Egyptian Elegance 9 Day tour from $2268 an Insight Vacations luxury tourclick to enlarge mapTour HighlightsHotels A highlight in their own right, the hotels have been hand picked for their character and location. The Conrad is one of Cairo's finest. The Old Cataract in Aswan is living history with its high ceilings, long halls and moorish decor. While Luxor's Old Winter Palace has accommodated kings, presidents and film stars! Fellow Passengers In times past you may have found yourself rubbing shoulders with Julius Caesar, Napoleon or Agatha Christie... Nowadays, you will find your companions to be like-minded people who enjoy travelling in comfort and style - lured by the romance and history of this ancient land. Highlights They're all here! The Pyramids, Karnak, the Egyptian Museum, Luxor's Valley of the Kings, the temples at Edfu and Kom Ombo. However, the superior standard of hotels and cruise ship are also highlights! Soak up Egypt's Victorian past as you take high tea on the famous terrace in Aswan. Insight's Five Star Cruising Insight's professional multi-lingual Egyptologist/Tour Director accompanies you, tour by luxury air-conditioned coach First Class hotels with all service charges, taxes and porterage, 3 night 5 Star Nile cruise on M.S. Tower Prestige (or similar)with cruise boat gratuities included Scheduled air travel between Cairo/Aswan & Luxor/CairoServices of Insight's Resident Manager in Egypt Excursions & Sights - Motorboat cruise to visit the Temple of Isis on Philae Island
- Visit the unfinished obelisk in the granite quarries & see Aswan High Dam
- Sail on a 'felucca' around Aswan's Botanical gardens
- Tour the temple at Kom Ombo dedicated to Sobek &Â Horus
- Tour Luxor Temple and the awesome Karnak Temple
- Visit the Valleys of the Kings, Temple of Hatshepsut & see the Colossi of Memnon
- Tour the Egyptian Museum to see treasure from the tomb of Tutankhamun
- See the Sakkara Step Pyramid - oldest in the world
- See the Great Pyramids of Giza & their guardian Sphinx
Guided City Tours In depth sightseeing tour in Cairo. Orientation tours in Luxor & Aswan Complimentary Transfers Complimentary arrival and departure transfers between Cairo airport and your Insight tour hotel (ask for details) Quality Dining & Entertainment Egyptian dinner and Galabea Party with entertainment while cruising
8 buffet breakfasts, 3 lunches, 3 special-menu dinners, or buffets, plus bottled water or tea or coffee
Tour Itinerary Tour Pace Relaxed and leisurely as you would expect with a tour featuring a luxury Nile cruise. With three nights in central Cairo, and overnight stops in Aswan and Luxor, you have the opportunity to fully appreciate all the ancient tombs, museums, temples and monuments! DAY 1 WED - ARRIVE CAIRO Welcome to Egypt - part of the Holyland, furnished with ancient temples and tombs, and lavish backdrop for many of history's most enthralling tales! On arrival in Cairo we are met and transferred to one of the best hotels in Cairo. Our rooms overlook the River Nile, so we can be sure of a memorable stay! Hotel: Conrad. DAY 2 THU - CAIRO - ASWAN Our morning flight across the Egyptian desert brings us to the historic town of Aswan. We have time to join an optional excursion by air to Abu Simbel to view the fabulous temples carved out of the cliff side by Rameses II and later transported, in an amazing feat of modern engineering, out of the rising waters of Lake Nasser. (See page 120 for details.) Later this afternoon we take a ride in a local sailing boat, a 'felucca', around Kitchener Island, where we see Aswan's famous Botanical Gardens. Tonight, we stay on the banks of the Nile in one of Egypt's most elegant hotels, built in the 19C by Thomas Cook. This evening, we are treated to high tea on the terrace of our hotel while enjoying the glowing sunset! Hotel: The Old Cataract. (BB) DAY 3 FRI - ASWAN - CRUISING This morning we visit the Aswan High Dam and the granite quarries where many of ancient Egypt's obelisks were made. We see the unfinished obelisk still attached to the granite bedrock, commissioned by Hatshepsut, but abandoned due to a large fault line. Now we take a motorboat across the Nile to the extraordinarily preserved temple complex of Isis on the island of Philae. This afternoon we board one of the most stylish and spacious boats in Egypt for our all-inclusive cruise. We set sail for Kom Ombo where our sightseeing shows us the riverside temple, uniquely dedicated to both the crocodile god, Sobek, and the falcon-headed Horus. We dock overnight at Edfu. Ship: Tower Prestige. (BB,L,D) DAY 4 SAT - CRUISING We take a horse drawn carriage ride this morning to the well preserved Temple of Horus at Edfu, dedicated to the Falcon God. Now time to sit back and relax with a cold soft drink, local beer, glass of wine or bottle of water - all included throughout our cruise! We enjoy the ever changing scenery as we float downstream to Luxor. On arrival we visit the beautiful Temple of Luxor, discovered beneath the shifting desert sands! (BB,L,D) DAY 5 SUN - CRUISING We cross the Nile by air-conditioned coach to the West Bank to see the huge Colossi of Memnon, and visit the Temple of Hatshepsut, blending into the cliff face above. Now we visit the Valley of the Kings, where the archaeologist Carter unearthed Tutankhamen's secret tomb. This afternoon we return to Luxor to visit the immense Karnak temple, dedicated to the Sun-God Amom. For our last night on board we don traditional Egyptian attire, for a fun-filled Egyptian Dinner and Galabea Party. (BB,L,HD) DAY 6 MON - LUXOR SIGHTSEEING After breakfast we disembark and check into our famous hotel, originally built for European royalty and home to Howard Carter and other great Egyptologists. Now we are at leisure. Maybe visit Luxor Museum? Tonight we return to the Temple of Karnak for a magnificent Sound and Light Show, set amidst avenues of sphinxes and halls of gigantic columns – an unforgettable journey into the world of ancient Egypt. Hotel: Old Winter Palace. (BB) DAY 7 TUE - LUXOR - CAIRO After breakfast we transfer to the airport for our flight back to Cairo. Perhaps haggle in the bazaars or take an optional excursion to visit the Coptic Museums and hanging church? Hotel: Conrad. (BB) DAY 8 WED - CAIRO SIGHTSEEING Our tour comes to an exciting climax today as we tour the riches of Cairo. We visit the Egyptian Museum, with its exhibits from all periods of Egyptian history and treasures from the Tomb of Tutankhamen. We then drive to Sakkara to see the Step Pyramid of King Zoser, the oldest Pyramid in the world, dating back from 2700 BC. This afternoon we visit the Pyramids at Giza, where a camel ride takes us to the Great Pyramid of Cheops for a guided tour of these magnificent monuments. Finally, we come face to face with the inscrutable Sphinx. (BB) DAY 9 THU - DEPART CAIRO Our tour comes to an end today with a transfer to Cairo airport. (BB)
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