Itinerary Expand all Cairo to Luxor Day 1 Start Cairo. Welcome to Cairo! This evening there will be a welcome briefing with your leader and rest of the group. Steigenberger Pyramids Hotel or similar Day 2 Pyramids and Great Sphinx of Giza. We begin our day with a visit to the Pyramids at Giza. Home to the Great Pyramids of Cheops, Chephren and Mycerinus and the enduring and mysterious Great Sphinx, these great monuments to the afterlife defy the imagination. Only the throng of sightseers, Egyptian and foreign, milling around their huge foundations, keep the viewer in the 21st century. The afternoon is free to relax at our hotel, explore Cairo or join an optional excursion to Saqqara, Memphis, and Dahshur. Steigenberger Pyramids Hotel or similar Meals included: Breakfast Day 3 Cairo tour. After breakfast we enjoy a full day tour of Cairo. We begin with a visit to the Egyptian Museum – home to the world’s largest collection of ancient Egyptian artefacts including the incredible golden riches of Tutankhamun’s tomb. Following this piece of history, we experience modern Cairo with a tour of the El Darb El Ahmar School for Arts and a walk along the bustling El Moaz Street. We also explore Al Azhar mosque which dates back to AD970 and is Cairo’s oldest. The mosque is still frequently visited by locals to this day and we will need to cover up (long sleeves and trousers) to enter - as when entering all mosques. Women will also need to cover their hair with a scarf. Steigenberger Pyramids Hotel or similar Meals included: Breakfast Day 4 Transfer to Alexandria, city tour. Today we have a journey of 3-4hrs to Alexandria. Founded by Alexander the Great in 331BC, the city was home to the Lighthouse of Alexandria, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, and it’s Great Library was the largest of its time. Unfortunately, these parts of Egypt’s glorious history did not survive up to modern times but there is still much to see in this Mediterranean port city. Our tour begins with a visit of the city’s catacombs followed by the impressive Qaidbay Fortress and the Bibliotheca Alexandrina – Alexandria’s revival of the Great Library. Hilton Corniche Hotel or similar Meals included: Breakfast Day 5 Visit El Alamein and El Anba Bishoy Monastery; return to Cairo. We have an early morning drive to El Alamein, the site of the famed allied victory during World War Two, where we will visit the War Cemetery and Military Museum. More than 80,000 soldiers were killed or wounded in the two battles. It was a decisive win for the Allies with Winston Churchill saying, "Before Alamein we never had a victory. After Alamein we never had a defeat". After lunch we stop by El Anba Bishoy Monastery on our return to Cairo. Steigenberger Pyramids Hotel or similar Meals included: Breakfast Lunch Day 6 Food tour of Cairo; transfer to sleeper train. Today we embark on a tour of Cairo’s best food spots and discover some of the fantastic local cuisine available across the city – highlights are Mulukhiyah (soup), Ful Medames (beans) and Kushari (rice and macaroni). The tour also includes the bazaars of Khan el-Khalili located in the historic centre of Islamic Cairo. This evening we transfer to the railway station and board our sleeper train to Aswan (which takes approximately 12 hours). Sleeper train. Meals included: Breakfast Lunch Dinner Day 7 Arrive Aswan; Nubian tour and Felucca ride. Arriving in Aswan during the morning, we spend the rest of the day exploring the Nubian way of life. We begin with a visit to the Nubian Museum, which chronologically charts the history and culture of the people, before enjoying Nubian lunch onboard a felucca while we explore the Nile. In the afternoon we have a tour of the Monastery of St. Simeon by camel and visit the nearby village of Gharb Sohil (please see Responsible Travel section). We finish our day with a barbeque on the shores of an island in the Nile. Movenpick Resort Aswan or similar Meals included: Breakfast Lunch Dinner Day 8 Optional visit to Abu Simbel; board cruise boat. This morning we transfer to our cruise boat and have some time to relax before enjoying lunch on board. For the rest of the day there is the option to explore the Aswan market or attend the Sound and Light Show at Philae Temple. For those who want to do the optional visit to Abu Simbel, the tour starts at approximately 3.30am when we get picked up from the hotel. A breakfast box is provided. Around 8am we will arrive at the destination, where we are given around three hours to visit the temples. Built by Ramses II, the temples of Abu Simbel rank amongst the most impressive in the country and well worth the journey south across the Nubian Desert. We will be back in Aswan around 3pm. M/S Esmeralda or similar Meals included: Breakfast Lunch Dinner Day 9 Visit Philae Temple and Aswan High Dam; sail to Edfu. We begin today with a visit to the Philae Temple and Aswan High Dam. In the 1970s the temple was relocated by UNESCO to Aglika Island after it became evident that the original site of Philae would submerge on completion of the dam. This morning represents a magnificent and enduring testament to both ancient and modern engineering. After lunch we sail to Kom Ombo and visit the temple there before continuing our journey to Edfu which is where we will spend the night. M/S Esmeralda or similar Meals included: Breakfast Lunch Dinner Day 10 Tour Edfu; sail to Luxor. Waking in Edfu, we start our day exploring the city and its temples before sailing further north along the Nile. After crossing the Esna lock we reach our destination, Luxor, where we will have our final dinner on board and hopefully witness a stunning sunset over the river. M/S Esmeralda or similar Meals included: Breakfast Lunch Dinner Day 11 Disembark in Luxor; explore the Valley of the Kings. After breakfast on board we disembark in Luxor and explore the Valley of the Kings. For nearly 500 years this was the site of royal burials and it contains the tombs of over 62 pharaohs, including Tutankhamun, Seti I, Ramses III and IV. One ticket allows us to see three tombs. The ticket usually allows entry into what are regarded as the most impressive tombs, but if you have time a visit to the tomb of Ramses VI is also highly recommended. Visits to tombs are now strictly controlled to halt further deterioration of wall paintings - each tomb is periodically closed for a number of weeks. Afterwards we visit the massive stone statues of the Colossi of Memnon before transferring to our hotel. The rest of the day is free to relax or wander around the streets of Luxor. Steigenberger Resort Achti or similar Meals included: Breakfast Day 12 Luxor tour including Karnak and Luxor temples. For our penultimate day we have a half day tour of Luxor’s east bank. Luxor is commonly called the world's greatest open-air museum and this morning we visit the extraordinary Karnak and Luxor temples which both stand within the modern city. There should also be an opportunity to visit the A.C.E animal hospital to learn about the efforts taken to improve animal welfare in Egypt. After a leisurely afternoon we enjoy our final dinner together at one of this historic city’s restaurants. Steigenberger Resort Achti or similar Meals included: Breakfast Day 13 End Luxor. Our trip ends today after breakfast. Meals included: Breakfast
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Egypt Visas are required by all non-Arab nationalities and currently cost approximately GBP20. It is recommended that you obtain your visa before you travel (although it’s still possible to get a tourist visa on arrival). You can get a visa online at Visa2Egypt or alternatively, the address of the Egyptian Embassy in London is 2 Lowndes Street, SW1. Tel: 020 7235 9777. Visas are now generally available for same day collection, although this should NOT be relied upon. Opening hours are 09.30 to 12.30 for applications, 14.15 to 16.00 for collection of passports after the visa has been issued. Postal applications direct to the embassy for visas are not recommended as the service takes 15 to 20 days. If you are obtaining your visa online then please ensure you have a scan of your passport ready. The file size should be small and ideally saved as a JPEG or PDF otherwise you might not be able to load it on the visa application. You will need to provide your host’s information on the application – please use the following details: South Sinai Travel79 Merghany StreetCairoEgyptTel: +20 22418 7310www.southsinai.com [email protected] Please note that recently Egyptian officials have requested tourists carry a copy of their passport with them whilst in the country.
Egypt There are no mandatory vaccination requirements. Recommended vaccinations are: Tetanus, Typhoid, Hepatitis A. Although not usually advised, other vaccinations to consider include rabies and Hepatitis B.
Cruise Boat, Sleeper Train & Hotels We use comfortable 5 star hotels/resorts on a twin-share basis. In Cairo we use the Steigenberger Pyramids Hotel which is located close to the Great Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx. The hotel has lush gardens, two swimming pools and and selection of restaurants and bars. The Movenpick Resort in Aswan is located on Elephantine Island in the middle of the River Nile. All the rooms offer private balconies or terrace, many with views of the Nile or the surrounding desert. The facilities in the rooms and in the hotel itself are excellent, including a choice of bars and restaurants, a huge swimming pool and all set amid well-maintained gardens. Cruise boatWe sail the Nile on the M/S Esmeralda or on a similar cruise boat. It offers impressive service and great facilities including a swimming pool, sun deck, gift shop, restaurant and bar. It stretches 72m in length and 12.6m in width, each of the 60 en suite cabins is fully air-conditioned and has a TV and mini bar. Wi-Fi is also available. Sleeper TrainWe use first-class cabins with shared bathroom facilities. Single rooms are available on request.
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