OverView
Prepare to be astonished at the Pyramids of Giza, discover bustling Cairo and relax on a 4 night cruise along the Nile where island temples, ancient kingdoms and Egyptian hospitality await.
Highlights
- Return flights from Heathrow with Egyptair (via Cairo on return)
- 3 nights in a 4-star hotel in Cairo and 4 nights on board 5-star ship MS Tamr Henna
- 18 meals: 7 breakfasts, 6 lunches, 5 dinners
- Welcome cocktail and daily Afternoon Tea on board and welcome drink at your hotel
- Travelsphere Tour Manager and Specialist Local Guide
- Overseas transfers, internal flights, other transportation and porterage
Itineraries
- Day 1 UK – Cairo
- You will fly to Cairo from the UK today. On arrival, you’ll betransferred to your hotel.
- Day 2 Giza & Memphis
- Breakfast will be served in the hotel, after which you’ll travel to Giza. Be amazed by the only remaining wonder of the ancient world, the Pyramids of Giza, and the mysterious Great Sphinx, which is more than 4,000 years old. You’ll then head to Memphis, the first ancient capital of Egypt, to see the colossal statue of Rameses II and the eight-metre-long Alabaster Sphinx. Your day of sightseeing comes to an end in Sakkara, an ancient burial site and home of the Step Pyramid, said to be the world’s earliest stone monument. In the evening, you can choose to join an optional excursion to see the famous Sound and Light show, where the pyramids are illuminated at night.
- Day 3 Cairo
- After breakfast, you’llexplore the Egyptian Museum, hometo the world’s largest collection of Egyptian artefacts. Afterwards, on a stroll throughKhan el-Khalili, Cairo’s buzzing bazaar,you can practiseyour haggling skills.
On a tour of Copticand IslamicCairo this afternoon, you’ll discover an array ofimportant cultural and historical sites, including the Hanging Church, Ben Ezra Synagogue, the citadel of Salah El Din and the famous mosque of Mohamed Ali.The tour ends asyouwalk through the exotic streets of Cairo, including IslamicEl Moez Street, with its ancient mosques.
- Day 4 Cairo – Luxor
- After breakfast, you willcheck out of the hotel and be transferred to the airport for your flight to Luxor. On arrival, you’ll be transferredto your ship where you will enjoy lunch on board. Then it’s on to Luxor, location of the most astonishing treasures of Egypt and one of the highlights of this trip. You’ll explore the awe-inspiringKarnak Temple complex with itsAvenue of Sphinxes, and the Luxor Temple, which formed part of the ancient city of Thebes. You’ll return to the ship for dinner. In the evening, join our optional excursiontothe sound and light show at the Karnak Temple, or simply relax on board and take in the beauty of the river Nile.
- Day 5 Luxor – Esna
- Today you’ll explorethe West Bank of the Nile.The first excursion is to theValley of the Kings, another of Egypt’s must-see sites, where you’ll go inside some of the tombs that arecovered in hand-paintedhieroglyphics. Then, you’ll visit the astonishing Temple of Hatshepsut which iscarved into huge limestone cliffs. Finally, you’ll visit the Colossi of Memnon, two 60-ft-high statues which mark the entrance to the funerary temple of Amenophis III.After all that, it’s time for a well-earned rest on boardthe ship. Lunch will be served as you sail south to Esna, followed by Afternoon Tea on the sun deck. In the evening, there will bea cocktail reception and dinner.
- Day 6 Esna – Kom Ombo
- Today is another day packed full of fascinating sights. After breakfast onboard, you’ll enjoya horse-drawn carriage ride to the temple complex of Edfu, one of the most well-preserved Egyptian temples in existence today. In the afternoon, the ship will sail south to Kom Omboand there will be time to observe life on the Nile during Afternoon Tea on the sundeck. On arrival, you’ll visit the temple ofKom Ombo, a mysterious temple on the riverbank dedicated to the crocodile god, Sobek. On board the ship this evening, you are invited to a traditional dinner of Egyptian specialities.
- Day 7 Kom Ombo – Aswan
- If you would like to visit the Temples of Abu Simbel, some of the most spectacular monuments in Egypt,join our optional excursion departing early this morning. You’ll visit thisamazing site and tour its highlights before returning in theearlyafternoon for lunch.
If you choose to stay in Aswan, you’ll see the Aswan High Dam, an engineering marvel that took ten years to build. Later, enjoy a trip in a traditional Felucca on the Nile.
- Day 8 Aswan – UK
- After breakfastyou’ll disembarkthe ship andvisit the Temple of Isis at Philae. It was movedblock by block to its present location,so that it wouldn’t be submerged as a result of the Aswan High Dam. You’ll also see the Unfinished Obelisk in the ancient Aswan quarry before transferring to the airportfor your flight to Cairo. On arrival at Cairo, you’ll board your flight to the UK.
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