Overview
Tour Description
Spend the holidays somewhere unforgettable. December is one of the best months to visit Egypt, with sunny days around 22 to 26°C (low 70s °F) in Cairo and Luxor, and this 8-day tour gives you the highlights: the pyramids, both of Cairo’s great museums, a 3-night 5-star Nile cruise from Aswan to Luxor, and a festive gala dinner on Christmas Eve or New Year’s Eve.
Highlights
- A Nile dinner cruise with music and a Tanoura show on your first night
- The Giza Pyramids, the Sphinx, the Grand Egyptian Museum and the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir Square
- A 5-star Nile cruise with the High Dam, Philae, Kom Ombo and Edfu
- The Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut Temple and Karnak
- A special Christmas or New Year’s Eve gala dinner
- A free day in Cairo for shopping or extra sightseeing
Price by group size
This is a private tour, so the price per person falls as your group grows: $5,500 for one traveler, $4,500 each for 2 to 3, $4,200 for 4 to 8, $3,500 for 9 to 15 and $2,800 for larger groups. Holiday dates sell out early, so we recommend booking by October.
Itinerary
Day 1: Arrive in Cairo and Nile dinner cruise
Our representative meets you at your arrival gate at Cairo International Airport, helps with your visa, passport control and luggage, and drives you to your 5-star hotel. In the evening you board a Nile dinner cruise with an Egyptian buffet, a live folk band, a belly dance performance and the whirling Tanoura dance.
Meals: Dinner. Overnight: 5-star hotel, Cairo.
Day 2: Giza Pyramids, the Grand Egyptian Museum and the Egyptian Museum
Your private Egyptologist takes you to the Giza Plateau: three great pyramids, six queens’ pyramids, the Valley Temple and the Great Sphinx, known in Arabic as Abu al-Hol. Next is the Grand Egyptian Museum, with the 11-meter statue of Ramses II, the Hanging Obelisk and the complete Tutankhamun collection. After lunch you visit the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir Square, open since 1902 and still packed with treasures.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch. Overnight: 5-star hotel, Cairo.
Day 3: Fly to Aswan, the High Dam and Philae, board your Nile cruise
A morning flight takes you to Aswan. Your guide shows you the High Dam, built in the 1960s, and takes you by boat to Philae Temple, the temple of Isis on Agilkia Island. You then board your 5-star Nile cruise.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner. Overnight: Nile cruise, Aswan.
Day 4: Kom Ombo and Edfu
The ship sails north to Kom Ombo, the double temple of Sobek and Horus the Elder, where you can find carvings of ancient medical instruments and a calendar. Later a horse-drawn carriage takes you to the Temple of Horus at Edfu, the best-preserved temple in Egypt.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner. Overnight: Nile cruise.
Day 5: Luxor West Bank
After breakfast you cross to the West Bank. In the Valley of the Kings you enter painted tombs of New Kingdom pharaohs, then visit the terraced Temple of Hatshepsut and the Colossi of Memnon. A hot air balloon flight at sunrise can be added.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner. Overnight: Nile cruise, Luxor.
Day 6: Karnak and Luxor Temple, fly to Cairo
After your last breakfast on board you check out and visit Karnak, with its Great Hypostyle Hall of 134 columns, and Luxor Temple. After lunch at a good local restaurant you fly back to Cairo.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch. Overnight: 5-star hotel, Cairo.
Day 7: Free day in Cairo
A day at your own pace. Relax at the hotel, or ask us to arrange extra visits to Khan el-Khalili, the Citadel or Coptic Cairo, which is especially lovely in the Christmas season.
Meals: Breakfast. Overnight: 5-star hotel, Cairo.
Day 8: Fly home
After breakfast our representative drives you to Cairo International Airport and helps with check-in and departure.
Meals: Breakfast.
Included and Excluded
- Meet and assist at all airports
- 4 nights in a 5-star hotel in Cairo with breakfast
- 3 nights on a 5-star Nile cruise, full board
- Christmas Eve or New Year’s Eve gala dinner
- Nile dinner cruise in Cairo
- Domestic flights Cairo to Aswan and Luxor to Cairo
- Private English-speaking Egyptologist guide
- Lunch on sightseeing days
- Entrance fees to all sites and museums in the itinerary
- All transfers by private air-conditioned vehicle
- All service charges and taxes
- International flights and Egypt entry visa
- Optional activities, such as the Luxor hot air balloon
- Drinks
- Tips for guides and drivers
- Personal expenses
Prices:
What will it cost you?
Prices per person change with the season and how many of you travel. Set yours and see the real number — no email needed.
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Tour Attractions
FAQs
Is Egypt a good place to spend Christmas and New Year?
Yes. The weather is mild and sunny, the big hotels and Nile cruises hold festive dinners, and Cairo has a large Christian community, so Christmas is celebrated in many churches. Coptic Christmas follows on 7 January.
How much does the Egypt Christmas tour cost?
$5,500 per person for a solo traveler, $4,500 each for 2 to 3 people, $4,200 for 4 to 8, $3,500 for 9 to 15 and $2,800 for bigger groups. The gala dinner, flights, cruise and guiding are included.
Which dates does the tour run?
You choose your dates over Christmas or New Year 2026/2027. We set the itinerary so that the gala dinner falls on 24 or 31 December, depending on which holiday you want to celebrate in Egypt.
How early should I book a holiday tour in Egypt?
As early as you can. Late December is the busiest time of year, and Nile cruises and domestic flights often sell out by early November.
What is a classic Egypt tour?
Cairo, Luxor and Aswan, usually with a Nile cruise.
