Egypt and Jordan a la Indiana Jones

17 days in Egypt and Jordan, Alexandria and Abu Simbel Edition

Indiana Jones himself couldn't squeeze more adventure into this journey: Alexandria Cairo , Memphis, Sakkara and the Pyramids, a cruise on the Nile, the fabled temples and tombs of Luxor and Thebes, diving in the Red Sea, the mountains of Sinai, and a trek to the mysterious ruins of Petra in Jordan.
Weekly on Tuesday

DAY 1 - DEPARTURE - Tuesday
( click here if your prefer to start in Amman Jordan) . We take off aboard Lufthansa, British Airways or Olympic Airways jet from New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport. (Ask about stopovers in Europe.)

DAY 2- CAIRO - Wednesday
Our Egypt-based staff greets you in bustling Cairo airport and escorts you to your hotel . Complimentary Egyptian visa fee (valid for American, Australian, NZ, EU & Japanese citizens. Passports must be valid for at least 6 month upon arrival).

DAY 3 - Alexandria Thursday(cBL)
Breakfast at leisure .
We leave Cairo : private air conditioned car/driver/guide). We drive across northern Egypt & the Nile Delta heading northwest for Alexandria: Full day tour of the Greco Roman Museum, the Catacombs, the Roman Amphitheater, Qayet Bey Fortress , built on the same site of the ancient wonder of the world : the famous Alexandria Light House.
Enjoy lunch at a local restaurant before we head for your hotel. Remainder of the day at leisure. Overnight in Alexandria

DAY 4 - Alexandria Friday(cBL)
Breakfast at leisure at the hotel. A brief stop at " El Selsela" the site of the Underwater reserve where Cleopatra Place was discovered, as well as Caesar Kiosk. Visit the Crown Jewels Museum of the former Egyptian Royal family , then its off to the new site for the Alexandria Library.
Lunch at a local restaurant before heading to Wadi El Natroun monastery almost midway to Cairo , 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.

DAY 5 - CAIRO- Dahshour, Memphis, Sakkara - Saturday (cBL)
A morning tour takes us to the time capsule treasure of Dahshour, the newly-opened pyramid field south of Cairo: DAHSOUR - 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.

After lunch at a local restaurant : The afternoon is for Memphis and Sakkara, including the Step Pyramid of Zoser & Nobles tombs/Mastabas.

DAY 6 - CAIRO- Giza Pyramids Sound& Light Show - Home Hosted Dinner - Sunday (BD)
Today Cairo is yours to explore on your own. In the evening, we return to the Pyramids for an awe-inspiring sound-and-light show.

Complimentary 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 7 - CAIRO -Monday (BLD)
Your exploration of the ancient world begins today! First stop is the Egyptian Museum, with its treasures of the ancient pharaohs: mummies, statuary, precious stones and metals. We'll also stop at the Citadel of Saladin and the Alabaster Mosque. Then it's on to Giza and the mysteries of the Pyramids and Sphinx.

DAY 8- ASWAN ABU SIMBEL Tuesday (BLD)
Abu Simbel excursion : One way flying , one way driving:

After an early breakfast we head for the airport and your flight to Abu Simbel via Aswan.
In Abu Simble, your private air-conditioned vehicle, private chauffeur and private guide will be waiting for you at the airport. On to the temples site overlooking Lake Nasser .
In the larger temple, colossal figures of Ramses are seated with the gods and attended by his queen and daughters. The smaller temple is dedicated to Queen Nefertari, who appears as Hathor, the goddess of love, joy and fertility, symbolized by the benevolent cow. We explore these fine temple , after which retire to a comfortable hotel for refreshments. Just as planeloads of visitors arrive to throng the temples we begin our leisurely drive back along the shore to Aswan, arriving in time for a late lunch at your hotel. Dinner is also included at the hotel

DAY 9 - ASWAN Wednesday (BLD)
Enjoy your breakfast at the hotel in Aswan , around noon time we head for the cruise piers and your Nile Cruise where we settle you into your cabin on your Nile steamer. We'll visit the enormous dams at Aswan, then board a launch on to visit the Temples island of Philae, dedicated to the Ancient Egyptian Goddess of Isis, that was later worshiped in Rome as well as Ancient Greece, the temple was rescued from rising waters and reassembled on this island.

Luxury Nile Cruises

DAY 10 - KOM OMBO Thursday (BLD)
We cruise northward down the Nile today, at a stately pace, disembarking for a visit to Kom Ombo, the twin temple dedicated to the crocodile river god, Sobek. We'll also see Haroeris, the solar disk.

DAY 11 - EDFU and LUXOR Friday (BLD)
Horse-drawn carriages or vans meet us at riverside to take us through Edfu to the Temple of Horus, best-preserved in all of Egypt. Then we'll continue beside the Nile to take in an array of ancient splendors: the Valley of the Kings; the imposing tomb-temple of Queen Hatshepsut ; and, back in Luxor, the Great Temple of Amon at Karnak.

DAY 12- SHARM EL SHEIK - RED SEA Saturday (B)
Now that you've seen the best of the Egypt of the Pharaohs, our guides escort you to the airport. You'll fly over the Sinai Peninsula and land at historic Sharm El Sheik on the Red Sea. You're at the beach and free to swim, or explore under the waters.

DAY 13 - SHARM EL SHEIK Sunday (B)
Relax! Today is set aside as a strategic mid-journey break. Spend some time in the sun, but don't miss your chance to snorkel or dive under Red Sea waters for an array of coral and glittering tropical fish.

DAY 14 - MOUNT SINAI Monday (BL)
Our knowledgeable guides arrange a pre-dawn departure into the still-cool wilderness of Sinai, through which Moses led the Children of Israel to the Promised Land. Our goal is the Monastery of St. Catherine, built of rock at the base of Mount Sinai, at the site of the Burning Bush. We tour the monastery, rich in history, icons and sacred paintings, then return to Sharm El Sheik.

Sharm El Sheik Red Sea family resorts

DAY 15 - AQABA, PETRA Tuesday (B)
We'll drive to the port of Nuweiba, where we'll board the Red Sea ferry. Across the water in Aqaba, with Israel and Saudi Arabia in sight, our Jordan-based representative waits to greet you. You'll drive north under a towering ridge of mountains, and arrive at your hotel in Petra for the night. Complimentary Jordanian visa fee (valid only for American & Japanese citizens. Passports must be valid for at least 6 month upon arrival).

DAY 16- PETRA- Wednesday (B)
We'll spend the entire day at Petra, the stunning desert city hewn by the Nabateans from solid cliffs of pink and violet sandstone. Petra was known in the bible as Sela, and rediscovered only in 1812. You'll feel like Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark as you penetrate into the city through a narrow sandstone gorge, the Siq, and wander among the Temple of the Winged Lion, tombs, Roman theater, and the imposing Treasury.

Interested in seeing Jerash , one of the most impressive & well presvered Greco Roman cities please click here .

DAY 17 - DEPARTURE FOR HOME Thursday (B)
Our staff escorts you to the airport of Amman for your flight home. Or, you may choose to add one of our extensions, and return later from Jordan at no additional cost for your air fare.

RATES per person in USD

Easter, Christmas, New Year's ( Dec 20 - Jan 3 ) : 15 % supplement will apply.

Add Palestine , Israel and Jerusalem

Air fare notes:

• For departures from most west coast cities, as well as Phoenix, Dallas-Fort Worth or Atlanta in , please add $350 to the above rates. This doesn't apply when you handle your own air fare.
  
• For travel in May - Sep , please note that a $550 air-fare supplement is added to the above rates.
  
• When you handle your own air fare, please deduct $500 from the listed rate.

Inclusions:

Not included:

• Personal expenses and beverages

• Gratuities

• Additional meals and services

• Trip interruption and cancellation insurance

Egypt & Jordan A La Carte- More Choices :

• Jordan and a Deluxe Dahabiya Sailing boat in Egypt
  

• Compare with the 17 Day version with Abu Simbel and Alexandria . Add Jerusalem.

• Compare with the Ultra Deluxe Version

• Egypt and Jordan in 12 days without Sinai and flying between Cairo and Amman

• Egypt & Jordan A La Carte- Choose from : 12 Day , 13 day Wadi Rum , or 14 day version

• Add Alexandria , Abu Simbel or : Memphis .
  

• Compare with the 16 Day version with Alexandria and Abu Simbel 
  

• Or the 16 Day version with Abu Simbel and Jerash

• Add a cruise on Lake Nasser
  

• Compare with the 22 days Wonders of Egypt & Arabia
  

• Add Morocco and Syria , in a Grand North African Crossing  .
  

• Compare with the 18-Day in-Depth Version

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