Egypt in 10 days
Egypt is one of those places that you should visit at least once in your life. Not only because it is full of history but also because, at least for us, it feels like you are living in a movie.
Even Though we think that Egypt is just what we have seen all our childhood in books and movies, it is even better. The pyramids are giant and not only that but most of the temples are still very well preserved, some of them with the original paint. Not to talk about the food, oh my god! it is amazing, if you want to read about that you can look at this post we wrote about Egyptian food you cannot miss.
In 10 days we were able to see the most important things in Egypt from south to north. However, if you want to enjoy a little bit more, we suggest you reserve 2 or 3 days to spend in the Red Sea. On this occasion we didn’t have enough time and we prioritized the cultural part of the country so this is what you are going to see here.
Egypt has still a lot to be discovered so maybe if you are reading this in a few years, you can add something new to the itinerary! Everything is an experience there, from walking through the streets in a chaotic Cairo to the silence in Abu Simbel.
What is this 10 days itinerary about?
In today’s post, we’ll outline a 10-day plan for visiting Egypt, not only Cairo but also alongside the river including some of the most stunning temples and old cities.
We are confident that this 10 days Egypt itinerary will help you in planning your trip.
Short list of the itinerary
- Day 1: Arrive at Cairo and take a second flight to Luxor
- Day 2: Luxor and Edfu
- Day 3: Edfu – Kom Ombo and Aswan
- Day 4: Aswan
- Day 5: Flight from Aswan to Cairo
- Day 6: Cairo
- Day 7: Cairo
- Day 8: Flight home
Day 1 in Egypt
We flew from Barcelona to Cairo with Egyptair and it was pretty good for such a short flight, they even gave us food! We arrived at Cairo International Airport where our adventure began.
Here we went to get our Visa, which is just a sticker that goes into your passport. You have to pay 25$ at a cabin just outside the gates of the airport and then you can go outside. In our case, we didn’t go outside because we had another flight to catch, we were heading to Luxor.
While waiting for our next flight we bought a data card to be able to use our mobile phone during the trip. It was 15$ for 20GB.
Then we went to our gate, do not worry it is very well indicated, Cairo Airport is not a big Airport so there is nowhere to get lost. When the time came we took our flight to Luxor which was about 2 hours.
Once we arrived at Luxor Airport, we already had our guide waiting for us, usually the boats offer you a guide that takes you from the airport to the boat. if this is not included we really recommend you ask for it. Each boat is in a different part of the river side so you may get lost very easily and it is not a very safe part of the city.
🏨We were staying at the ALEXANDER THE GREAT 5* SUPERIOR CRUISE which we recommend a lot. Here we really want you to understand that a 5 star superior cruise in Egypt is like a 4 star in Europe or America, so imagine what a 3 star cruise looks like. We have written this post “how to choose the best cruise for the Nile river” to help you choose between the options. However, if it is an option on your budget, the one we chose looked like the best one in the Nile River and the food was so amazing that we would choose it again.
After checking-in we had something to eat and we went directly to sleep because it was already very late and we had to wake up quite early.
Day 2 in Egypt
Our second day started very early, we had a very pleasant breakfast and we started our day.
We had all the excursions included with the cruise so we did not have to worry about anything. Here is another point where choosing a high luxury cruise may help you enjoy the trip even more. We did all the excursions with the same guide, Ahmed, who was so amazing; but not only that but also we were just 9 people in a little bus with very comfortable chairs, air conditioner and cold water all the time. We saw so many tourists going crazy trying to listen to what the guide was explaining to their group of 50 people, so if you can, spend a little more because it is worth it.
Colossi of Memnon
Our first stop was at the Colossi of Memnon which are two massive stone statues of the Pharaoh Amenhotep III, which stand at the front of the ruined Mortuary Temple of Amenhotep III, the largest temple in the Theban Necropolis. They have stood since 1350 BC, and were well known to ancient Greeks and Romans, as well as early modern travelers and Egyptologists. The statues contain 107 Roman-era inscriptions in Greek and Latin, dated to between AD 20 and 250; many of these inscriptions on the northernmost statue make reference to the Greek mythological king Memnon, whom the statue was then – erroneously – thought to represent.
Temple of Hatshepsut
Then we were headed to the mortuary temple of Hatshepsut which was built during the reign of Pharaoh Hatshepsut of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt. Located opposite the city of Luxor, it is considered to be a masterpiece of ancient architecture.Its three massive terraces rise above the desert floor and into the cliffs of Deir el-Bahari. Her tomb, KV20, lies inside the same massif capped by El Qurn, a pyramid for her mortuary complex.
It is really amazing, so big and so well preserved, some parts of it still have some of the original paintings. It is stunning, we were lucky enough to get there first and enjoy it with silence, you kind of feel that you are in a very important place.
Valley of the kings
After that we went to the Valley of the Kings, which is, without hesitation, the most impressive place in Egypt. Is an area in Egypt where, for a period of nearly 500 years from the Eighteenth Dynasty to the Twentieth Dynasty, rock-cut tombs were excavated for pharaohs and powerful nobles under the New Kingdom of ancient Egypt.
With the 2005 discovery of a new chamber and the 2008 discovery of two further tomb entrances the Valley of the Kings is known to contain 65 tombs and chambers, ranging in size from the simple pit that is KV54 to the complex tomb that is KV5, which alone has over 120 chambers for the sons of Ramesses II.
With the entrance ticket you can enter 3 of the few that are open to the public and then, if you pay a little bit more you can go inside Tutankhamun tomb. We didn’t because our guide advised us that it was severely damaged during its discovery and that also everything that it was supposed to be there, is in the Cairo Museum or in London.
We choose the following ones and we really recommend them, they are impressive with tons of colours and history inside. It is a must. Depending of the time of the year you travel the thumbs that are oppen to the public are difernts to avoid the destruction of the thumbs, this rotation allows the thumbs to rest. We visited the KV2 (Ramses IV), KV8 (Merenptah) and KV14 (Setnakht).
Karnak Temple
After this visit, we visited the Karnak Temple. At the beginning you may think that all the temples look the same, but they don’t. For example this one has a massive column all around the temple with tons of hieroglyphs. It is an immersive experience. It is so big that if you are smart enough you can get photos without anyone appearing in them.
It is the largest temple in Egypt so you shouldn’t miss it. The central sanctuary is dedicated to Amun, the god of creation, and was built during the rule of several pharaohs. The highlight of this visit is the hypostyle room, 100 meters wide and just over 50 meters long. In this room you can see the famous Karnak columns 20 meters high and decorations in great detail.
Luxor Temple
This is probably one of the worst preserved ones, and even with this bad state, it is incredible, it is full of hieroglyphs that explain tales about gardening and farming, here you will see a lot of animal hieroglyphs.
Built during the reign of Amenhotep III and Ramses II, the Luxor temple was one of the most famous of the New Egyptian Empire. In this temple you can perfectly see how space is distributed in Egyptian temples. You can walk through the hypostyle room, the vestibule and the sanctuary. The entrance is flanked by two huge statues of Ramses II on his throne. A few meters from these imposing statues you can enjoy a large obelisk whose twin is located today in the Place de la Concorde in Paris.
Later, we went on our cruise and we ate some Egyptian food, incredible by the way. We spent the rest of the day enjoying the views from the pool that our cruise had at the top. it is amazing how the blue of the Nile, the green from the vegetation and the color of the sand of the desert fuse together giving such an inspiring image.
Day 3 in Egypt
We started the day with a breakfast with views as every day. It is amazing because everyday you wake up with a different window view. This is something important also when choosing a cruise, ours was one of the slowest which may seem bad at first but actually, we got on time to each destination and during the day we could enjoy the views without getting dizzy from the velocity.
Temple of Horus (Edfu)
The cruise lands us in Edfu very early in the morning, a very cute town where cars are hardly seen; instead, carriage with horses is what people use here since all the streets are rock and sand. We took a Calesa, a special Chariot in Egypt, from the cruise to the temple and let me tell you, enjoy the trip because it is amazing to see the people eating in the street, the kids playing, and all the routine things that make it so special.
Then we arrived at Edfu Temple. It is very special because it has a lot of hieroglyphs regarding perfume creation, from the flourish of the flowers to the preparation of the bottles of perfume. There are some of the most antique perfume recipes on the walls.
It is the second largest temple in Egypt after Karnak. It was built in the s. I BC and was dedicated to the god Horus. The view of the two towers that welcome you, called a pylon, is one of the best views in the entire country. Inside the temple you can see a large statue of a falcon that represents the god Horus with the double crown that represents the union of Upper and Lower Egypt.
This temple has a lot of cool hieroglyphs that explain the creation of perfumes and medicine with natural plants and flowers. It is so big and once you start to understand the meaning of some of the drawings it is exciting to go and try to decipher some of them.
Temple of kom Ombo
We came back to the cruise to spend some time near the pool and to have lunch while navigating to Kom Ombo.
This construction is located on an island in the center of the Nile River, which makes it the most exotic in Egypt. The Kom Ombo temple, also known as Sobek and Haroeris, was built in the s. I BC Actually, it is a double temple since it is dedicated to two different gods, one of them the crocodile god because it was built in one of the places with the highest population of these powerful reptiles. The dichotomy of the double deity makes the temple two symmetrical parts. The left part is dedicated to Haroeris and the right to Sobek, precisely in the latter is the most spectacular room in the complex. Only the hypostyle room with its 15 columns already makes up for the visit to the temple.
We were able to enjoy this temple during sunset and I don’t know if it was the light or the temple itself but it felt magical. Here there are some of the most important hieroglyphs in terms of understanding the medicine of Egyptian culture. We know that they were really smart and that they made some advances in medicine that were lost with their empire. For example, here we can see a woman feeding their child, and a full wall explaining how to give birth. Doctors after discovering this temple assured that this is the perfect way to birth a baby and that they cannot understand quite well why we stopped birthing like this. Probably because we stopped focusing on the mother and started focusing on the doctor commodity.
Here you can also find some of the unique medical hieroglyphs that are still on foot in Egypt. Here we can see how advanced they were in terms of medicine, they were already using very technical skills and machinery to perform surgery of ambulatory procedures.
Mummies Museum
Near this temple there is a Mummies Museum that is quite special. There are thousands of mummies but not the kind you would expect. They are all animals, crocodiles, goats and other animals that for some reason they worshiped and wanted to preserve.
Egyptian Night at the cruise
A fun thing that our cruise suggested was to do an Egyptian night and they invited us to buy some of the typical Egyptian clothing to dress up for the occasion. Our group was very excited so before going on the boat again we bought in a local shop an outfit for each of us. Later that night, when we had dinner, which was an amazing Egyptian barbecue at the terrace of the boat, we were the only ones dressed up. But it was so fun that we would do it again, and actually we already had a very cute souvenir so it was worth it.
Day 4 in Egypt
Abu Simbel
This was the hardest day ever. And you may be wondering why. We had to wake up at 4am to go to visit Abu SImbel. But let me tell you, it was worth it. We did not only get there when almost anyone was there but we also avoided the extreme heat that was heating when we left.
Abu Simbel is one of the most remote places in Egypt as well as impressive. It is located in the south of the country, very close to the border with Sudan. Despite the fact that, a priori, it is not an easily accessible place, it seems to us an essential visit on a trip to Egypt. The highlight of this location is the Abu Simbel Temple and the most common way to get to it is after (or before) embarking on a Nile cruise. Declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979, it seemed as essential or more than the very same pyramids of Giza.
The Abu Simbel temple is located in Nubia, a region of Egypt that was once an independent kingdom, beginning near the source of the Nile and ending at the sixth cataract. Something that we found curious to know is that the ancient populations were divided between the different waterfalls of the river. Being in the middle of the desert, remember to bring water, shoes and comfortable clothes. Try to go with your head covered and apply sunscreen. This location is quite popular in Egypt, so if you avoid rush hours you can enjoy it more calmly.
- Here you will find two temples:
Ramses II or The Major Temple
The Temple of Ramses II or Templo Mayor, is a sanctuary carved into the rock during the rule of one of the most famous pharaohs, Ramses II. It was molded at the end of the s. XII BC and it is one of the most impressive constructions in the whole country. The four sculptures on the façade, 22 meters high, correspond to the pharaoh who gives the temple its name. This building was carved here to demonstrate the power of the pharaoh against the Nubian people and is dedicated to the gods Ra, Amun and Ptah. The truth is that the façade is full of symbols such as the double crown of Upper and Lower Egypt or the statues at the bottom. You will appreciate having a guide to explain everything to you while you wander your eyes through this marvel of human engineering.
The inner part of the temple is made up of rooms with some statues and engravings on the walls. As you can imagine, this place has been looted numerous times throughout history, what we can see now has nothing to do with what it was in its heyday. It seems that if you go to the temple on February 21 or October 21, you will be able to observe how the sun’s rays penetrate the sanctuary and illuminate the interior statues of Ramses, Ra and Amun. There is another statue that remains in the shadows, Ptah, the lord of magic and darkness. Intriguing, don’t you think?
Temple of Nefertari
The other temple that you cannot miss in Abu Simbel is that of Nefertari, built by Ramses II as a tribute to his wife. In this case you can see six statues about 10 meters high. Four of them correspond to the pharaoh and two to queen Nefertari. The position of these statues caught our attention, since it seems that they are going to run towards where you are observing them. You can visit the interior to see, among others, the goddess Hathor, the deity to which the temple was dedicated, sculpted on some capitals. At the entrance there is a dedication to the favorite woman of Ramses II that reads as follows: “A work belonging for all eternity to the Great Royal Wife Nefertari-Merienmut, for whom the Sun shines.”
Nubian Town
Later that day we took an optional trip to the Nubian Town. We got there with Faluca, which is the typical boat that fishermans still use today. It is an incredible experience.
Here we could not only enjoy the town by itself but also the views while we were arriving. We could see a lot of thumbs that were carved into the dunes of the desert and also other amazing things such as the Nile hotel where Agatha Christie wrote the famous book “death on the nile”. Also we could oversee the botanic garden and the Aga Khan Mausoleum which is the tomb of Sultan Mohammed Shah the Aga Khan III, the second most important after the Taj Mahal.
Before getting into the Nubian Town, we had the opportunity to swim in the Nile. You have to be careful because there are some crocodiles so just do it if you are going with a trustworthy guide. In our case we went to a little beach where some Egyptians were bathing and we didn’t go very deep. it was for sure a memory that we will remember all our life.
About the Nubian Town we only have good words. We spent all afternoon there. First, we took a quad and went to the top of a dune to see the nubian town and the Nile river from the top. It was amazing! So much adrenaline!
When all the photos were taken we went to the Nubian School where the teacher tried to teach us the alphabet without a lot of success, but it was fun. And then, we went to the house of a family which always offers something to eat, some tea and a henna tattoo. Something that surprised us a lot is that they have crocodiles as pets!! Yes, while they are babies they take care of them and when they grow up they put them back in the river. It sounds crazy but they are quite cute.
Later, when coming back to the cruise, we were in a little boat full of people so our guide sneaked us to the roof and we could enjoy the sunset with just the 9 people in our group, it was amazing.
Night in Aswan
Later that night we took another excursion, this one was a night in Aswan. Our guide took us around the city to see the real Egyptian night life. First, we went to see the Hotel where Agatha Christie wrote “death on the Nile ” and then we went to the Mosque of Aswan. It was very colorful and full of people going for their last prayer of the day.
Then, we went to the center of the city which was amazing, there were so many people. We entered a special shop full of species. We bought some as souvenirs since they were quite cheap and very good quality.
Last but not least, after walking around the town and hearing stories from our guide Ahmed, we stopped in a bar full of locals to drink something. There we could not only enjoy a drink like the locals but also refresh ourselves and rest a little bit before dinner.
This night was the last one so we had a fancy dinner which we enjoyed a lot and we celebrated the birthday of one girl in our group so we had the chance to hear the Egyptian birthday song and to taste their typical birthday cake!
Day 5 in Egypt
Today was the last day on the cruise and after having breakfast we started our last cruise trip.
Philae Temple
To get to this temple you have to take a little boat. You may be wondering why, the answer is easy: this temple was underwater for a long time because the Nile river ate it, but now, they cut it into pieces and put it together again at the top of a mountain at the riverside.
This temple was affected by the Aswan dam and had to be moved from the island of Philae to the island of Agikia. This is usually one of the temples that tourists like the most. Some of the most impressive places are the typical entrance in this type of construction called Pilono, which reminds us of a wall and the colonnade that leads to the Ptolemy gate. Dedicated to the fertility goddess, Isis, it was a very busy place in its heyday.
We enjoyed this visit a lot, we recommend not missing any part of the temple, take a walk around the island because each part is special for one reason or another.
High Dam and unfinished obelisk
When going back to the cruise, we crossed the High Dam, which was constructed in order to take advantage of the Nile river energy. In addition we could oversee the unfinished obelisk, which is one of the greatest mysteries in egypt.
The unfinished obelisk is the largest known ancient obelisk and is located in the northern region of the stone quarries of ancient Egypt in Aswan, Egypt. It was studied in detail by Reginald Engelbach in 1922.
Flight to Cairo
We enjoyed the rest of the day at the cruise pool where we had lunch. Later, we took a transfer to the airport and we headed to Cairo. Once we got to Cairo we went directly to the hotel where we took a bath in the amazing pool and later at night we went out to eat something nice.
🏨We were staying at the Cairo Marriott Hotel & Omar Khayyam Casino which is extremely amazing. If you can afford it, it is a must. The breakfast here is out of this world.
Day 6 in Egypt
Today our adventure in Cairo starts and we couldn’t be more excited about it. We ate breakfast at our hotel, it was incredible, probably the best breakfast we’ve ever had.
Pyramides
The Giza pyramids are a set of three tombs that, due to their grandeur and mystery, have left their mark on all civilizations. It consists mainly of the pyramids of Cheops, Khafre and Menkaure in addition to the sphinx. More than 4,500 years old, it is one of the most ambitious buildings of humanity.
When we first arrived we first took some photos, it is incredible because even though we have seen them in books and on television, they are even bigger and more stunning than they seem.
We decided to not go inside the pyramids because our guide explained to us that there is nothing inside and that the path to go there is kind of hard and hot. Once you have been to the Valley of the Kings, there is nothing more to see on the Pyramids so we decided to enjoy the outside and the views.
The Cheops pyramid is the largest of the three pyramid constructions. Almost 147 meters tall in its original form, it took more than 2 million stone blocks. We are not going to get into the mysteries surrounding this building about its rapid construction with little technology or its exact alignment with Orion’s belt. Everyone has their beliefs and opinions, but we challenge you to stand in front of this immense pyramid and have no doubts that there could be external help. It took 27 years for its construction, which dates back to 2250 B.C.
Khafre’s pyramid is the second tallest in the Giza necropolis with about 143 meters at the time of its construction. Despite not being the highest, it is possibly the most photographed. This is because its strategic location in front of the sphinx has made it a magnet for tourists.
The smallest of the three is the Micerino pyramid, with almost 66 meters, is the one that has fared worst due to its location. If it had been anywhere else in Egypt, it would be a big claim, but compared to its older sisters it dwarfs something. On one of its faces you can see a gap due to the attempted destruction of these buildings in the 12th century. Can you imagine the destruction that would have been if this demolition had continued?
Afternoon in Cairo
During the afternoon we decided to walk around a little bit. Let me tell you, Cairo is crazy, if you want to cross the street you just need to jump into it because the cars are not gonna stop for you. However, if you have the opportunity, do it! We enjoyed feeling like locals and walking around places that are not as touristy.
Day 7 in Egypt
Last day of our trip, we took a tour in Cairo of the main tourist attractions. In this tour we could visit:
- The Egyptian art museum: a must do, we could see a lot of mummies, jewelry and even Tutankhamun.
- The citadel: here we could see the alabaster mosque which is amazing you cannot miss it, and also there are impressive views from here.
- The coptic neighborhood: a very cool place to go for historical acknowledgment. It is a closed place where catholics preserved its culture during years of muslim persecutions. In fact, there is a chapel where Mary, Joseph and little Jesus rested when they were escaping the king Herod.
And finally, we spend some time at the Khan el Khalili Bazaar where you can buy all the souvenirs you want but also please bargain all you can! you are going to get great deals doing it.
The rest of the afternoon we stayed at the hotel, at the pool and drinking cocktails with friends. We had a cute dinner at the hotel’s garden and we went to sleep.
Day 8 in Egypt
This day, we had breakfast and they took us to the airport from where we took our flight to Barcelona again.
For more information on Egypt and the great marvels of the country visit the official website of the Ministry of Tourism: The Egyptian Museum – Discover Egypt’s Monuments – Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities (egymonuments.gov.eg).
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