Thirteen days from the Pyramids to Abu Simbel, three nights in Luxor with the quieter West Bank sites, Dendera and Abydos on the way to the Red Sea, and four all-inclusive nights in Hurghada with a dive trip and a desert safari.
This private 13-day tour travels the length of Egypt by air, rail and road, without going back on itself. After a day at the Pyramids of Giza, the Grand Egyptian Museum and Saqqara, you fly to Aswan for two nights, with a full day at Abu Simbel. A first-class train takes you to Luxor for three nights, enough to see Karnak and Luxor Temple, the Valley of the Kings and Hatshepsut's temple, and then the quieter sites of the West Bank: the Valley of the Queens, Medinet Habu and the workers' village of Deir el-Medina. On the way to the Red Sea you stop at the temples of Dendera and Abydos, and four all-inclusive nights in Hurghada include a diving trip and a desert safari. A flight brings you back to Cairo for the Egyptian Museum and the historic city.
A professional Egyptologist guides the sightseeing, every transfer is private, and the flights from Cairo to Aswan and from Hurghada to Cairo and the train from Aswan to Luxor are included.
It is a weaker fit if you want a Nile cruise, which this route replaces with hotels, or if you prefer more time in Cairo. See our budget-friendly Egypt tours and classic tours for other combinations.
The pace is moderate, with early starts on the sightseeing days and a free day in Hurghada. The travel days are:
Our representative meets you after you leave immigration and baggage claim at Cairo International Airport and drives you to your hotel in a private air-conditioned vehicle. Pickup follows your confirmed flight details, since arrival times vary with immigration and luggage.
After time to rest, you join a dinner cruise on the Nile, with Cairo lit up on both banks, Egyptian music and a show on board, then return to the hotel. If this is your first trip to Egypt, the evening is a gentle introduction to the city.
After breakfast your Egyptologist takes you to the Great Pyramid of Khufu, the largest pyramid and the only one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World still standing, the pyramids of Khafre and Menkaure, the Great Sphinx and Khafre's granite Valley Temple. Going inside the Great Pyramid needs a separate ticket bought at the site.
About 2 km from the plateau, the Grand Egyptian Museum shows the colossal statue of Ramses II, a staircase lined with royal statues and the complete Tutankhamun collection. Lunch is at a local restaurant.
At Saqqara you see the Step Pyramid of Djoser, built around 2650 BC. The order of the day has a logic: Giza shows the pyramid at its peak in the Fourth Dynasty, and Saqqara takes you back to the first stone pyramid, a century earlier.
After breakfast you transfer to Cairo airport for the flight to Aswan, about 1 hour 20 minutes. Your guide meets you on arrival.
Lunch is at a local restaurant, and you check in to your Aswan hotel in the afternoon. The order of the visits follows the confirmed flight time.
You leave the hotel before dawn with a breakfast box. Abu Simbel is about 280 km south of Aswan, three and a half hours by private vehicle across the desert.
The Great Temple of Ramses II is cut into the cliff, with four seated statues of the king, each about 20 metres tall, on its facade, and halls showing his battle at Kadesh. Its axis is aligned so that the rising sun reaches the sanctuary around 22 February and 22 October. The smaller temple honours Queen Nefertari and the goddess Hathor. Your guide explains how both were cut into blocks and moved to higher ground in the 1960s to save them from Lake Nasser.
You drive back to Aswan for a late lunch, and the rest of the day is free. Giving Abu Simbel its own day keeps the long drive from squeezing other visits.
After breakfast you check out and board the first-class train to Luxor, about three hours along the Nile. Your guide meets you at Luxor station.
Karnak, the temple of Amun, was enlarged over some 2,000 years; its Great Hypostyle Hall has 134 columns. Luxor Temple, in the centre of town, was built mainly by Amenhotep III and Ramses II, and the Avenue of Sphinxes, about 2.7 km long, joins the two. Lunch and check-in fit around the train arrival; if the train is late, your written itinerary confirms the order of visits. Our article facts about the temple of Karnak gives more background.
After breakfast you cross to the West Bank. At Deir el-Bahari, the temple of Hatshepsut rises in three terraces against the cliffs. The Valley of the Kings holds more than 60 tombs of New Kingdom pharaohs; the standard ticket opens three among those open on the day, and tombs such as Tutankhamun and Seti I need separate tickets. See the best tombs to visit. On the way back you stop at the Colossi of Memnon.
A short boat trip on the Nile with lunch on board ends the day, with time to rest afterwards.
Today you see the side of the West Bank most visitors miss.
Breakfast is included; the afternoon is free.
You check out after breakfast and drive about an hour north with your guide to Dendera. The Temple of Hathor, mostly of the Ptolemaic and Roman periods, is one of the best preserved in Egypt, with columns crowned by the goddess's face and ceilings painted with the sky goddess Nut.
About two hours further north, Abydos was the holy city of Osiris. The temple of Seti I has some of the finest reliefs in Egypt and the Abydos King List, naming 76 earlier kings. See our article on the temple of Abydos. Lunch is on the way.
From Abydos you drive back south to Qena and east across the desert to the coast, reaching your Hurghada resort in the evening. This is the longest road day of the trip, about 450 km in all.
After several days of touring and road travel, today has no plan. Spend it on the beach, by the pool or in the spa, with meals and drinks included on the all-inclusive plan. If you want to explore, the Hurghada Marina and the older town of El Dahar are a short taxi ride away.
After breakfast you join a diving trip with a dive centre. The team gives a full briefing and checks your experience: certified divers join guided reef dives, and beginners make an introductory dive with an instructor in shallow water. Equipment is provided. Non-divers can snorkel from the boat. You are back at the resort in the afternoon.
Do not fly within 24 hours of diving: the flight to Cairo is two days later, which is safe. The dive sites depend on the weather and the centre's plan on the day.
The morning is free. In the afternoon you leave for a quad-bike safari into the Eastern Desert behind Hurghada, through rocky valleys and open plains, with a stop at a Bedouin camp and the sunset over the mountains. A barbecue dinner in the desert ends the day before the drive back to the resort.
After breakfast and check-out you fly from Hurghada to Cairo, about one hour, and meet your Egyptologist.
The programme draws on these sites, as many as the flight time and opening hours allow; your written itinerary confirms the plan for your date:
You check in to your Cairo hotel for the last night.
After breakfast and check-out, our representative drives you to Cairo International Airport according to your flight; airlines usually ask you to be there three hours before an international departure. This is the end of the tour.
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Children pay less, see the children policy below. Christmas, New Year and Easter dates add 25%. Prices are per person in US dollars.
October to April is the most comfortable time for the sightseeing, with days around 18 to 22 °C in Cairo and 23 to 26 °C in Aswan and Luxor from December to February. The Red Sea is swimmable all year, around 21 to 22 °C in winter and 28 °C in August, and winter wind can make boat days rough. From May to September Upper Egypt often passes 40 °C, and the long road day to Hurghada is better done early. Christmas, New Year and Easter are the busiest weeks.
Many nationalities can buy a tourist visa on arrival at Cairo airport or apply for an e-visa in advance on Egypt's official portal, visa2egypt.gov.eg. The rules and the fee depend on your passport. Your passport should be valid for at least six months from the day you arrive, and you need it for the flights, the train and the dive centre.
The currency is the Egyptian pound. Cards are accepted in hotels and larger shops; keep small notes for toilets at the sites, drinks outside the resort and boat crews. Tips are not included; the tipping guide in the travel policies below gives the usual amounts.
All prices are per person in US dollars. The price changes with the season (winter 1 October to 30 April, summer 1 May to 30 September), the accommodation level and the size of the group. Christmas, New Year and Easter dates add 25%. Your quote lists the final price and everything it covers. After the deposit, changes to your itinerary cost US$25 per request, plus any third-party fees.
A deposit of 30% of the total tour cost is required at the time of booking. The final payment is due 30 days before departure, and bookings made within 30 days of departure are paid in full. We accept Visa or Master Card by secure online payment, Visa or Master Card by email, and wire transfer. We confirm every booking by email.
No-show travelers are charged 100%. During peak events in Egypt, hotels and Nile cruises do not refund deposits. Groups of more than 10 people may have different terms.
Add each child and their age in the enquiry form so the quote is exact.
Optional visits, such as a hot air balloon ride in Luxor, a Sound and Light show or a felucca ride, are not in the price. Tell us which ones you want and we add them to your quote with their cost.
Not included in the price: International airfare; Egypt entry visa; Tipping; Personal expenses; Optional tours; Special-entry tickets not listed in the confirmed itinerary; Any service not stated under What’s Included.
Tipping is customary in Egypt and is not included in the price. A usual amount for a private tour is US$8 to 10 per person per day for your guide, US$4 to 5 for your driver and US$5 to 8 per person per day for the crew on a Nile cruise. Your guide can advise you on the day.
Hotels let you stay longer in each place: a full day for Abu Simbel and three nights in Luxor, with the Valley of the Queens, Medinet Habu and Deir el-Medina that cruises rarely include. If you prefer a cruise, a 3-night cruise from Aswan to Luxor can replace the hotel nights.
No. Certified divers join guided dives, and beginners make an introductory dive with an instructor. You fill in a short medical form at the dive centre; some conditions need a doctor's approval.
About 450 km in all, with two temple visits, so it fills the day and you reach Hurghada in the evening. Without the temples, Luxor to Hurghada is about four hours.
Meals and local drinks at the resort, as defined by each hotel. Imported drinks, spa treatments and activities outside the itinerary are usually extra.
Independent reviews on the platforms travelers already trust.
Amazing Egyptian vacation! We did an 11 day private tour of Cairo, cruise on the Nile between Aswan and Luxor and a 4 day stay in Hurghada. The guided tours were very interesting, with extremely knowledgeable guides, attentive and helpful.
Egypt package to the Pyramids of Giza and Saqqara was a fascinating journey through Egypt's ancient past ,guide knowledge, the majesty of the pyramids, and the historical depth of Saqqara made this tour truly enriching!
our honeymoon to Egypt ,Giza and Saqqara was a magical escape into history The pyramids looming in the distance, the quiet serenity of the desert, and the ancient wonders of Saqqara created moments that will be with me forever!
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