The Nile River Discovery Cruise MS Darakum (Cairo To Luxor) 12D11N

Arrive in Cairo and enjoy a private transfer from Cairo Airport to the port where you’ll step aboard the luxurious Mövenpick MS Darakum vessel to begin the sensational cruise expedition of a lifetime.

Today, is all about enjoying all amenities and facilities on the ship while getting to know your fellow travelers. Relax at the lounge bar to light music while sipping a cocktail. Take soothing laps at the swimming pool on the ship's deck, unwind and meet new acquaintances at the outdoor lounge and soak in the sun from loungers at the deck, admiring lovely views of the Nile.

Enjoy a light dinner aboard with gorgeous natural views of the river and surrounding landscape before retreating to your thoughtfully appointed cabins to rest in absolute warmth, seclusion, and comfort.

You’ll overnight in Cairo.

Wake up this morning to witness the beauty of dazzling sun rays hitting the ship and the waters as sounds of nature from the landscape on the fringes rents the air. Enjoy an early, lighthearted breakfast that gears you up for the day's excursions, and be on your marks for a journey into the wondrous.

Today we visit the Great Sphinx and the Pyramids on the Giza plateau, just by the west bank of the Nile River. The Sphinx is a large statue carved out of limestone taking the shape of a human's head, said to be a Pharaoh and the body of a lion. It is iconic and one of the most famous statues in the world, standing at 73 m (240 ft). The Sphinx is one of the oldest monuments in Egypt with archaeological evidence hinting at its creation around 2500 BC. You would also marvel at the dramatic rock formations on this site, some looking nearly impossible by the laws of physics, and the more reason this place is just paranormal.

The Great Pyramids of Egypt, Khufu, Khafre, and Menkaure are also in the Giza plateau, renowned as the burial sites of the Kings (pharaohs of ancient Egypt). The largest of them is Khufu, built as the tomb of Pharaoh Khufu and is the oldest of the seven wonders of the ancient world. Today, they are historic tourist attractions, courting the attention of history lovers and tourists across the world who throng Egypt to witness these ancient wonders. After this mind-blowing excursion, we retreat to our floating resort for a sumptuous international buffet lunch, before disembarking again to visit the Egyptian Museum, which is the largest in Africa. The Museum is home to a 120,000 collection of Egyptian relics and artefacts, with the most prized of them – the Pharoah Tutankhamun's treasure and gold burial mask.

A fire drill session is next, followed by tea-drinking, while the rest of the afternoon is open for individual activities aboard the vessels. Help yourself to its recreational amenities to spend time. Dinner is an international buffet, just like lunch, and oriental music sets the tone for a perfect night's rest aboard the ship.

You’ll overnight in Cairo.

This morning, rise to sunshine and a heartwarming breakfast aboard the vessel with gorgeous views of the waters as spectators. Following this tasty breakfast, which is the first fuel for the day’s adventure, we disembark to visit Memphis and Sakkara, two grand cities of global historic appeal. Memphis was the first capital of Egypt with an open-air natural museum, which we'll explore to see stunning sights such as the imposing statue of Ramesses II, the alabaster sphinx, and other numerous pillars and statues here.

Next is the Memphis City massive burial ground, Sakkara, with so many towering pyramids, notably, the Step Pyramid of Djoser, the world's oldest stone building complex, and tombs of dead kings. Lunch awaits back at the vessel on an international buffet menu, and we shall heartily indulge its offers before disembarking to visit Coptic Cairo, Egypt.

This region is famous as a base and stronghold for Christians in old Cairo and houses many landmarks reminiscent of ancient Christianity. The area retains its Christian traditions even after the Islamic conquest of Egypt, with many iconic monuments and centres such as the Babylon Fortress, the Hanging Church, the Coptic Museum, and the Jewish Synagogue still standing. We'll visit these monuments before returning to our cruise ship for a manager cocktail party and dinner on a set menu.

Music again at the bar, sets the tone for a pleasurable night's rest on the waters of the Great Nile, aboard a grand vessel.

You’ll overnight in Cairo

Today's activity will be unusual because there will be no disembarkation as we sail away from the shores of Cairo.

After a sumptuous, light-hearted breakfast, we sail for the entire day down to Beni Suef, the Capital of Beni Suef Governorate on the west bank of the Nile. While afloat, we dine at an international buffet lunch, enjoy a momentous tea time and engage in Egyptian wine tasting, which promises to stun your taste buds. The Egyptian wines are mainly red and considered one of the best in the world. We have the pleasure to taste them in variety.

Dinner is yet aboard in the BBQ style, and light music at the bar puts you to sleep with ease as the comfy beds of your cabins snuggle you tightly. We spend the night on the waters of Beni Suef.

You’ll overnight in Beni Suef.

Wake up to a sensational aquatic aura on the west bank of the grand Nile. Today will be similar to the previous one because we have a full day aboard. We begin the day by sailing southwards to Minya City, the capital of Minya Governorate, still on the western bank of the Nile. Sailing across this city is beautiful, with scenic sights of mountain ranges and greenery on the river banks. Breakfast is served onboard as we sail.

Lunch this afternoon hits a new high with a set menu of Egyptian Tablya, and as the evening draws near, we enjoy tea time still afloat. Dinner also goes up a notch as we cap the gastronomic part of another day on the waters with an Italian buffet.

Enjoy the light music ritual at the bar before retiring to bed on the waters of the region of Minya.

You’ll overnight in Minya.

This morning, wake up in Minya for an early breakfast, prepared to satiate the ideal traveller, and setting the pace for the day's excursions. For the first time in two nights, we shall disembark to explore some attractive gems in Minya. After this delectable breakfast, we head to Tuna El Gebel & Ashmunien. Tuna El Gebel is a necropolis of Hermopolis (El Ashmunein) in Al Minya and the largest of any Greek and Roman combined necropolis in Egypt. The site is filled with tombs and mummies for sightseeing.

We return to the vessel to enjoy an international light buffet before taking up the next item on the itinerary. The next stop is Beni Hassan. The site is a massive Egyptian cemetery housing 39 tombs that are open to the public. Some of the tombs we will visit here include the tombs of Baqet III (BH15), Khety (BH17), Amenemhet (BH2), and Khnumhotep II (BH3).

After seeing the tombs, we return to the vessel to enjoy afternoon tea time and a set menu dinner before enjoying floating primetime entertainment from a folkloric show. We retire to our beds, still on the waters of Minya.

You’ll overnight in Minya.

This morning, we begin the day by sailing to Tel El Amarna, the home of the “Amarnian experience" on the east bank of the Nile River, south of Minya. Now an archaeological site, the city was once the capital of the 18th dynasty and was built under the orders of Pharaoh Akhenaten. Breakfast is served as we sail towards this abandoned city, and on arrival, we visit some historic sites such as the northern tombs of Tel El Amarna, the Royal Tomb of Akhenaten (father of Tutankhamun), the northern palace, and the small temples of the Aten religion.

After the tour, we board the ship for further sailing to Assyut, home to one of the largest Coptic catholic churches in Egypt. We will stop briefly at the front of Prince Tawdrous Monastery to admire this religious monument from the boat and listen to the guide who provides all the information we need about the monastery to understand its importance.

Spend time unwinding on the sun lounger deck or a dip in the pool before the grand cruise to Assyut. Enjoy international buffet lunch aboard and tea time before an oriental buffet dinner cap the day for culinary experiences. A galabeya party colours the night on the route to Assyut, and arriving at this capital, we spend the night on its waterways for further sailing the next day.

You’ll overnight in Assyut.

Arise and shine as we sail for 8 hours towards Sohag, another iconic city on the west bank of the Nile that flaunts the nickname "Bride of the Nile''. We enjoy a hearty breakfast aboard the vessel with an Arabian aura and step it up with lunch on a set Egyptian Tablya menu.

We won't be stepping on land all the way to Sohag, the rest of the afternoon is at your leisure. Enjoy tea time after lunch, blow off the heat at the swimming pool on the deck, boost blood circulation at the gym, unwind at the lounge bar, or sit on the deck to admire the views.

An international buffet dinner draws the curtain for the day while music in the bar is still a thing before retiring to bed as we arrive at Sohag.

You’ll overnight in Sohag.

Enjoy your slumber as the ship sails to El Balyana, a small town in Sohag, near the ancient city of Abydos. Wake up to the lights of the day on the waters of Sohag and enjoy another satiating and nourishing breakfast.

The sailing takes us to Abydos, where we visit the holy temple in this ancient city, also known as the Grand Temple of Seti I, renowned for the Abydos graffiti found on its walls. Behind the temple is the Osirion, a chapel constructed out of stone, whose purpose is yet unknown but believed to be the false tomb of Osiris. Abydos is a remarkable city in Egypt beyond its age but as a holy city of Osiris, god of the old and new.

We return to our cruise vessel and sail to Nag Hammadi through the Naga Hammadi Bridges, enjoying lunch aboard with a Moroccan set menu. Tea time ensues before a BBQ dinner. Before bedtime, there will be a quiz to test our retentive memories and just for fun. We arrive at Nag Hammadi, still on the west bank and under the Qena governorate. We spend the night in this city to sail again at dawn.

You’ll overnight in Nagi Hammadi.

Before the sun rises at dawn, we set sail to Qena, a city on the east bank of the river Nile, enjoying an enriching breakfast. On arrival in Qena, we step down from the sailing luxury and drive for about 20 minutes to the Dendera Temple complex in Dendera, one of the most preserved temples in Egypt. The complex features Hathor - the main temple, a Roman kiosk, a Barque shrine, a Basilica for Coptic Christians, the temple of the birth of Isis, a Sanatorium, and a sacred lake.

Following this visit to the temple, we head back to the vessel and sail to Luxor, savouring a seafood buffet for lunch. Still, aboard, we take a cookery lesson, enjoy tea time, and an Italian buffet dinner. Before bedtime, we are entertained by a belly dancer, and images of her hips swaying effortlessly cling to memory as you retire to bed, with the vessel arriving in Luxor.

You’ll overnight in Luxor.

Wake up in Luxor, the iconic city of the Thebes, one of the world’s oldest inhabited cities and a tourist city owing to its vast range of historical attractions, leading to its acclaim as the world's largest open-air museum. The morning starts with a healthy breakfast as gas for the exploration of Luxor, and then we head to the west bank for sightseeing.

We visit the Valley of Kings, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, sitting by the west bank and renowned as the cemetery of great Egyptian Kings (Pharaohs) and nobles. Their tombs were carved out of rocks, and they are up to 65, with the bulk of them on the east section of the valley. However, only 18 of the tombs are open to the public. The most popular tomb here is Tutankhamun's tomb, which drew global attention to the valley after its discovery.

Next, we visit the mortuary temple of Hatshepsut opposite Luxor, with many shrines and statues. The temple is a complex built from limestone, sandstone, and granite featuring three terraces and high columns, reflecting the architectural prowess of Ancient Egypt.

After exploring the temples, we return to the vessel for an international buffet lunch. Done and dusted, we head back to land, this time for a visit to the east bank of the Nile. Here, we tour the Egyptian Temples of Karnak and Luxor in absolute ruins while housing other chapels and temples. Both temples are UNESCO World Heritage Sites open to the public for sightseeing.

We head back to the boat for an international buffet dinner, the last for the cruise expedition, and music in the bar is still an option before hitting the bedsheets for the final night on the luxury Movenpick M/S Darakum.

Every good thing, sadly, has to end one day, and today is that day on the trip, which begins with our usual breakfast, and at noon, we enjoy one last international buffet lunch before disembarking the ship at nightfall. Emotional farewells with acquaintances and relationships formed aboard are in order as you bid Luxor and Egypt at large, goodbye. Disembark and enjoy a private transfer to Luxor Airport for your onward journey.

NOTE: This itinerary is provided as an example only – prevailing conditions and local arrangements may cause variation.