Best of the Nile

4- days Nile Cruise - Abu Simbel Edition

Inclusive of all transfers & Round-trip Domestic air fare in Egypt

Add this 4-day Nile cruise to your itinerary to really feel the magic of Egypt!
Weekly on Wed & Sat . Cruise embarkation from Aswan or Luxor - Map -Nile Cruise Route
Include one way sleeper & one way air fare , Add an extra night in Aswan or Luxor * Add 2 nights in Cairo , For a sailing boat on the Nile Cruising : Royal Cleopatra . Add Italy . Compare with the Presidential Suite edition

DAY 1 - CAIRO /Abu Simbel / ASWAN & KOM OMBO Wednesday & Fridays (LD)
Please advise the name of your hotel in Cairo. Transfer is included from your hotel to the airport.
Domestic air fare between Cairo Abu Simbel & the cruise is included, issued & delivered in Cairo .We have several vessels available , embarkation on Wednesdays and Fridays
In Cairo Very Early morning Transfer is included from your hotel to the airport.
Your flight will make a brief stop in Aswan then continues on to Abu Simbel .
All transfers in Cairo as well as in Abu Simbel today are on a private basis, your own private air-conditioned vehicle, private chauffeur.

In Abu Simbel : Your private Egyptologist , and private chauffeur will be waiting for you at the airport with a sign that will have your name . Tour the mighty Temples of Ramses the Great and Nefertari his Queen :
In the larger temple, colossal figures of Ramses are seated with the gods and attended by his queen and daughters.
The smaller temple is dedicated to Queen Nefertari, who appears as Hathor, the goddess of love, joy and fertility, symbolized by the benevolent cow. We explore these fine temple by ourselves in the quiet of the morning, admiring their ancient aura and artistry, before we head back to Aswan by air.

Upon Arrival in Aswan : We proceed to the Nile Cruise , Check in on then visit the Aswan High Dam, the red granite quarries of the ancient pharaohs, Nubian Museum, and the temples of Philae, reconstructed on an island in the middle of the Nile . After a shipboard lunch, we set sail for Kom Ombo, where we explore the twin Temples of Haroeris and Sobek. We continue our cruise to Edfu, where we dock for the night.

DAY 2 - EDFU & LUXOR Thursday (cBLD)
We board horse-drawn carriages (or motor vans) for the ride to Edfu's Temple of Horus, one of the best-preserved Ancient Egyptian temples on the Nile. After lunch , we continue our cruise down the Nile to Luxor. Afternoon tea is served on the sun -deck. Dinner & entertainment on board.

DAY 3 - LUXOR & THEBES Friday (cBLD)
Today we tour the Valley of the Kings, Queen Hatshepsut's Temple of El Deir El Bahari , and the Colossi of Memnon. After lunch, the afternoon is free for shopping. Afternoon tea is served on deck. Dinner & folk dance show on board.

DAY 4 - LUXOR & KARNAK Saturday (cB)
We tour the Great Temple of Amon at Karnak , the "mother" of all temples, and the smaller yet charming Temple of Luxor, checking out of our cruise vessel before lunch.

Transfer is included back to Aswan airport
Domestic air fare is included as well back to Cairo .
In Cairo , we meet you at the airport & escort you back to your hotel or assist with your transfer to another connecting international flight. End of our service - Bon Voyage !

Itinerary is subject to change without notice. ( More cruise images)

RATES per person in USD for the 4 Day cruise:
Sample 4 stars cruises : Presidential Nile Cruises , Nile Dream, Ruby

Christmas, New Year's & Easter Weeks : Please add % 20 to the above listed rates

RATES per person in USD for the 4 Day cruise

For a PRIVATE: CAR/DRIVER & GUIDE for all the shore excursions for the duration of the cruise ,
please add :$ 200 per person .

Rate Includes :

• Bottled water (large bottle per person daily while on board the cruise)
  
• Welcome fruit basket awaits you in your cabin upon arrival
  
• All shore excursions with all entrance fees .
  
• The service of an English speaking guide .
  
• Meals B = Breakfast, L = Lunch, D = Dinner. As well as afternoon tea daily.
  
• Domestic air tickets between Cairo and the cruise issued & delivered in Cairo . Economy class. Tax Included .
  
• All domestic airport/ cruise transfers as listed in Egypt, all transfers are on a private basis , private air-conditioned vehicle, private chauffeur.
  
• Abu Simbel excursion , private touring in Abu Simbel, private Egyptologist , private air-conditioned vehicle, private chauffeur.

Rates are per person in US Itinerary is subject to change without notice.
Boarding the cruise is from either Luxor or Aswan, depending on the availability at the time of booking.

Dining Room Reservations: Meet other passengers

Compare with the Presidential Suite Rates

What to Pack:
Most of the year look forward to warm, even hot weather in Luxor & Aswan, morning & evenings are cooler. For Shore excursions, we suggest comfortable cotton & natural fabric lightweight clothing. Comfortable walking shoes are essential.

Clothing on Board:
Lightweight comfortable & casual clothing. Swimsuits, sun hat. Dining room dress code is casual for breakfast & lunch, but smart casual for dinner. All ships are fully air conditioned

Add Israel and Palestine extension

On Board Movenpick Ultra Deluxe Nile Cruises

Movenpick Ultra Deluxe Nile Cruises

Kennedy & the Abu Simbel Temples on the Nile

Jacquie Kennedy and Abu Simbel:

All Americans alive during the 1960s remember President John F Kennedy and First Lady Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy. Most Americans from that time also remember Abu Simbel, the dramatic, ancient pharaonic temple threatened by the rising waters blocked by the new Aswan High Dam.

It’s worth remembering that it was Jacquie Kennedy who provided crucial support for the mammoth rescue project. Without her help, Abu Simbel might have been lost.

No one questioned that the temple must be saved. UNESCO developed a marvelous plan to cut the huge monument into 1,423 stone blocks and move it 200 meters (219 yards) north and 63 meters (207 feet) higher, just above the estimated level of Lake Nasser, the vast inland sea that would be created by the new dam.

But who would pay? As a developing country, Egypt could not shoulder the burden alone. Other countries could contribute, but only one country--the United States of America--truly had the resources for this
monumental rescue effort.

No matter how much wealth there is, it is never enough. Many legitimate, worthwhile projects compete for funds. What Abu Simbel needed was an advocate, someone who recognized the temple for the irreplaceable world art treasure that it was.

First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy, already famous for her grace, refinement, and sensitivity to the arts, saw the need to work for the salvation of Abu Simbel. It was she who urged Congress to allocate $10 million for the rescue effort (a sum roughly equivalent to $100 million today). It was an enormous amount of money, but she saw that America
must step up to the challenge of saving this treasure of worldwide importance for all time.

The rescue funds were approved by Congress and the temple was saved.

In appreciation for her efforts, Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser presented the First Lady and the president with a 4000-year-old Egyptian statue (which is now preserved in the John F Kennedy Library &
Museum in Boston). (http://www.jfklibrary.org/visit_museum-14.html)

President Nasser wanted also to give a gift of thanks to the people of the United States for their valuable support. He asked Mrs Kennedy to choose an appropriate monument. She suggested the small Temple of
Dendur (c. 15 BC), and the gift was readily approved. The temple was brought to the United States in 1965 and installed at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1967.
(http://www.metmuseum.org/collections/ view1.asp?dep=10&full=0&item=68%2E154)

Times change, leaders come and go, but some acts of support and generosity are remembered through the decades.

First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy loved Egypt, and Egypt still loves her.

Extend your stay to Greece: Villa in Santorini Your Honeymoon Greek Island	Come with us to Istanbul - City of the Sultans Complimentary entrance tickets to the Harem's Quarter in Topkape Palace in Istanbul