On the first morning of your Nile sailing tour, you'll be collected from your hotel in Luxor and in less than an hour you'll arrive at the pier in Esna where our Dahabiya will be waiting for you. The Dahabiya you'll be sailing belongs to our local partner and has been completely restored to reflect the elegant days of the past, yet with modern comforts and conveniences. The ship is roomy, doesn't have an engine so its nice and quiet and relies on wind and currents to sail.

Just to be on the safe side, a tug boat will sail along and help out if the wind disappears. Only 10 passengers can stay aboard at once, which makes the trip even more intimate. The ship has a large wooden sundeck with comfortable deck chairs overlooking the Nile. The back deck stairs lead to 4 cabins with beds, air-conditioning and a private bathroom with ensuite facilities. 
 

As the morning sun shines through your cabin portals, you'll hear the water birds awaken with you. Take a shower, or a swim, and wake up at a leisurely pace. Before long, the crew will lift anchor and you'll be sailing down the Nile once again. As the water softly splashes against the bow, enjoy a cup of steaming hot coffee and watch small boats pass by on the sunny Nile. What better way to start the second day of your Egypt holiday.... 

Once the ship reaches the town of Edfu the ship's crew will throw out the anchor and you'll visit the best preserved cult temple in Egypt. The monumental temple of Horus, built in honour of the God with the falcon's head, is easily as impressive as the world famous temple of Karnak in Luxor. After visiting the temple you'll continue on to the town of Wadi El Shat where you'll walk through the tropical gardens and countryside. At the end of the day you'll spend the night on the Dahabiya.

After breakfast, the Dahabiya will set sail along the Nile again. After a while, the ship will moor at the excavation site 'Gebel El Silsila' and the temple of Pharaoh Horemheb. You can also visit an ancient stone quarry where colossal stones were cut out for the temple of Karnak. After lunch on board the ship, you'll sail on to one of the highlights of this Nile sailing tour, the majestic temples of Haroeris and Sobek at Kom Ombo. During recent years many temples have been moved stone by stone to higher ground to protect them from the rising waters of the Nile. However, the temples at Kom Ombo are still at their original locations along the Nile. 

At the end of the afternoon the ship will dock at one of the Nile islands. The ship's cook will treat you to an elaborate bbq this evening. As the sun begins to set the sand dunes come alive in various colours of orange and gold, the campfire will crackle and you'll hear the wind whistle through the reeds. 

There's only a short distance left on the Nile sailing tour until the ship reaches Aswan. Once you step back onto the shore you'll say goodbye to the ship captain, the cook and the rest of the crew as this Egypt tour comes to an end. Our local representative will be waiting to greet you in Aswan and will take you to your hotel. Accommodation for tonight is not included in the price of this module. If you would like to visit the temple and tombs in Aswan have a look at our Abu Simbel tour.

If you've seen enough Egyptian culture for the moment, you may prefer to spend some time soaking up the sun on the beach and exploring the underwater life of the Red Sea. Have a look at our Red Sea diving trip or fly on to Sharm El Sheikh and travel to yesteryear's hippie paradise, Dahab, Egypt.

Please note: This route in reverse - from Aswan to Luxor - is dependent on the weather. The Dahabiya requires a gentle breeze to allow it to sail and generally this breeze travels in a southerly direction, Luxor to Aswan. When there is no northerly breeze, a tugboat is brought in to pull the Dahabiya for stretches of the journey. If you would like to sail for the entire time, then we would advise you to take the Luxor to Aswan route.