Tour type: Small Group
Group size: Min: 2 | Max: 18
Accommodation: 4 & 5-star hotels, guesthouse, monastery, felucca sailboat & sleeper train
Meals:
Transport: A/C car/minibus/coach, sleeper train, felucca sailboat
Highlights: Beirut, Beiteddine, Tyre, Sidon, Baalbek, Ksara Caves, Cedars, Qadisha Valley, Baatara Gorge, Byblos, Jeita Grotto, Harissa, Pyramids, Sphinx, Egyptian Museum, Philae Temple, Felucca, Karnak, Valley of Kings, Red Sea
We spend the first 8 days of this tour exploring Lebanon, located on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea. Though small, Lebanon is rich with history, culture and was the site of some of the world's oldest human settlements.
You'll visit the great Phoenician cities of Tyre and Sidon with their castles, mosques and bustling souqs, and see the beautiful remains of the Beiteddine Palace. You'll also spend time in Byblos, the oldest continually inhabited city in the world, and explore Baalbek, perhaps the most well-preserved temple complex in the Middle East.
This Lebanon tour is also well suited for lovers of nature and scenery. You will see several natural phenomena, including the Ksara Caves, Rock of Raouche, and the spectacular the Baatara Gorge Sinkhole. You will visit the birthplace of the renowned poet Khalil Gibran at Becharre and see several groves of the famous Lebanon cedar trees, mentioned in the Old Testament. Other highlights include an exploration of the Jeita Grotto, and a wine tasting at the Ksara Caves.
Moving on to Egypt, our tour covers Cairo and the Nile Valley as well as the Red Sea at Hurghada. We start with visits to the iconic Pyramids and Sphinx at Giza where our local Egyptologist guides will start their explanations about ancient Pharaonic history and the evolution of pyramid building. While in Cairo we'll also visit the huge Egyptian Museum, home to a host of ancient artefacts, mummies, and the famous King Tutankhamun display.
Next, we board an overnight sleeper train and head south into Upper Egypt, arriving in Aswan the next morning. Aswan is home to one of the most scenic stretches of the Nile and we'll take a boat trip to the beautiful island Philae temple. An option is also available to visit the amazing temples built by Ramses II at Abu Simbel, which were completely dismantled and moved when Lake Nasser was flooded.
We take to the Nile next for a relaxing overnight river cruise on a traditional Nile felucca sailboat, accompanied by our friendly Nubian crew. This is a great way to break up your sightseeing with some relaxation time and to see rural Egyptian life pass you by on the banks of the Nile. After leaving the boat we'll visit Edfu temple en-route to Luxor, which is considered by many as the world's greatest open air museum. Here we'll tour both the east bank of the river to see the huge temple complex at Karnak and Luxor temple, which is beautifully lit up at night; and also the west bank of the Nile to explore tombs in the Valley of the Kings, see Queen Hatchepsut temple and Deir El-Medina, the valley of the artisans, as well as the Colossi of Memnon. You can also take a spectacular hot air balloon flight here if you wish.
Finally we head east to a beach resort in Hurghada for some relaxation time by the Red Sea. Snorkelling, scuba diving and other watersports options are available, and you can extend your time here if you wish. The tour then finishes back in Cairo with a walk through the back streets of the Khan-el-Khalili bazaar. Some further optional day trips and extensions are also available after the tour ends.
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Hotel Gala Dinners
Many of Egypt's hotels and Nile cruise boats arrange a very special gala dinner with entertainment in the evening on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve. Payment for these is often optional on Christmas Eve (24 Dec) but may be compulsory on New Year's Eve (31 Dec), whether you attend or not. Prices can range from around US$50 to over US$180 per person. Final decisions on prices and whether dinners are compulsory are made relatively close to the time. We aim to always select hotels that make their Gala Dinners optional, though this is not always possible. Gala dinner prices are therefore not included in our prices above, but will be added to your booking if they become required. Please budget accordingly, especially for New Year's Eve. More information is available on request.
This tour has regular small-group departures all year round starting on Saturdays. The tour is also available privately on any other dates. Please contact us for more information and prices.
The hotels and accommodations listed below are the ones we most often use on this tour. From time to time we may exchange these for similar properties at the same level. In general, specific hotels cannot be guaranteed on our group tours, but you may select your preferred options if you are booking a tailor-made trip.
Our tours are designed to include all that you need to enjoy a really special time in the destination youre visiting. However, we do also offer some extra options to complement the tour and add some additional sightseeing or activities, or some extra time at either end of the tour.
All accommodation based options (e.g. Single supplements, extra nights, cruise upgrades) should be booked and paid for in advance so that we can make the appropriate arrangements. Other options may either be booked and paid for in advance or while you are on the tour, though we recommend booking in advance to ensure there are no issues with availability.
Many options are priced the same throughout the year, but some may incur single or high season supplements - full details are given on the tour reservation form or on request.
The detailed Tour Notes below have been written to give you some more detailed information about how the tour runs, what to expect, and how to prepare for your holiday. We recommend downloading an up to date copy of these shortly before you travel in case of any changes.
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