Egypt and Jordan a la Indiana Jones

A 14 day Grand Adventure Tour in Egypt and Jordan
Without Sinai and Flying in between Cairo and Amman

Indiana Jones himself couldn't squeeze more adventure into this journey: Cairo , Giza and the Pyramids, a cruise on the Nile, the fabled temples and tombs of Luxor and Thebes, and a trek to the mysterious ruins of Petra in Jordan . Add Abu Simbel tour.

DAY 1 - CAIRO - Weekly on Saturday and Mondays for the Ultra Deluxe ( Sonesta Star Goddess ) - Year Round.
( click here if your prefer to start in Amman Jordan)
Our Egypt-based local rep. greets you in bustling Cairo airport and escorts you to your hotel . Egyptian visa may be secured by our guests upon arrival at Cairo Airport for a limited number of nationalities such as American,Canadian, Australian, NZ, EU and Japanese citizens, please pay the $ 15 in cash upon arrival . Passports must be valid for at least 6 month upon arrival). After exiting the terminal, our local representative will escort you to the hotel .

DAY 2 - CAIRO- Dahshour, Memphis, Sakkara -Sunday (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 , the small yet charming Imhotep Museum and the Nobles tombs/Mastabas.

DAY 3 - CAIRO- Old Coptic Cairo - Giza - Home Hosted Dinner - Monday (BLD)
Morning tour of Old Coptic Cairo Churches and Beni Ezra Synagogue, then on to Khan El Khalili and Muiz LedeenAllah street for a walking tour. Lunch is included at Hadaik El-Azhar or Naguib Mahfouz restaurant before we head back to your hotel.
In the afternoon enjoy Cairo as you wish .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 4 - CAIRO- Tuesday (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 and KIng Tut's gold treasure room . 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. for those interested, enjoy the usual photo opp riding a camel with the Pyramids and the Sphinx in the background, time is limited , so please make it brief 5 -10 minute camel ride . Lunch is included at the Mena House. Dinner is included at La Bodega restaurant or similar .

DAY 5 - ASWAN- Wednesday - Board Your Nile Cruise (BLD)
After avery early breakfast proceed to the airport to fly to Aswan , where we settle you into your cabin on your Nile steamer. We'll visit the enormous dams at Aswan, the Unfinished Obelisk then board a launch on Lake Nasser to visit the Temples of Philae, rescued from rising waters. In the evening we head back to Philae Temple for the Sound and Light show .

DAY 6 - KOM OMBO - Thursday- On Board Your Nile Cruise (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 7 - EDFU and LUXOR- Friday - On Board Your Nile Cruise (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 9 - Luxor / Cairo/ Amman : Saturday - Disembark from Your Nile Cruise (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 to Cairo and connect to Amman and your hotel:Sample Deluxe : Hyatt or Sheraton Al-Nabil

Day 10 - Dead Sea Scrolls - JERASH /PETRA - Sunday (BLD)
After breakfast , a brief stop at Amman Museum :
THE SECRET DEAD SEA SCROLLS – A TALE OF WANDERING

The peoples of the Holy Land have wandered from homeland to dispersion, across the parted waters of the Red Sea, back to their homeland. So too, the Dead Sea Scrolls have followed an epic journey, from hazy origins in the time of the Second Temple, to secret caches, to their repositories today, where they are revered as the heritage of mankind.

It was in 1947 that the first scrolls were rediscovered by Bedouin shepherds in the Qumran Caves overlooking the Dead Sea. Inscribed in Hebrew and Aramaic and Greek on parchment and papyrus, unmolested since before the time of Christ, they were the earliest original holy writings ever brought to light. Only dimly appreciated at first, they embarked on a journey that took them through the hands of dealers and connoisseurs, to Bethlehem, Lebanon and New York, and finally to Jerusalem.

Discoveries continued, as 11 caves were explored, revealing scrolls and fragments of sacred texts and historical records of the construction of the Second Temple. Most found their way to the Rockefeller Museum, and later were incorporated into today’s Shrine of the Book in Jerusalem.

But other treasures made their way to the Jordan Archaeological Museum, where they are displayed in an alcove at one end of the building, in an unpretentious setting that belies their importance. The collection includes a fragment of the Book of Isaiah, and the Dead Sea Bronze Scroll, an inventory of caches of valuables, composed in Aramaic characters, the vernacular language of Palestine at the time of Christ.

As you gaze and at the scrolls in the museum, reflect on the Biblical events of which they speak that took place in what is now Jordan. Lot’s wife was turned into a pillar of salt, and Lot fled to a cave in what is now Safi. Lot’s descendants ruled over Moab in Central Jordan. Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed by fire. Jesus preached in the Decapolis, the ten Roman cities of northern Jordan and southern Syria. The Israelites crossed this land on the way to exile in Persia; and Moses viewed the Holy Land from Mount Nebo, and expired.

Then we'll head for Jerash (Gerasa of antiquity), the best preserved city of Roman times. Visit its theaters, temples, churches and colonnaded streets. Then continue our drive southwards along the Kings’ Way to Petra, and your hotel. Lunch is included enroute . Dinner is included at the hotel.

DAY 11 - PETRA- Monday (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.

DAY 12 - PETRA/ WADI RUM / DEAD SEA - Tuesday (BL)
After breakfast at the hotel, we board four-wheel-drive vehicles for an expedition to Wadi Rum, the "Valley of the Moon" where T. E. Lawrence ("Lawrence of Arabia") organized Arab resistance to Ottoman rule during World War I. After our visit, we stop for tea with the local bedouins then we enjoy lunch at a local restaurant then on to the DEAD SEA ,the lowest spot on Earth. Sample deluxe : Kempinski Ishtar Dead Sea Hotel, or Movenpick Dead Sea . First class : Dead Sea Spa hotel or similar

DAY 13 - PETRA/ WADI RUM / DEAD SEA - Wednesday (BL)
Breakfast is included at the hotel, full day at leisure and maybe experience floating in the waters of the Dead Sea.

DAY 14 - 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.

RATES per person in USD
Based on an Ultra Deluxe Nile Cruise
All suites : Private Balcony : Sonesta Star Goddess Mozart Suite ,
or the Sonesta M/S Moon Goddess state room with private balcony similar

Inclusions:

Trip Reviews: What other guests say about our services :
Adrian and Melina

-------- Original Message --------
From: "Adrian"
Sent: Monday, September 24, 2007 2:04 PM
To: omar@travelinstyle.com>, > Subject: We're Back!

We just wanted to let you know we made it back home after our weeklong detour through Italy. Athens was fantastic. The tours were very good, and short of heading out to the islands, I can't think of a single thing we would have rather done while there.



Although we had an excellent time in Athens, Egypt was by far the highlight of our entire trip, including Italy. We just can't say enough
about Ahmed, Isis, Ashraf, and all our drivers. We simply could not have done the trip without their help. Ahmed was very professional, courteous, and helpful, and always went out of his way to make sure we were where we needed to be at the right time. Our Egyptologist guides, Isis and Ashraf, were both very knowledgeable and made our visit so much better with their endless supply of information. We wore out both days long before they did. We will definitely try to come back to Egypt when we have more time to spend.



Thank you so much for arranging the trip, allowing us to customize what we needed to, and putting us in touch with such good people. And please find attached pictures of us enjoying a camel ride. :-)



Adrian & Melina