12 Day Egypt Itinerary

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It’s April 2021. My husband and I are vaccinated and going a little stir crazy since I have the whole month off of work. We hear through friends that Egypt is WIDE open to all travelers and no quarantine is required. Within 5 days, we book our tour guides, pack our suitcases and embark on one of the longest journeys we’ve taken thus far. Read along if you’d like to know tips/tricks to traveling in Egypt, or feel free to scroll to the bottom for a day-by-day itinerary. You can also watch a recap of my entire trip by heading on over to my Instagram and watching my Egypt highlight.

First things first, why Egypt?

Well, since they’re one of the few countries who opened their borders during this pandemic and not many people were traveling there, we decided to seize a once in a lifetime opportunity to see the pyramids with as little crowds as possible. And guess what? We ended up being the only people standing in front of the pyramids of Giza and I don’t regret our decision to travel one bit.

What’s it like traveling during Covid? International procedures?

Since we were already vaccinated, we felt comfortable with the idea of traveling. (Not that it would have stopped us before since I do travel for a living). Funny enough, no one cared for our vaccination cards at all. All they required upon entry was a negative covid test done within 72 hours of entry. While in Egypt we wore face masks and also did another covid test before departing back home. Egypt is a country that relies heavily on tourism so I know they could benefit from more travelers, which is why I’m even more excited to write about our experience there.

Where did we begin?

My husband was recommended a tour group called Memphis Tours and we pretty much decided to have them book everything for us, from tours to hotels. It saved us the hassle of having to do research, especially since we booked this trip so last minute and it also saved us a whole lot of stress. I highly recommend this company that’s run by Egyptian locals. Not many people in Egypt speak english so the language barrier was tough and having tour guides made it easy when we got lost in translation.

What did we pack?

It was a very hot time to be traveling to Egypt, but I wanted to remain respectful to the culture and made sure I didn’t wear anything revealing. I packed: long maxi dresses, long skirts, breathable t-shirts, this super cute hat, flowy pants and comfy shoes to walk in. Keep in mind, the way I chose to dress was a personal decision. No one recommended, otherwise. We already stood out enough so I just wanted to make sure I blended in as much as I could. We also packed reusable water bottles, although everything drinkable in Egypt ended up being bottled already. Side note: DO NOT drink water if it isn’t bottled (or fresh juices for that matter). I learned the hard way towards the end.

Sunscreen and bug spray are also a must! This bug spray I linked is perfect for travel!

Is Egypt safe?

This is probably one of the most common questions I received. I still don’t have an answer for it, but all I can do is recommend booking tour guides. One day, we were coming back from a pyramid tour in Cairo and an Egyptian police car randomly started to follow us all the way to our hotel. Our tour guide said that they often do this to tourists to ensure their safety. Another time, we were headed to another tour early in the morning and we found a security guard sitting in the front passenger seat of our tour van. This was also complimentary and added on for our “safety.” Thankfully, we never experienced anything life threatening, but I think if government officials are providing all these safety precautions, then YOLO. No, but seriously, travel safe and always be aware of your surroundings. Also, don’t take Uber in Egypt. A mistake we made.

Day by Day Itinerary:

Day 1: Arrive in Cairo 
Our tour manager met us upon arrival and walked us through the customs and immigration process. Doesn’t get easier than this! He then drove us to our hotel in Old Town. Side note: we chose to visit Egypt during Ramadan so Old Town was very loud at night. Another option would be to stay in New Town Cairo, where the big name chain hotels were located. At the hotel, the tour manager assisted us with a smooth check-in and offered us excursions. We stayed at the Le Riad de Charm hotel and we loved how it had a vintage Egyptian hollywood film vibe to it. I will also mention that out of the entire trip, my favorite breakfast was at this hotel. I still dream about having those homemade fava beans and falafel. Freshly made every morning.

Day 2: Pyramids / Sakkara 
After breakfast, we were accompanied by our personal guide to Giza Plateau to visit the Great Pyramids of Cheops, Chefren, and Mykerinus – Famous Sphinx and Valley temple. The Giza pyramids were a highlight for us because we were literally the only people there. No lines. No wait. We also came across some camels that we rode around the Sahara desert for $25 usd/pp. We then proceeded to the Sakkara area to visit Sakkara Complex and the first pyramid ever built (Djoser Pyramid). We had the BEST lunch served at Restaurant Pharous. We came across a sweet lady making fresh pita and she saw me admiring her, then invited me to make my own. This was a lot harder than it looks.

Day 3: Cairo Sightseeing / Fly to Aswan
We checked out after breakfast of our hotel in Cairo and then were escorted by our private guide to visit the Egyptian Museum. Here we got to witness King Tut’s original mask and two mummies that were in perfect (creepy) condition. We continued driving through Islamic Cairo, where we were able to explore Khan El Khalili, Cairo’s old bazaar. Be aware that the first price they give you is a high price and it is okay to haggle. A highlight for me, personally, on this day was getting to visit Abu Serga church. This is a church where it is said that Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus hid for 3 months while fleeing from King Herod of Judea.

Later that evening, we were transferred to Cairo airport for our flight to Aswan. Once we arrived in Aswan, we were met by another tour guide and taken to our hotel. We stayed at the Movenpick hotel, which is a chain hotel right on the Nile river, but nonetheless, offered amazing customer service.

Day 4: Arrive in Aswan – Aswan free day
For our free day in Aswan, we chose to explore the Nubian village, an excursion that was also offered by Memphis tours. We had the opportunity to explore the oldest Nubian house and were welcomed with some typical Nubian molasses and bread.

Delicious! I learned that Nubian mothers make sure to sweep the sand inside their homes every night so it’s nice and even. It makes it easy for them to find predator footprints in the mornings. Predators: scorpions. I was also able to get a beautiful henna tattoo hand painted by one of the Nubian daughters.

Day 5: Abu Simbel
A Memphis Tour guide picked us up from our hotel before sunrise and drove us to Abu Simbel, which was about 3.5 hours away. The two Temples of Abu Simbel, with their unique style, are considered to be the masterpieces of ancient Egypt. They reflect the glory and grandeur of the new Kingdom. The Temple of Ramsses II was dedicated to the four universal gods Ptah, Re-Her-Akhtey, Amun-Re, and to Ramsses II himself. Here’s Ramsses below, 4 versions of himself sitting next to each other. Ultimately, I learned that you should find someone in life who loves you as much as Ramsses loves Ramsses.

Day 6: Aswan Sightseeing (Cruise embarkation)
After breakfast, we checked out of our hotel and walked on over to our cruise ship that was docked on the Nile River. After lunch on the ship, we sailed and visited he awesome Philae temple, which is devoted to the two goddesses Isis and Hathor. We also witnessed the largest known ancient obelisk, located in the northern region of the stone quarries of ancient Egypt. The Unfinished Obelisk. The dinners on this cruise were buffet style and weren’t that memorable. I’ve never really been a fan of buffets though.

Day 7: Kom Ombo / Edfu
We sailed to Kom Ombo, had breakfast on board and sailed to Edfu and visited Horus Temple. It was extremely hot with temperatures in the 100’s so that hat of mine came in handy. One of my favorites was Kom Ombo Temple, a temple shared by the two gods Sobek and Haeroris. The best views of this temple were during sunset. I’ll insert a picture below.

The sunsets on the Nile River cruise were also a memorable part for me. They were breathtakingly beautiful and we enjoyed a few glasses of wine on the deck as we sailed. This is also wear the bug spray really came in handy.

Day 8: Luxor West Bank
We sailed to Luxor and visited the West Bank. We got to see the royal cemetery for 62 Pharaohs, Valley of the Kings and then the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut, which was built by the architects of the New Kingdom Pharaoh Hatshepsut approximately in the 15th century BC. By this point, I’m going to be very honesty, I was a little burned out from the tours so I was really looking forwards to spending the last few days relaxing in Hurghada. Nonetheless, we were still extremely grateful to have had these temples all to ourselves!

Day 9: Luxor East Bank / Hurghada
We disembarked from our Nile cruise after breakfast then visited Karnak Temple and Luxor Temple. To my surprise, we were also one of the very few people here. In the afternoon we were driven to Hurghada, which is located on the Red Sea. From Luxor to Hurghada it was about a 3 hour and a half drive. In Hurghada we stayed at the Marriott Hurghada Resort. It was a beautiful resort with on site access to the red sea and was perfect for recuperating after all the tours. The concierge was lovely and helped coordinate covid tests for us for our pre departures.

Day 10: Hurghada
We decided to go on a snorkeling yacht tour and ventured out into the Red Sea. Side note: I really think it should be called the Blue Sea because it had the bluest waters I’ve ever seen. Lunch was provided on board, as well as snorkeling gear. This was probably my first time witnessing real and huge coral reefs that spanned for miles. It was really a once in a lifetime experience. For the last half of our tour, we docked at Paradise Island and relaxed under some cabanas and drank some Egyptian beers.

Day 11: Hurghada
Another day recuperating next to the Red Sea. We ate more Egyptian falafel, hummus and enjoyed some more beers. For dinner we decided to venture out to a restaurant called Eldar Darak, which was about a 15 minute walk from our hotel, and we spent a total of $10 for just us two. This was also one of the best koftas I had throughout our trip.

Day 12: Fly back to Cairo
We had breakfast at our hotel before departing for the airport and making our trek back home. It was bittersweet.

Below is what was included in our tour program through Memphis Tours:

• Meet and greet service by representatives at airports
• The assistance of guest relations during your stay
• All transfers by a private air-conditioned vehicle
• Transfer from Luxor to Hurghada by an air-conditioned vehicle
• Domestic flight from Cairo to Aswan & from Hurghada to Cairo
• Accommodation for 2 nights in Cairo including bed & breakfast
• Accommodation for 3 night in Aswan including bed & breakfast
• Accommodation for 3 nights on 05 star superior cruise on full board
• Accommodation for 3 nights in Hurghada including daily breakfast
• Abu Simbel tour sharing Memphis small group
• Local English speaking Egyptologist tour guide
• All sightseeing tours on the cruise sharing Memphis Tours group
• All sightseeing tours in Cairo, Luxor, Aswan as mentioned in the itinerary
• All sightseeing tours in Cairo are private tours
• Entrance fees to all sites as indicated on the itinerary
• Lunch during your trip in Cairo
• Bottled water during outings outside of hotel or cruise ship
• Portage when needed
• All service charges and taxes

Egypt is one of those places you have to see before you die. It’s such a historic, yet, humbling experience. It’s not all luxury and pyramid photos. I still think about all those kids I saw playing barefoot in the streets at 4am on Ramadan. Or the sweet lady who tried to teach me how to make pita. But this is what travel is all about. Learning about new cultures and having gratitude for the things and opportunities you have in life.

Until next time,

Stew