12 Day Egypt Itinerary
Enjoy spectacular sightseeing and blissful relaxation with a classic 12 Day Egypt Itinerary; a truly unforgettable travel experience featuring Cairo, a 5-Star Nile Cruise, and 3 sundrenched days at Hurghada on the Red Sea coast. Visit several of the best Cairo attractions, including the Giza Pyramids; the Saqqara necropolis; the Egyptian Museum and more.
Catch the overnight sleeper train to Aswan; board your Nile cruise and enjoy professional Egyptologist-guided tours in Aswan; Kom Ombo; Edfu and Luxor, then head for Hurghada for some leisure and relaxation before returning to Cairo for your flight back home. Enjoy 12 days in Egypt that will simply never forget.
12 Day Egypt Itinerary: Cairo, Nile Cruise & Hurghada
Day 1: 12 Day Egypt Itinerary Begins
When you arrive in Cairo for your 12 days in Egypt, your tour manager will meet you at the airport and escort you to your hotel with one of our drivers. Once at the hotel, you will be assisted with check-in and your tour manager will confirm pick-up times for your upcoming tours. After this you will be left to enjoy a free Welcome Drink and the remainder your first day as you wish.
Day 2: Giza and Saqqara Tours
Today is dedicated to showing you Egypt’s famous pyramids, so at the confirmed time, you will be picked up and then you will visit the ancient Giza necropolis to see the fabled Great Pyramids of Giza; the Sphinx, and the Valley Temple. This tour will take up most of the morning, so once you are finished at the pyramids, you will then be taken for lunch at a good local restaurant.
After your lunch, your Egyptologist guide and driver will take you the even older Sakkara necropolis to see the first known pyramid to be built, Djoser’s Step Pyramid. Next, you will continue on to Memphis which once served as the capital of the Old Kingdom, and from here you will then be driven back to your hotel in Cairo where you will be spending the 2nd night of your 12 day Egypt itinerary.
Meals included: Breakfast and Lunch
Day 3: Private Cairo Tour and Transfer to Aswan
Today, your 12 days in Egypt tour is devoted to showing you a variety of attraction in the city itself, including the magnificent Egyptian Museum; the Hanging Church of Cairo; the Ben Ezra Synagogue; the Saladin Citadel; the Mohamed Ali Alabaster Mosque, and Cairo’s famous Khan el Khalili Bazaar.
Most of the morning will be spent at the museum, after which you will once again be taken for lunch at a good local restaurant before continuing on see all the other attractions. After your tour ends, you will then be taken to the Giza railway station to board an overnight sleeper train to Aswan.
Dinner and breakfast served aboard the train, and you will sleep in your own private compartment.
NOTE:A flight supplement is available for a small additional fee.
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 4: Free Day in Aswan with Optional Abu Simbel Tour
After arriving in Aswan, you will again be met, this time at the railway station, and then you will be taken to the hotel where you will be staying for this night of your 12 Day Egypt Itinerary. There are no tours planned for this day, but there are optional tours available, such as visiting the Abu Simbel Temples of Pharaoh Ramses II and his wife, Queen Nefertari.
Meals included: Breakfast
Day 5: Cruise Embarkation and Aswan Small Group Tour
Today you will have some free time for yourself in the morning, and then you will check out from the hotel, and you will be taken to board your 5-Star Nile cruise ship. After enjoying lunch on the ship shortly after boarding, the rest of the day will be spent visiting the Aswan High Dam, the Philae temple that was devoted to goddesses Isis and Hathor.
Your guide will also take you to the ancient stone quarry where the largest known Obelisk is located. Return to the ship where a lovely dinner will be served, and then enjoy your evening as you wish. This night of your 12 Day Egypt Itinerary will be spent on the water at Aswan.
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 6: Kom Ombo Temple and Edfu Temple Tours
Enjoy breakfast on the Nile while sailing to Kom Ombo where you will be taken to visit the Temple of Sobek and Haerosis. Afterwards, you will sail to Edfu, with lunch being served along the way, and when you arrive at Edfu you will enjoy another excursion, this time to the extremely well-preserved cult temple, Horus Temple. Enjoy afternoon tea while sailing to Esna where you will be spending the night on the water.
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 7: Luxor West Bank Small Group Tour
Today your cruise ship will leave Esna quite early and you will be served breakfast while sailing to Luxor where you will enjoy another guided tour, this time to see some incredible sites on the West Bank, including the Valley of the Kings. This is an ancient royal burial ground consisting of more than 60 tombs, including the tomb of King Tutankhamen and the tomb of Ramses VI.
You will also be taken to see the remarkable rock-cut mortuary temple of Queen Hatshepsut before returning to the cruise ship where you will be able to enjoy the rest of the day as you wish. This night of your 12 Day Egypt Itinerary will be spent on the water at Luxor.
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 8: Luxor East Bank Small Group Tour and Transfer to Hurghada
Enjoy another breakfast on the ship and then you will check-out and disembark, after which you will enjoy a tour of the East Bank during which you will visit Luxor Temple and the vast Karnak Temple complex. After your tour, and after you have had lunch, you will then be transferred to Hurghada which is about a three and a half hour drive. On arrival, you will be taken directly to the resort/hotel where you will be staying for the next 3 nights of your 12 day Egypt intinerary.
Meals included: Breakfast and Lunch
Days 9 & 10: Leisure Time in Hurghada (Optional Tours Available)
There are no activities or tours scheduled for these two days. Instead, they have been reserved for leisure and relaxation although there are a number of optional tours available, including diving and snorkeling among the Red Sea coral reefs, with the opportunity to see rare fish. There are also other activities available, such as windsurfing, sailing or deep sea fishing.
Meals included: Breakfasts
Day 11: Transfer Back to Cairo
After breakfast you will have some free time for yourself, and then you will head back to Cairo on a coach, a journey that takes approximately six hours. If you would rather avoid the coach drive to Cairo, you can upgrade to a flight instead for an additional fee. On arrival in Cairo you will be met and taken to check in at a 5-Star Hotel where you will be staying for the last night of your 12 Day Egypt Itinerary.
Meals included: Breakfast
Day 12: Your 12 Days Egypt Tour Ends
Enjoy breakfast at your hotel, and then at the appropriate time you will need to check out from your hotel, and then you will be driven to the airport in time for you to board your flight home. Your 12 Day Egypt Itinerary has ended, but you will remember these 12 days in Egypt forever.
Meals included: Breakfast
Inclusions – What is included in your 12 Day Egypt Itinerary:
- Meet and greet service at airports; port and stations
- Custom service assistance throughout your 12 days in Egypt
- All transfers in private air-conditioned vehicles
- Transfer from Luxor to Hurghada in private air-conditioned vehicle
- Transfer from Hurghada to Cairo by 1st Class air-conditioned coach
- Accommodation for 3 nights in Cairo (includes breakfasts)
- Accommodation for 1 night on sleeper train (private compartment with dinner and breakfast).
- Accommodation for 1 night in Aswan (includes breakfast)
- Accommodation for 3 nights on the 5-Star Nile cruise ship (full board)
- Accommodation for 3 nights in Hurghada (includes breakfasts)
- All sightseeing tours in Cairo (private)
- English speaking Egyptologist guide during all tours
- All sightseeing tours on the cruise (group tours)
- Entrance fees to all sites listed in the 12 Day Egypt Itinerary
- All meals listed in the 12 Day Egypt Itinerary itinerary
- Bottled water during tours
- Portage when needed
- All service charges and taxes
- Free loan of mobile phone during your stay, including free credit for about 30 min. local calls / 5 min. international calls.
Exclusions – What is not included in your 12 Day Egypt Itinerary:
- International airfare
- Entry visa for Egypt
- Optional tours/activities not listed in the 12 Day Egypt Itinerary
- Personal expenses
- Tipping kitty
Note: Sleeper Trains in Egypt are designed and equipped to meet Egyptian Railway Authority standards, rather than international standards. The average journey from Cairo to Aswan on a sleeper train takes 14 hours. As an alternative, visitors can opt for a domestic flight which involves a supplement fee of $165 per person.
Accommodation Plan
- Le Méridien Pyramids Hotel & Spa
- Helnan Aswan Hotel
- Salacia Nile Cruise
- Continental Hotel Hurghada
Price per 1 person | May to September | October to April |
---|---|---|
Triple Room (min. 3 pax) | $1440 | $1630 |
Double Room (min. 2 pax) | $1490 | $1680 |
Solo (1 pax only) | $2325 | $2640 |
Prices for our 12 Day Egypt Itinerary are quoted per person in US$ and are valid until the 30th of April 2020, except during the Christmas, New Year, and Easter holidays.
Egypt Tours with Nile Cruise
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