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Egypt Private Expedition
Preferred
Overview
Highlights (Bullets)
- Explore the legendary Pyramids at Gîza and ponder the riddle of the Sphinx, carved out of the limestone bedrock of the Gîza plateau.
- Discover stunning temples and elaborate burial chambers in Luxor, the capital of the ancient Egyptian empire at its peak; and embark on a four-day cruise down the fabled Nile.
- Venture to the magnificent rock-cut temples of Abu Simbel, built by the pharaoh Ramses II, and hear from your private guide about the dramatic relocation of this sacred site.
- Immerse yourself in the sights and sounds of bustling Cairo, and encounter world-renowned treasures at the Egyptian Museum.
Short Description
Venture to the land of the pharaohs and discover some of the greatest treasures of the ancient world with a private guide, from the Pyramids at Gîza to King Tutankhamun’s legendary tomb. Trace the dramatic feats of Egyptian rulers—and the powerful deities they worshipped—as you wander the soaring temple of Karnak, or gaze upon the colossal statues of Ramses II at Abu Simbel. Couple your archaeological odyssey with a cruise down the Nile, the age-old lifeline of this fabled desert realm.
Destinations
EgyptAttractions & Cities Visited
Abu Simbel Aswan Cairo Luxor Temple Memphis Pyramid of Giza Temple of KarnakItinerary
Day 1: Cairo, Egypt
Meals: Dinner
Accommodations: Nile Ritz Carlton
Arrive at Cairo International Airport (CAI) and settle into your elegant hotel, located on the bank of the Nile River.
Day 2: Dahshûr/Memphis and Saqqâra/Cairo
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Accommodations: Nile Ritz Carlton
Veer off the beaten path to the 5,000-year old ruins of Memphis with your Egyptologist guide, who will accompany you throughout your trip. Then stroll through the cemetery of Saqqâra, where you’ll come across Djoser’s step pyramid—one of the oldest known stone-cut buildings in history. Continue to the Dahshûr necropolis, which harbors some of Egypt’s oldest and most well-preserved pyramids. Dahshûr’s Bent Pyramid is said to be a first attempt at the flat-sided pyramid—at the time a formidable architectural feat—while the nearby Red Pyramid represents the world’s first truly flat-sided structure.
Day 3: Gîza/Cairo
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Accommodations: Nile Ritz Carlton
Discover the fabled Pyramids at Gîza, constructed some 4,500 years ago and guarded by the mysterious Sphinx, these perfectly symmetrical structures were designed as gateways to the afterlife for Egypt’s ruling elite. The Great Pyramid of Khufu—the largest of the three structures—stands at a staggering 481 feet and is the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Take in these iconic sights, and see the Solar Boat Museum, which houses a restored cedarwood vessel built to transport Pharaoh Khufu to the afterlife. Enjoy lunch overlooking the pyramids, then explore the Egyptian Museum, home to the largest collection of Egyptian artifacts in the world. Gaze upon the immaculate gold mask of Tutankhamun, the boy-king who died at the age of 19, and admire the many treasures recovered from his tomb. Then visit the eerie Royal Mummies Hall to see the remains of illustrious Egyptian rulers, including Ramses II and the female pharaoh Hatshepsut.
Day 4: Cairo
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Accommodations: Nile Ritz Carlton
This morning, venture to the 12th-century Citadel of Saladin, a hilltop fortress commissioned by sultan Saladin, and step inside the Mosque of Muhammad Ali, a multi-domed sanctuary built in the Ottoman style. Delve into the winding streets of Coptic Cairo, where Christianity flourished until the Islamic era. Visit the Coptic Museum; the nearby Hanging Church—one of the city’s oldest and most iconic Coptic churches; and the Ben Ezra Synagogue. This evening, immerse yourself in the labyrinthine alleys of Khan el-Khalili, an enchanting souk tucked away in the heart of the old city.
Day 5: Luxor
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Accommodations: Steigenberger Resort Achti
Catch a flight to Luxor, known in antiquity as Thebes. This extraordinary city served as Egypt’s capital during part of the Middle Kingdom and at the height of the New Kingdom, and was dedicated to the god Amun, one of the most revered deities of the Egyptian pantheon. Explore the Karnak temple complex, a sprawling array of shrines, obelisks, and gateways where Amun and other deities were worshipped; then visit the Luxor Museum, located on the banks of the Nile. After lunch, take the afternoon to wander Luxor on your own. This evening, visit the striking Luxor Temple. With its colonnade of soaring columns and larger-than-life statues, this complex is particularly beautiful after dark, when evocative lighting creates a mystical, dream-like atmosphere.
Day 6: Luxor/Nile River
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Accommodations: M.S. Farah or M.S. Minerva
Today, venture to the famed Valley of the Kings, where the pharaohs of Egypt’s New Kingdom chose to build elaborate underground tombs instead of the pyramids typical of the Old Kingdom. Descend into the tomb of Tutankhamun—discovered in 1922 by British archaeologist Howard Carter—and see the remains of the boy-king. Admire the vivid wall paintings and hieroglyphics of the neighboring tomb of Seti I; then make your way to the beautiful Temple of Hatshepsut, one of Egypt’s first female pharaohs. Round off your time in Luxor with a visit to the Colossi of Memnon—two 60-foot-tall stone statues of the pharaoh Amenhotep III, which have guarded the king’s necropolis since 1350 B.C. Then board your vessel to begin your cruise down the river this evening.
Day 7: West Bank Of Luxor/Isnâ Lock
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Accommodations: M.S. Farah or M.S. Minerva
Sail to the West Bank of Luxor this morning and step ashore to explore the Ramesseum—Ramses II’s mortuary temple. This temple—and the scattered granite remains of the king’s giant likeness found here—inspired the poem “Ozymandias” by the English Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley. Discover the Valley of the Queens and visit the breathtaking tomb of Queen Nefertari, Ramses II’s favorite wife; and wander through the funerary complex of Ramses III, set against the backdrop of the Theban mountains. Return to your boat for lunch, and enjoy a cooking class on board. Navigate through Isnâ Lock on your way to the city of Idfu.
Day 8: Idfu/Aswân
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Accommodations: M.S. Farah or M.S. Minerva
Cruise amid lush sugarcane fields, sleepy rural villages, and oases of date palms as your boat glides up the Nile to the Temple of Kawm Umbū. Dating to Egypt’s Graeco-Roman period, this unusual structure harbors two sanctuaries—one dedicated to falcon-headed Horus, god of the sky; and the other to Sobek, the crocodile-headed god of the Nile. Crocodiles were once kept captive at Sobek’s temple, and many mummified specimens can be seen at the Kawm Umbū Crocodile Museum. Later, enjoy an epic Nile sunset from the deck of your boat as you continue south towards Aswân.
Day 9: Aswân
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Accommodations: M.S. Farah or M.S. Minerva
Discover the Temple of Isis, an elegant Ptolemaic monument honoring the goddess Isis that was originally perched on the island of Philae. The site was threatened with flooding during the construction of the Aswân dams in the 1960s, which prompted UNESCO to relocate the temple complex to its present location on the island of Agilkia. This evening, board a felucca—a traditional wooden sailboat of the Nile—and enjoy sundowners as we cruise down the river. Round off the day with a visit to a lively souk in Aswân town.
Day 10: Abu Simbel/Cairo
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Accommodations: Intercontinental Citystars Cairo
Disembark our riverboat and fly to Abu Simbel in southern Egypt this morning, where you’ll be joined by your local guide. Head out for a tour of this awe-inspiring ancient site, among Ramses II’s most impressive building achievements. Four nearly 70-foot-tall statues of the pharaoh grace the entrance to the main temple, carved out of a dramatic sandstone cliff. Like the temple at Philae, the Abu Simbel temples were also dismantled and rebuilt at a higher elevation to make way for the Aswân High Dam—a feat of engineering to rival Abu Simbel’s original construction. After lunch, catch a flight to Cairo via Aswân and relax at your hotel.
Day 11: Cairo
Meals: Breakfast
After breakfast, transfer to the Cairo International Airport (CAI) and catch your flight home.
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28 National Geographic Expeditions Travel Reviews & Ratings
Egypt Private Expedition
TOO MUCH TOO FAST
We arrived in Luxor, were taken to the hotel, deposited our luggage (the room wasn’t ready), had breakfast, and then met our tour guide at 10:00 AM for our first tour. We were exhausted, but mustered our energy for the occasion.
Is there a good reason why Cairo wasn’t the first city on our tour? In retrospect, it should have been for many reasons, not the least of which was the logistics described above.
All right, so now we’re in Luxor, and by afternoon we’re ensconced in a luxurious hotel with a magnificent view of the Nile River. There’s a swimming pool that we’re looking forward to relaxing by the next day during some much needed down time during the free time described in the itinerary; exactly what we expected from National Geographic. But instead, that evening we were told by our guide that we needed to have our luggage ready to check out of the hotel the next morning to relocate to the Nile River ship Minerva (coincidentally, owned by the same company as the hotel). We obliged, and in the morning we were taken on a tour with the luggage in the car, and then brought to the ship in the early afternoon. Our four suitcases were put in a room that was barely large enough to contain the bed, but the view of the river from our room was good enough to overlook this inconvenience, at least for the moment. I looked forward to resting in our cabin in the afternoon because I was exhausted. In fact, I was so tired that I have little recollection of that morning’s tour until I look at the photos to affirm that I was actually where the itinerary said I would be.
We went to lunch in the ship’s dining room and returned to our cabin to find that our view of the Nile was obliterated by a ship that had tied up alongside our own. This is now our view (see photo) and the blackout drapes that were drawn to hide it made the small cabin a crowded, dark dungeon.
Furthermore, that ship’s bunker oil fumes were now in the air conditioning system of our ship and flowing freely into our cabin making me nauseous and giving me a headache. I complained but there was nothing to do about it.
And if this wasn’t bad enough, the sound of the neighboring ship that accompanied the smell was intolerable.
Other issues I had with our cabin on the ship included;
- The bypass closet door wouldn’t stay shut
- There was a leak under the bathroom sink
- The carpet in the area near the bathroom was wet
- The toilet seat lid came off repeatedly
- Wifi on board the ship was only in the main lobby area, and was poor at best
I talked to the ship’s desk clerk, and he assured me that things would be taken care of shortly. They never were.
This doesn’t take into consideration that the buffet style food served on board was repetitive if you didn’t take the offered main course, which was usually meat (I don’t eat meat).
Oh, and I didn’t yet mention that our ship wouldn’t be leaving its mooring until the next day! We had traded a luxurious hotel for this!
With that said, it begs the question of why we were taken out of a luxurious hotel 24 hours in advance of the ship sailing away from Luxor? No pool to sit by, no view of the sunset over the banks of the Nile, no quiet room in which to sleep, and no dinner of delicious food. Certainly not what we expected from a Nat Geo Private Tour for which we had paid a premium price!
Unrelated to these issues, NatGeo’s survey asked if we felt that our health was well-protected. “No” is the short answer. A fuller reply is that we both got Covid on this trip; my husband first, then inevitably, myself three days later. We had avoided catching it for more than 2.6 years, and now we had it. I realize that one takes risks when going out in the world, and I certainly don’t blame NatGeo for our getting sick. But their people weren’t wearing masks until I asked them to, mostly to protect themselves from us. One agent who met us at the airport when we arrived back in Cairo from Aswan, now openly sick with Covid, disappeared for 10 minutes to purchase a mask when I told him in no uncertain terms that he needed to wear one around us.
Overall, NatGeo profited from our illness as we were too unwell to utilize the dining allowance at the Cairo Ritz Carlton or to go to out for most meals offered with our guide. The one restaurant I was taken to for dinner without my husband was a touristy place with fake grapes leaves hanging from fake arbors. When a 35 person tour group trouped in past us it told me all I needed to know. My bowl of pasta with a tomato sauce not much thicker than tomato juice certainly couldn’t have cost more than $10, if that much. Then, the next day I was too sick to go out at all, my husband, who was feeling better by then, went out alone with the tour guide for the day, but it’s my understanding that they skipped all meals.
All in all, there were many aspects of the trip that were memorable for all the right reasons, but also memorable for the above mentioned wrong reasons. For us to have paid as much as we did begs the question, “Was it worth the expense for this private tour experience?” As seasoned world travelers, I’m hard pressed to reply in the affirmative.
Company Reviews
Best Part of Trip was Cancelled
Cancel my trip but no refund
DO NOT BOOK WITH NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC - LOST MY TRIP MONEY
They have not refunded any portion of my money. They said the airfare was non-refundable and that I couldn't even have a flight credit. But they are the ones that canceled the trip. However Delta told me that a refund check was sent to the agency. Then they said they would refund the other portion of the trip expense, but it may take 6 months. It is completely unacceptable. The entire 100% of the trip should be refunded and should have been refunded the day they canceled the trip.
The business is not responsive to this. I filed a complaint with the BBB and they did not respond. I sent a 30 day demand letter in preparation of filing in court against them. So far no resolution.
I expect a 100% refund AND I share this story to strongly advise against anyone ever booking a national geographic trip of any kind.
I will be posting this review online in every spot I can find.
Highly recommend! It was a trip of a lifetime!
Details
Flight & Transport Inclusions
All internal ground transport
Group Size
Intimate Group - 12 max
Trip ID#:
EgyPriNat
What's excluded
- Airfare to and from the destination as well as internal airfare
- Trip cancellation insurance or any other travel insurance
- Visas when applicable
- Alcoholic beverages
- Gratuities
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