Egypt 15-Day Tour: Pyramids, Nile Cruise & Red Sea

After breakfast, your guide takes you to the Giza Plateau for the main ancient sights. Begin with the Pyramids of Giza, where you can walk around the bases, see the changing scale of the three monuments, and hear how their construction fitted into the beliefs of Egypt’s Old Kingdom. There is time for photographs from the plateau viewpoints.

Continue to The Sphinx, the limestone figure with a lion’s body and a royal head. Your guide explains the layout of the site and points out details that are easy to miss from a distance. The visit involves walking over uneven ground, so comfortable shoes, water, sun protection, and a hat are useful. Return to Cairo after the tour for a relaxed afternoon and overnight stay.

• Guided visit to the Giza Plateau
• Time for photographs and questions
• Return transfer to your Cairo hotel

Today focuses on Cairo’s museums and historic streets. Start at The Egyptian Museum, where your guide introduces the collection in a clear order, including royal sculpture, funerary objects, jewellery, and artefacts from several periods of Egyptian history. Allow time to look at individual pieces rather than trying to cover every room at speed.

After lunch, continue to Old Cairo. Visit the area’s historic churches and Islamic monuments, depending on opening arrangements, and walk through lanes that have served religious communities for centuries. The pace is unhurried, but some surfaces are uneven and the day includes standing. We arrange the transfers between the main stops so you can focus on the sites instead of Cairo traffic.

• Egyptology-led museum visit
• Historic religious quarter and local streets
• Comfortable transfer back to the hotel

Leave Cairo after breakfast for the drive west to Bahariya Oasis. The journey takes several hours, with a stop arranged along the way for refreshments and a break from the road. As the city gives way to open desert, your guide explains how oasis communities depend on underground water and date-palm agriculture.

On arrival, settle in and explore the oasis at a calm pace. Depending on the day’s conditions and local access, you may see palm groves, natural springs, or the remains of older settlements. The landscape changes noticeably near sunset, when the low hills and desert floor take on softer colours. Dinner and the evening are spent in the oasis, where facilities are simpler than in Cairo and the setting is quiet.

• Road transfer from Cairo to Bahariya
• Oasis walk and local landscape viewing
• Overnight stay with time to rest before the desert excursion

Travel by four-wheel-drive vehicle into the desert after breakfast. The route passes through changing desert scenery, including dark volcanic-looking hills and pale limestone formations shaped by wind and erosion. Your driver makes stops where you can walk safely, take photographs, and learn how the rock formations developed over time.

Continue towards The White Desert, known for its bright chalk landscapes and unusual natural shapes. The exact route depends on local access and the condition of the tracks. Enjoy a simple desert meal or picnic before returning towards Bahariya, usually reaching the oasis later in the day. Wear closed shoes and light layers; the temperature can change sharply after sunset. Overnight in Bahariya.

• Four-wheel-drive desert excursion
• Walks around limestone formations
• Meals, water, and practical guidance during the outing

After breakfast, begin the return drive to Cairo. The route is long, so the day is planned with rest stops and time for a meal. Once you reach the Fayoum area, continue to Wadi El Hitan, a UNESCO World Heritage site known for fossilised whale remains preserved in the desert. The exposed skeletons show how this region changed from an ancient sea into the dry landscape you see today.

Walk along the designated paths with your guide, who explains the fossils and the work carried out to protect them. The site is open and sun-exposed, with limited shade, so bring water, a hat, and suitable footwear. After the visit, continue to Cairo for the night. This is a full road day, but it connects the western desert experience with the next stage of the journey.

• Return transfer from Bahariya
• Guided visit to the fossil valley
• Evening arrival and overnight in Cairo

Transfer to Cairo airport for the flight to Luxor. On arrival, our team meets you and takes you to the cruise vessel for check-in. After settling into your cabin and having time for lunch, begin your first Luxor visit with your guide.

Walk through Karnak temple, a vast complex built and expanded by successive pharaohs. Your guide helps you read the processional route, columns, gateways, and sacred lake as parts of one planned religious centre. Later, visit Luxor temple, where statues, reliefs, and later additions show how the site changed across different periods. Return to the vessel for dinner and overnight on board. The cruise schedule may place one temple before the other, depending on docking and local operating conditions.

• Domestic flight and transfer to the vessel
• Guided visits on Luxor’s East Bank
• Cabin check-in and first night on the Nile cruise

Cross the Nile after breakfast for the west-bank visits. Enter The valley of Kings, where pharaohs were buried in rock-cut tombs rather than beneath large pyramids. The tombs open on a rotating basis, so your guide explains the available choices and the painted scenes before you go inside. The walk from the entrance to some tombs can be steep and exposed.

Continue to Hatshepsut temple, built against the cliffs in a series of terraces. Its broad approach and surviving reliefs give a clear sense of how royal ceremony was presented. Return to the vessel for lunch and a period of rest. Later, the ship begins sailing south, giving you time to watch river villages, cultivated fields, and the desert edge from the deck.

• Crossing by road to the west bank
• Selected royal tombs and temple terraces
• Afternoon sailing and overnight on board

Spend the morning on the Nile cruise as the vessel continues towards Aswan. The slower pace gives you a chance to use the deck, read, or watch the landscape change outside the window. Green farmland remains close to the river, while dry hills appear beyond it. Your guide is available to answer questions about irrigation, village life, and the ancient importance of the river route.

The vessel may stop at one of the riverside temple sites during the day, subject to the cruise schedule. Any visit is arranged around docking and sailing times, with clear instructions about when to return on board. Meals are served according to the vessel’s daily programme. Keep your room key, water, sun protection, and comfortable shoes with you when leaving the ship.

• Full day travelling by Nile cruise
• Time on deck and optional scheduled site visit
• Meals and overnight accommodation on board

Arrive in Aswan and take a short motorboat ride across the water to the island site of Phiala temple. The temple complex was moved to higher ground during the construction of the High Dam, and your guide explains how the relocation protected its buildings from rising water. The approach by boat gives you a clear view of the colonnades and pylons before you step ashore.

Walk through the courtyards and relief-covered halls at an easy pace, listening for details about the worship of Isis and the later Roman additions. After the visit, return by boat and have time to see Aswan from the riverfront or rest on the vessel. The island route includes steps and uneven paving, so supportive shoes are recommended. Overnight on board or in Aswan, according to the cruise programme.

• Motorboat transfer to and from the temple island
• Guided exploration of the relocated complex
• Free time for rest or a short Aswan walk

Leave early for the road journey to Abu Simbel. The drive crosses open desert and takes several hours each way, so bring water, a light breakfast, and anything you need for a comfortable trip. On arrival, enter the two temples cut into the rock during the reign of Ramesses II.

The larger temple has four colossal royal figures at its entrance, while the smaller temple honours Queen Nefertari alongside the goddess Hathor. Inside, your guide explains the reliefs, chambers, and the modern relocation project that saved the monuments when Lake Nasser rose. Spend enough time to take in the scale without rushing, then return by road to Aswan. The evening is free for rest after the long excursion.

• Early road excursion from Aswan
• Guided visit to both temple interiors
• Return transfer and evening at leisure

After breakfast, leave Aswan for the transfer to Marsa Alam on the Red Sea coast. This is a substantial road journey across changing terrain, so the vehicle makes suitable stops for refreshments and comfort. Keep your travel documents, medication, sun protection, and a change of clothes close at hand rather than packed away.

Arrive in Marsa Alam and check in at your coastal accommodation. The rest of the afternoon is deliberately light. You can relax by the shore, use the hotel facilities, or take a quiet walk if you still have energy after the transfer. Our team confirms the arrangements for the following day and can help with practical questions about swimming areas, local conditions, and optional activities.

• Private transfer from Aswan to the coast
• Hotel check-in in Marsa Alam
• Unhurried afternoon after the long drive

Enjoy a slower day in Marsa Alam after the sightseeing and road travel. Have breakfast at your accommodation, then choose how to spend the day: swim from an approved area, relax beside the water, or arrange a local boat or snorkelling activity if conditions and availability allow. Any sea activity follows the instructions of the local crew and guide.

The coast is known for clear water, coral habitats, and marine life, but visibility and sea conditions can change. You do not need to fill every hour. Take breaks from the sun, drink water, and use reef-safe sun protection where appropriate. Return to your accommodation for dinner and another night on the coast.

• Free time beside the Red Sea
• Optional water activity, subject to local conditions
• Restful overnight stay in Marsa Alam

Your final full day is kept flexible so you can enjoy the coast at your own pace. After breakfast, spend time at the beach or pool, read in the shade, or take a short walk near the accommodation. Travellers who prefer more activity can ask our team about an available excursion, but the schedule does not require another long journey.

Use the afternoon to organise luggage and keep essentials ready for departure. Check that you have your passport, valuables, medication, and travel documents with you. Our team confirms the next day’s transfer details without promising a fixed pickup time before the transport arrangements are finalised. Have your final dinner by the coast and enjoy a quiet last evening in Egypt.

• Flexible Marsa Alam leisure day
• Optional local activity if arranged in advance
• Luggage preparation and departure briefing

Have breakfast and check out according to your accommodation’s departure policy. Our team arranges your transfer to the relevant airport for your onward flight, allowing time for the road journey and airport procedures. The departure airport depends on your confirmed flight arrangements, and we provide the practical details before you leave the hotel.

Keep your passport, boarding information, and personal belongings with you during the transfer. If you have an early flight, breakfast may be arranged as a takeaway by the accommodation where possible. Our representative helps with the final transfer and remains available for last-minute questions, bringing this 15-day Egypt itinerary to a close.

• Hotel check-out and airport transfer
• Assistance with departure arrangements
• End of the tour