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Your Cairo stay uses handpicked 5-star hotels close to the Pyramids, while the cruise itself is a 5-star Cristal-awarded Nile cruise boat with upper or middle deck cabins with a balcony included at no extra charge. Classic Holidays has been recognised with LUXlife Nile Cruise Agency awards in both 2024 and 2025.
You can choose your accommodation from our collection of Cairo hotels and Nile cruise boats, or explore the full range of options on our Nile cruise holidays pages.
We proudly present premier Egypt Holidays, where the ancient mystic River Nile and the magic of five-star Egypt holidays combine. Your tour begins:
Cairo is a must for anyone fascinated by the magnificent Great Pyramids and the Sphinx of Giza. Situated on the Nile, Cairo is exciting, vibrant and fascinating; it perfectly blends old and new. For centuries, travellers have been fascinated by the mystical allure of the Nile. A relaxing cruise, alongside Egypt’s many archaeological wonders, provides the perfect combination for an unforgettable holiday.
Our Classic Egypt itinerary takes you from Luxor to Aswan, visiting some of the world’s most spectacular ancient sites, including the stunning Valley of the Kings, the burial place of the Pharaohs and Tutankhamun and the breathtaking temples Karnak and Luxor.
The tour begins with 3 nights in Cairo before you fly south to join your Nile cruise from Luxor to Aswan, taking in the Valley of the Kings, Karnak, Luxor Temple and the temples of the south.
Depart the UK and arrive at Cairo International Airport, where you are met and transferred to your chosen hotel in Cairo.
Head to Giza in the morning, where the Great Pyramids stand as monuments to the Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt and the Great Sphinx has kept its secrets for centuries. After lunch, continue to the Grand Egyptian Museum in Giza, the new home of Egypt’s antiquities including the Tutankhamun collection, for a guided visit with your Egyptologist.
Evening at leisure.
In the morning, travel to Memphis, Egypt’s ancient capital, and on to Saqqara, where King Djoser, the first Pharaoh, built the Step Pyramid as his tomb, a monument to a powerful state with the divine king at its centre. After lunch, visit the Citadel, a fortress built in 1183 AD that houses the Mosque of Mohamed Ali and Al-Gawahara Palace, before finishing at the Khan el Khalili Bazaar.
Evening at leisure.
Transfer to Cairo International Airport for your short flight south to Luxor. On arrival you are met and transferred to your 5-star Nile cruise boat. Dinner is served on board, or a light snack for late arrivals. Overnight in Luxor.
After breakfast on board, take an early morning visit to the West Bank, including the Colossi of Memnon, the Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Queens, burial sites of many of Egypt’s most powerful pharaohs and high priests, and the Temple of Hatshepsut.
Breakfast and lunch are served on board as you continue south, sailing to Kom Ombo to visit its temple before dinner. Unusually, this temple is dedicated to 2 gods, with the southern section devoted to Sobek, the crocodile-headed god of fertility, and the northern section to the falcon-headed god Horus. A nearby crocodile museum holds many artefacts and mummified crocodiles. Sail on to Aswan and overnight in Aswan.
After breakfast, visit the High Dam in Aswan, built between 1960 and 1971 to bring electricity to the villages along the Nile, the Unfinished Obelisk and the Temple of Isis on Philae Island. Lunch is on board, with the afternoon at leisure and the option to revisit the Temple of Philae for an **optional sound & light show in the evening (priced at approx. £55pp).
After breakfast, enjoy a morning at leisure or take an optional early morning visit to Abu Simbel, priced at approximately £120pp by road or £280pp by air, where the temple built by Rameses II stands on the banks of Lake Nasser. After lunch on board, a relaxing boat trip takes you around Elephantine Island to the Botanical Gardens on Kitchener Island. Dinner and overnight in Aswan.
Enjoy a morning at leisure. After lunch on board, set sail to Kom Ombo, and following a brief stop continue sailing overnight.
After lunch, travel by coach to Karnak Temple, often described as the world’s largest open-air museum, which covers a vast area of land and includes several temples, the largest being the Temple of Amun. A short drive on brings you to Luxor Temple, once joined to Karnak by an avenue of sphinxes, many of which can still be seen today. Return to the boat for dinner and overnight in Luxor.
**Optional early morning balloon ride for the adventurous (priced at approx. £110pp). Please enquire. After breakfast on board, check out and transfer to the airport for your return flight home.
*Excursions in Cairo are optional extras which can be purchased before departure. View all our optional extra Cairo excursions here
Please note: the order or content of your itinerary may be amended due to lock closures, low water levels or any other unforeseeable circumstancese.
Your package includes return flights and all transfers, 3 nights of 5-star half-board accommodation in Cairo, 7 nights full board on a 5-star Cristal-awarded Nile cruise, 11 excursions with entrance fees, a PhD-qualified English-speaking Egyptologist guide and 24-hour support in the UK and Egypt, with no hidden extras. An all-inclusive drinks upgrade on the cruise is available for £199pp.
The standard Classic Egypt Tour is 10 nights, made up of 3 nights in Cairo followed by a 7 night Nile cruise from Luxor to Aswan. Shorter and rearranged combinations are available, including 2 nights in Cairo with 7 nights cruising.
The 7 night cruise sails between Luxor and Aswan, stopping at Kom Ombo and taking in the Valley of the Kings, the Temple of Hatshepsut, the Temple of Philae, Karnak and Luxor Temple along the way.
The cruise is full board as standard, covering breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea and dinner. You can upgrade to all-inclusive drinks on the cruise for £199pp.
Prices start from £2495pp for the 10 night package. Optional extras include the Philae sound and light show at approximately £55pp, Abu Simbel at approximately £120pp by road or £280pp by air, and a hot air balloon ride over Luxor at approximately £110pp.
Yes. The Classic Egypt Tour is fully ABTA and ATOL protected, and Classic Holidays books with the buying power of the Co-operative Travel Consortium.
Classic Holidays when selling travel arrangements is a trading name of Co-op Travel Services Ltd. Classic Holidays is an Accredited Body Member of Co-operative Travel Consortium. (ABTA P7508, ATOL 12904).
Your Financial Protection: Book with Confidence. Classic Holidays is a Member of ABTA. ABTA and ABTA Members help holidaymakers to get the most from their travel and assist when things don’t go according to plan. We are obliged to maintain a high standard of service to you by ABTA’s Code of Conduct.
All of the flights and flight-inclusive holidays on this website are financially protected by the ATOL scheme but ATOL protection does not apply to non-flight holiday and travel services offered on this website. Classic Holidays will provide you with information on the protection that applies in the case of each holiday and travel service offered before you make your booking. If you do not receive an ATOL Certificate then the booking will not be ATOL protected. If you do receive an ATOL Certificate but all parts of your trip are not listed on it, those parts will not be ATOL protected. Please see our booking conditions for information, or for more information about financial protection and the ATOL Certificate go to: www.caa.co.uk
