7 Night Nile Cruise from Luxor with Balloon, Abu Simbel and Aswan

How the Listings Compare

Each row below comes from the operator's own listing, and anything the listing does not state is marked that way.

Included

The listing includes 7-day, 6-night accommodation on a 5-star Nile cruise with full board excluding drinks, hotel pickup and drop-off in Luxor, an expert English-speaking Egyptologist guide, the hot air balloon ride over Luxor, a felucca ride on the Nile in Luxor, a horse carriage ride to Edfu Temple, the Nubian Village visit in Aswan, the Abu Simbel visit with small-group transfer, all transfers by private air-conditioned vehicle, meals as listed day by day, and assistance from representatives throughout.

• Cabin on a 5-star cruise ship for 6 nights, full board
• Balloon flight over Luxor on day 7
• Abu Simbel small-group transfer on day 4
• Luxor felucca, Edfu horse carriage and Nubian Village boat trip
• English-speaking Egyptologist guide and all private vehicle transfers

Not Included and Paid on Top

Entrance fees to every temple on the itinerary are excluded, and the sites carry official foreign-adult tickets of EGP 750 at the Valley of the Kings, EGP 750 at Abu Simbel, EGP 550 at Philae per the ministry price list, and the other sites on the route are charged separately. Drinks are not included, not even water at meals, so carry bottled water and cash. Gratuities are excluded, and tipping is customary in Egypt for the guide, drivers and cruise crew, with cruise tips often collected at the end of the sailing.

A Spanish, German or French-speaking guide is available as a paid add-on.

• All temple and site entrance tickets, paid at each gate
• Every drink on board and on excursions
• Tips for guide, drivers and crew
• Non-English guide languages as an add-on

How It Compares on Price

At $1,772 for six nights this is the longest and most expensive cruise ship listing in the catalog, and the extras push the true cost higher. If you want a shorter week-shaped trip, the 4-Night Luxor to Aswan Cruise at $950 covers Karnak, the Valley of the Kings, Edfu, Kom Ombo and Philae in one direction over 5 days and 4 nights with a 5.0 rating from 376 reviews but adds $100.83 in mandatory checkout charges. If tickets matter more than extras, the 3-Night Cruise with Temple Tickets at $600 includes every entrance fee on its route.

Day 1, Luxor East Bank and Check-in

A representative collects you from your Luxor accommodation and takes you to Karnak Temple on the East Bank, a complex of towering columns, sacred lakes and sanctuaries where the Great Hypostyle Hall alone covers 5,000 m2 with 134 columns. A peaceful felucca ride on the Nile follows. You then transfer to the 5-star cruise, check into your cabin, eat lunch and relax as the ship begins sailing.

Meals are lunch and dinner.

Day 2, Edfu and Kom Ombo

After breakfast on board you take a horse carriage to Edfu Temple, dedicated to Horus and described by the listing as the best-preserved temple in Egypt. Lunch back on the ship runs while you sail to Kom Ombo, 50 km north of Aswan, where your guide walks you through the dual temple of Sobek and Haroeris. The ship continues to Aswan for the night.

All three meals are on board.

Day 3, Aswan Highlights

The morning starts at the High Dam, then a motorboat carries you to Philae Temple, the island sanctuary of Isis that was relocated and reopened in 1980. The Unfinished Obelisk still rests in its granite quarry and shows how ancient workers cut stone. You return for lunch, afternoon tea, relaxation and dinner on board.

Day 4, Abu Simbel

You leave early with a small-group transfer to the Abu Simbel temples, carved into the mountainside by Ramses II and moved in the 1960s before Lake Nasser rose. The site opens 6:00 to 17:00 and the Foreign adult ticket is EGP 750. You return to the ship for lunch and an easy afternoon in Aswan.

Day 5, Nubian Village

After breakfast a boat takes you to the Nubian Village with its brightly painted homes and local families. You photograph the houses, meet residents and enjoy the relaxed pace, then sail back to the ship for lunch. The afternoon and evening continue on board.

Day 6, Sailing Day

No excursions are scheduled. The ship spends the day making its way back toward Luxor while you use the sun deck, the pool or a book. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are served on board.

Sailing this stretch can involve the Esna lock, where Wikipedia says cruisers can be held up, so treat the day as flexible rather than fixed.

Day 7, Balloon and West Bank

You check out, leave your luggage at reception and begin before sunrise with the hot air balloon ride over Luxor. After landing, a private guide takes you into a selection of royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings, then to the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut and the Colossi of Memnon. You collect your bags and transfer back to your hotel in Luxor.

Only breakfast is included this day.

Ticket Budgeters and All-inclusive Seekers

Every temple ticket is paid at the gate and drinks are excluded even at meals. If you would rather have the tickets settled up front, the 3-Night Cruise with Temple Tickets at $600 includes entrance fees for its whole route. That cruise boards in Aswan and runs 4 days and 3 nights.

Travellers Wanting a One-way Cruise

The title says to Aswan but the ship returns to Luxor, so you cover the same river twice. If you want the classic one-way passage, the 4-Night Luxor to Aswan Cruise sails one way over 5 days and 4 nights, though it adds $100.83 in mandatory charges at checkout.

People Who Need a Calm Boat or a Late Start

Day 7 starts before sunrise for the balloon, day 4 starts early for Abu Simbel. If a smaller, quieter vessel appeals, the Luxury Dahabiya Cruise carries a dozen or so passengers and includes entrance fees for its listed sites. Note the listing states no wheelchair provision and no group size cap, so confirm both with the operator before booking if either matters.

Reaching Luxor and Leaving It

A representative picks you up from your Luxor accommodation on day 1 and drops you back at your Luxor hotel on day 7, so book flights into and out of Luxor airport and align the airport transfer with your own arrival. From Cairo, Rome2Rio shows a flight taking about 3h13m door to door, a train about 10h45m and a bus about 8h55m. Rome2Rio gives the road distance between Cairo and Luxor as 637.2 km, while Wikipedia says about 670 km.

Luxor and Aswan sit about 214 to 220 km apart by road if you continue south on your own.

Sights the Cruise Leaves Out

Entrance fees are excluded, and some stops are drive-by rather than deep visits. Luxor Temple is not named in the itinerary, so consider an evening visit on your own on day 1 or after day 7. In Aswan, Elephantine Island and the botanical gardens on Kitchener's Island are outside the plan, and a short felucca around them costs $15 per person on the Aswan Felucca to Elephantine listing if you add days in Aswan.

Read the Edfu Temple and Philae Temple guides before you go so the on-site time is well spent.

Cairo Before or After

If you fly through Cairo, the Nile Cruise from Cairo with Flights at $1,300 bundles both flights, a 3-night cruise from Aswan to Luxor, Abu Simbel and the balloon into 4 days, which suits travellers who want the capital covered too. For a city evening instead, the Cairo Nile Dinner Cruise runs 4 hours including transfers from $32.50 per person. Check the visa before travel: the FCDO lists an on-arrival tourist visa at US$30 cash, and Gulf News reported the fee rising to US$45 for on-arrival and e-visa travellers, so confirm the current amount with the official channel.

Carry a passport valid at least 6 months after arrival with a blank page.