Location: Al Ahram
Day 1 - 26 Sep 2021
Panorama Pyramids Inn
Content: We recommend staying at a hotel in Giza for a night to experience waking up to the sight of the Pyramids! We stayed at and can recommend Panorama Pyramids Inn.
Panorama Pyramids Inn
Content: From the rooftop or your balcony you can watch the nightly Sound & Light show for free!
Location: Al Giza Desert
Day 2 - 27 Sep 2021
The Great Pyramid of Giza
Content: Start the day early to make sure you get to walk around the pyramids before the sun gets too hot or too many your groups arrive! We recommend getting a guide for the pyramids so you know what’s going on!
Location: Giza
Day 2 - 27 Sep 2021
Great Sphinx of Giza (تمثال أبو الهول)
Content: After touring the pyramid complex next you’ll hit the Great Sphinx. This is included in your ticket. It’s a little walk from the main pyramids so we’d recommend taking a horse or camel if you don’t have a guide and a car.
Location: Saqqara
Day 2 - 27 Sep 2021
Saqqara Pyramid (سقاره)
Content: After checking off Giza take a trip out to Saqqara to see the Step Pyramid - the oldest one in Egypt! If you book a tour of the pyramids most will include a trip out here. You can also go inside one of the other pyramids here which is exciting to do!
Location: Dahshūr
Day 2 - 27 Sep 2021
Bent Pyramid of Sneferu (هرم سنفرو المائل)
Content: After visiting Saqqara we recommend adding Dahshur on to your day - lots of guided tours don’t actually include this site however it’s well worth the visit and extra cost! You are able to go deep inside both the red and bent pyramids here to the chambers within, and whilst they’re certainly challenging physically to enter they’re amazing to experience!
Location: Cairo
Day 3 - 28 Sep 2021
The Egyptian Museum (المتحف المصري)
Content: Move from Giza into downtown Cairo this morning (we recommend a place near Tahrir Square for ease of location) and then hit the Egyptian Museum! This is the old museum which is pretty hot to wander but is full of fascinating items!
Location: Zamalek
Day 3 - 28 Sep 2021
Zamalek
Content: After a morning at the museum wander across the bridge and on to Zamalek island. You’ll get some great views of the Nile if you wander up the East side of the island. We’d recommend catching a taxi or ordering an Uber back once you’ve walked as far as you’d like!
Location: Misr Al Qadimah
Day 4 - 29 Sep 2021
Hanging Church (الكنيسة المعلقة)
Content: A trip to Coptic Cairo is a must! The complex of religious buildings next to Mar Girgis metro stop is fascinating - it’s home to the Hanging Church, a Synagogue, a mosque and various other religious sites. The narrow streets are great fun to walk around!
Location: Misr al-Qadima
Day 4 - 29 Sep 2021
National Museum of Egyptian Civilization (NMEC) (المتحف القومي للحضارة المصرية)
Content: From a Coptic Cairo it’s an easy Uber over to the Civilisation museum which is now home to the Mummy collection as well as many other artefacts. This is a new museum which has the benefit of air con and signs giving information on each of the items displayed!
Location: Zamalek
Day 4 - 29 Sep 2021
Beeja
Content: Zamalek island is one of Cairo’s nicer neighbourhoods - particularly the northern tip. It’s home to lots of nice restaurants and great views across the Nile towards the city. Beeja was a great restaurant we found with good food and service!
Location: Islamic Cairo
Day 5 - 30 Sep 2021
Khan Al-Khalili (خان الخليلي)
Content: Another must in Cairo! The Khan Al-Khalili souk is a famous little street with numerous shops and cafes to choose from. The entire area of the souk is great for wandering and seeing countless historical buildings.
Location: Bab El Shaaria
Day 5 - 30 Sep 2021
Bab Zuweila (باب زويله)
Content: After wandering the streets surrounding the souk we recommend climbing the towers of the Bab Zuweila gate. This is one of the remaining old gates to the city which gives views across the whole of Cairo!
Location: Zamalek
Day 5 - 30 Sep 2021
Cairo Tower (برج القاهرة)
Content: The Cairo Tower is the tallest building in Egypt and gives amazing views of the city. Reaching the top at sunset and waiting for it to get dark is the best time to check this tower out!
Location: Cairo
Day 5 - 30 Sep 2021
Tahrir Square (ميدان التحرير)
Content: From the Cairo Tower it’s easy to walk across the Zamalek bridge and straight into Tahrir Square. This square was home to the Arab Spring revolution but is a beautiful place to see at night with all of the surrounding buildings lit up, horses running past and the usual chaos on the roads. Nothing says Cairo more than this Square!
Location: El Nozha
Day 6 - 1 Oct 2021
Cairo International Airport
Content: Today is a travel day! Book a flight from Cairo straight to Aswan. We spent the day working and chilling a coffee shop before our flight. We recommend booking accommodation on Elephantine Island in Aswan. It’s much nicer than Aswan town itself!
Location: Aswân Reservoir Colony
Day 7 - 2 Oct 2021
Temple of Isis (معبد إيزيس)
Content: First thing in the morning jump in a cab and have them take you to the Philae Temple dock and wait there for your return. This temple is so well preserved despite having been moved to protect it from flooding! It gets very hot wandering this temple so it’s best to head there first thing!
Location: Aswān
Day 7 - 2 Oct 2021
Elephantine Island (جزيرة الفنتين)
Content: The Bob Marley hostel and restaurant on Elephantine Island is the perfect spot to enjoy a beer and watch the sunset from!
Location: Abu Simbel
Day 8 - 3 Oct 2021
Abu Simbel
Content: This is a very early start from Aswan to make it to Abu Simbel but it’s well worth the effort and money! A 4 hour drive in a mini van or private car gets you to this incredible temple of Ramses II. You should arrive back in Aswan by 2pm - tired and ready for lunch!
Location: Aswān
Day 8 - 3 Oct 2021
Elephantine Island (جزيرة الفنتين)
Content: The perfect way to end the day is with a peaceful felucca ride up and down the Nile! We booked a sunset trip through Nooba Dool guesthouse and had a perfect evening relaxing and drinking tea!
Location: Aswān
Day 9 - 4 Oct 2021
Aswan Dock
Content: Check in for a 3 night Nile cruise! Cruises leave Aswan every day to make the journey up to Luxor. We went with Steigenberger on the Regency boat. The rooms were large and comfortable and the common areas such as the pool made for perfect views! Night 1 is actually spent in Aswan so if you wanted to explore more of the town or check off any additional things such as the unfinished obelisk you have time!
Location: Kom Ombo
Day 10 - 5 Oct 2021
Temple of Kom Ombo (معبد كوم أمبو)
Content: You’ll spend the day on the boat cruising up the Nile towards Kom Ombo temple. We reached this temple just after sunset and explored at night, which was a very different experience to day time explorations!
Location: Idfū
Day 11 - 6 Oct 2021
Temple of Edfu (معبد إدفو)
Content: Over night your boat will have cruised to the Temple of Edfu. Another early morning sees you exploring this amazing temple by 7am, returning to the boat by 8.30am for another day of sailing towards Luxor.
Location: Luxor
Day 12 - 7 Oct 2021
Luxor Temple (معبد الأقصر)
Content: Your boat will have reached Luxor and you’ll disembark early in the morning. Get off the boat by 7am to make it to Luxor temple early morning before the best kicks in! The organised tour groups hit Karnak temple first and Luxor in the afternoon so it should be pretty quiet - we had the place to ourselves!
The Karnak Temple Complex (معبد الكرنك)
Content: After a relaxed lunch make your way over to the Karnak Temple complex. We’d recommend a guide for this one as there’s so much to see and learn! The afternoon sun is hot so take plenty of water and a hat! The organised tours should be gone (mostly) by the afternoon so it’s much quieter than in the mornings.
Location: Luxor
Day 13 - 8 Oct 2021
Valley of The Kings (وادي الملوك)
Content: Explore the West Bank of Luxor today! We recommend an early start. Take the public ferry across the river (5le per person) instead of a private boat. It’s definitely worth having a guide and transport set up for this. We paid 400le for a great guide and 200le for a taxi to take us everywhere for half a day - this is necessary as the sights are far! You should hit Hatshepsut’s Tempe, Valley of the Kings, Valley of the Noble’s and the Collosi of Memnom. This is an exhausting morning so take the afternoon to chill after this!