array of coral and glittering tropical fish.

DAY 13 - MOUNT SINAI (BL)
Our knowledgeable guides arrange a pre-dawn departure into the still-cool wilderness of Sinai, through which Moses led the Children of Israel to the Promised Land. Our goal is the Monastery of St. Catherine, built of rock at the base of Mount Sinai, at the site of the Burning Bush.
We tour the monastery, rich in history, icons and sacred paintings, then return to Sharm El Sheik. Private air conditioned car/driver/guide Egyptologist .

Sharm El Sheik St. Catherine Monastery

DAY 14 - AQABA, PETRA (B)
We'll drive to the port of Nuweiba, where we'll board the Red Sea ferry. Across the water in Aqaba, with Israel and Saudi Arabia in sight, our Jordan-based representative waits to greet you. You'll drive north under a towering ridge of mountains, and arrive at your hotel in Petra for the night. Complimentary Jordanian visa fee (valid only for American & Japanese citizens. Passports must be valid for at least 6 month upon arrival).
Movenpick Hotel , Marriott or Taybet Zaman

DAY 15 - PETRA (B)
Private air conditioned car/driver/guide
We'll spend the entire day at Petra, the stunning desert city hewn by the Nabateans from solid cliffs of pink and violet sandstone. Petra was known in the bible as Sela, and rediscovered only in 1812. You'll feel like Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark as you penetrate into the city through a narrow sandstone gorge, the Siq, and wander among the Temple of the Winged Lion, tombs, Roman theater, and the imposing Treasury.

DAY 16 - PETRA/ WADI RUM (BL)
Private air conditioned car/driver/guide
After breakfast at the hotel, we board four-wheel-drive vehicles for an expedition to Wadi Rum, the "Valley of the Moon" where T. E. Lawrence ("Lawrence of Arabia") organized Arab resistance to Ottoman rule during World War I. After our visit, we enjoy lunch at a local restaurant then back to your hotel in Petra.

DAY 17 - PETRA/ JERASH (BL)
Private air conditioned car/driver/guide
After breakfast at the hotel, we board your private air-conditioned vehicle heading north for Jerash, among the best-preserved Roman cities in the world, to tour its temples, theaters, churches and colonnaded streets. From Jerash, we will escort you back to Amman and your hotel. Choose from : The Four Season ( Standard room) or the Hyatt ( Club Level room) , or similar

DAY 18 - DEPARTURE FOR HOME (B)
Private air conditioned car/driver
Our staff escorts you to the airport of Amman . Bon Voyage

Inclusions:

Not included:

• Personal expenses and beverages

• Gratuities

• Additional meals and services

• Trip interruption and cancellation insurance (please see our insurance brochure)

• International air fares from /to your home country.

Egypt & Jordan A La Carte- More Choices :

• Compare with the 17 Day version with Abu Simbel and Alexandria . Add Jerusalem.

• Compare with the Ultra Deluxe Version

• Egypt and Jordan in 12 days without Sinai and flying between Cairo and Amman

• Egypt & Jordan A La Carte- Choose from : 12 Day , 13 day Wadi Rum , or 14 day version

• Add Alexandria , Abu Simbel or : Memphis .

• Compare with the 16 Day version with Alexandria and Abu Simbel 
  

• Or the 16 Day version with Abu Simbel and Jerash

• Add a cruise on Lake Nasser
  

• Compare with the 22 days Wonders of Egypt & Arabia
  

• Add Morocco and Syria , in a Grand North African Crossing  .
  

• Compare with the 18-Day in-Depth Version

General Sample Hotel Listing / Nile Cruise ( or similar )