Egypt Small Group Tour from USA

Today you arrive in Cairo International Airport and meet with the tour coordinator and driver. They will help you navigate your way through the airport and escort you to your hotel. Once at the hotel, the tour coordinator will provide details regarding Day 2 Excursions. You will spend the night in the hotel and awake for a day full of adventure.

After eating breakfast at your hotel, you will be met by the Egyptologist who will provide your full day of touring. The adventure begins west of the Nile River in a town called Giza. It is here you will witness Egypt’s most visited attractions—the Pyramids at Giza and the Great Sphinx. Built for three kings of the Fourth Dynasty, the pyramids were designed to be the tombs of Khufu, Khafre, and Menkaure. In addition to the three main pyramids, you will see the queens’ pyramids and the Great Sphinx.

The next stop for today will be the ancient city of Saqqara, an amazing display of how tomb and pyramid-building progressed. Saqqara is a necropolis containing burials from different dynasties. It includes both royal and nonroyal tombs, mastabas, and cemeteries. We continue to the Serapeum of Saqqara where we will enter a series of tunnels to see the sarcophagi of the Apis bulls, sacred to the god Ptah.

The driver will return to your hotel, and you will be at leisure for the evening. Overnight in the hotel at Giza.

Meals included: breakfast, lunch

Be ready for an early flight this morning as we head to Aswan to visit Philae Temple and the High Dam. In the 1960s the Egyptian government began construction on Aswan High Dam. Its purpose was to prevent the annual flooding of the Nile River and to bring electricity to all people of Egypt. The trouble with the High Dam was it would permanently flood many of the antiquities. As a result, massive projects were begun to help preserve these sites such as Abu Simbel. Along with our visit to the High Dam, we will also travel to the Philae temple, one dedicated to Isis, the wife of Osiris and mother to Horus. It, too, was moved from its original location to one that was free from flooding. To get to the Philae temple you will take a water taxi. Once all your tours have been completed for the day, you will board a felucca for a relaxing boat ride through Aswan. You will have the opportunity to not only enjoy the scenery but also to catch a glimpse of the Nubian village. We will then board the Nile cruise your home for 3 nights.

Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner

Welcome to the Temple of Kom Ombo, an unusual double temple built for the falcon god Horus and the crocodile god Sobek. Kom Ombo also contains an engraving which is thought to depict the first use of medical and surgical instruments. Once we complete our tour of this fascinating place, we return to the cruise and sail north to the Edfu temple. Located on the Nile River between Aswan and Luxor, the Edfu temple, also known as the Temple of Horus, is the tallest and best-preserved temple in Egypt. This temple was designed to honor the divine birth of Horus and the pharaoh. We will take some time to explore this temple before we return to our cruise ship and set sail to Luxor. 

Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner

We arrive at the beautiful town of Luxor, the site of the famous Thebes and the World’s Largest Outdoor Museum. Whereas Egypt holds thirty percent of the world’s antiquities, Luxor holds seventy percent of Egypt’s antiquities. The importance of this city in Egypt’s history is unparalleled. Upon arrival to Luxor we will begin our day of touring in the East Bank where we will find the Karnak and Luxor temples. The Karnak temple, also known as the Temple of Amun-Ra, honored not only Amun-Ra but Osiris, Montu, Isis, Ptah, and other Ancient Egyptian Gods. The area of Karnak Temple is around 200 acres, so it is immense. As we leave Karnak, we will begin our trip to the Luxor temple. At one time there were sphinxes that lined a path from Karnak to Luxor, but it is not fully excavated. You will, however see a portion of the sphinx as it leads to the Luxor temple. Luxor temple is one of the most intact temples, so you will see many interesting statues, hieroglyphs, and rooms. We will then return to the cruise for the evening at Leisure.

Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner

This morning we say good bye to all the wonderful people we met on the cruise, but we could not leave Luxor before we visit the west bank of the Nile. We will take the time to visit several sites. One of the sites we will visit is the Valley of the Kings. After pyramid building began to wane, the kings still needed a final resting place to preserve themselves and store all their treasures. Housing nearly all the tombs for the kings of the 18th, 19th, and 20th dynasties, the Valley of the Kings was designed to help hide the burial places of the kings to prevent looting. One of the most famous tombs here is the tomb of Tutankhamen. We will have the opportunity to explore some of the tombs. Next, we move to the Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut. Hatshepsut was the wife to Thutmose II but became pharaoh after he died. This mortuary temple was modeled after Mentuhotep’s but at a much larger scale. We will explore this beautiful temple which is set into the cliffs at Deir el-Bahari. Our last site to visit will be the Colossi of Memnon where you will see two (nearly 60 feet tall) seated statues of Amenhotep III. These statues were once the entrance to Amenhotep’s mortuary temple. As our day concludes, we will head to Luxor Airport for our flight back to Cairo. Overnight in Cairo.

Meals included: breakfast, lunch

Today we visit Coptic Cairo where we will have the opportunity to see many Coptic churches and influences for Egypt. In addition we will have the opportunity to visit the Ben Ezra synagogue, which is believed to be the site where baby Moses was drawn out of the water.

Our next visit will be the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization(NMEC). This new museum opened its doors to visitors on Apr 4, 2021.

Dedicated to the ancient Egyptian civilization, the NMEC is the first museum in the Arab world to provide a general overview of all historical periods encompassing Egypt.  Its main focus is to provide insight into the interactions of the Egyptian people with their native land throughout history. It provides a center full of cultural, educational, recreational, and research opportunities for international visitors and scholars.  And most importantly, the NMEC is the home to twenty-two remarkably preserved ancient pharaohs and queens. 

Meals included: breakfast, lunch

Today is our full day of Cairo sightseeing. One of our first stops will be the Egyptian Museum. This museum houses over 120,000 artifacts from Egyptian history. Some of their most famous include the entire collection of Tutankhamen. Your guide will introduce some of the many important pieces as well as allow you some time to wander through the museum to peruse the collections.

Once we finish with the museum, we will head to Abu Tarek for lunch. Abu Tarek is a multi-story restaurant that serves wonderful Koshary, the beloved Egyptian dish. It is a special treat.

You might have noticed a wall in parts of Cairo. This wall served to protect ancient Cairo and another city called Ayyubid from the Crusaders. Sala-Al-Din (Saladin) was the leader of the Ayyubid, and he decided to fortify both his city and ancient Cairo with this wall. It proved to be quite formidable as the Citadel of Saladin was nearly impenetrable. Today, as we learn about the history of the Citadel, we also venture inside the walls to the highest point, the Mohamed Ali Mosque. This ancient mosque is quite beautiful and will provide greater insight into Egypt’s main religion, Islam.

Next up is the Khan El Khalili Bazaar. It is a wonderful depiction of an ancient outdoor shopping center. You will have the opportunity to wander the narrow alleyways and see many items unique to the Egyptian markets. As you continue to wander, you will have the opportunity to traverse Cairo’s oldest street—El-Moez Street. This pedestrian only street, just beyond Khan El Khalili, is an open-air museum and runs over half a mile. Moez Street is less touristy and provides those who travel it a unique look at Islamic architecture.

The driver will return to your hotel, any you will be at leisure for the evening. Overnight in the hotel at Cairo.

Meals included: breakfast, lunch

**Ladies please consider bringing a scarf with you on our tour today. It will be needed to enter the Mohamed Ali Mosque. Also, conservative dress is required while inside the mosque.

Today will be the final day of our tour of the amazing Egypt, and we will take you back to Cairo International Airport to catch your flight. Thank you for spending the time with us.

Meals included: breakfast