Egypt - Among Temples and Tombs 12 Days

Welcome to Europamundo! Upon arriving at the airport, we will be waiting to transfer you to your hotel. Check the information boards in the hotel reception area for details of the welcome meeting with your guide and fellow travelers.

Full day visit where we explore the famous Pyramids of Cheops, Kefren and Micerinos (tickets to go inside the pyramids are not included), and also the impressive Sphinx, which is sculpted from rock. Visit to the Egyptian Museum with its ancient art and where the treasure of the Lost Tomb of Tutankhamen is kept. Lunch included. Citadel of Saladin and the Alabaster Mosque. We will take a walk through the Coptic neighborhood where we visit the Hanging Church built above a Roman fortress.

Transfer to the airport first thing in the morning to depart by flight (included) to ASWAN airport. From the airport we continue directly by road towards ABU SIMBEL. We include a boat trip on Lake Nasser. We will arrive at the Temple by boat to see its impressive architecture from the lake. Lunch included in a typical Nubian restaurant. We will visit the temples of Abu Simbel carved into the western cliff of the desert by Ramses II in the 12th century BC, with 20-meter-high statues, dedicated to the god Amon Ra, as well as visit the Temple of Nefertari, dedicated to the goddess Hathor. In the middle of the afternoon we return to ASWAN, overnight in our excellent hotel.

Full day in ASWAN, including a visit to the city and the Red Granite Quarry, where the famous Unfinished Obelisk is located. We´ll observe the ingenious procedure used by the ancient Egyptians for the extraction of granite blocks. We will visit the beautiful Temple of Philae dedicated to the goddess Isis and located on a small island that is only accessible by boat. After that, we´ll enjoy a felucca ride along the river, typical fishing boats. By felucca we will go to the picturesque NUBIAN VILLAGE, with its colorfully painted houses, its tourist and commercial life, lunch included. In the afternoon (including arrival on felucca and a stretch of about 15 minutes of camel ride!) we will visit the Monastery of SAINT SIMEON, it was a large monastery in Roman times, then it was transformed into a caravanserail. We also pass by the modern Coptic church and the mausoleum of the Aga Khan (not visited). Afterwards, free time in our excellent hotel, where you can enjoy its large swimming pool and its facilities.

After breakfast we start our beautiful road stage following the Nile valley. Beautiful landscapes with the presence of the Nile, its immense palm groves, its small and very active populations. We stop next to the temple of KOM OMBO, overlooking the Nile River, dedicated to two deities: Sobek, the crocodile god, and Horus, the falcon god. The temple is symmetrical and is divided into two identical parts, one dedicated to Sobek and the other to Horus. The temple is famous for its reliefs and hieroglyphs depicting daily life in ancient Egypt, as well as mythological and medical scenes. We also visit the impressive museum of the Crocodiles (several of them mummified). After that we continue to EDFU, we visit here one of the best preserved and most impressive temples in all of Egypt: the Temple of Edfu, also known as the Temple of Horus. Built 2300 years ago dedicated to Horus, the God of the sky. Lunch included. We continue to ESNA, its great temple is one of the few Egyptian temples that still retains its original roof, providing a unique view of the ancient architecture and original colors. The temple was buried under sediment and mud from the Nile for centuries, which helped preserve it from erosion and degradation. It was rediscovered in the 19th century. In Esna we can also see the restored caravanserai and from the outside we can see the floodgates on the Nile. We continue our route to LUXOR, arriving at the end of the afternoon. Night at hotel.

During our stay in Luxor we will get to know one of the most impressive ancient cities on the planet. Early in the morning, from our hotel we will take a private boat to cross the Nile River, with its peace and impressive views early in the morning, we go to the west bank. We visited the ¨Valley of the Artisans¨ Deir el-Medina, a little-visited place, here they lived and are the tombs of great builders and craftsmen who built and decorated the royal tombs of ancient Egypt. We will visit three tombs, their paintings show scenes of daily life at that time. After that, we visit the fantastic temple of Medinet Habu, the temple of Ramses II, large and magnificently preserved, its scenes of wars will surprise us. We stopped in front of the Colossi of the Memnon, two impressive statues of Amenhotep II. We will visit the VALLEY OF THE QUEENS where the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut (Deir el Bahari) is located, considered the first woman to occupy the position of pharaoh. We also visit the famous VALLEY OF THE KINGS where the tombs of the main pharaohs are hidden. Among these tombs, composed of several rooms and corridors leading to the corresponding burial chambers (we include, in addition to the general admission, a ride in an electric cart to access the enclosure and tomb of Ramses -which requires additional entry-). Return to the east bank of Luxor. Free time for lunch.

In the afternoon we visit KARNAK, it housed the most important religious complex in Ancient Egypt, highlighting the immense temple of Amun-Ra, our guide will take us to the little-crowded temple of Khinsu. We will also visit the LUXOR MUSEUM, which shows us an impressive collection of objects and mummies found in this area. After dark we include the entrance to the LUXOR TEMPLE, its lighting makes it magical at this time. Time to walk in the commercial area (souk) near the temple.

Note: The order of the visits will vary based on climatological factors and procuring to visit the different locations at times of less affluence.

Free time in the morning stroll, shop or sightseeing in Luxor.
At around 11am we will leave for DENDERA, one of the best preserved Egyptian complexes thanks to the fact that it remained buried by sand and mud until it was discovered in the mid-nineteenth century. Impressive enclosure of 40,000 square meters surrounded by a burly brick wall eight to ten meters high. We are surprised by its walls and its immense doors. Temple dedicated to Hathor, goddess of love and fertility.

After the visit lunch included and continuation to the Red Sea. Our highway crosses desert mountain ranges, interesting landscapes.

HURGHADA, arrival in the late afternoon. We are located in the most popular of Egypt´s resorts, its hotels stretch over a strip of almost 50 kilometers. Hotel accommodation on an all-inclusive basis.

Full day in Hurghada. Free time during the morning to relax in the hotel facilities or go on your own to visit the large aquarium or the museum of Hurghada. After lunch (included), an excursion to get to know the area a little more. We will go to EL GOUNA, a short distance from Hurghada, we are in the most luxurious holiday town in Egypt. Numerous canals and lagoons were opened to access most of the residences by yacht, free time to walk around this exclusive place. After the center of Hurghada, we will stop next to its mosque (we will get to visit it) and walking we will go to the marina, a very touristic and lively area, with shops and restaurants. After free time, return to our hotel. Stay on an all-inclusive basis.

Following the Red Sea, we travel to two impressive Coptic monasteries. St. Anthony and St. Paul are the oldest monasteries in Christendom, dating back to the fourth century, when monks began to settle in caves and hidden cliffs, at the foot of the Red Sea Mountain. The two monasteries are considered the holiest places of the Coptic church in Egypt.

Between arid mountains, surrounded by powerful walls, the MONASTERY OF ST PAUL thrills us, with its orchards and palm trees, and the pilgrims who come to pray at its fourth century’s cave/church with its simple murals. After that we continue to the MONASTERY OF ST ANTHONY, also walled with its many buildings and adobe houses, its atmosphere seems stopped in time, the church of St Anthony, built on the tomb of the Saint houses magnificent Coptic murals of the thirteenth century. Lunch included in service area.

After these emotional places we travel to EL GALALA, we will be surprised with the new cities that Egypt is building in the desert. We will go first to the luxury resort located next to the Red Sea, with its marina and water park; from here we include the cable car climb (the highest slope in Africa) to El Galala, a new city (its construction began in 2015), magnificently designed, houses a large university.

Continuation to CAIRO. - Arrival at the end of the day.

We leave Cairo, traveling to the WADI NATRUM region, an area known for its Coptic monasteries since thousands of Christians who were fleeing in the fourth century from Roman persecutions, settled in the area. The monasteries, fortified because of the attacks suffered in different historical periods, are places that receive the visit of many pilgrims and will allow us to discover their traditions. Coptic popes are chosen from among the monks of these monasteries. We will visit SAINT MACARIUS, founded in the year 360, where one of its monks will guide us through the enclosure. After that we visit the monastery of ANBA BISHOY, founded in the year 340, we access the fortified tower by a drawbridge. We will visit - also guided by a monk - the church, the refectory and the fortress, where several Coptic Popes are buried. Time to stroll through the lively area and also visit the huge new cathedral.

We continue our route to ALEXANDRIA, arrival in this port city with over 5 million inhabitants. Lunch included. We visit this afternoon the great QAITBEY fortress, built in 1480 on a narrow peninsula where the Hellenistic lighthouse was located, which was considered one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. After that, with the bus we travel the cornice, chaotic, noisy, commercial or elegant, depending on the areas. Free time. Accommodation.

We continue our visit of ALEXANDRIA, entering the impressive CATACOMBS KOM ASH SHUQQAFA, the largest Roman cemetery in Egypt, surprising the fusion of Pharaonic and Greco-Roman style. From here we will walk with our guide between narrow, commercial and bustling alleys to the COLUMN OF POMPEY, an immense column of 30 meters high that rises on the ruins of a temple. After that, we will stop to photograph externally the new LIBRARY OF ALEXANDRIA, inaugurated in 2002 with a very modern architecture that reminds us that this city, in the third century BC, was one of the greatest centers of knowledge dissemination in ancient times. The Library of Alexandria at that time guarded more than half a million papyrus. Lunch included and continuation of our route to ROSETTA. In this small city, very close to the mouth of one of the tributaries of the Nile, the Rosetta Stone was found, just over a meter high, which was key to deciphering the hieroglyphic writing of the Egyptians since it contains the same text written in hieroglyphics, demotic and ancient Greek. We can see a replica of the Rosetta Stone in the fortress of Rashid, located a short distance away, in a picturesque small village of streets full of local life and with numerous fishing boats of multiple colors on the banks of the Nile.

After that we visit Rosetta, a pleasant small town next to the Nile, we will walk through the center seeing (externally) the old Ottoman houses with their brick and wood architecture. We will also include a boat trip on the Nile to admire the views and activity of the fishing boats in the area. We return to CAIRO.- Arrival at the end of the day.

NOTE: The fortress of Rashid is not very visited, sometimes it can be closed (in that case we will see it externally and walk through the picturesque village of fishermen and farmers)

After breakfast, end of our services.