Great Safaris Trip Itinerary for a Group Safari

Egyptian Museum of Civilization

The NMEC is the first of its kind in Egypt and the Arab world. It presents the full range of the richness and diversity of Egyptian civilization throughout the ages, from prehistoric times to the present day by focusing on its continuity and stability as demonstrated by its tangible and intangible heritage. The museum displays a collection of 50,000 artifacts.

On 3 April 2021 by President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, with the moving of 22 mummies, including 18 kings and four queens, from the Egyptian Museum in central Cairo, in an event termed the Pharaohs' Golden Parade. The museum’s exceptional collection includes the royal mummies, which are exhibited in a new interactive display using 21st century cutting-edge technology to go beneath the wrappings and reveal their secrets, in addition to shedding light on the rituals and religious beliefs surrounding mummification in ancient Egypt. Among the mummies displayed are the mummies of King Ramses II; King Seqenenre Tao; King Thutmose III; King Seti I; Queen Hatshepsut; and Queen Meritamen, the wife of King Amenhotep I; and Queen Ahmose Nefertari, the wife of King Ahmose I.

Coptic Cairo

Coptic Cairo is a part of Old Cairo which encompasses the Babylon Fortress, the Coptic Museum, the Hanging Church, the Greek Church of St. George and many other Coptic churches and historical sites. It is believed in Christian tradition that the Holy Family visited this area and stayed at the site of Saints Sergius and Bacchus Church (Abu Serga). Coptic Cairo was a stronghold for Christianity in Egypt both before and during the Islamic era, as most of its churches were built after the Muslim conquest of Egypt in the 7th century.

There is evidence of settlement in the area as early as the 6th century BC, when Persians built a fort on the Nile, north of Memphis. The Persians also built a canal from the Nile (at Fustat) to the Red Sea. The Persian settlement was called Babylon, reminiscent of the ancient city along the Euphrates, and it gained importance while the nearby city of Memphis declined, as did Heliopolis. During the Ptolemaic period, Babylon and its people were mostly forgotten.

It is traditionally held that the Holy Family visited the area during the Flight into Egypt, seeking refuge from Herod. Further it is held that Christianity began to spread in Egypt when St. Mark arrived in Alexandria, becoming the first Patriarch, though the religion remained underground during the rule of the Romans. As the local population began to organize towards a revolt, the Romans, recognizing the strategic importance of the region, took over the fort and relocated it nearby as the Babylon Fortress. Trajan reopened the canal to the Red Sea, bringing increased trade, though Egypt remained a backwater as far as the Romans were concerned. Under the Romans, St. Mark and his successors were able to convert a substantial portion of the population, from pagan beliefs to Christianity. As the Christian communities in Egypt grew, they were subjected to persecution by the Romans, under Emperor Diocletian around 300 AD, and the persecution continued following the Edict of Milan that declared religious toleration. The Coptic Church later separated from the church of the Romans and the Byzantines. During the reign of Arcadius (395-408), a number of churches were built in Old Cairo. In the early years of Arab rule, the Copts were allowed to build several churches within the old fortress area of Old Cairo.

The Ben Ezra Synagogue was established in Coptic Cairo in 1115, in what was previously a Coptic church that was built in the 8th century. The Copts needed to sell it, in order to raise funds to pay taxes to Ibn Tulun. In the 11th century AD, Coptic Cairo hosted the Seat of the Coptic Orthodox Pope of Alexandria, which is historically based in Alexandria. As the ruling powers moved from Alexandria to Cairo after the Arab invasion of Egypt during Pope Christodolos's tenure, Cairo became the fixed and official residence of the Coptic Pope at the Hanging Church in Coptic Cairo in 1047. The Coptic Museum was established in 1910, and it houses the world's most important examples of Coptic art.

Citadel of Cairo

The Citadel of Cairo or Citadel of Saladin is a medieval Islamic-era fortification in Cairo, Egypt, built by Salah ad-Din (Saladin) and further developed by subsequent Egyptian rulers. It was the seat of government in Egypt and the residence of its rulers for nearly 700 years from the 13th to the 19th centuries. Its location on a promontory of the Mokattam hills near the center of Cairo commands a strategic position overlooking the city and dominating its skyline. When it was constructed it was among the most impressive and ambitious military fortification projects of its time. It is now a preserved historic site, including mosques and museums.

In addition to the initial Ayyubid-era construction begun by Saladin in 1176, the Citadel underwent major development during the Mamluk Sultanate that followed, culminating with the construction projects of Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad in the 14th century. In the first half of the 19th century Muhammad Ali Pasha demolished many of the older buildings and built new palaces and monuments all across the site, giving it much of its present form. In the 20th century it was used as a military garrison by the British occupation and then by the Egyptian Army until being opened to the public in 1983. In 1976, it was proclaimed by UNESCO as a part of the World Heritage Site Historic Cairo.

Private transfer to the Airport

Internal flight from Cairo to Luxor

Embark the Nile Cruise

Luxor & Karnak Temples

This afternoon visit the East Bank including the massive Karnak Temple with its huge hypostyle hall consisting of 134 columns and labyrinthine passageways. Be sure to circle the giant Scarab at Karnak to ensure a long healthy life and successful return to Egypt! The Karnak temple complex, universally known only as Karnak, describes a vast conglomeration of ruined temples, chapels, pylons and other buildings. This was ancient Egyptian Ipet-isut (“The Most Selected of Places”), the main place of worship of the Theban Triad with Amun as its head, in the monumental city of Thebes.

The complex retrieves its current name from the nearby and partly surrounding modern village of el-Karnak. The key difference between Karnak and most of the other temples and sites in Egypt is the length of time over which it was developed and used. Construction work began in the 16th century BC. Approximately thirty pharaohs contributed to the buildings, enabling it to reach a size, complexity, and diversity not seen elsewhere. Few of the individual features of Karnak are unique, but the size and number of features are overwhelming. Construction of temples started in the Middle Kingdom and continued through to Ptolemaic times.

Today’s sightseeing also includes a visit to fabulous Temple of Luxor, with its Avenue of Sphinxes. Luxor Temple was dedicated to the Theban Triad of Amun-Re, his wife Mut, and his son Khonsu (the moon god). Most of the Luxor Temple dates to the New Kingdom period of Egyptian history. Ramses II built the pylon (the large wall in the background), two obelisks (only one remains today), and six statues of himself. The sphinxes along the “Avenue of Sphinxes” were built by Nectanebo I, and replaced the ram-headed sphinxes built by Amenhotep III. The avenue stretched from the Luxor Temple to the Karnak Temple for a distance of two miles.

Valley of the Kings

Valley of the Kings, long narrow defile just west of the Nile River in Upper Egypt. It was part of the ancient city of Thebes and was the burial site of almost all the kings (pharaohs) of the 18th, 19th, and 20th dynasties (1539–1075 BCE), from Thutmose I to Ramses X. Located in the hills behind Dayr al-Bar, the 62 known tombs exhibit variety both in plan and in decoration. In 1979 UNESCO designated the valley part of the World Heritage site of ancient Thebes, which also includes Luxor, the Valley of the Queens, and Karnak.

The kings of the New Kingdom (c. 1539–1075 BCE), fearing for the safety of their rich burials, adopted a new plan of concealing their tombs in a lonely valley in the western hills behind Dayr al-Bar. There, in tombs sunk deep into the heart of the mountain, pharaohs were interred, as were several queens, a few officials of high rank, and the numerous sons of Ramses II. The plan of the tombs varies considerably but consists essentially of a descending corridor interrupted by deep shafts to baffle robbers and by pillared chambers or vestibules. At the farther end of the corridor is a burial chamber with a stone sarcophagus in which the royal mummy was laid and store chambers around which furniture and equipment were stacked for the king’s use in the next world.

The walls were in many cases covered with sculptured and painted scenes depicting the dead king in the presence of deities, especially the gods of the underworld, and with illustrated magical texts similar to those found in funerary papyri, designed to help him on his journey through the nether regions. There were a number of these texts; they represent differing but not necessarily conflicting views of the afterlife, in which the king had to undergo trials and surmount perils.

Temple of Queen Hatshepsut

Visit the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut at Deir el-Bahri. It is magnificently situated at the foot of the sheer cliffs fringing the desert hills, the light-colored sandstone of the temple standing out prominently against the golden yellow to light brown rocks behind. The name Deir el-Bahri means ‘Northern Monastery’, indicating that the site was once used by Christian monks. One of the most famous of the mortuary temples at Deir el-Bahri is the Temple of Hatshepsut. Hatshepsut is arguably one of the most formidable women in ancient Egypt. After the death of her husband, Thutmose II, Hatshepsut served as co-regent to her nephew and stepson, the infant Thutmose III, who would eventually become the 6 th pharaoh of the 18 th Dynasty. The roughly 22 year reign of Hatshepsut is generally regarded as one of Egypt’s most prosperous, and major accomplishments were achieved by this extraordinary pharaoh, including the construction of her mortuary temple in Deir el-Bahri.

Colossi of Memnon - the singing statues of Egypt

The Colossi of Memnon are two monumental statues representing Amenhotep III (1386-1353 BCE) of the 18th Dynasty of Egypt. They are located west of the modern city of Luxor and face east looking toward the Nile River. The statues depict the seated king on a throne ornamented with imagery of his mother, his wife, the god Hapy, and other symbolic engravings. The figures rise 60 ft high and weigh 720 tons each; both carved from single blocks of sandstone.

They were constructed as guardians for Amenhotep III's mortuary complex which once stood behind them. Earthquakes, floods, and the ancient practice of using older monuments and buildings as resource material for new structures all contributed to the disappearance of the enormous complex. Little of it remains today except for the two colossal statues which once stood at its gates. Their name comes from the Greek hero Memnon who fell at Troy. Memnon was an Ethiopian king who joined the battle on the side of the Trojans against the Greeks and was killed by the Greek champion Achilles. Memnon's courage and skill in battle, however, elevated him to the status of a hero among the Greeks. Greek tourists, seeing the impressive statues, associated them with the legend of Memnon instead of Amenhotep III and this link was also suggested by the 3rd century BCE Egyptian historian Manetho who claimed Memnon and Amenhotep III were the same person.

The Greek writers referred to the entire complex regularly as the Memnonium and the site became legendary for divination after one of the statues began making noises interpreted as oracles.

Temples of Horus at Edfu

Visit the most well preserved temple in all of Egypt – the 2000-year-old Temple of Horus at Edfu. After a short ride by caleche (horse-drawn carriage), this is your chance to study the exact layout of one of these fabulous Pharaonic structures. Built on the site of an earlier temple, it was dedicated to the sun god Horus, Hathor of Dendera and their son the youthful Harsomtus. Horus, who according to myth fought one of the great combats with Seth here, was presented as a flying falcon, in human form with a falcon’s head or as the winged sun.

Of all the temples of ancient Egypt, the Temple of Horus at Edfu is the most complete and best preserved. The reason is that the temple had been totally submerged under the desert except for the very top of the pylon entrance. A small amount of stone had been removed from the exposed part, but when excavated it was found to be in near perfect condition. Enjoy the fun of “haggling” with the local merchants as you walk from the temple. Return to the ship for lunch and a leisurely afternoon as it sails to Kom Ombo.

Kom Ombo

This afternoon visit Kom Ombo, the temple shared by two gods, Sobek and Haroeries. Be sure to see the mummified crocodiles and the Nilometer where the priests determined the current year’s taxes!

The Temple known as Kom Ombo is actually two temples consisting of a Temple to Sobek and a Temple of Haroeries. In ancient times, sacred crocodiles basked in the sun on the riverbank near here. The Temple has scant remains, due first to the changing Nile, then the Copts who once used it as a church, and finally by builders who used the stones for new buildings. Everything is duplicated along the main axis. There are two entrances, two courts, two colonnades, two hypostyle halls and two sanctuaries. There were probably even two sets of priests!

The left, or northern side is dedicated to Haroeries (sometimes called Harer, Horus the Elder) who was the falcon headed sky god and the right to Sobek (the crocodile headed god). The two gods are accompanied by their families; they include Haroeries’ wife, Tesentnefert (meaning the good sister) and his son, Panebtawy. Likewise, Sobek is accompanied by his consort, Hathor and son, Khonsu.

High Dam, unfinished obelisk and the Philae Temple

Arrive into Aswan early this morning. Disembark the ship for a visit of the Aswan High Dam, the granite quarries with the Unfinished Obelisk, and beautiful Philae Temple, situated on an island in the middle of the Lake Nasser.

Located near Aswan, the world famous High Dam was an engineering miracle when it was built in the 1960s. It contains 18 times the material used in the Great Pyramid of Cheops. The Dam is 11,811 feet long, 3,215 feet thick at the base and 364 feet tall. Today it provides irrigation and electricity for the whole of Egypt and, together with the old Aswan Dam built by the British between 1898 and 1902, 4 miles down river, wonderful views for visitors.

From the top of the two Mile long High Dam you can gaze across Lake Nasser, the huge reservoir created when it was built, to Kalabsha temple in the south and the huge power station to the north. The High Dam created a 30% increase in the cultivatable land in Egypt, and raised the water table for the Sahara as far away as Algeria. The electricity producing capability of the Dam doubled Egypt’s available supply. The High Dam added a whole new aspect to Egypt and a new environment as well. The lake is some 500 miles long and at the time it was built, if not now, was the world’s largest artificial lake.

Continue to the Granite Quarries that supplied the ancient Egyptians with most of the hard stone used in the building of the Pyramids, temples and a huge Unfinished Obelisk. Three sides of the shaft, which measure nearly 138 feet in length, were completed except for the inscriptions, and it would have been the largest single piece of stone ever handled if a flaw had not appeared in the granite. So here it lies where the disappointed stonemasons abandoned it, still partly attached to the parent rock and with no indication of what it was intended for.

Felucca sunset boat ride

In the afternoon enjoy a private transfer sunset cruise on a felucca. Cruising the world’s longest river has long been a popular pastime for intrepid travelers. The most authentic and intimate way to cruise the Nile is aboard a felucca, a traditional sailboat used in Egypt since ancient times.

*** The extension to Abu Simbel is not included in the tour cost - it is an optional activity to be booked in advance

Private transfer to the Airport

Internal flight from Aswan to Abu Simbel

Abu Simbel

Disembark the cruise ship, and fly to Abu Simbel where two temples were built by the Egyptian king Ramses II (reigned 1279–13 BCE). In ancient times the area was at the southern frontier of pharaonic Egypt, facing Nubia. The four colossal statues of Ramses in front of the main temple are spectacular examples of ancient Egyptian art. By means of a complex engineering feat in the 1960s, the temples were salvaged from the rising waters of the Nile River caused by erection of the Aswan High Dam.

The 66-foot (20-metre) seated figures of Ramses are set against the recessed face of the cliff, two on either side of the entrance to the main temple. Carved around their feet are small figures representing Ramses’ children, his queen, Nefertari, and his mother, Muttuy (Mut-tuy, or Queen Ti). Graffiti inscribed on the southern pair by Greek mercenaries serving Egypt in the 6th century BCE have provided important evidence of the early history of the Greek alphabet. The temple itself, dedicated to the sun gods Amon-Re and Re-Horakhte, consists of three consecutive halls extending 185 feet into the cliff, decorated with more Osiride statues of the king and with painted scenes of his purported victory at the Battle of Kadesh. On two days of the year (about February 22 and October 22), the first rays of the morning sun penetrate the whole length of the temple and illuminate the shrine in its innermost sanctuary.

Internal flight from Abu Simbel to Cairo

The Grand Egyptian Museum

When the Grand Egyptian Museum fully opens it will be the largest archaeological museum complex in the world and host to more than 100,000 artifacts. For the first time ever, King Tut’s entire treasure collection will be on display alongside artifacts from pre-historic times through Egypt’s many thousands of years of pharaonic civilization through the [comparatively] more modern ancient Greek and Roman periods of Egyptian history.

The Grand Egyptian Museum, known as the GEM, is located next to the Giza Pyramids. The Museum will host over 100,000 artifacts that belong to the ancient Egyptian civilization, including the complete Tutankhamun collection, and is set to be the largest archaeological museum in the world. Many pieces in its collection will be displayed for the first time. The museum is sited on a plot of land of about 5,300,000 sq ft which makes it the world's biggest museum, approximately 1.2 miles from the Giza pyramid complex and was built as part of a new master plan for the Giza Plateau called Giza 2030.

Among the many highlights are a block statue of Queen Hetepheres, one of the earliest examples of its type; a black granite sculpture of Queen Nefertiti; a statue of King Senusret I; and a four-ton, pink granite sculpture of Amenhotep III, showing him seated next to the god Ra. The solar boat of King Khufu, previously shown near the Great Pyramid, was also moved to the GEM. The GEM will also be hosting permanent exhibition galleries, temporary exhibitions, special exhibitions, children museum and virtual and large format screens with a total floor area of 32,000 m².

Khan Al-Khalili Bazaar

Khan El Khalili bazaar is said to be the oldest open air market in the Middle East, and no trip to Cairo is complete without a visit to this bazaar. When people think of Egypt, they typically think of the pyramids and other similar attractions such as the Sphinx, but the truth is, there is so much more to see in this ancient land of the pharaohs. Khan El Khalili is in fact a prime example. More people visit the bazaar than any other attraction in the country, but this is of course because the bazaar is equally as popular between tourists and locals alike.

A Brief History of Khan El Khalili: Khan El Khalili bazaar was originally built to serve as a mausoleum for the Fatimid royal family, and was at that time a part of the Great Eastern Fatimid Palace which was built in 970 CE. By the 14th century when the first Mamluk sultan ruled the country, Egypt had been ravaged by the Black Death. Nonetheless, it continued to act as a major trade center, and as a result, several commercial properties were constructed. By 1389 the original Fatimid cemetery had been destroyed in order to make way for a large caravanserai. The original caravanserai can still be seen at Khan El Khalili to this day.

The market is famous for clothing, spices, traditional jewelry and perfumes. The items are of high quality which is part of the reason that this market has survived for so long. The Khan El Khalili bazaar is far from being a tourist trap even though there are plenty of souvenirs available. However, many of the high quality clothes; fabrics and other items that are made by local artisans often prove to be the best souvenirs since they are a part of Egyptian culture, and as such, they are bought daily by the countless locals shopping at the bazaar.

Great Pyramids and Sphinx of Giza

The great Sphinx of Giza is a colossal limestone statue of a recumbent sphinx located in Giza, Egypt, that likely dates from the reign of King Khafre (c. 2575–c. 2465 BCE) and depicts his face. It is one of Egypt’s most famous landmarks and is arguably the best-known example of sphinx art. The Great Sphinx is among the world’s largest sculptures, measuring some 240 feet long and 66 feet high. It features a lion’s body and a human head adorned with a royal headdress. The statue was carved from a single piece of limestone, and pigment residue suggests that the entire Great Sphinx was painted. According to some estimates, it would have taken about three years for 100 workers, using stone hammers and copper chisels, to finish the statue.

The Giza Pyramids, built to endure an eternity, have done just that. The monumental tombs are relics of Egypt's Old Kingdom era and were constructed some 4,500 years ago. Egypt's pharaohs expected to become gods in the afterlife. To prepare for the next world they erected temples to the gods and massive pyramid tombs for themselves—filled with all the things each ruler would need to guide and sustain himself in the next world. Pharaoh Khufu began the first Giza pyramid project, circa 2550 B.C. His Great Pyramid is the largest in Giza and towers some 481 feet above the plateau. Its estimated 2.3 million stone blocks each weigh an average of 2.5 to 15 tons.

Saqqara Step Pyramid

Visit the Saqqara Step Pyramid - the First Pyramid in Egypt. Saqqara step pyramid is an archeological remain in the Saqqara necropolis that is located northwest of the city of Memphis in Egypt and was built 4700 years ago. It was built in the 27th century during the third dynasty of the pharaoh Djoser. The evolution of the Saqqara Step Pyramid began with an astonishing monument built for one king and designed by a skilled architect. Saqqara step pyramid was the first Egyptian pyramid to be built, it consists of 6 Mastabas, and it is 60 m high. It is one of the most enigmatic structures built outside of the Giza Plateau. This magnificent tomb was designed and built by Djoser’s great architect Imhotep. It consists of six steps which makes it similar to the ziggurats of the ancient Mesopotamian city-states.

Interesting Facts About the Step Pyramid of Djoser:
- Saqqara Step Pyramid is the only pyramid from the old kingdom that 11 of the king’s daughters were buried inside.
- Saqqara step pyramid took about twenty years to be built with about 100,000 free skilled workers.
- It took another 10 years to connect the Pyramid with the Valley temple
- It is considered to be an experimental structure in ancient Egypt.
- This pyramid was initially a Mastaba tomb but some expansions happened and its structure evolved six layers built upon each other.
- A lot of people don’t know that there are tunnels beneath the pyramid stretching across a labyrinth of 5.5 kilometers in length.
- Beneath this pyramid at the deep of 28m, there is the burial chamber of the king Djoser. It reveals fragments of the king’s granite sarcophagus.
- Saqqara step pyramid was totally built from limestone.

Private transfer to the Airport

Departure flight from Cairo

Say farewell, for now, until your trip to Africa !