12-Day Cairo, Nile Cruise, Abu Simbel & Hurghada Holiday
The pyramids and the Grand Egyptian Museum, three nights on the Nile from Aswan to Luxor with a day at Abu Simbel, then five nights in Hurghada. Internal flights, hotels, transfers and your cabin are all arranged.
The short answer
12-Day Cairo, Nile Cruise, Abu Simbel & Hurghada Holiday is a 12-day, 11-night trip to Cairo, Luxor, Aswan, Abu Simbel and Hurghada: 3 nights in Cairo, 3 on a Nile cruise and 5 in Hurghada. Starts on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays or Saturdays. It includes domestic flights, an Egyptologist guide, entrance fees and transfers. Prices start at £2,233 per person, two sharing (Comfort, October–April).
02Overview
A first look
The first half of this holiday covers Egypt's great sights, and the second half lets you rest. It begins in Cairo with a Nile dinner cruise and then a full day at the Giza Pyramids, the Sphinx and the Grand Egyptian Museum. You fly to Aswan and join your Nile cruise ship for three nights, visiting Philae, Kom Ombo, Edfu, Luxor Temple, Karnak and the West Bank, with an early-morning road trip to Abu Simbel.
From Luxor you travel to Hurghada on the Red Sea for five nights. They include a snorkelling day off Giftun Island, a quad bike safari with a Bedouin dinner and two free days. A flight takes you back to Cairo for the Citadel, Islamic Cairo and the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization. You pick the standard of hotel and ship when you book; the sightseeing does not change.
What lingers
- 01A Nile dinner cruise with a live show on your first evening in Cairo
- 02The Giza Pyramids, the Sphinx and the Grand Egyptian Museum in a single guided day
- 03Three nights on a Nile cruise ship from Aswan to Luxor, full board
- 04An early-morning road trip from your ship to the temples of Abu Simbel
- 05Philae, Kom Ombo, Edfu, Karnak, Luxor Temple and the Valley of the Kings
- 06Snorkelling at Orange Bay, a quad bike safari with a Bedouin dinner and two free days in Hurghada
- 07The Citadel, Khan el-Khalili and the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization on your last day in Cairo
Choose your comfort level
Prices are per person in GBP, from 2 people sharing a double room, including accommodation at the properties listed or similar.
| Comfort level | Where you stay or similar | Per personfrom, Oct–Apr | Choose |
|---|---|---|---|
| Comfortfrom £2,2334★ hotels · 5★ Nile cruises | Cairo · 3 nightsJewel Sport City Nile Cruise · 3 nightsRoyal Elite · Emilio Hurghada · 5 nightsSwiss Inn Resort Hurghada | £2,233May–Sep: from £2,178 | |
| Classicfrom £2,3695★ hotels · 5★ Nile cruises | Nile Cruise · 3 nightsRoyal Liberty · Stephanie Hurghada · 5 nightsAMC Royal Hotel & Spa | £2,369May–Sep: from £2,178 | |
| Prestigefrom £2,9715★ deluxe hotels · 5★ deluxe Nile cruises | Nile Cruise · 3 nightsNile Serenity Hurghada · 5 nightsHilton Hurghada Plaza | £2,971May–Sep: from £3,024 | |
| Luxuryfrom £4,1245★ luxury hotels · 5★ luxury Nile cruises | Cairo · 3 nightsSt. Regis Cairo Nile Cruise · 3 nightsSonesta Star Goddess · Esmeralda | £4,124May–Sep: from £3,767 |
Nile cruise on full board. You'll stay in these properties, or a similar choice of the same quality. Choose your date in the booking panel for the exact price.
Day by day
Detailed itinerary
12 Days / 11 Nights · Cairo · Aswan · Abu Simbel · Kom Ombo · Edfu · Luxor
- 1
A driver meets you in the arrivals hall at Cairo Airport, helps with your bags and takes you to your hotel. Later you are collected for a Nile dinner cruise. It lasts around two hours, with a buffet dinner, a live show and a seat reserved for the performance, and a private transfer returns you to the hotel.
- 2
Your private Egyptologist collects you early for a full day. The Giza visit takes 4 to 6 hours and covers the Giza Plateau and the Great Sphinx. Lunch follows, and then the Grand Egyptian Museum. Guide, entrance fees, air-conditioned car and lunch are all included.
- 3
You are driven to Cairo Airport for the hour-long flight to Aswan, where a driver meets you. The airline sets the flight time, and we plan the day around it. The cruise sightseeing begins with Philae Temple, the High Dam and the Unfinished Obelisk, led by an English-speaking Egyptologist, with the entrance fees and transport covered.
Then you join your ship, find your cabin and have dinner on board.
- 4
Your ship is moored at Aswan, and an early start takes you by road to Abu Simbel, where Ramesses II carved his two great rock temples. An English-speaking Egyptologist goes with you, and the entrance fees and the transport are covered. You are back on board for lunch before the ship sails north.
Along the way you step ashore at Kom Ombo, a temple set right on the riverbank, and at Edfu, among the best-preserved in Egypt, again with your guide and with tickets and transport arranged. You spend the second night aboard.
- 5
The ship arrives in Luxor. With your Egyptologist you visit Luxor Temple and Karnak, with its Sacred Lake, the largest temple complex in Egypt. Entrance fees and transport are covered. You spend your third and final night aboard.
- 6
After breakfast you leave the ship and cross to the West Bank with your Egyptologist to see the Valley of the Kings, where three tombs are included, Hatshepsut's temple at Deir el-Bahari and the Colossi of Memnon. Entrance fees and transport are covered. A private air-conditioned car then drives you the five hours to Hurghada on the Red Sea.
- 7
A hotel pickup takes you to the boat, and a motorboat carries you across to Orange Bay on Giftun Island. You have two guided snorkelling sessions, with a mask, snorkel and life jacket supplied, and a sunbed on the beach. A hot lunch and bottled water are included, and the boat returns you to Hurghada.
- 8
A safari of about five hours, collected from and returned to your hotel. You have your own quad bike, or can share one with a companion if you ask, and you are given a helmet and a guide. The camp offers a short camel ride, a barbecue dinner with soft drinks, tea and water, and a folklore show.
- 9
This day is free, with no sightseeing booked. Sleep in, swim and rest beside the Red Sea. Breakfast is served at your hotel. If you would like to add an activity, tell us before you travel and we will explain what we can arrange.
- 10
A second free day on the Red Sea, with nothing to book. Spend it by the hotel pool, on the beach or on a slow walk. Breakfast is served at your hotel. It is your last night in Hurghada, ahead of tomorrow's flight to Cairo.
- 11
After the transfer to Hurghada Airport you take the hour-long flight to Cairo, with a 23 kg luggage allowance. The airline sets the time, so the afternoon is planned around your landing, and you are driven to your hotel. It is a full afternoon, with a licensed Egyptologist, entrance fees and transport included.
The first visit takes in the Citadel of Saladin, the Mosque of Muhammad Ali, Islamic Cairo and the Khan el-Khalili bazaar. The second is the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization and its Royal Mummies Hall. Ending with a night in Cairo is deliberate: it gives you a safety window if an internal flight runs late, so you get to your flight home calmly.
- 12
You have breakfast, check out and are driven by a private car to Cairo Airport for your flight home, with help with your luggage. The transfer slot is around two hours, so let us know your flight time and we will arrange the pickup.
Bundled in
- Domestic flights
The fine print
What's included – and what is left out
Included
- Two nights in a Cairo hotel, three on a Nile cruise ship, five in a Hurghada hotel and one more in a Cairo hotel
- Breakfast at the hotels, full board on the ship and the lunches listed in the itinerary
- Internal flights from Cairo to Aswan and from Hurghada to Cairo
- A private transfer from Luxor to Hurghada and all airport and hotel transfers
- A Nile dinner cruise with a live show in Cairo
- The Nile cruise sightseeing package: Philae, the High Dam, the Unfinished Obelisk, Kom Ombo, Edfu, Luxor Temple, Karnak and the West Bank
- An early-morning road trip from the moored ship to Abu Simbel, with guide and entrance fees
- The Orange Bay snorkelling day, with equipment, sunbed, lunch and water
- The quad bike desert safari with a Bedouin dinner
- An English-speaking Egyptologist on every sightseeing day, with entrance fees and transport, including the Nile cruise sightseeing package and Abu Simbel
- Meet and assist at Cairo Airport
Not included
- International flights to and from Egypt
- Egyptian entry visa
- Tips for guides, drivers and ship staff
- Drinks on board and meals other than those stated
- Optional extras on the free days
- Travel insurance and personal spending
Field notes
From our Egyptologists
- 01
Arrive at Giza before 8:00 AM for softer light and fewer coach arrivals.
- 02
Abu Simbel photographs best at first light, when the facade has side lighting.
- 03
The Valley of the Kings has uneven steps and worn stone, so wear grippy shoes.
- 04
Khan El Khalili is quieter on weekday mornings before lunch crowds build.
- 05
Carry small cash for drinks, restrooms and optional extras in Hurghada and Upper Egypt.
Tailor it
Make it yours
You choose the standard of hotel and ship when you book. Ask us about changing the number of nights in Hurghada or adding extra time in Luxor or Cairo.
Your own specialist deals with each request before you book.
Suited to
Is this for you?
Yes, if
- Travellers who want a compact first holiday in Egypt with a rest at the end: Cairo, a Nile cruise, Abu Simbel and the Red Sea. Suits couples, friends and solo travellers who are happy with flights, road days and several hours of walking.
Maybe not, if
- Travellers who need step-free access to every site, or who want a slow pace from the start. Days 2, 4 and 6 are the longest.
Honest assessment
The honest pluses and minuses, as our own team sees them after running this trip.
Highlights
- The pyramids, the Grand Egyptian Museum, Abu Simbel and the main Nile temples in one holiday
- Five nights by the Red Sea, with two free days
- Internal flights, transfers and the cruise sightseeing package all arranged
Things to Consider
- A full first sightseeing day and an early start for Abu Simbel
- A five-hour road transfer from Luxor to Hurghada on day 6
- A busy day 11, with a flight and two visits in Cairo
Where it fits
A good fit for a first holiday in Egypt that ends with beach days. Abu Simbel is included, and two days in Hurghada are free.
Worth knowing
How this compares
Many operators sell the Nile and the Red Sea separately. This holiday joins Cairo, the Nile, Abu Simbel and Hurghada in 12 days, with both flights and every transfer booked for you. The standard of hotel and ship is your choice; the sightseeing does not change.
Compare
Similar tours to compare
On the ground
Your route
Snapshot
Good to know
- Travel style
- Guided multi-day holiday with a Nile cruise and Red Sea stay
- Accommodation
- Cairo and Hurghada hotels and a Nile cruise ship, standard chosen at booking
- Destinations
- Cairo · Aswan · Abu Simbel · Kom Ombo · Edfu · Luxor · Hurghada
- Includes
- 3 nights in Cairo hotels and 5 nights in Hurghada, with breakfast · 3 nights on a Nile cruise ship, full board · Flights from Cairo to Aswan and Hurghada to Cairo · Abu Simbel by road, Orange Bay snorkelling and a quad bike safari · Egyptologist guide on every sightseeing day · All transfers in an air-conditioned vehicle
- Best for
- First-time visitors · Travellers who want sightseeing followed by beach days · Those wanting Abu Simbel and a Nile cruise
The morning of
Meeting point & timing
- Where
- Cairo International Airport (CAI), Arrivals HallMap
Before you go
What to pack & wear
What to bring
- Passport and any visa or travel documents
- Comfortable walking shoes with good grip
- Swimming costume, towel and your own snorkel mask if you have one
- Sun cream, SPF 30 or higher
- Sun hat and sunglasses
- Refillable water bottle
- Any regular medication
- A scarf or bandana for the desert safari
- Small day bag
What to wear
- Light, breathable clothing for sun and heat
- Closed shoes for temples, tombs and uneven ground
- Clothing that covers shoulders and knees at mosques and temples
- Beachwear for the Red Sea days
- Older clothes that can get dusty for the quad bikes
- A light jacket for winter evenings on the river
Children & families
Children are welcome. Every child has a seat in the vehicle, so transport, guiding and meals are charged at the adult rate at any age. Entrance tickets are free for children under 6 and full price from 6. Hotel and cabin prices depend on the child's age and the room or cabin used, so we give you the exact figure once you tell us the age at booking. The quad bike safari is run by a specialist operator with its own rules, so please ask us about your children before you book.
Accessibility
Who can join this
This holiday involves a good deal of walking around large archaeological sites, on uneven stone and sand, with steps and some narrow tomb passages. Giza, Karnak, the Valley of the Kings and Abu Simbel have long, open stretches with little shade. Boarding the ship and the boats to Philae and Orange Bay involve steps and a gangway, and the quad bike safari is over rough desert ground. Vehicles are private and air-conditioned, but we cannot promise wheelchair access at every site. Tell us what you need when you book and we will say honestly which parts suit you.
– Responsible travel
How we travel here
The holiday uses two internal flights, a Nile cruise ship, a boat to Giftun Island, quad bikes and long private road transfers, and vehicle types vary, so we make no claim about carbon savings. Sightseeing is led by local Egyptologists and arranged through suppliers in Cairo, Aswan, Luxor and Hurghada, so much of what you spend stays in the places you visit. We ask guests to bring a refillable water bottle, to keep to marked routes in the desert and to leave coral and shells where they are.
Licensed Egyptologist guides
State-licensed, and people we have worked with for years
Fair wages on the ground
Drivers + guides paid above market
Site preservation
We follow the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities' site rules: marked paths, no touching reliefs
Local teams, real help
Our own offices in Cairo, Luxor, Aswan, Hurghada, Marsa Alam and Sharm El Sheikh
If plans change
Cancellation and refunds
If you cancel, your refund depends on how soon you let us know and on the kind of holiday. See our current cancellation and refund terms
Asked & answered
Frequent questions
01Are the internal flights included?
Yes. The flights from Cairo to Aswan on day 3 and from Hurghada to Cairo on day 11 are booked for you and are included in the price. The airline decides the flight times. International flights are not. Luxor to Hurghada on day 6 is a private road transfer of about five hours.02How many nights do we spend on the Nile?
Three nights on board, from Aswan to Luxor, on full board with breakfast, lunch and dinner. The other nights are in hotels with breakfast: two in Cairo, five in Hurghada and one more in Cairo.03Which hotels and which ship will we have?
You choose a standard when you book, from budget to luxury, and we confirm the hotels and the ship for your dates. The itinerary and sightseeing are identical at every standard.04Does the holiday include Abu Simbel?
Yes. On day 4 you leave the moored ship early for Abu Simbel by road, with an English-speaking Egyptologist, entrance fees and transport all included. You are back on board for lunch, then the ship sails north.05Is day 2 a long one?
It is a full day, with an early pickup. You spend 4 to 6 hours at Giza and the Sphinx, stop for lunch and finish at the Grand Egyptian Museum. Wear comfortable shoes and carry water.06What is not included?
International flights, the Egyptian visa, tips for guides, drivers and ship staff, drinks and meals other than those stated, travel insurance and personal spending.07Is the sightseeing private?
Every sightseeing day has an English-speaking Egyptologist and an air-conditioned vehicle, private in Cairo. On the ship you are with the other guests, and the snorkelling day uses a boat shared with other guests.08How much free time is there?
Days 9 and 10 in Hurghada are entirely free, and the other Hurghada days are half-day activities. Ask us if you would like the pace changed.09When is the best time to go?
October to April is cooler and best for sightseeing. Summers are very hot in Luxor, Aswan and Abu Simbel, so days start early. The Red Sea is warm enough for swimming for most of the year.10Will I catch my flight home?
Here is the honest answer. Your internal and international flights are separate bookings, so a delay on the internal leg can mean a missed connection. This holiday builds in a final night in Cairo for exactly that reason, and we prefer it. If you do fly to Cairo and connect the same day, pick a late-evening or night departure home, and take travel insurance that covers missed connections.
Last updated Product ID: TOU-CAI-284847
At a glance
- Length
- 12 days · 11 nights
- Starts
- Mon, Tue, Wed or Sat
- Route
- Cairo → Aswan → Abu Simbel → Kom Ombo → Edfu → Luxor → Hurghada → Cairo
- Nights
- 3 Cairo · 3 Nile cruise · 5 Hurghada
- Includes
- Domestic flights, Egyptologist guide, entrance fees, transfers