Temples and Timeless Vistas
9- Day version
Inclusive of all transfers, A 5 Day Nile Cruise , One Way Sleeper Train & One way Domestic air fare
And three hotel nights in Luxor or Aswan . Perfect add-on to a Cairo visit.
Daily , subject to availability at the time we receive your booking . Embarkation Luxor or Aswan

Private Nile Cruising ( minimum 4 guests is required )
Click for the full listing of Nile Cruises : Rates & Itinerary for : 4 days , 8 Days Cruise
Add Abu Simbel

DAY 1 - CAIRO LUXOR (D)

Please advise the name of your hotel in Cairo. Transfer is included ( private car/driver) from your hotel to Cairo Railway Station. We have several boats that do start on different days of the week to accommodate your schedule. Dinner is served on board the sleeper train in the privacy of your compartment. We rate the train modest 3 stars, you may wish to considerflying if you don't prefer the sleeper train.

DAY 2 - LUXOR: (B)
Early breakfast on board the train. In Luxor , our local rep will meet you at Luxor train station and assist with your transfer to your hotel. Yet another breakfast will be served with our compliments , at the hotel upon arrival early morning. Morning tour of the small yet charming Luxor Museum. Reminder of the day at leisure.

DAY 3 - LUXOR / CRUISE (BLD)
Check in on your luxury cruiser at noon. After lunch, we visit the great temples of Luxor and Karnak, then return to our Nile cruiser in time for afternoon tea.

DAY 4 - VALLEY OF THE KINGS (cBLD)
We tour today as well the magnificent tombs in the Valley of the Kings, including Tut-Ankh-Amon's tomb, and the great temple of Queen Hatshepsut, we stop at the Colossi of Memnon on the way back to our cruise.

Queen Nefertari's tomb will be closed for urgent repairs. , that's why we are visiting instead the Ancient Worker's village at Deir el Medinah

The Queen for whom the sun shines :
Long before Cleopatra humbled the ruler of Rome, an Egyptian queen held power over the heart and soul of Ramses, Egypt's greatest pharaoh. In the 12th century BC, a brokenhearted Ramses built a grand funerary tomb for Queen Nefertari, "the Beautiful one," in the Valley of the Queens. It's been exquisitely restored with the aid of an American endowment, and is among the rarest sights in all Egypt: the only great tomb ever built by a pharaoh for his late queen. Artistically, it is the closest thing you could ever come to see the original Ancient Egyptian art in all of its glory and finesse.
Because of its fragile nature, only a limited number of visitors are allowed entry each day. We are the only company to include a visit to Nefertari's tomb in our daily program. Because of the limited access we must rise early for our visit, appropriate as Ramses named Nefertari "the one for whom the sun shines."

Then it's on to Queen Hatshepsut's Temple and the Colossi of Memnon.

Afterward, we'll continue on Luxor's west bank to get a totally different perspective on ancient Egyptian life, at the ancient workers' settlement of Deir el-Medinah. While most of the imposing stone monuments and sites of Egypt honor the lives and after-lives of royalty, Deir el-Medinah gives us unique and surprising insights into the ordinary citizens who constructed and decorated the tombs.

Here we'll see the excavated homes shared by laborers with their domestic animals. These quarters were surprisingly large, with three good-sized rooms, courtyard, kitchen, and even storage cellars. While ancient Egypt might not have been a workers' paradise, we'll see that artisans and builders were highly regarded in their community. We are proud to be the only operator to offer regular visits to this singular ancient settlement in its tour and cruise programs.

DAY 5 - EDFU & KOM OMBO (cBLD) We cruise by Esna to Edfu, where we board horse-drawn carriages for the ride to the Temple of Horus. Returning to our ship, we set sail for Kom Ombo. In the evening, there's a jolly galabia party aboard.

DAY 6 - KOM OMBO & ASWAN (cBLD)
We explore the twin Temples of Haroeris and Sobek at Kom Ombo, then sail south to Aswan. After lunch we board a graceful felucca and cruise among the islands, returning to our ship in time for tea.

DAY 7 - ASWAN- Disembark (cB)
After breakfast, we check-out , visit the awesome Aswan dams, and next an ancient granite quarry complete with an unfinished obelisk, then board a motor launch to visit the the Island temple of Philae , dedicated to the Ancient Goddess ISIS :

The Mystery of Isis

Two millennia ago the Mediterranean world was enthralled by the mystery of Isis:

"I, Isis, am all that has been, that is or shall be; no mortal man hath ever seen me unveiled."

Called Aset by the ancient Egyptians, the goddess was a Madonna in the Mediterranean tradition that stretches far, far back to the primitive Mother Goddess from Anatolia, home to some of the oldest human communities on earth.

Isis was the powerful and quick-witted protector of her son Horus, the Sun God. Ancient peoples throughout the Mediterranean regarded Isis and Horus as the perfect Madonna and Child. Another legend says she was
also the mother of the fertility god Min who, judging from the depiction of him on temple walls, needed no help from Viagra!

Because of her wisdom and skill at protection, she was admired as a good magician capable of healing the sick and protecting the dead in their journey to the Underworld.

Isis is portrayed regally, as a queen seated on a throne (which may be the meaning of her name), often holding her son Horus as a baby. Other images show her with broad, magnificent gilded wings able to protect
the world.

Isis, the great Mother Goddess. Come explore her mystery in timeless
Egypt when you Travel in Style!

We proceed to the Old Cataract Hotel or the Elephantine Island Movenpick ( Former Oberoi) , overlooking the Nile and the ancient island of Elephantine. Remainder of the day at leisure.

DAY 8- ASWAN - Nubian Museum, Camel Caravan, Nubian Village, (cB)
After breakfast , visit the Nubian Museum ,then be our guest if you wish on a complimentary short camel caravan to a near by Nubian Village for tea with the locals.

DAY 9 - ASWAN / Cairo (cB)
Breakfast at leisure at the hotel.
Transfer is included back to Aswan airport. Domestic air fare is included, ticket is issued & delivered in Cairo .
In Cairo , we meet you at the airport & escort you back to your hotel or assist with your transfer to another connecting international flight. End of our service - Bon Voyage !

Add Cairo Stay or add Abu Simbel ?

Itinerary is subject to change without notice.

RATES per person in USD

Inclusions:

• All shore excursions, entrance fees, the service of an English Speaking guide.
• Welcome fruit basket upon check-in on board the Nile .
• Tea / coffee with every meal on board the cruise.
• Welcome drink upon arrival on board the cruise.
• Complimentary bottle of water for each of our guest delivered daily to your cabin while you are on board the cruise.
• Complimentary bottle of water for each of our guest with every meal while you are on board the cruise.
• One night hotel accommodation in Aswan (Old Cataract hotel or the Oberoi), or in Luxor : Old Winter Palace or the Sonesta St. George), with tax, breakfast & service charge.
• Welcome fruit basket upon check-in.
• All outside cabins, including all tax & service charges.
• All meals on board the cruise : B = Breakfast, L = Lunch, D = Dinner. Afternoon tea daily onboard.
• All transfers as listed, all by private car/van & driver.
• Domestic air fare between Cairo & the cruise, tax included. Add $ 150 for upgrade to business class ( subject to availability)

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Rates do not include:

• Tips.
• Insurance ( we'll be glad to send you the flyer)
• Drinks with meals. Meals not specifically mentioned. Tips for guides and hotel personnel.
  Expenses of a personal nature

• For Christmas/New Year's and the month of April :
  Please add %15 supplement, to any of the listed rates.
  
• For a PRIVATE: CAR/DRIVER & GUIDE for all the shore excursions for the duration of the cruise , please add :$ 150 per person.
  
• Children discount :
  10 % on the adult double rate. ( 9 years of age or younger), must be raveling with an adult. No children discount on triple or single rates.
  
• Baby Sitting : Available upon request : $10 per child / per hour
  
• Add Abu Simbel : Aswan Abu Simbel Aswan with entrance fees in Abu Simbel & transfers

Boarding the cruise is from either Luxor or Aswan, depending on the availability at the time of booking.  

Dining Room Reservations: Meet other passengers :
YOU will not require any, our dining rooms do accommodate all our guests in one seating, one less thing to worry about while you are on the Nile. Enjoy the cosmopolitan atmosphere with several different languages being heard at dinner.

Do we get sea sickness while sailing the Nile ?
This is river sailing, so do not expect any waves , no rough seas ! Your Nile cruises is actually a floating hotel that moves from place to place along the Nile. Actual cruising times are short and pleasant.

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What to Pack:
Most of the year look forward to warm, even hot weather in Luxor & Aswan, morning & evenings are cooler. For Shore excursions, we suggest comfortable cotton & natural fabric lightweight clothing. Comfortable walking shoes are essential.

Clothing on Board:
Lightweight comfortable & casual clothing. Swimsuits, sun hat. Dining room dress code is casual for breakfast & lunch, but smart casual for dinner. All ships are fully air conditioned

Add Abu Simbel excursion by air , Compare with Abu Simbel by Private Guide . Read on Jacquie Kennedy & Abu Simbel

Why book with us ?

Jacquie Kennedy & Abu Simbel:

All Americans alive during the 1960s remember President John F Kennedy and First Lady Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy. Most Americans from that time also remember Abu Simbel, the dramatic, ancient pharaonic temple threatened by the rising waters blocked by the new Aswan High Dam.

It’s worth remembering that it was Jacquie Kennedy who provided crucial support for the mammoth rescue project. Without her help, Abu Simbel might have been lost.

No one questioned that the temple must be saved. UNESCO developed a marvelous plan to cut the huge monument into 1,423 stone blocks and move it 200 meters (219 yards) north and 63 meters (207 feet) higher, just above the estimated level of Lake Nasser, the vast inland sea that would be created by the new dam.

But who would pay? As a developing country, Egypt could not shoulder the burden alone. Other countries could contribute, but only one country--the United States of America--truly had the resources for this
monumental rescue effort.

No matter how much wealth there is, it is never enough. Many legitimate, worthwhile projects compete for funds. What Abu Simbel needed was an advocate, someone who recognized the temple for the irreplaceable world art treasure that it was.

First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy, already famous for her grace, refinement, and sensitivity to the arts, saw the need to work for the salvation of Abu Simbel. It was she who urged Congress to allocate $10 million for the rescue effort (a sum roughly equivalent to $100 million today). It was an enormous amount of money, but she saw that America
must step up to the challenge of saving this treasure of worldwide importance for all time.

The rescue funds were approved by Congress and the temple was saved.

In appreciation for her efforts, Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser presented the First Lady and the president with a 4000-year-old Egyptian statue (which is now preserved in the John F Kennedy Library &
Museum in Boston). (http://www.jfklibrary.org/visit_museum-14.html)

President Nasser wanted also to give a gift of thanks to the people of the United States for their valuable support. He asked Mrs Kennedy to choose an appropriate monument. She suggested the small Temple of
Dendur (c. 15 BC), and the gift was readily approved. The temple was brought to the United States in 1965 and installed at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1967.
(http://www.metmuseum.org/collections/ view1.asp?dep=10&full=0&item=68%2E154)

Times change, leaders come and go, but some acts of support and generosity are remembered through the decades.

First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy loved Egypt, and Egypt still loves her.