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Short journey · Cairo & Luxor

Egypt in Brief

Six private days for the two things you cannot miss — Cairo and Luxor — seen properly, without the rush that usually comes with a short trip.

Duration
6 days / 5 nights
Route
Cairo & Luxor
Style
Private throughout
Best for
A first, short visit
Egypt in Brief Plan this journey
The journey

Short on days, not on Egypt

Not everyone has a fortnight. This is the short journey for those who don't — Cairo and Luxor, the two essentials, in six days. It leaves out Aswan, Abu Simbel and the Nile, and makes no pretence otherwise; what it keeps, it does properly, and never at a run.

Cairo gives you the whole sweep of the pyramid — from Saqqara's first step-pyramid to Giza — and the treasure of Tutankhamun in its new museum. Luxor gives you the temples and the royal tombs of Thebes, including, when it opens, the loveliest painted tomb in Egypt. Two cities, two short flights, and a great house of the Nile to come back to each evening.

An idea, not a package

This is one way the journey could run.
The rest is a conversation.

Every day here is a suggestion — lengthen it, swap it, leave it out. Tell us how you like to travel, and we'll reshape it until it is unmistakably yours.

Make it yours
Day by day

Six days

One way the days might run — yours to change.

Cairo & the pyramids · two days in Luxor · the medieval and Coptic city · home

Day 1Cairo, arrival+
Met inside the terminal, walked through immigration and the bags, and driven to the Four Seasons at First Residence. The rest of the day is left free — Cairo is a great deal to land into, and tomorrow is long.Stay · Four Seasons Cairo, First Residence
Day 2Giza, Saqqara & the Grand Egyptian Museum+
The whole story of the pyramid in a day. Saqqara first, and the Step Pyramid of Djoser — the oldest large stone building in the world. Then Giza: the Pyramids of Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure, the Sphinx and the granite Valley Temple. Lunch, and the Grand Egyptian Museum, with the complete treasure of Tutankhamun now under one roof. A full day; we pace it, but come rested.Stay · Four Seasons Cairo, First Residence
Day 3To Luxor, and the temples of Thebes+
A morning flight south to ancient Thebes. Karnak — two thousand years of building in one enclosure, with its hall of 134 columns — and Luxor Temple in the middle of the modern town, with the Avenue of Sphinxes that once ran between them, lately uncovered along its whole length. To the Winter Palace as the day cools.Stay · Mandarin Oriental Winter Palace, Luxor
Day 4The west bank, and the royal tombs+
The necropolis of Thebes — the finest day of painted tombs in Egypt. The Valley of the Kings, with Tutankhamun's tomb (small and nearly bare, but his) and the separate ticket for Seti I, the longest and finest in the valley. Hatshepsut's temple against its cliff, and the Colossi of Memnon. And, when the schedule allows, the Valley of the Queens and the tomb of Nefertari — the most beautiful painted tomb in the country, opened to only a few each day and closed when the authorities judge it needs rest. We secure it where we can, and never promise what they may not open.Stay · Mandarin Oriental Winter Palace, Luxor
Day 5Cairo, the medieval city+
A morning flight back to Cairo, and the Islamic city: the Citadel of Saladin and the alabaster Mosque of Muhammad Ali above the rooftops, then al-Muizz Street and the lanes of Khan el-Khalili as the day cools. Back to the Four Seasons for the last night.Stay · Four Seasons Cairo, First Residence
Day 6Coptic Cairo & departure+
As your flight allows, the oldest Christian quarter in the city: the Hanging Church, the church of St Sergius, and the Ben Ezra synagogue, all within a few quiet streets. Then you are driven to the airport and seen through to your gate.Depart · Cairo
Where you stay

Two addresses, both on the Nile

A calm city hotel to bookend the trip, and the grande dame of Luxor in between.

Cairo · first & last

Four Seasons, First Residence

A calm, polished base by the Nile and the old botanical gardens, away from the busiest streets — the easy landing at the start, and the soft close at the end.

3 nights (2 + 1)
Luxor

Mandarin Oriental Winter Palace, Luxor

The grande dame of the east bank, opened in 1907 — gardens, high ceilings, and the Nile across the road from the temples of Thebes.

2 nights

Five nights in all

Three at the Four Seasons, either end · two in Luxor, on the river.

What's included

  • A private welcome at Cairo airport — met inside the terminal and walked through arrivals
  • Your Egyptian entry visa, arranged in advance
  • A certified Egyptologist throughout, from first day to last — and our team reachable at any hour
  • All sightseeing in private, air-conditioned cars
  • Both domestic flights — Cairo to Luxor, and Luxor to Cairo
  • Five nights at the houses above
  • All meals shown in the itinerary
  • Every site entrance in the day-by-day — including the separate ticket for Seti I in the Valley of the Kings and, when it is open, Nefertari in the Valley of the Queens

Not included

  • International flights to and from Cairo
  • Anything not named in the day-by-day
  • Gratuities for guide and drivers, at your discretion
  • Travel insurance — required, and we'll point you to it
Before you book

The short version, honestly drawn

Six days buys you two cities and no more. This journey gives you Cairo and Luxor — the pyramids, the museum, the great temples and the royal tombs — and deliberately leaves out Aswan, Abu Simbel and the Nile itself. If you have even three or four days more, they are worth adding, and we'll happily show you how; but if six is what you have, this is the most of Egypt you can see well without spending the trip in a hurry.

Two honest notes. Day 2 is a big one — Saqqara, Giza and the museum together — so arrive rested, and we'll pace it. And Nefertari's tomb, the loveliest in Egypt, opens to only a handful of visitors a day and closes whenever the authorities decide it needs rest; we hold a place when the schedule allows, and tell you plainly if it cannot be done on your dates.

Begin the conversation

A short trip, done properly.

Tell us your dates and what matters most to you, and we will shape this journey around you — these hotels, or others to suit.

Plan this journey

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