You are invited to our very small-group tour for an expertly guided, 5-star luxury journey through the wonders of ancient Egypt in early 2027.

Egypt has captivated our collective hearts and imaginations for millennia. Imagine Cleopatra herself touring the pyramids in awe, these mysterious monuments already thousands of years old during her reign.

We invite you to stroll beside the pyramids and towering ancient temples, lined with stunning hieroglyphs and larger-than-life statues. We’ll cruise in style along the Nile River, the lifeblood of this fascinating chapter in our shared human history.

During this luxury experience, we’ll stay in 5-star accommodations;  all meals, all tips, and all internal airfare and ground transportation are included, and this journey is limited to 15 adventurers. We make things as easy and comfortable as possible to allow you to sit back and enjoy the ride!

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Our Values

Travel makes it impossible to ignore how deeply connected we all are, and we consider compassion a natural by-product of that knowledge. We believe in equality, bodily autonomy, and human dignity for all. We believe LGBTQ+ rights and women’s rights are non-negotiable, science is real, and no human being is ever “illegal.”

We don’t move through the world with fear–we meet it with curiosity and kindness. That’s the energy our groups naturally share and the standard our guests (and we) have come to expect. It’s simple–we all have respect for ourselves, our fellow travelers, and the folks we encounter along the path.

We’re so grateful to be part of how you explore and experience this incredible planet, and we value the trust you place in us to craft these journeys with integrity and a deep sense of responsibility.

Ahlan wa sahlan, welcome to Egypt!

You’ll be met inside the Cairo airport where one of our welcoming Egyptian teammates will help guide you through the immigration process and collect your luggage. You’ll be driven to Giza to begin this magical journey through time.

Your home base in Giza will be the fabulous Four Seasons Hotel Cairo at the First Residence on the banks of the Nile River. This is a perfect place to relax and get ready for our thrilling adventure together. 

Saqqara

On January 4th, we’ll start at the very beginning: Saqqara, at the dawn of pyramid-building in ancient Egypt.

Saqqara is incredibly rich in history and artifacts because it served as the necropolis of ancient Egypt’s capital, Memphis. Today you’ll see firsthand that the iconic pyramids on the Giza plateau were the culmination of more than a century of designing and refining.

The first architect in recorded history, Imhotep, designed the Step Pyramid of Djoser in 2630 BCE, starting the pyramid craze across the plateau. The Step Pyramid is the first freestanding stone building in history and the first pyramid ever built.

The entire area of Saqqara is a hotbed for architectural achievements and findings, with more and more tombs being uncovered every year. (There’s a great 2020 documentary about Saqqara on Netflix currently.)  We’ll explore these noble tombs as our expert guide explains their significance and deciphers the domestic stories told in the beautiful hieroglyphs lining the walls.

Cairo & Giza

On January 5th, we’ll visit the newly opened GEM, the Grand Egyptian Museum. This GEM of a museum has been a long time coming, with the cornerstone placed all the way back in 2002 and its official opening in November 2025. The GEM is the largest archaeological museum in the world, showcasing the priceless artifacts of the famous King Tutankhamen.

Before the GEM, though, we’ll visit the Egyptian Museum of Cairo, which still houses all of the most iconic pieces that are near and dear to our hearts. The Egyptian Museum is housed in a grand early-20th-century neoclassical building on Tahrir Square, purpose-built in 1902 to showcase Egypt’s growing collection of pharaonic antiquities. We’ll see the bust of Hatshepsut, the famous Scribe (now seen on the Egyptian 200 pound note), and the famous diorite statue of Pharaoh Khafre with the falcon god Horus protectively behind his head, and many more classics.

For lunch, you’ll try Egypt’s beloved national dish, koshari, a hearty, flavor-packed comfort food, at Cairo’s most famous koshari restaurant, Koshary Abou Tarek. This evening we’ll have dinner at a family home-turned-small guesthouse directly in front of the Sphinx!

On the morning of the 6th, we’ll get up close and personal with the Giza pyramids, the Sphinx, and the Valley temple. The Great Pyramid is the only remaining wonder of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, and it has attracted the curiosity of tourists for thousands of years. We’ll enter one of these grand pyramids and appreciate these structures from a completely different perspective!

We’ll marvel at the Great Sphinx of Giza and take in details that photos just can’t capture—its enormous paws, its tail, its noble gaze—as we can imagine what the Sphinx has gazed upon for millennia. 

On the afternoon of the 6th, we’ll fly (70-minute flight) to the next stop on our adventure: Luxor.

After our Giza Plateau visit, we’ll take a short flight (~70 minutes) to Luxor, the ancient city of Thebes. Luxor is sometimes called “the world’s greatest open-air museum” due to the enormous amount of priceless treasures here, from the grand temples of Luxor and Karnak to the Valley of the Kings and Valley of the Queens in the Necropolis across the Nile River.

Our home base in Luxor will be the Hilton Luxor Resort & Spa, set on the bank of the Nile River. With two pools, a phenomenal spa, and one heck of a view, it may be difficult to peel yourself away from our hotel! One morning will be available for an optional hot air balloon ride over Luxor, offering a peaceful sunrise drift above the Nile, temples, and desert landscapes of the West Bank for those who wish to take to the skies.

On January 7th, we’ll visit the Valley of the Queens, including a visit to Hatshepsut’s temple. Hatshepsut is an intriguing, powerful character, and one of the only female pharaohs to have reigned. She initially ruled as regent for her stepson Thutmose III, but she became a clever, successful ruler for nearly 20 years during a critical time in Egypt’s history. Fittingly, her temple is one of the most striking monuments in ancient Egypt.

Afterward, we’ll visit the Memnon Colossi, two of the most imposing ancient Egyptian statues still standing, on the way back to the east bank of the Nile. The statues are an incredible 60 feet tall and are thought to weigh around 700 tons each. This evening we’ll round out our day with a visit to Luxor Temple (~1400 BCE). We’ll spend time there during the magical hours of dusk, watching the sky become purple behind the towering pillars and statues.

Dendera

On the 8th, we’ll make a day trip to explore the breathtaking temple of Dendera, dedicated to Hathor, the goddess of joy, dance, and love. Hathor was also believed to have had healing powers, and ancient Egyptians often brought the sick here to be cured. Dendera Temple is one of the best-preserved temple complexes in all of Egypt.

The ceiling of the Hathor Temple has recently been cleaned meticulously, removing hundreds of years of black soot without harming the ancient paint underneath. As a result of this cleaning, spectacular ceiling paintings have been exposed in the main hall, and some of the most vibrant and colorful paintings dating from antiquity are now visible.

Tombs of the Nobles & Deir Al Medina

January 9th will find us on Luxor’s West Bank, where we’ll venture beyond the royal monuments to explore the lives of the people who actually built them. At Deir el-Medina, the remarkably preserved village of the skilled artisans who carved and decorated the pharaohs’ tombs, we gain a rare window into daily life in ancient Egypt. These were not laborers but highly trained craftsmen, and many were buried nearby in beautifully decorated tombs of their own, filled with vibrant colors and surprisingly intimate scenes that feel almost personal across the millennia.

We’ll also visit the Tombs of the Nobles, where high-ranking officials and priests chose to be buried close to the ancient capital of Thebes. Unlike royal tombs focused on the afterlife, these richly painted chambers celebrate life on earth — with scenes of music, agriculture, banquets, and family gatherings offering a vivid portrait of the world behind the monuments. Together, these sites provide a more human perspective on ancient Egypt, adding depth and context to the grand temples and tombs for which Luxor is so famous.

We’ll also visit Medinet Habu, the grand mortuary temple of Ramses III and one of the most impressive sites on Luxor’s West Bank. Surrounded by massive walls and filled with remarkably crisp relief carvings, the temple vividly depicts scenes of ritual, daily life, and the dramatic military victories of Ramses III. With its broad courtyards, towering columns, and beautifully preserved color in sheltered areas, Medinet Habu offers the chance to experience the scale and artistry of ancient Egyptian temple-building in a setting that still feels calm and immersive.

Valley of the Kings

Tomorrow we’ll discover the Valley of the Kings, where we’ll explore the colorful tombs carved out of rocky cliffs to safeguard the mummies and treasures from grave robbers.

You’ll enter the tomb of Tutankhamun, as British archaeologist and Egyptologist Howard Carter did in 1922—although you’ve already seen his treasures at the Grand Egyptian Museum! Not only have we included a visit to King Tut’s tomb, but we’re also taking you to the tomb of Seti I.

Seti I, the father of Ramses II, has one of the best-preserved tombs in the Valley of the Kings. This burial chamber marks the first time that decorations covered every part of the tomb, a style followed by every succeeding tomb through the rest of the valley’s history.

This afternoon we’ll check into our Nile cruise and enjoy lunch. For the next four nights, we’ll call the luxury 5-star MS Royal Serenade our home, as we cruise between Luxor and Aswan on the Nile River. Each day we’ll visit temples dotting the Nile’s riverbanks, and in the evening we’ll have time to catch up with each other, reflect on what we saw, and participate in cultural activities on board the cruise.

Abu Simbel

On January 14th, we’ll say goodbye to our beautiful ship and fly to Abu Simbel (~45-minute flight) to explore this jaw-dropping site.  Abu Simbel is one of the most iconic ancient sites in Egypt, nestled on the west bank of the Nile River between the first and second cataracts (the shallow areas of rapids).

Flanking the entrance of the Great Temple are four seated colossal figures, each a towering 65 feet tall. This temple, too, was meticulously moved stone by stone in 1968 to keep it safe from the rising Nile after the Aswan High Dam was built.

After our Abu Simbel visit, we’ll fly back to Cairo via Aswan, for a total of 2.5 hours of flight time. We’ll rest at a comfortable hotel near the airport and rest up for our exploration in Cairo tomorrow!

Cairo

On January 15th, we’ll head into Cairo proper to visit the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization & the Royal Mummies’ Hall.  This museum is small but mighty, showcasing stunning pieces from throughout Egypt’s long history. You’ll marvel at the Royal Mummies’ Hall which houses 20 mummies, including Hatshepsut and Seti I.

We’ll round out our time in Cairo with a visit to the Sultan Hasan mosque and madrasa, a gorgeous complex built in the mid-1300s. 

Tonight, let’s enjoy our final dinner together and recount all that we’ve experienced together during our unforgettable Egyptian exploration!

Tomorrow you’ll be taken back to the airport to head home or on to your next adventure. We can connect you to our partners in Jordan if you wish to extend your adventure to visit Petra, the Dead Sea, and Wadi Rum!

Photo Album

Please click a photo to see an enlarged version; you can use your arrow keys or mouse to navigate within the album. All of these photos were taken by BJ or Lauren during their adventures in Egypt!