Nile Cruise Aswan to Luxor With Hot Air Balloon

Included and Not Included

The Includes list covers 3 nights on a premium 5-star ship, an Egyptologist guide throughout, an English-speaking guide for Abu Simbel, meet and assist service, all transfers in air-conditioned vehicles, the Abu Simbel excursion, the balloon flight over Luxor and the West Bank and Aswan sightseeing in the itinerary.

Entrance tickets to all temples are paid locally and vary by site. Tips for the guide, cruise staff and drivers are excluded. Meals not in the itinerary, additional beverages and optional activities are excluded. Use the ministry price list figures below to estimate the ticket cost.

One conflict is worth knowing: Karnak appears in the Includes list, yet the full description calls it an optional or external visit. Confirm it with the operator before booking if Karnak matters to you.

Table figures come from the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities price list and from the tour listing.

How the Price Compares

Against the other 3-night Aswan to Luxor sailings on this site, this listing sits in the middle on card price. 3-Night Cruise with Abu Simbel and Balloon shows $340 with the same two add-ons, but Viator adds $110 in mandatory charges at checkout, so the from-price is $450. 3-Night Cruise with Temple Tickets sells at $600 with every entrance fee included, though Abu Simbel is not part of it. If you start in Cairo, Nile Cruise from Cairo with Flights adds both flights to a near-identical route at $1,300.

Day 1: Aswan

Pickup from Aswan Airport, the railway station or your hotel. Board the cruise ship and check in, then visit the Aswan High Dam and the Temple of Philae on Agilkia Island. Meals on board as listed in the itinerary.

Day 2: Abu Simbel and Kom Ombo

Early departure around 4:30 AM for the Abu Simbel tour with an English-speaking guide. Abu Simbel sits on Lake Nasser south of Aswan, not on the river route, so this is a road excursion. Back on the ship, you sail on and stop at the double Temple of Kom Ombo, dedicated to two gods, about 50 km north of Aswan.

Day 3: Edfu and Luxor

Morning visit to the Temple of Horus in Edfu. Then a full sailing stretch toward Luxor with Nile views. In the evening you visit Luxor Temple, lit at night.

Between Edfu and Luxor ships pass the Esna lock, which can add a wait that operators build into their schedules.

Day 4: Balloon and the West Bank

Early morning hot air balloon flight over Luxor, about 30 to 45 minutes in the air. Weather cancels mean a $25 refund per person. Then the West Bank: the Colossi of Memnon, the Temple of Hatshepsut and the Valley of the Kings.

Karnak is described as an optional or external visit, so confirm it. Transfer to Luxor Airport, the railway station or your hotel, typically 3:00 to 4:00 PM, and book onward travel after 6 PM.

Age and Mobility Limits

Children must be 6 or older for the balloon. Child pricing applies when sharing a room with parents, with a maximum of 2 children per room. Wheelchair access is not stated and the temples involve walking and steps, so it is not a good fit for anyone who needs step-free access.

No difficulty level is stated.

Early Starts and the Heat

Two days start before dawn. Abu Simbel means a departure around 4:30 AM and the balloon means another early morning. In summer Aswan's average highs stay above 40 C, so the cooler months from October to April are the comfortable window.

Prefer a slower pace? Luxury Dahabiya Cruise sails the same stretch on a small sail boat.

The Money Caveats

Entrance fees, tips and extra drinks are not in the $580, and travelers say clearer upfront information on fees, tips and drinks would help. Ask the operator what drinks are covered. Free cancellation ends 24 hours before departure.

No group size is stated, and this is a shared tour, not a private one. If a private guide matters, 3-Night Cruise with Private Guide is the closer match.

Reaching Aswan and Leaving Luxor

Pickup is included from Aswan Airport, the railway station or your hotel, so no transfer planning is needed on arrival. On the last day the tour drops you at Luxor Airport, the railway station or your hotel between 3:00 and 4:00 PM. Rome2Rio shows a Cairo to Aswan flight at 3h48m door to door, and the Luxor to Aswan train takes about 3h30m if you continue south.

Your passport should be valid at least 6 months after arrival, and the Egyptian visa fee has changed recently, so check the current fee on the official entry page before you fly.

What the Route Leaves Out

The cruise skips the Unfinished Obelisk in Aswan, which would have measured about 41.75 m and weighed nearly 1,090 tonnes. On a spare afternoon in Aswan, a short felucca ride is an easy hour on the river, or see the things to do in Aswan guide. In Luxor, Karnak is only covered if the operator confirms it, so read the Kom Ombo Temple and Philae Temple guides for the sites you do see.