Egypt, Cairo Puzzling Egypt 5*

Arrival in Cairo.

Cairo, one of the world's greatest metropolises, stretches majestically along both banks of the Nile. This vibrant and historic city is a fascinating blend of cultures, architecture and history, offering a unique experience for travellers.

On arrival, you will be met and assisted by a tour guide (not always English-speaking) for entry formalities.

A French-speaking Egyptologist guide will then take over and accompany you for the duration of your stay

Enjoy a collective transfer to your hotel.

Spend the night at your 5* hotel (local standards).

Breakfast at the hotel.

Set off to visit the Giza Plateau and its incredible pyramids:
The Great Pyramid of Giza (the largest of the three, built around 2650 B.C.), one of the 7 Wonders of the Ancient World and the only one to have withstood the test of time. For more than 40 centuries, it was the highest monument built by man at 146 m high.
Khafre: The Pyramid of Khafre looks taller than Giza, but in reality, it is slightly smaller. The tilt angle is more emphasised, and it sits on slightly higher ground which is what creates this impression.
Menkaure: The tomb of King MenkauIt. At a height of 66 m, it is much smaller than the other two pyramids.
The Sphinx: A lion's body with a Pharaoh's head. Its role was to guard the entrance of the tomb against pillagers. It is 73 m long and 20 m high.

Lunch near the pyramids.

The afternoon will be spent visiting the sites of Memphis and Sakkara. Memphis, in the south of Cairo, is now a palm grove where several stone blocks, tablets and statues lie, including the iconic Alabaster Sphinx, capital of the Old Egyptian Empire, and was founded by King Menes around 3000 B.C. Continue to the site of Sakkara and the famous Step Pyramid, built around 2700 B.C. for the pharaoh Djoser by the architect Imhotep.

Dinner and overnight stay at the hotel.

Breakfast.

Transfer to the airport and flight to Luxor, in Upper Egypt.

Arrival, transfer to the port and settling into the boat's cabins.

Lunch on board.

Visit to Karnak Temple, the most theological ever built here over 2000 years, the faith of men paid homage to the same god, Amun. The greatest kings followed one another. The name "Karnak" meaning "fortress" dates back to the Muslim conquest.

Return to the boat.

Overnight stay on board.

Breakfast on board.

Set off to visit the left bank of the Nile, Thebes, where tombs of pharaohs from the 18th to the 20th dynasty can be found.

The Valley of the Kings is where you will visit three tombs. From the 18th dynasty onwards and throughout the New Empire, the pharaohs were no longer buried in temples or monuments dedicated to their last journey. Thutmose I and all the pharaohs who followed him decided to be buried on the other side of the Nile, on the West Bank - the land of the afterlife. Colossal monuments, such as the pyramids, and even the Mastabas used during the Old Kingdom ceased to be used. Instead, vaults were dug into the rock and access to them was strictly closed and hidden. Perhaps the main reason for this was to avoid grave robbers.

Visit to the temple at Medinet Habu, also known as the Temple of Ramses III. This temple is extremely grand; without a doubt, one of the most spectacular mortuary temples ever built.
Your visit to Egypt would not be complete without visiting the vast, monumental site of Ramesses. Ramesses III sought to restore the greatness of Egypt and equally immortalise the name of his famous ancestor. He began to build his jubilee temple as soon as he acceded to the throne, and it has remained one of the largest in the necropolis of Thebes. Visitors are always captivated by this vast ancient fortress built by Ramesses. It is incredible in both size and splendour. It is one of the few that still has beautiful colours.

On the way back, you will be able to take pictures at the Colossi of Memnon, 2 giant twin statues carved in sandstone, witnesses to the past splendours of the temple of Amenhotep III.

Lunch on board.

Sail towards Esna.

Dinner and overnight stay on board.

Breakfast.

Sail to Edfu.

Lunch on board.

Set off to visit the splendid Temple of Horus in Edfu. This masterpiece of architectural balance and elegance is one of the best-preserved sites in all of Ancient Egypt, a great example of Ptolemaic art from the Graeco-Roman period. You enter the temple through the great pylon decorated with large raised images of the king and the gods, towards the courtyard with walls depicting the various rituals performed by the king.

Sail to Al Ramady Island.

Dinner and overnight stay on board.

Sail to Gebel el-Silsila.

Breakfast.

Visit to the Temple of Kom Ombo in the morning: Isolated on a promontory along the Nile, this unique temple in Egypt dating from the Greco-Roman era includes two superb sanctuaries, one dedicated to Sobek, the Crocodile God, and the second to Horus, the Falcon God. It was built in the Ptolemaic period on the site of a New Empire temple. It is located on top of a hill, 15 m above the Nile. The most surprising feature is that it is consecrated to 2 different gods, the Falcon God Haroeris, "Great Horus", sometimes called "Horus the Elder", and Sobek, the Crocodile God. Duality is everywhere in this temple; it has two entrances, two parallel corridors, and symmetrically arranged rooms on either side of these corridors, which all lead to the double sanctuary. Sculpted columns display shimmering colours on the esplanade in front of the entrance. The small building to the right of the entrance is the Hathor Chapel; it houses several crocodile mummies.

Sail to El-Sheikh Fadl.

Lunch at El-Sheikh Fadl Island, tea and coffee as you sail to Aswan.

Dinner and overnight stay on board.

Arrival in Aswan in the morning breakfast

After the construction of the Aswan High Dam by President Nasser in the 1960s, the island of Philae, upstream from the Nile's first cataract, was completely covered by water.

Lunch on board

Late afternoon at leisure.

Dinner and overnight on board.

Breakfast.

Free day on the ship.

Lunch on board.

Sail to the El Ramady island.

Optional activity to be booked and paid for on-site with our local representative:
Coach trip to Abu Simbel: An exceptional site located 161 miles south of Aswan, this great temple was saved by UNESCO in 1969. The Colossi of Ramesses, the largest in Egypt, are built directly into the cliff. They are consecrated to the most famous gods of Pharaonic Egypt, Amon-Re, Ramesses and Ptah. The Great Temple is consecrated to God Amon-Re, the Temple of Hathor.

Dinner and overnight stay on board.

Pass through the lock in the early morning. Sail towards Luxor.

Breakfast on board.

Lunch on board.

Visit Luxor Temple, built to glorify the god Amun-Re, who celebrated his wedding anniversary with his wife Mut each year. The procession would leave the Karnak Temple and walk along the banks of the Nile to Luxor. The construction of the latter dates back to the reign of the two pharaohs, Amenhotep III and Ramesses II. Two obelisks were in the entrance and they were gifted to France in 1831 by Muhammad Ali; one is still in situ, and the other stands on Place de la Concorde in Paris.

Return to the boat. Free time.

Dinner and overnight stay on board.

Breakfast on board. Disembarkation

Flight to Cairo

Lunch

Departure for a visit to Cairo's Coptic Quarter. The Christian religion was introduced by St. Mark around 45 AD, and a Coptic community (Coptic being a term specifically referring to Christians in Egypt) began to develop. The Coptic Quarter is best known for housing a large number of churches in a very small area.
Eglise Saint-Serge is one of the oldest Christian churches, built around the 3rd or 4th century AD. The church was named after a former war general who converted to Christianity. The Christians built a church on this very spot, because it is believed that the Holy Family took refuge in this spot, where a grotto had once stood.
The Eglise Sainte-Marie or Eglise Suspendue is a beautiful monument. It is accessed via a staircase preceded by a corridor featuring mosaics depicting biblical scenes. The church is nicknamed the "Suspended Church" because it is built above the trunks of palm trees that support it like stilts. The interior is richly decorated, and the main room features a Coptic icon of the Virgin Mary with Jesus in her arms. Her gaze seems to follow you as you walk around her.

Night in hotel

Transfer to the airport according to your flight schedule.

A local English-speaking Egyptologist guide will accompany you for the entire duration of the stay.

Tips: 'bakchich'! A word you'll soon be familiar with! It's easy to say no to a solicitor, but it's a way of rewarding work and service well done. Gratuities for guides are never included. It is at the discretion of each individual.

A paying connection accessible throughout the boat may be offered. However, we cannot guarantee the quality of the connection during your stay

The luggage allowance for domestic flights is 23 kg per person in the hold and one small bag of up to 7 kg in the cabin. Any additional kilos will be charged locally.

Accommodation is in accordance with local standards.

The level of screening at Egypt's airports can be high and random depending on the number of tourists, so the guide will plan ahead as much as possible.

As traffic can be heavy in Cairo, journey times can be long.

On excursions, you will be grouped with other participants.
This package includes periods of free time during which you can wander around at your leisure. However, transfers are at your own expense.

Optional extras are subject to a supplement, payable on site to your guide or local representative.

The order of the visits can be modified to take account of local requirements (navigation time, passage of locks), but the visits listed will be carried out.

The pace of visits can be quite demanding (see all the visits included in the day-by-day details), which means waking up very early in the morning (outside the boat's navigation periods)

Egypt is a cultural destination

PLEASE NOTE: For those booking the "hotel only" package (without international flights), please let us know your flight details as soon as possible via the contact form in "Help and contact" at the bottom of the page, so that we can organise your transfers.