Itineraries · UK guide
10 day private Egypt tour: tailor-made 2026 itinerary
Private means your party, your pace, your dates, your guide. Pick the hotel category, skip what doesn't interest you, spend longer where you want. The 10-day private Egypt holiday is the format 90% of our British couples and families book – and the cost gap over a group tour is smaller than the brochures suggest.
Updated 18 May 2026 · Reviewed by Discovery Tours Egypt editorial team
- Cost (per person, 2 pax, land-only)
- £2,800–4,800
- Vehicle
- Mercedes Vito or SUV, just your party
- Guide
- Licensed Egyptologist, English/French/German/Spanish/Italian/Japanese
- Departure date
- Any day, no fixed schedule
What 'private' actually buys you on a 10-day Egypt tour
Six concrete things you control on a private tour that you can't touch on a group:
1. **Dates.** You choose. Group tours run on fixed Wednesday or Sunday departures; private goes any day. 2. **Pace.** Spend 3 hours at the Egyptian Museum if it grips you; spend 45 minutes if it doesn't. Group tours have a fixed shoulder-time. 3. **Hotel category.** Choose Four Seasons over Sofitel, or Marriott Mena House over the Conrad – your call, your budget. 4. **Itinerary swaps.** Want to skip the papyrus shop? Done. Want to add Saqqara on Day 9? Done. Want to fly Abu Simbel instead of road? Done. 5. **Vehicle.** Mercedes Vito for couples, SUV for families with luggage. Air-conditioned, your party only. 6. **Guide.** One Egyptologist with your party for the duration, briefed on your interests. You'll know their name by lunch on Day 1.
Sample 10-day private itinerary – the standard pattern
Our default 10-day private build, which 70% of bookings start from before customising:
- **Days 1-3 Cairo**: Pyramids + Sphinx, Grand Egyptian Museum, Coptic + Islamic Cairo, Saqqara optional
- **Day 4**: Fly Cairo to Luxor, board 4-night cruise, Karnak afternoon
- **Day 5**: Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut, sail to Esna
- **Day 6**: Edfu, Kom Ombo, sail to Aswan
- **Day 7**: Philae, High Dam, optional Nubian village
- **Day 8**: Disembark, fly Abu Simbel as day-trip, transfer to Cairo, last hotel night
- **Day 9**: Optional Saqqara + Dahshur morning, evening flight home
- **Day 10**: Departure or buffer day
From this base, common customisations: add 2 nights Red Sea (Hurghada or El Gouna) for a beach reset; swap Abu Simbel-by-air for the Lake Nasser cruise (adds 3 nights, total trip 12-13 days); extend Cairo to 4 nights to do Alexandria as a day trip.
The honest cost breakdown
For two people, land-only, 10 days:
- **£2,800–3,400 per person**: 4-star throughout (Sofitel, Steigenberger Pyramids, Movenpick Royal Lily, Sofitel Legend Old Cataract garden room)
- **£3,400–4,100 per person**: 5-star (Marriott Mena House Pyramid view, Movenpick Royal Lily superior, Old Cataract suite)
- **£4,100–4,800 per person**: 5-star deluxe with Sanctuary cruise (Four Seasons Nile Plaza, Sanctuary Sun Boat III, Old Cataract Sultan Suite)
Included across all tiers: all transfers, private guide and driver, all entry tickets including Tutankhamun, internal flights, full board on the cruise, breakfasts in hotels.
Excluded: international flights, lunches and dinners off-cruise (we recommend £40/day budget), tips, optional add-ons (hot-air balloon £110, helicopter transfers, Abu Simbel by road instead of air).
When to NOT pick private
Two cases where a private tour is overkill:
1. **Solo travellers on tight budgets.** The single supplement on a private tour adds £800-1,600. A reputable small-group (Intrepid, Explore, G Adventures) is the better value for solo budget travellers. 2. **People who specifically want the social experience.** Some travellers enjoy the dinner-table mix of a 16-person group. Private cruisers will still have other guests on the boat (you're not alone) but the land portion is just you and the guide. If the group dynamic is part of the appeal, book the group product.
For everyone else – couples, families, friend groups of 2-6, multi-generation – private is the standard recommendation.
Plan the trip with us
Discovery Tours Egypt is an Egypt-based tour operator with offices across the country – Cairo, Luxor, Aswan, Hurghada, Marsa Alam and Sharm el-Sheikh. Hold your own flights or let us package them; either way we handle every guide, ticket and transfer from the moment you land.
Frequently asked questions
What does 'private' mean for an Egypt tour?
Your party only – no other travellers – with one licensed Egyptologist guide and one driver in a private vehicle (Mercedes Vito for couples, SUV for families). You choose the dates, the hotel category, the pace, and which sites to deep-dive vs skip. Cruise nights are shared with other guests on the same vessel; the land portion is just your party.
How much does a 10 day private Egypt tour cost in 2026?
Land-only for two people: £2,800–4,800 per person depending on hotel and cruise category. Four-star £2,800–3,400; five-star £3,400–4,100; five-star deluxe with Sanctuary cruise £4,100–4,800. International flights from the UK add £400–650 in economy.
Is a private Egypt tour worth the cost over a group tour?
For couples and families, usually yes. The premium over a comparable group tour is £600–1,100 per person on a 10-day trip, in exchange for picking your own dates, pace, hotel category, and guide. For solo travellers the single supplement makes private genuinely dear – group can be half the price.
Can I customise a 10-day private Egypt tour?
Yes – every element. Common customisations: swap Abu Simbel by air for the 3-night Lake Nasser cruise (total trip becomes 12–13 days), add 4 nights Red Sea beach extension, add a day in Alexandria from Cairo, extend the Nile cruise from 4 to 7 nights, change vessel category.
Who is the guide on a private Egypt tour?
A government-licensed Egyptologist (4-year university degree + state licensing exam) chosen from our vetted roster for your language preference (English / French / German / Spanish / Italian / Japanese / Arabic). They stay with you for the entire trip – meet you on Day 1 at Cairo arrival and hand you off to the cruise on Day 4.