Day by day · 2026/2027
Four routes cover almost every Nile cruise sold: 4 nights south from Luxor to Aswan (the classic), 3 nights north from Aswan to Luxor, the 7-night round trip that joins them, and the dahabiya sailing from Esna to Aswan. All of them visit Karnak, the Valley of the Kings, Edfu, Kom Ombo and Philae; the difference is pace and direction. A handful of ships also sail the long route from Cairo, and a small fleet sails Lake Nasser to Abu Simbel.
Four standard ways to sail the Nile: three cruise-ship programmes and the slower dahabiya sailing route. This is what actually happens each day — where you wake, where the boat moves, and what you see. The headline temples are the same on every route; the differences are in pace, direction, and the small sites only a dahabiya can reach.
The river
The 220 km between Luxor and Aswan, with the Esna lock 48 km south of Luxor, Edfu and Kom Ombo between, and the temples at either end. Every standard cruise sails this stretch in one direction or the other; the long cruise adds the 700 km north to Cairo.
| From | To | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Luxor | Aswan | sources give approx. 220 km, 215 km, roughly 200 km |
| Luxor | Esna (lock) | approx. 30 miles (about 48 km) |
| Esna | Edfu | no sourced figure |
| Edfu | Kom Ombo | no sourced figure |
| Kom Ombo | Aswan | no sourced figure |
| Cairo | Aswan (long cruise) | "over 1,000 kilometers" (Cairo to Aswan cruise) |
Day by day
Cruise ship
The classic Nile cruise. You board at Luxor around midday, sail south past the Esna lock, take in Edfu and Kom Ombo, and finish at Aswan. Departure is a fixed weekly day, most often Monday, and it varies by ship.
Board around midday and take lunch on board. The afternoon is the two great East Bank temples, Karnak and Luxor, before the ship stays moored at Luxor for the first night.
An early West Bank morning — the Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut's terraced temple at Deir el-Bahari, and the Colossi of Memnon. The ship casts off around midday and passes through the Esna lock in the afternoon. Most ships spend the night at Esna or Edfu; the exact mooring depends on how long the lock queue runs.
The best-preserved temple in Egypt, the Temple of Horus at Edfu, reached from the mooring by horse-drawn carriage. Later the ship reaches Kom Ombo, the twin temple shared by Sobek and Haroeris, usually visited in the late afternoon with its crocodile museum.
A morning of the High Dam, the granite quarries with the Unfinished Obelisk, and the Temple of Philae on its island. The afternoon is usually free, often a felucca sail around the Aswan islands, before the last night on board.
Breakfast and an early disembarkation around 08:00, with a transfer to Aswan airport or the station.
Good to know. Abu Simbel is not part of the standard 4-night cruise. Where offered it is a pre-dawn road or air excursion from Aswan (roughly 3 to 4 hours each way), so the ship itself stays docked at Aswan.
Cruise ship
The return leg of the same weekly rotation, one night shorter because the current carries the ship north. You board at Aswan and finish at Luxor. Departure is most often Friday.
Board around midday. Some ships tour the High Dam and Philae this afternoon; others keep the day light with a felucca ride and move the Aswan sights to the next morning. The evening is usually a Nubian folkloric show.
Sailing downstream to Kom Ombo and then Edfu, its Temple of Horus reached by horse-drawn carriage. Ships that held the Aswan sights back cover them first thing before casting off.
The ship reaches Luxor and docks for the final night. The West Bank fills the day — the Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut and the Colossi. Some ships fit the East Bank temples in too; others hold them for the morning.
Karnak and Luxor Temple on the final morning where they were not already covered, then disembarkation around 08:00.
Good to know. On an Aswan-departing cruise, Abu Simbel is best arranged before you board, after an overnight in Aswan, rather than mid-cruise.
Cruise ship
The 4-night southbound and 3-night northbound programmes joined together, with extra free time built in at Aswan. The same core temples as the shorter routes; the additional nights buy slower sailing and leisure days, not more monuments. Operators split the Luxor sightseeing across the outbound and return halves in different ways.
Board at Luxor and, on most programmes, visit Karnak and Luxor Temple in the afternoon. A few operators keep day 1 to arrival and free time and hold the East Bank for the return.
The West Bank in the morning, then south through the Esna lock. A dawn hot-air-balloon flight over the West Bank is a common optional extra. The night is usually at Edfu.
Edfu by horse-drawn carriage, then Kom Ombo — though some ships sail past Kom Ombo here and visit it on the way back instead. The night is docked at Aswan.
The High Dam, the Unfinished Obelisk and Philae, reached by motorboat, with a felucca sail around the islands in the afternoon.
A deliberately light day at Aswan. This is when the optional Abu Simbel excursion is taken, leaving before dawn and back by the middle of the day; a Nubian village visit is the common alternative.
Sailing back downstream. Ships that held Kom Ombo back visit it now; those that saw it outbound make this a slow leisure leg past Kom Ombo and Edfu.
North through the Esna lock to Luxor. Whichever half of the Luxor sightseeing was held back is covered now; where it was all done outbound, this is a free day with time in the souq. The night is docked at Luxor.
Breakfast, check-out and transfer to Luxor airport or onward transport.
Good to know. Some upper-end ships run a 7-night one-way Luxor to Aswan instead, heading north first to reach the Temple of Hathor at Dendera before turning south. Dendera on that variant appears on day 2; in the low-water months it may be reached by road rather than water.
Dahabiya
A dahabiya is a small twin-masted sailing boat with a shallow draft, and that draft is the whole point: it moors directly against islands and riverbanks where large ships cannot. You see the same headline temples as a cruise ship and add the small sites in between — El Kab, Gebel el-Silsila, riverbank villages and the Daraw market. Almost every night is spent moored, not sailing. Programmes sold as "Luxor to Aswan" normally mean a road transfer to Esna, where the sailing starts.
Board at Esna around midday and visit the Temple of Khnum, sunk nine metres below the modern street, and the market lanes around it. The boat then sails a few hours upstream to its first island or riverbank mooring.
El Kab, on the east bank where no cruise ship can dock: the temple of the vulture goddess Nekhbet, decorated New Kingdom rock tombs, and predynastic mudbrick walls up to eleven metres thick. On to Edfu and its Temple of Horus by horse and carriage.
The day that most sets a dahabiya apart, with no major temple: a morning walk, an afternoon swim from a quiet bank, a village stop where sun bread is baked, and an evening mooring below the floodlit rock temples of Gebel el-Silsila.
The great rock-cut Speos of Horemheb and the ancient sandstone quarries at the point where the Nile narrows, then on to the Ptolemaic double temple of Kom Ombo with its mummified crocodiles. Five-night programmes give Gebel el-Silsila a full day of its own; four-night ones fold it in with Kom Ombo.
An optional early start for the Daraw livestock and camel market — busiest on a Tuesday morning — then a Nubian village on the approach to Aswan. By regulation the last night is docked beside the Aswan bridge.
Good to know. The classic dahabiya itinerary ends at the Aswan bridge and does not itself include the High Dam, the Unfinished Obelisk or Philae; operators sell those as a land-based add-on day. When comparing programmes, the presence of named island moorings and village stops is what separates a real dahabiya sailing from a cruise-ship route on a small boat.
Upstream or downstream
Neither is better for what you see; the same temples appear in reverse order. Southbound (Luxor to Aswan, upstream) is 4 nights and unhurried; northbound (Aswan to Luxor, downstream) is 3 nights and tighter. The difference is only partly the current: ships run a fixed weekly loop of 4 nights south then 3 north, timed around the Esna lock, which passes two ships at a time and queues in the season.
Stop by stop
Nineteen places appear on Nile cruise programmes between Luxor and Aswan and beyond: nine on every standard route, Esna’s temple on some upstream sailings, Abu Simbel and Dendera as excursions, and the Lake Nasser temples on the southern fleet. Ticket prices are the official foreign-adult rates published by the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities; most cruise fares include the tickets on the standard itinerary.
East bank · open 06:00 to 17:00 daily
Temple complex of Ipet-Sut, "Located on the east bank of Thebes (modern Luxor)", centred on the Great Temple of Amun.
Ticket: EGP 600 (inclusive ticket: Karnak Temple and Open Museum); Mut Temple separate: 200
East bank · open 06:00 to 20:00 daily
Ipet-resyt, "Southern Sanctuary", "around three kilometers to the south of Karnak Temple", once linked to it by a sphinx-lined processional way.
Ticket: EGP 500
West bank · open 06:00 to 17:00 daily
Burial valley of New Kingdom rulers (18th-20th Dynasties) "across the river from the ancient city of Thebes".
Ticket: EGP 750 (general ticket); Tomb of Tutankhamun extra 700 per MoTA list
West bank · allow 1.5 hours · open 06:00 to 17:00 daily
Terraced mortuary temple of Hatshepsut "at Deir al-Bahari, on the west bank of Luxor", directly across the Nile from Karnak.
Ticket: EGP sources give 440 vs 360 (https://egymonuments.
West bank · open 06:00 to 17:00
Two colossal seated statues on the Theban west bank (listed by MoTA under Luxor).
Ticket: EGP No ticket (MoTA list shows "-" in all price columns)
allow 45 minutes · open 07:00 to 17:00
Temple of the ram-headed god Khnum at Esna; restoration has revealed new scene details on walls and columns (https://egymonuments.gov.eg/en/news/new-scene-details-on-the-walls-and-columns-of-esna-temple/).
Ticket: EGP 200 (MoTA list dated 5 Nov 2024)
allow 30 to 60 minutes to equalise water, longer queues in peak season
Navigation lock beside the Esna Barrage; overcomes "nearly 8 meters" water level difference; "only two ships can pass through the lock at a time".
Ticket: EGP n/a
West bank · allow 2 hours · open 07:00 to 17:00; Sunday and Wednesday from 06:00
"One of the most striking and complete of ancient Egyptian temples", dedicated to Horus, "Situated on the western bank of the Nile", built 237 BC to 57 BC.
Ticket: EGP 550
allow 90 minutes · open 07:00 to 21:00 daily
Temple "dedicated to two deities: the crocodile god Sobek, and the falcon" god (Haroeris).
Ticket: EGP 450 (includes Crocodile Museum)
open 07:00 to 21:00; ticket window closes 20:00
Museum next to Kom Ombo temple, opened 2012, displaying mummified Nile crocodiles; longest 4.30 m.
Ticket: EGP Included in Kom Ombo ticket (450)
open 07:00 to 16:00 daily
Granite quarry obelisk left unfinished in Aswan; obelisks were cut "from a single piece of stone".
Ticket: EGP 220
Island bank · allow 1.5 hours · open 07:00 to 16:00 daily
Mainly Ptolemaic monuments, chief among them a temple begun by Ptolemy II and dedicated to Isis.
Ticket: EGP 550; Temple panorama 200
allow Road: "around three hours each way", 280 km; air: "45 minutes"; on site "at least two hours" · open 06:00 to 17:00 daily
Great Temple cut into the rock by Ramesses II around 1264 BC, "in Nubia near Egypt's southern border".
Ticket: EGP 750; 22 Feb and 22 Oct: 1,200
open 07:00 to 17:00 daily
Temple of Hathor near Qena.
Ticket: EGP 300; panorama 100; serdab 100
open 07:00 to 16:00 daily
"Largest free-standing temple in Lower Nubia", built under Augustus.
Ticket: EGP 200
open 07:00 to 16:00 daily
Relocated temples at New Wadi al-Sebua, 4 km from the original site.
Ticket: EGP 150
open 07:00 to 16:00 daily
New Amada site holding Amada temple, al-Derr temple and tomb of Pennut, "around 160 km south of Aswan".
Ticket: EGP 150
Hours and prices from egymonuments.gov.eg and the Ministry list, checked 21 September 2026; Hatshepsut is shown as a conflict because two official pages give different prices. Students pay half at most sites.
Cairo to Aswan
Only a handful of ships run scheduled sailings between Cairo and Aswan, over 12 to 14 nights, adding Beni Hassan, Tell el-Amarna, Abydos and Dendera to the standard temples. Sailings between Cairo and Luxor stopped in 1994 and resumed in August 2012. The Mövenpick MS Darakum is the best known and the one most widely sold in English; MS Royal Vision, MS Crown Vision and MS Saray also publish 2026/27 dates, mostly to the UK and German markets.
| Ship | Nights | Direction | 2026/27 departures | Published from-price | Sold as |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mövenpick MS Darakum (in our directory) | 14 | Cairo to Aswan | 13 Sep 2026; 9 Oct 2026; 4 Nov 2026; 24 Feb 2027; 22 Mar 2027; 17 Apr 2027; 13 May 2027 | Starting From $8929 | Scheduled fixed-date departures |
| Mövenpick MS Darakum (in our directory) | 12 | Aswan to Cairo | 1 Sep 2026; 27 Sep 2026; 23 Oct 2026 | Starting From $7099 | Scheduled fixed-date departures |
| MS Royal Vision (in our directory) | 14 | Cairo or Aswan to Aswan or Cairo | Cairo-Aswan: 14 Feb, 14 Mar, 11 Apr, 9 May, 5 Sep, 3 Oct | Aswan-Cairo: 31 Jan, 28 Feb, 28 Mar, 25 Apr, 23 May, 19 Sep, 17 Oct | £3,549 per person" Cairo to Aswan, "£3,499 per person" Aswan to Cairo, 2026 | Scheduled fixed-date departures (monthly rotation with sister ship) |
| MS Crown Vision | 14 | Cairo or Aswan to Aswan or Cairo | Cairo-Aswan: 7 Mar, 4 Apr, 2 May, 29 Aug, 26 Sep, 24 Oct | Aswan-Cairo: 1 Nov 2026; 24 Jan, 21 Feb, 21 Mar, 18 Apr, 16 May 2027; 12 Sep, 10 Oct | ab 2.414 €" p.P., Horusdeck twin cabin, full board incl. flight from Berlin-Brandenburg, northbound | Scheduled fixed-date departures |
| MS Saray | 14 | Cairo or Aswan to Aswan or Cairo (2027 ex-Cairo itinerary ends in Luxor, see notes) | 10.09.2026 | ab 1.599 € p.P. inkl. Flug | Scheduled fixed-date departures (German-market package, minimum 50 guests per 1AVista) |
The route is a different trip from the Luxor to Aswan cruise, not a longer version of it. North of Luxor the river runs through Middle Egypt, where the sights are the Old and Middle Kingdom tombs at Beni Hassan, Akhenaten’s abandoned capital at Amarna, the Seti I temple at Abydos with its king list, and the Hathor temple at Dendera with its zodiac ceiling; German operators note that a police escort accompanies ships north of Luxor and that some shore visits in Middle Egypt need local permission. Departures are a few a month at most, and the prices published by Egyptian agencies are for private guiding on the scheduled sailing, which is why the same Darakum date appears at US$8,929 on one site and £5,849 on another.
Two cautions when comparing. Some “Cairo to Aswan” products are a Cairo stay plus a flight plus a standard 4-night cruise, and some are a long cruise with coach sectors; a continuous river voyage from Cairo is the rarest of the three. And the Viking, Uniworld and AmaWaterways “Cairo round trips” are not long cruises: their ships sail Luxor to Aswan (calling at Qena for Dendera) and the Cairo days are hotel nights with a flight between. The long-cruise ships in our directory: Mövenpick MS Darakum and MS Royal Vision.
South of the dam
A separate small fleet sails the reservoir behind the High Dam between Aswan and Abu Simbel, calling at the Nubian temples rescued from the rising water (Kalabsha, Beit el-Wali, Wadi el-Seboua, Amada, Derr, Qasr Ibrim) and arriving at Abu Simbel from the lake, which is the most dramatic way to see it. Most ships sail 4 nights south from Aswan on Mondays and 3 nights north from Abu Simbel on Fridays; MS Eugenie reverses that pattern.
| Ship | Nights | Direction | Departure | Published fare |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mövenpick MS Prince Abbas | 4 | Aswan to Abu Simbel (southbound) | Monday from Aswan | 5 Days/4 Nights: May-Aug $965-$1,440; Sep-Apr $1,185-$1,645 per person |
| Mövenpick MS Prince Abbas | 3 | Abu Simbel to Aswan (northbound) | Friday from Abu Simbel | 4 Days/3 Nights: May-Aug $740-$1,095; Sep-Apr $915-$1,255 per person |
| Steigenberger Omar El Khayam | 4 | Aswan to Abu Simbel | Monday from Aswan | 5 Days double $820; triple $780; single $1,390 per person |
| Steigenberger Omar El Khayam | 3 | Abu Simbel to Aswan | Friday from Abu Simbel | 4 Days double $620; triple $580; single $1,040 per person |
| Steigenberger Omar El Khayam | 7 | Aswan to Abu Simbel and back (round trip) | Monday from Aswan | on request |
| MS Nubian Sea | 4 | Aswan to Abu Simbel | Monday from Aswan | 4N/5D: May-Aug double $885; Sep-Apr double $1,115 per person |
| MS Nubian Sea | 3 | Abu Simbel to Aswan | Friday from Abu Simbel | 3N/4D: May-Aug double $660; Sep-Apr double $835 per person ("Starting price: $640" triple) |
| MS Kasr Ibrim | 4 | Aswan to Abu Simbel | Saturday from Aswan | on request |
| MS Kasr Ibrim | 3 | Abu Simbel to Aswan | Wednesday from Abu Simbel | "$497.00 per adult (May-September rates; peak season rates $838.00)" |
| MS Eugenie | 3 | Aswan to Abu Simbel | Friday from Aswan | Rates "on request" (source table shows $0) |
| MS Eugenie | 4 | Abu Simbel to Aswan | Monday from Abu Simbel | on request |
| SAÏ | 4 / 3 | Aswan to Abu Simbel (4) / Abu Simbel to Aswan (3) | – | on request |
| MS Tania | 3 / 4 | Aswan to Abu Simbel (Friday) / Abu Simbel to Aswan (Monday) | Friday from Aswan; Monday from Abu Simbel | "$285" per person (listed "$300" with discount) |
Per night it is cheaper than the Luxor fleet for the same standard (about US$230 to US$280 per person per night in a double on the ships that publish rates, against US$240 to US$280 for a mid-range Luxor ship), because demand is thinner and the temples smaller. The lake is wide and empty, the sunsets are the best in Egypt and the temple sites have no other visitors when your ship is the only one there. It makes a second cruise for anyone who has done Luxor to Aswan, or a first cruise for travellers who care more about Abu Simbel and Nubia than about Karnak. Ships in our directory: Mövenpick Prince Abbas and Steigenberger Omar El Khayam; see also the Lake Nasser guide.
Tell us how many nights you have and what you want to see. We will point you to the right route and the boats that sail it on your dates, and answer anything the day-by-day did not.
What travellers ask us about
Good to know
Board at Luxor and see Karnak and Luxor Temple; the West Bank (Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut, the Colossi) then sail south through the Esna lock; Edfu and Kom Ombo; and Aswan for the High Dam and Philae, before disembarking on the fifth morning.
Not on the standard itinerary. Abu Simbel is an optional pre-dawn road or air excursion from Aswan, about 3 to 4 hours each way, so the ship stays docked at Aswan while you go.
They share the headline temples, but a dahabiya sails from Esna, moors against islands and riverbanks most nights, and adds small sites a big ship cannot reach, such as El Kab, Gebel el-Silsila and riverbank villages. It is slower and quieter.
Both. Southbound Luxor to Aswan is usually 4 nights; the northbound return is 3 nights because the current speeds the ship along. Seven-night cruises do the round trip.
Most run 4 nights, Esna to Aswan; the slowest run 5, using the extra day to give Gebel el-Silsila a full day rather than a brief stop.
Yes, but only on a handful of ships and a handful of dates. Scheduled 2026/27 sailings between Cairo and Aswan are published for the Mövenpick MS Darakum (14 nights south, 12 north), MS Royal Vision, MS Crown Vision and MS Saray, over 12 to 14 nights with Beni Hassan, Amarna, Abydos and Dendera added. Sailings between Cairo and Luxor stopped in 1994 and resumed in August 2012. Most travellers fly Cairo to Luxor in an hour and take the standard cruise.
A 3 or 4-night cruise on the reservoir behind the High Dam, between Aswan and Abu Simbel, calling at the rescued Nubian temples of Kalabsha, Wadi el-Seboua and Amada and arriving at Abu Simbel by water. Five to seven ships sail it (Mövenpick Prince Abbas, Steigenberger Omar El Khayam, Nubian Sea, Kasr Ibrim, Eugenie, Tania and SAÏ), usually 4 nights southbound from Aswan on Mondays and 3 nights northbound from Abu Simbel on Fridays.
About 220 km (sources give 200 to 220 km), with the Esna lock about 48 km south of Luxor. Ships cover it in 4 nights southbound against the current and 3 nights northbound with it, sailing only by day and mooring each night.
Karnak, Luxor Temple, the Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut's temple and the Colossi of Memnon at Luxor; Edfu and Kom Ombo between; Philae, the High Dam and the Unfinished Obelisk at Aswan. Esna's temple is sometimes added on upstream sailings. Abu Simbel and Dendera are excursions, not cruise stops.
Helwa Ya Baladi
Dalida
