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Egyptian
Wonders
A 14-Day Tour of Egypt: Alexandria
Edition
We have even included all the tips
Compare
with the Sonesta Cruise Version
Add a foray into the Western Sahara
and camping in the White Desert
Our deluxe tour of Cairo and the Nile gives you an in-depth look at the
wonders of Egypt in 14 days, at the best rates possible. Meet the local,
enjoy a home hosted meal. Weekly departure , on Sundays. Year round.
Extend to Petra Jordan . Add
Abu Simbel
DAY
1 - USA/CAIRO - Sunday
Your wide-body jet departs the USA bound for Cairo. Overnight across
the Atlantic.
Add
on is available from major US cities.
DAY
2 - CAIRO - Monday
Upon arrival, we escort you to your comfortable hotel.
Visa fee is included & will be issued upon arrival for : American,
Canadian, EU Citizens & Japanese citizens.
Visa
will be issued upon arrival.
As you exit the gate, you will pass through a door or two , down some
stairs , then walk for 2-5 minutes , until you pass the duty free shops,
at the end of a wide corridor , you will see the security officers. There
you will be met by a local representative, who will be holding a sign
with the name you prefer to use for the sign .
Our local representative will then take your passport to obtain a stamp
from the cashier / bank window and escort you to speak with the passport
officer. He will escort you through another last check on your passport
as you exit the passport control, into customs area, he will assist you
in collecting your luggage and clearing customs . After exiting the terminal,
our local representative will escort you (private vehicle) to the hotel
DAY
3 - CAIRO - Tuesday (cBL)
Today we see Cairo's major sights: the Egyptian Museum including the
" Mummies Room " , the Royal Palace of Manial , Saladin's Citadel,
the Alabaster Mosque ( Mohamed Ali Mosque ) ,and the 12th Century Khan
El Khalili Bazaar district . Lunch is included at a charming local
restaurant.
DAY
4 - GIZA & OLD CAIRO - Wednesday (cBL)
In
the morning, we visit the majestic pyramids of Giza and the timeless
Sphinx,
including that famous shot on the camel with the Pyramids in the background,
this is a PHOTO OP. Not a camel ride, as time is very limited.
in the afternoon we tour Old Cairo: the Coptic museum, Church of Abu Sarga,
and Ben Ezra Synagogue, where we will visit the spot at which, tradition
says, Moses was found by the banks of the Nile. Lunch at a local restaurant.
DAY
5 - CAIRO- Home Hosted Dinner - Thursday (cB)
Today Cairo is yours to explore (or to shop!) as you like, guidebook in
hand; or ask about our optional tours.
Dinner
is included at a local home:
Meet the locals,
you may wish to bring token gifts to exchange with the host family ( T shirt
, small souvenirs of your home town):
This
evening we'll venture where few ordinary visitors ever tread . . . right
into the homes of some of the people of Cairo l! You'll be invited to a
family dinner, and while you enjoy wholesome home-cooked specialties, you'll
learn about and appreciate the outlook, aspirations, and way of life of
your hosts. Be assured, as curious as you may be about your new friends,
they're sure to have questions about your own background. Once the ice is
broken, you'll enjoy a lively evening, and find that you have more in common
than you ever suspected. Of course, you may enjoy a quiet evening with your
travel companions, by letting us know your preferences.
DAY
6 - DAHSHOUR - Friday (cBL)
Early morning tour of Imbaba Camel market , and watch caravans that came
all the way from the Sudan, Nubia and the edge of the Sahara.
Followed by a half-day tour takes us to Dahshour, the newly-opened
pyramid field south of Cairo. We visit the great pyramid of Senfru, father
of Cheops, and other structures, we'll motor to the edge of Cairo, to
Dahshour, the newly-opened pyramid field south of Cairo. We visit
the great pyramid of Senfru, father of Cheops, and other structure:
The "Discovery" of Dahshour:
For almost half a century, the great field of huge pyramids near the desert
village of Dahshour, 25 miles south of Cairo, has been off limits to the
public. Confined within the perimeter of a military base were many pyramids,
including the great 4500-year-old pyramid built by Senfru, father of Cheops.
Senfru's pyramid, the largest in Egypt until his son built Giza's Great
Pyramid, is rhomboidal in shape: it tapers more distinctly on its upper
half. All the pyramids were coated in thick plaster at one time. Most
have lost these protective, decorative sheaths, but Senfru's--miraculously--is
still in place, lunch at a local restaurant.
DAY
7 - LUXOR & KARNAK - Saturday (cBLD) An
early flight takes us to Luxor, where we settle in aboard our Nile cruiser.
Following lunch aboard, we visit the great Temple of Luxor, and
the gigantic Great Temple of Amon at Karnak, returning to our vessel
in time for tea.
DAY
8 - VALLEY OF THE KINGS - Sunday (cBLD)
We tour the Valley of the Kings including Tut-Ankh-Amon's tomb ,
temple of Queen Hatshepsut at Deir el Bahari.
Deir
El Medinah, the first known "Workers Village" these
were the true creative heroes who built the temples & tombs for the
mighty Pharaohs of the Nile Kingdom.
Deir
El Medinah is on Luxor's west bank you 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.
We
stop by Colossi of Memnon before returning to our Nile cruiser
for lunch. In the afternoon, do as you like: Luxor's folksy bazaar awaits
you.
DAY
9 - ESNA & EDFU - Monday (cBLD)
We cruise to Esna during the night and pass through the locks.
After breakfast we cruise to Edfu and board horse-drawn carriages
to get to the fine Temple of Horus. In the evening, we have a jolly
galabia party.
DAY
10 - KOM OMBO & ASWAN - Tuesday (cBLD)
We explore Kom Ombo's twin Temples of Haroeris, the sun god, and
Sobek, the crocodile god, before cruising south to Aswan. After
lunch aboard, we board a graceful felucca for a cruise among the Nile
islands .
DAY
11 - ASWAN /CAIRO / ALEXANDRIA - Wednesday (cBD)
The mighty Aswan dams and the Nubian Museum are our first goal this morning,
followed by a trip by motor launch to 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!
Back on land, we head for the airport , returning to Cairo by plane.
Connecting to Alexandria by air or private car/driver, dinner at your
hotel , subject to availability : the Cecil Hotel with the old world charm,
or Sheraton or Palestine Montazah Hotel.
DAY
12 - Alexandria & Wadi El Natroun Monasteries - Thursday (cBL)
Full day tour of the Catacombs, the Roman Amphitheater, Qayet Bey Fortress
,
the new museum in Alexandria , the building was originally built in 1926
for the US consulate in Alexandria and is a masterpiece in 1920's architecture
& Mediterranean style buildings.
Qayet
Bey Fort was built on the same site of the ancient wonder of the world
: the famous Alexandria Light House. A brief stop at " El Selsela"
the site of the Underwater reserve where Cleopatra Place was discovered,
as well as Caesar Kiosk. Lunch at a local restaurant , then its off to
the new site for the Alexandria Library before heading back to Cairo .
We stop at Wadi El Natroun monastery , where early Coptic Christians retreated
here to escape the Roman persecution in the 4th century AD. The Egyptian
Pope of Alexandria is always chosen from the Monks of wadi El Natroun.
Reach Cairo early evening and your hotel .
Octavious visiting Alexander the Great's Tomb in Alexandria
Just after he defeated Cleopatra & Marc Anthony.
He left his coat as a token of respect to Alexander the Great.
The search continues for Alexander the Great's Tomb.
DAY
13 - CAIRO - Friday (cBL)
The Culture of Cairo
Today
we’ll explore deep into the heart of Cairo, and get to know its
daily rhythms, its spirituality, its history, and its modern diversions.
We’ll start early, with a visit to a local market, with an immense
variety of seasonal fruits and vegetables on offer, both familiar and
exotic.
You’ll
see that shopping in Cairo goes far beyond a supermarket experience. Be
prepared for whispers, gestures, shouting, and controlled chaos. It’s
all part of the bargaining process, engaged in by women in traditional
modest garb as well as others in Western dress.
Then
it’s on to the Museum of Islamic Art, with its tapestries, textiles,
swords and other objects exemplifying one of the world’s great decorative
traditions. We’ll continue to the Gayer-Anderson House, a serene
and classic domestic oasis, right down to its central fountain and exquisite
furnishings. Our visit is also a journey into a vanished way of life—the
residence is actually two traditional medieval Cairo houses restored by
an English physician to a former king. We’ll stop for lunch at a
restaurant where Cairenes go, then visit the Bab an-Nasr, the Gate of
Victory in Cairo’s old walls. You’ll even see graffiti that
survives from soldiers of Napoleon and of the British Empire, among the
many who passed this way.
DAY
14 - DEPARTURE Saturday (cB)
Our staff escorts you to the airport for your flight home.
RATES per
person in USD $$
From
New York |
Deluxe-A
Grand Hyatt
Conrad
or similar |
Deluxe-B
Hilton , Sheraton, Sofitel or similar
|
First
Class Hotels
Oases , Shepheards or similar
|
| Triple |
US$
4432.00 |
US$
4260.00 |
US$
3990.00 |
| Double |
US$
4553.00 |
US$
4375.00 |
US$
4085.00 |
| Single |
US$
5601.00 |
US$
4432.00 |
US$
4180.00 |
DINING
NOTES
The set-menu meals included in your tour are indicated in the itinerary:
B = Breakfast, (or cB, Continental Breakfast), L = Lunch, D = Dinner.
On our luxury Nile cruise vessels, our spacious dining rooms accommodate
all passengers at one seating, so there is no need to worry about making
reservations.
Air
Fare Supplement Notes :
Our airline partners for departures from New York are : Lufthansa , British
Airways, Air France, Egyptair and Olympic Airways. From San Francisco,
San Diego, Los Angeles, Seattle-Tacoma, Phoenix, Denver and Dallas-Fort
Worth please add an additional $300; from Chicago or Washington, DC's
Dulles International Airport, please ad an additional $250.
Air
Fare High Season:
In addition, for any departures from May 1 through Sep 30 , Dec 20
- Jan 2 , please add $300 high-season airfare surcharge to the rates
shown above. This doesn't apply when you handle
your own air fare.
If you choose to make your own arrangements for international airfare,
please deduct $500 per person from the rates.
Land
Arrangements High Season and Departure Notes:
For departures during Easter ( 2 weeks season ) , or : Dec 20 - Jan 2:
Christmas, New Year's , please add 15% to the rates .
YOUR
TOUR INCLUDES:
-
International airfare from New York, US departure tax. ( when you handle
your own ,
please deduct $ 500 ) .
- Tips
: all tips to drivers, guides, porters, your crew on board the cruise
, etc.
-
Egyptian domestic airfares as described in the itinerary, in economy
class .
- All
airport transfers and taxes in Egypt.
- Hotel
accommodations (including taxes).
- Set-menu
(table d'hote) meals as indicated in the itinerary above.
- Guided
sightseeing by air-conditioned motorcoach, including all admissions
fees.
- Visa
fee is included & will be issued upon arrival for : American, Canadian,
Australian, NZ, Mexican , EU , South Africa, Brazilian & Japanese
citizens.
- Complimentary
welcome drink upon arrival on board the Nile Cruise.
- Complimentary
welcome fruit basket on board the Nile Cruise.
- Large
bottle of water ( per person ) delivered to you cabin daily while you
are on board the Nile Cruise.
- Tea
or coffee and bottled water with each / every meal while you are on
board the Nile Cruise.
-
Nile cruise with all shore excursions and meals.
More
Choices :
Not
included:
- Expenses
of personal nature, such as phone calls, laundry , beverages, etc
- Travel
Insurance
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