11D/10N - 2019/2020 Splendours of Egypt

day 1 Cairo Arrival
Upon arrival to Cairo, You'll be met by our representative in Cairo and assisted with visa and customs formalities. Proceed to check in at your 5-star hotel located in Pyramids area.

day 2 Cairo: Pyramids-Sakkara-Memphis
After breakfast your private Egyptologist tour guide and driver will pick you up and start your tour. Drive to Giza and visit the Pyramids. See the Great Pyramid, a royal burial chamber and the Sphinx. Continue to Memphis, capital of the pharaohs during the Old Kingdom. Visit the recumbent statue of Ramses II and the 80-ton alabaster sphinx. And then a Camel ride in around Pyramids. Lunch en route; Continue to Sakkara to see the prototype of the Pyramids, the Step Pyramid, built for the 3rd Dynasty pharaoh Djoser by the exalted architect Imhotep. Visit a Papyrus and Carpets Institute on your way back to the hotel, overnight.

day 3 Cairo-Alexandria

El Montazah Gardens, Catacomb, the Citadel of Qaitbay, the Library of Alexandria

After breakfast, transfer to Alexandria, start your tour to Alexandria with visit El Montazah gardens, where you will have the opportunity to see, from outside only, The Montazah palace; originally built in 1892, the palace dates from 1926 and was the summer home of the Egyptian Royal family.

Then continue to the Catacomb (Kom El Shuqqafa), a remarkable example of the Alexandrian blend of Greco-Roman and Egyptian styles carved into 100ft of solid rock. Then visit the Fort and Citadel of Qait Bey. Built in the 15th century by sultan Ashraf Qait Bey, legend tells the fort was built with stones from the Pharos Lighthouse, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It now houses a navel museum. Next stop will visit the newly opened Library of Alexandria. Apart from the main library, the complex will include a library for the blind, a young people's library, the Alexandria Conference Center, a science museum, a planetarium, a Restoration and Conservation Laboratory, and the Hall of Fame. Lunch at a local restaurant, than transfer to your hotel for overnight.

day 4 Alamein

Breakfast at hotel, Visit El Alamein Museum & commonwealth tombs (90 minutes driving from Alexandria). Lunch en route. Return back to Cairo. Overnight at your hotel in Cairo.

day 5 Luxor: Karnak and Luxor Temples (east bank)
In the morning, depart Cairo by air to Luxor for embarkation on your Nile Cruise. In the afternoon you will visit the great Luxor Temple and the magnificent Karnak Temple of Amun with its famous Hypostyle Hall and the 134 huge columns, the Statue of Ramses II, the Obelisk of Queen Hatshepsut and the Sacred Lake. Overnight in Luxor

day 6 Luxor: Valley of the Kings-Hatshepsut-Memnon (west bank)
In the morning your sightseeing in Luxor includes the West Bank (Thebes) where some of the richest treasures in the world exists, including the Tomb of Tut Ankh Amun (optional) and other royal tombs including Ramses VI in the Valley of the Kings, you will be able to visit some of these tombs, Visit Hatshepsut funerary temple at Dier El Bahari and the Colossi of Memnon. Visit Gold Institute on your way back to the cruise for lunch, In the afternoon you will sail through the locks of Esna to Edfu and dinner on board and overnight.

day 7 Cruise: Edfu and Kom-Ombo
In the morning, visit the Horus Temple of Edfu, one of the three beautiful temples of the Ptolemaic Period. Sail to Kom Ombo, where you will visit the Sobek Temple, dedicated to the two gods, which offers beautiful murals and reliefs. Sail to Aswan and Overnight

day 8 Aswan: Felucca ride and Nubian village

Breakfast, free day at leisure. In the afternoon you will sail on an Egyptian felucca around Elephantine Island and the Botanical Gardens on Kitchener Island and the Agha Khan Mausoleum and visit the Nubian village. Overnight in Aswan

day 9 Aswan: High Dam-Philae-Unfinished Obelisk-Cairo

Breakfast, Disembarks from the ship, visit the High Dam, and the Granite Quarries and the Philae Temple. You will be transferred to Aswan airport for your flight to Cairo, upon arrival you will be met by your representative and transferred to your hotel for overnight.

day 10 Cairo: Egyptian Museum-Citadel-Old Cairo
After breakfast visit the Egyptian Museum, this houses a magnificent collection of Pharaonic antiquities, especially the golden treasures of Tut Ankh Amun. Continue to visit the citadel of Salah El Din, and the Mohammed Ali Mosque situated high above the city, lunch en route. Continue to visit the Church of Abu Serga, Moallaqa Church (Hanging Church) and Ben Ezra Synagogue, the oldest Jewish synagogue in Egypt. Lunch en route. Visit a Perfume Laboratory on your way back to the hotel, overnight at hotel.

day 11 Cairo-departure

Breakfast, transfer to Cairo airport for final departure.

Inclusions: met and assisted on arrival, 5 night’s accommodation in Cairo, 4 nights Nile Cruise, 1 night in Alexandria, domestic flights Cairo/Aswan and Luxor/ Cairo, breakfast daily, 8 lunches, 4 dinners, 2 days touring in Cairo, 1 full day Alexandria, El Alamein, all sightseeing on board cruise, all private transfers, baggage handling and porterage, private Egyptologist Guide, Service and local taxes.

Exclusions: meals not mentioned, drinks, tips, entry visa.

Hotels: Cairo-5* Meridien Pyramids, Alexandria- Steinberger Cecil Hotels (sea view room), Cruise-M/S Premium Nile.

NB: the itinerary can be modified-extended according to personal preferences