Nile dahabiyaSailing dahabiyaEsna → Aswan

Gardenia

Larger dahabiya on the Esna-Aswan reach

Gardenia is a Nile dahabiya (a traditional wind-powered sailing boat) operated by Nile Holiday. It has 15 cabins and 6 suites for up to 30 guests and sails itineraries of 3 or 4 nights on the Nile between Luxor and Aswan.

Good to know

Larger dahabiya on the Esna-Aswan reach. A sailing dahabiya of fifteen cabins for up to thirty guests, running the Esna-Aswan reach over three or four nights; suits larger groups wanting a traditional sailing trip.

Best for couples · unhurried travellersCabins 15 · up to 30 guestsBoard full boardRoute Esna → Aswan

Fleet: Nile Holiday
Accommodation: 15 cabins · 6 suites
Guests: Up to 30
Route: Philae Temple, Kom Ombo, Edfu, Gebel el Silsila, Esna, Luxor.
Trip length: 3 · 4 nights
Departures: Fridays from Aswan (4 days/3 nights); Mondays from Esna (5 days/4 nights).

About Gardenia

Gardenia sits at the larger end of the dahabiya range, with fifteen cabins for up to thirty guests: nine en-suite cabins of around fourteen square metres and six twenty-one square metre suites with private terraces, dressed in Egyptian cotton with panoramic windows and individual air conditioning.

Sailings run four nights up from Esna on Mondays and three nights down from Aswan on Fridays, past Kom Ombo, Edfu, Gebel el-Silsila and Esna toward Luxor. Dining is full board in an air-conditioned dining room, with a sun deck of loungers and an oriental seating area above.

A motorboat travels alongside for the calm, windless stretches. Even at this size the boat keeps the slow pace of sailing, mooring where the big cruisers pass by.

Highlights

Fifteen cabins, up to thirty guests
Esna to Aswan, three or four nights
Calls at Kom Ombo, Edfu, Gebel el-Silsila
Full board in an air-conditioned dining room
Accompanying motorboat for windless stretches

At sail

Day by day

Gardenia sails 2 published programmes. Its own route: Philae Temple, Kom Ombo, Edfu, Gebel el Silsila, Esna, Luxor. Departures fridays from aswan (4 days/3 nights); mondays from esna (5 days/4 nights).. The order of the temples is fixed by the river, so what changes between programmes is the direction and how much is fitted into each day.

Luxor to Aswan, 4 nights (package)usually departs Saturday

Day 1
Luxor, embark and Karnak
Board at Luxor. Karnak in the afternoon, before the boat moves.
Visits Karnak
Day 2
The west bank, then the Esna lock
The tombs early, while it is still cool, then cast off and pass through the Esna lock.
Visits Valley of the Kings · Hatshepsut · Colossi of Memnon · Esna lock
Optional hot-air balloon at dawn
Day 3
Edfu
Edfu, the most complete temple on the river, from the mooring.
Visits Esna lock · Edfu
Day 4
Sailing
No temple on this day. The boat sails the quiet reach south of Edfu and moors where the large ships cannot, which is the reason to take a dahabiya at all. Every one of the three published itineraries leaves this day empty.
Day 5
Aswan, and disembark
The High Dam and Philae on arrival, then disembarkation.
Visits High Dam · Philae
Optional Abu Simbel by road or air

Aswan to Luxor, 3 nightsusually departs Wednesday

Day 1
Aswan, embark
Board at Aswan, then the High Dam and Philae the same afternoon.
Visits High Dam · Philae
Optional felucca among the islands
Day 2
Kom Ombo
Sail north to Kom Ombo, whose double temple stands directly above the water. Half the published itineraries add Gebel el-Silsila, the old sandstone quarry, which no large ship stops at.
Visits Kom Ombo
Optional Abu Simbel, pre-dawn by road or air · Gebel el-Silsila
Day 3
Through the Esna lock
Edfu in the morning on most departures, then the Esna lock, which the boat often waits for. Moor at Luxor.
Visits Esna lock · Edfu
Day 4
The Luxor west bank, and disembark
The west bank on the last morning. Half of the departures add Karnak before the transfer.
Visits Valley of the Kings · Hatshepsut · Colossi of Memnon
Optional Karnak

Day structure aggregated from the published itineraries for this class of boat and direction. Operators shift a call by half a day and the Esna lock queue moves everything; confirm the running order for your departure.

Take the whole boat

15 cabins · up to 30 guests · whole boat from about US$8,950 a night

About US$8,950 a night for the whole boat, or roughly US$53,700 for a six-night sailing.

A boat this size carries a reunion or a celebration: grandparents, parents and children aboard together, the run of the deck, and one bill at the end. Tell us your dates and party size and we will price the whole of Gardenia.

That is the arithmetic of Gardenia's own published cabin fares, not a quoted charter rate. Operators price exclusive use separately, and usually below the sum of the cabins, so tell us your dates and we will come back with the real figure.

Price the whole boat

What Gardenia costs in 2026/2027

The published rate is US$895 per person, from, 4-day cruise; children 6-11.99 at 50%; single-cabin supplements apply , checked on 2026-08-30.

We are not publishing a trip total for Gardenia, for the reasons below. Ask us and we will quote the sailing you want.

What this figure is, and is not

This is the operator's own advertised rate, not a quote from us.
The published figure is quoted per person, from, 4-day cruise; children 6-11.99 at 50%; single-cabin supplements apply, which does not multiply into a trip total.
Rates move with season, cabin and departure. We quote every sailing live, and there is no booking fee to ask.

Source: the operator's published rates

The boat in detail

Cabin categories: En-suite cabin - 9 units, 14.0 sqm
Large suite - 6 units, 21.0 sqm
Dining: Full board
Air-conditioned dining room
Facilities: Air-conditioned dining room
Sun deck with loungers
Oriental seating area
Satellite TV and DVD players in cabins
Internet access throughout
Water filtration system
Accompanying motorboat for calm conditions
Itineraries: 4 days / 3 nights Aswan to Esna
5 days / 4 nights Esna to Aswan