Secret Nile

Fly from London Heathrow to Cairo and transfer to the Nile to board the 5-star Mövenpick MS Darakum for a 14-night cruise.
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A full day of touring begins at the Egyptian Museum, to view treasures from King Tutankhamun’s tomb. Visit the walled old city, ‘Coptic Cairo’, to view the Hanging Church, and visit Saints Sergius and Bacchus Church and Coptic Museum of Christian antiquities. Transfer to the vessel for lunch and in the afternoon explore the Great Pyramid of Cheops, one of the Seven Wonders of the World, and the famously enigmatic Sphinx, stretching 73m long and 20m high. Enjoy an Oriental Takht music performance. (B, L, D)

This morning, tour to the ruins of Egypt’s first capital, Memphis, and view the 4,700-year-old ‘Step Pyramid’ of Saqqara. Return to the ship for lunch, before an afternoon visit to the newly opened Grand Egyptian Museum, featuring the Grand Hall, housing the statue of King Ramesses II, 10 Statues of Senusret, Victory Column of Merenpetah and Ptolemaic King and Queen Statues, the extraordinary Hanging Obelisk, the remarkable Grand Staircase and the recently opened galleries hosting a wealth of artefacts. Manager’s Cocktail party aboard this evening. (B, L, D)

Enjoy your introduction to timeless riverbank scenes, dotted with minarets and Coptic church towers, as you cruise upstream to Beni Suef, its claims to fame including the bridge across the Nile and the 4th dynasty Meidum pyramid, built during the reign of King Sneferu. On board, enjoy a talk on agriculture, irrigation, and local village life, and later a tasting of Egyptian wines.
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A relaxing cruise takes us off tourism’s beaten track to the modern city of Minya, the capital of the region, steeped in the legends of Akhenaten and Nefertiti. Enroute, View a documentary on board about birdwatching in the area.
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Explore the animal catacombs and human tombs of Tuna el-Gebel, where excavations revealed mummies, amulets, thousands of statues, and the stone sarcophagi of priests; and Ashmunein’s ancient ruins of the Temple of Thoth, the god of wisdom. Afternoon visit to Beni Hassan, its forty rock-hewn tombs featuring richly coloured frescoed walls.
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Enjoy a presentation on board about Akhenaten and Nefertiti en route to Tell el-Amarna, for the ‘Amarnian Experience’. Visit the northern tombs and the Royal Tomb of Akhenaten, its temple dedicated to Aten, the Sun God. View the monastery of heroic Prince/Saint Tawadros from the Nile, en route to the provincial town of Asyut. Galabeya (traditional dress) party aboard.
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Enjoy a relaxing day aboard, with talks on modern Egypt, education, and hieroglyphs, on this leisurely full-day sail to the west bank city of Sohag, a major centre of Coptic Christianity.
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Continue upriver to El Balyana and travel inland to ancient Abydos, to visit the New Kingdom temple of Seti I, where carvings include a ‘List of Kings’ and intriguing hieroglyphs said to show futuristic transport, a helicopter, zeppelin, and submarine. Navigate the locks and pass the railway bridge at Naga Hammadi enroute to the town of Qena.
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Visit Denderah, among the best-preserved of Egypt’s temple complexes, to view the Temple of Hathor, the largest of three on the site. Built by Ptolomy XII and Cleopatra, its courtyard and hypostyle hall are carved with depictions of the queen and her son, and of the goddess Hathor. Sail to Luxor, with a cooking lesson aboard, and enjoy the Luxor Temple by Night, with a cocktail at the Victorian Lounge of the Old Winter Palace.
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On the west bank, beneath the Theban Hills, visit Medinet Habu; and continue to the Tombs of Nobles and Workers at Deir el-Medina, the humble tombs of minor nobility and of the artisans who created the Valley of the Kings; and to Howard Carter’s house, now a museum with maps, books, and writings by the archaeologist.
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Visit Luxor Museum, its long façade lining the riverbank, its collection of fine antiquities variously exhibited in an open-air garden or atmospherically lit interior displays; and explore the city’s souks before sailing to Edfu, one of Egypt’s oldest settlements.
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Drive north to visit el-Kab, its origins dating back to the Early Dynastic period, its tombs and temples enclosed within 12m-thick mudbrick walls. Cruise to Kom Ombo and visit the Gebel el-Silsila quarries, which provided sandstone for major temples from the New Kingdom to Greco-Roman period. Sail to Aswan.
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Visit the Tombs of Nobles, carved into cliffs across the river from Aswan, some well-preserved with still vibrant colours; and the Kalabsha Temple, 50km south on Lake Nasser, dedicated to the Nubian god Mandulis, and decorated with imagery of pharaohs and Roman emperors.
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Transfer to the airport for your return flight to London, via Cairo.
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