Program Description

Breakfast and start of the cruise to Esna. On arrival, visit the temple of Esna, built in the Greco-Roman period and dedicated to Khnum and Neith. Return to the boat for lunch and continue the cruise to El Hegz Island where the boat will stop for the night. Dinner and overnight on board.

Breakfast, then navigation to Edfu. On arrival, horse-drawn carriage excursion to the temple of Horus further inland. This shrine to the falcon god Horus is both the largest temple of the Ptolemy dynasty and the second largest in Egypt after Karnak. Inside, the intact paintings, inscriptions and reliefs make it the best-preserved temple in Egypt. After the visit, return to the boat for lunch and continue the cruise to Bisaw Island where the boat will stop for the night. Free walk in the island and dinner on the shore. Overnight on board.

Breakfast and departure for the visit of Gebel Silsileh, both archaeological site and the most important sandstone quarry in Egypt. Placed under the protection of the god Hapy, this quarry provided the sandstone for almost all the temples of Upper Egypt. On the western bank of the river appears a sanctuary carved out of the rock, dedicated to the god Horemheb and to seven other deities, hence the local god Sobek. Lunch on board and discovery on foot of the old quarry before continuing the cruise to Kom Ombo. Dedicated to two deities, Sobek the crocodile in the south and Horus the falcon in the north, the temple has a perfectly symmetrical architecture. Erected on a hill by three Ptolemies, the Kom Ombo complex is surrounded by a surrounding wall covered with reliefs. Return to the boat to continue up the river to Aswan for dinner. Overnight on board.

  Breakfast on board, then departure to visit the temple of Philae on the island of Agilka, one of the most beautiful sanctuaries in Egypt. Begun by Pharaoh Nectanebo I during the XXX Dynasty and completed by the Romans, it is the main sanctuary dedicated to Isis. After Philae the visits continue with the high dam and the unfinished obelisk. The Aswan region, rich in schist, alabaster and pink granite found only in this part of Egypt, provided the stone blocks for the pyramids, statues and colossi built by the pharaohs. In the granite quarry you will find the largest obelisk known to date (41.75m), the size of which was abandoned following a crack in the rock. Return to the boat for lunch. Dinner and overnight on board. Sound and light show option at the Philae temple in the evening.    

  Breakfast and free morning in town. Optional excursions by coach or plane to visit the temples of Abu Simbel, built by Ramses II. Return to Aswan for lunch before resuming navigation to Luxor via Esna, where you will arrive at night. Dinner and overnight on board.   

  Breakfast and start of the cruise to Luxor where you will arrive in the afternoon. Lunch on board then departure to visit the southern part of ancient Thebes, where the temples of Karnak and Luxor are located. The two temples are connected by a dromos, a long path lined with sphinxes, and are dedicated to Amun. In the evening, optional sound and light show at Karnak temple. Dinner and overnight on board.    

Petit déjeuner à bord. Selon vos horaires de vol, transfert à l'aéroport de Louxor. Assistance aux formalités d'embarquement et envol vers Paris, Lyon ou Nantes.