Nile cruises and private Egypt tours,
run by the people who live here

Yes. The tourist corridor — Cairo, Luxor, Aswan, and the Red Sea resorts — is heavily policed and has been stable for years. Most visitors report feeling safer walking in Luxor at night than in a large North American city. The real friction is not danger, it is hassle from vendors and taxi drivers, which a private guide removes almost entirely.

October to April is the comfortable window, with December and January the busiest and priciest. February and March are the sweet spot: warm days, cool evenings, and temples that are not shoulder to shoulder. May to September is genuinely hot in Upper Egypt — 40°C and above — but prices drop sharply and the boats are half empty.

Luxor to Aswan sails upstream and usually spends the first day on the biggest sites — Karnak and the Valley of the Kings — while you are freshest. Aswan to Luxor sails downstream, tends to be slightly shorter, and finishes in Luxor, which is easier if you are flying on to Hurghada or back to Cairo. Neither is better; it depends on where your flights land.

A dahabiya is a traditional sailing boat with six to twelve cabins, no engine noise under sail, and a crew that outnumbers the guests. It moors at small islands and villages the 150-passenger ships cannot reach. It costs more and moves slower. If your priority is quiet and the river itself, it is worth it. If your priority is covering the maximum number of temples, take a standard cruise ship.

For travel between October and April, three to six months is comfortable. Christmas, New Year, and the August 2027 solar eclipse are different — those cabins are typically gone six to twelve months out. Outside high season, a few weeks is often enough.

Most US, Canadian, UK, and EU passport holders can buy a 30-day tourist visa on arrival at Egyptian airports, or apply online in advance through the official e-visa portal. Your passport needs at least six months of validity remaining. We will confirm the current requirement for your specific nationality when we send your itinerary.

International flights, your entry visa, tips, and anything you buy for yourself. Everything else — guides, drivers, entry tickets, domestic flights where the itinerary needs them, and meals as stated — is in the quoted price. If something is excluded, it is written on the itinerary in plain language, not buried in a footnote.