Egypt's Mysterious Nile River with Avalon Waterways
Price: $5,501 CAD Per Person
(Price per person, based on double occupancy.)
Offer: Save $700 CAD Per Couple on 2025 Avalon Waterways Taste of Egypt River Cruise
Photo: Nile River in Egypt
Embark on this once-in-a-lifetime vacation tour in Cairo, expedition to Egypt’s ancient pyramids and temples, and a Nile River cruise you’ll never forget.
Inclusions: 4-night cruise in an outside stateroom on the MS Farah and 5- nights in a deluxe hotel in Cairo. Daily excursions, 9 breakfasts, 4 lunches, and 4 dinners.
Photo: Map of the itinerary
Day 1: Cairo, Egypt
Welcome to Cairo, “Mother of the World”
Day 2: Cairo
Desert Sands and Secrets of the Sphinx
Classic Excursion: Enjoy a guided visit to the now-famous Tahrir Square and visit the Egyptian Museum. Peruse King Tutankhamun’s fabulous treasures and many other priceless artifacts of ancient Egypt.
Afterwards, enjoy lunch in a local restaurant.
Classic Excursion: Take a close-up look at one of the World’s Seven Wonders and guardian of the great pyramids, the enigmatic Sphinx, and the Great Pyramid of Giza. Cheops, with an original height of 496 feet, is the most colossal pyramid ever built, and of course enjoy the visit to the newly discovered Noble Tombs.
Classic Excursion: Enjoy an unforgettable Sound and Light show in Giza.
Photo: The Sphinx and Pyramids outside of Cairo
Day 3: Cairo
Ancient Cairo, a Boy King, and the Christ Child
Classic Excursion: Drive to walled city of Old Cairo, with Saladin’s 12th-century citadel, and the Alabaster Mosque of Mohammed Ali. Afterwards drive to Memphis to admire the statue of Ramses II
Classic Excursion: Drive to Sakkara, a vast desert necropolis built for kings and nobles, and its “Stairway to the Sky,” the oldest of all pyramids. Also admire the special tomb of Mary Roca and the Step Pyramid of King Zoser.
Day 4: Cairo - Luxor (Embarkation)
The World’s Greatest Open-Air Museum. Fly 300 miles up the Nile Valley to Luxor to embark on your Nile River cruise.
Classic Excursion: See the stunning monuments of Karnak complex, developed over more than 1000 years. Walk among the pillars of the colossal Temple of Amun Ra for an experience you will treasure for a lifetime.
Embark your ship and enjoy your first lunch onboard.
Classic Excursion: In the afternoon enjoy a visit to Luxor temple, one of the two primary temples on the east bank, together with Karnak.
This evening, enjoy live entertainment on board.
Photo: Luxor Temple in Luxor, Egypt
Day 5: Luxor - Edfu
Royal Resting Places of Kings and Queens
Classic Excursion: Venture to the Valley of the Kings and Valley of the Queens on the west bank of the Nile where generations of pharaohs and nobles were entombed in Cliffside crypts. See where 63 royal tombs have thus far been discovered, of which one was virtually intact—the splendid tomb of Tutankhamun discovered in 1922.
Classic Excursion: Visit Deir El-Bahri, Queen Hatshepsut’s monumental rock temple. Stop for pictures at the two Colossi of Memnon guarding the valleys.
This evening, enjoy live entertainment on board.
Day 6: Edfu - Kom Ombo - Aswan
Egyptian Gods of the River and Sky
Classic Excursion: This morning visit Edfu Temple, also known as the Temple of Horus with its menacing black stone statue of the falcon god.
Enjoy a leisurely sail to Kom Ombo.
Discovery Excursion: Join an exclusive lecture on this ancient civilization by your Egyptologist.
Classic Excursion: Enjoy beautiful Kom Ombo for a short walk to its bluff-top twin temples. The right side is dedicated to the crocodile god Sobek-Ra, while the left side is dedicated to the falcon god Horus.
Day 7: Aswan
Temples from Above and Islands Below. This morning, consider joining a Guided Optional Excursion of the huge, massive sandstone temples of Abu Simbel (weather permitting).
Classic Excursion: Board a Felucca (traditional wooden sailing boat) and cross the blue waters of the Nile. En route, see the ancient water measurement system, “Nilometer,” on the Nile’s Elephantine Island and the splendid Aga Khan Mausoleum.
Join an Optional Excursion to the Sound and Light show in Philae Temple.
Photo: Aswan on the Nile River
Day 8: Aswan (Disembarkation) - Cairo
Work in Progress and the Goddess Isis
Classic Excursion: Join a Guided Sightseeing Excursion at to explore the Granite Quarries that supplied ancient Egypt with its hard stones for the pyramids in Giza. See the famous unfinished obelisk, still remaining in the quarry.
Classic Excursion: Visit the gigantic Aswan High Dam, completed in 1970. Board a motor launch to the island of Agilika between the two dams. Visit the Temple of Isis, which was dismantled from the submerged island of Philae and reassembled here.
Board your flight back to Cairo later today and consider attending an Optional Dinner Cruise on the Nile to celebrate your Egyptian adventure.
Day 9: Cairo
Amazing Civilization and Marketplace Mazes
Classic Excursion: Start the day with a guided tour of the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization. No visit would be complete without time to experience the Royal Mummies’ Hall, considered the crown jewel of the museum.
Classic Excursion: Drive to “Coptic Cairo” to Abu Serga Church, not only the oldest church in Egypt but built on the spot where the Holy Family stopped and rested towards the end of their journey to Egypt. Proceed to visit the hanging church, which dates back to the fourth century, built on the remains of an old Roman Babylon fortress. Walk to see Cairo’s oldest Jewish synagogue, founded in the 9th century.
Classic Excursion: Take in a full panoramic view of Cairo from the Nile River—on board a traditional wooden sailing vessel (Felucca) and enjoy a typical Egyptian light lunch.
Classic Excursion: Browse the maze of shops in the vast labyrinths of the Khan al Khali Souk bazaar and Medieval alleyways.
Day 10: Cairo
Your vacation ends with breakfast this morning.
