Egypt in a Week

Here's the best of Egypt in a week for the ones who want the BEST :
A good look at Cairo and a 5-day cruise along the Nile, locally escorted.

Tour Starts DAILY in Cairo - Arrive any day of the week . Subject to Availability

Compare with the 9 day or 10 day edition, 2 extra nights in Luxor or Aswan
Add Alexandria , Indiana Jones ' Dendera & Abydos Temples . Add Abu Simbel Temples . Compare with Classical Egypt Group departure Mondays. Cruise the Nile on a Sailing boat ? Click her to check out the air conditioned Yachts on the Nile ?
Add International air and Abu Simbel

DAY 1 - CAIRO Tour Starts DAILY in Cairo - Arrive any day of the week .
Our representative greets you at the airport and whisks you to your hotel. Visa fee is included and will be issued upon arrival at Cairo Airport for : Australian, NZ, American,Western European , Canadian & Japanese citizens. You are responsible for having your passport in order valid at least for 6 month beyond the date of your arrival in Cairo.

visa will be issued upon arrival.
As you exit the gate, you will pass through a door or two , down some stairs , then walk for 2-5 minutes , until you pass the duty free shops, at the end of a wide corridor , you will see the security officers. There you will be met by a local representative, who will be holding a sign with your name .
Our local representative will then take your passport to obtain a stamp from the cashier / bank window and escort you to speak with the passport officer. He will escort you through another last check on your passport as you exit the passport control, into customs area, he will assist you in collecting your luggage and clearing customs . After exiting the terminal, our local representative will escort you (private air-conditioned vehicle, private chauffeur ) to the hotel

DAY 2 - CAIRO (BL)
On your first full day in Egypt we show you the Egyptian Museum, the Pyramids of Giza, the Sphinx, the Citadel of Saladin, and the Mohammed Ali Mosque, made of alabaster. Lunch is included in a charming local restaurant. (private air-conditioned vehicle, private chauffeur , private Egyptologist )

DAY 3 - ASWAN, Camel Caravan! (BLD)
We fly to Aswan and board our Nile cruiser in time for a delicious lunch. Complimentary welcome fruit basket awaits you in your cabin. In the afternoon we enjoy a leisurely sail by graceful felucca on the Nile. Only for those who are interested: a short camel caravan & ride for almost half an hour to visit a local Nubian Village.

DAY 4 - ASWAN & KOM OMBO (BLD)
First we tour new Nubian Museum then the awesome Aswan dams, and next an ancient granite quarry complete with an unfinished obelisk. Then we go by motor launch to the island temples of Philae. Re-embarking on our Nile cruiser, we sail downstream to Kom Ombo to visit its twin temples.

DAY 5 - EDFU & ESNA (BLD)
We moor in Edfu, climb aboard horse-drawn carriages, and clip-clop through the town to the Temple of Horus, Egypt's best-preserved temple. Re-embarking, we cruise to Esna and its great temple dedicated to Khnum, the creator-god. Evening finds us in Luxor.

Honeymoon on the Nile

DAY 6 - LUXOR (BLD)
We tour today as well the magnificent tombs in the Valley of the Kings and the great temple of Queen Hatshepsut, we stop at the Colossi of Memnon on the way back to our cruise.

Afterward, we'll continue on Luxor's west bank to get a totally different perspective on ancient Egyptian life, at the ancient workers' settlement of Deir el-Medinah. While most of the imposing stone monuments and sites of Egypt honor the lives and after-lives of royalty, Deir el-Medinah gives us unique and surprising insights into the ordinary citizens who constructed and decorated the tombs.

Here we'll see the excavated homes shared by laborers with their domestic animals. These quarters were surprisingly large, with three good-sized rooms, courtyard, kitchen, and even storage cellars. While ancient Egypt might not have been a workers' paradise, we'll see that artisans and builders were highly regarded in their community. We are proud to be the only operator to offer regular visits to this singular ancient settlement in its tour and cruise programs.

DAY 7 - LUXOR & CAIRO (B)
The gigantic Great Temple of Amon at Karnak, and the mighty Temple of Luxor are our goals in the morning, followed by a return flight to Cairo. In the afternoon, wander through the city on your own, or do your last-minute shopping.

DAY 8 - CAIRO- Departure (B)
Our representative escorts you to the airport for your homeward flight. Bon Voyage (private air-conditioned vehicle, private chauffeur )

Ultra Deluxe Hotel and cruise category

Ultra Deluxe
Grand Hyatt Hotel, or the Conrad Hotel in Cairo Club Level Room
or the Four Seasons Hotel Standard Room
Private touring in Cairo and on board the cruise
Flying Business Class Within Egypt
Always Private Transfers

RATES per person in USD$

Rates includes:

• All airfares within Egypt in economy class , tax included
  
• All transfers within Egypt private air-conditioned vehicle, private chauffeur
  
• Hotel accommodation with tax & service charges.
  
• Visa fee , visa will be issued upon arrival at Cairo Airport for : American,Western European, Canadian & Japanese citizens. You are responsible for having your passport in order valid at least for 6 month beyond the date of your arrival in Cairo.
  
• Nile Cruise with all meals & shore excursions.
  
• Preset menu meals including B = Breakfast, (or cB, Continental Breakfast) L = Lunch, D = Dinner .
  
• All guided sightseeing as per itinerary including all entrance fees. On board the cruise you'll be part of an average 10-15 English speaking group.
  
• One small bottle of water per person with each meal, as well as tea or coffee with each meal
  
• Welcome fruit basket upon check-in on board the Nile Cruise .
  
• Large bottle of water per person per day delivered to your cabin.

Not included:

• International airfares to or from Cairo.
  
• Tips. Never required . Suggested Tips :
  Drivers : 2 USD per transfer or $3-4 USD for a full day of touring
  Nile Cruise: $$7-$10 USD per person per day , covering all the crew members on board the cruise that make your stay an enjoyable one, you may place your tips at the end of the cruise in the " Pooled Tips" ball at the reception
  
• Travel Insurance

Ultra Deluxe Cruise Listing

Ultra Deluxe . All Suites Category

Moon Goddess, Nile Vision, Amarco
Sonesta Star Goddess.

Or Movenpick Royal Lotus
El Kahila . Al Jamila . Queen TiYi , or similar

 The All Suites Moon Goddess ( All suites do offer private balconies)

Extend your stay one night in Abu Simbel :

Abu Simbel:
Ramses the Great's huge desert temple at Abu Simbel marked the southern border of the pharaoh's dominions. Rescued from the rising waters of Lake Nasser by an international effort, it is a marvel of sacred engineering. Twice a year‹and only then‹the sun penetrates to the Holy of Holies, illuminating the stone figures of Ramses and Nefertari. We've planned our visit to maximize your Abu Simbel experience. Rising before dawn, we drive along the shore of Lake Nasser, watching the sky lighten and the sacred sun rise above the horizon. We reach the temple while the air is clean, clear and cool, and the sun's light still golden‹just right for photographs. We explore the huge temple by ourselves, admire its ancient aura and artistry, then retire to a comfortable hotel for refreshments. Just as planeloads of visitors arrive to throng the temple we begin our leisurely drive back along the shore to Aswan, arriving late afternoon.
Add one night in Aswan , at the legendary Movenpick Elephantine Island resort & spa including Breakfast.

Jacquie Kennedy & Abu Simbel:
All Americans alive during the 1960s remember President John F Kennedy and First Lady Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy. Most Americans from that time also remember Abu Simbel, the dramatic, ancient pharaonic temple threatened by the rising waters blocked by the new Aswan High Dam.

It’s worth remembering that it was Jacquie Kennedy who provided crucial support for the mammoth rescue project. Without her help, Abu Simbel might have been lost.

No one questioned that the temple must be saved. UNESCO developed a marvelous plan to cut the huge monument into 1,423 stone blocks and move it 200 meters (219 yards) north and 63 meters (207 feet) higher, just above the estimated level of Lake Nasser, the vast inland sea that would be created by the new dam.

But who would pay? As a developing country, Egypt could not shoulder the burden alone. Other countries could contribute, but only one country --the United States of America-- truly had the resources for this
monumental rescue effort.

No matter how much wealth there is, it is never enough. Many legitimate, worthwhile projects compete for funds. What Abu Simbel needed was an advocate, someone who recognized the temple for the irreplaceable world art treasure that it was.

First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy, already famous for her grace, refinement, and sensitivity to the arts, saw the need to work for the salvation of Abu Simbel. It was she who urged Congress to allocate $10 million for the rescue effort (a sum roughly equivalent to $100 million today). It was an enormous amount of money, but she saw that America
must step up to the challenge of saving this treasure of worldwide importance for all time.

The rescue funds were approved by Congress and the temple was saved.

In appreciation for her efforts, Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser presented the First Lady and the president with a 4000-year-old Egyptian statue (which is now preserved in the John F Kennedy Library &
Museum in Boston). (http://www.jfklibrary.org/visit_museum-14.html)

President Nasser wanted also to give a gift of thanks to the people of the United States for their valuable support. He asked Mrs. Kennedy to choose an appropriate monument. She suggested the small Temple of
Dendur (c. 15 BC), and the gift was readily approved. The temple was brought to the United States in 1965 and installed at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1967.
(http://www.metmuseum.org/collections/ view1.asp?dep=10&full=0&item=68%2E154)

Times change, leaders come and go, but some acts of support and generosity are remembered through the decades.

First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy loved Egypt, and Egypt still loves her.