Egypt itinerary, day by day

From Cairo and Giza to the Red Sea by way of Luxor and Aswan: the map, what is worth booking, everything that costs nothing, and where to sleep at three budgets.

🗓️ 7, 10 or 14 days📍 4 stops☀️ Best time: October to March

Le Caire · Photo Louya / Pexels

Route map (numbers = order of the stops).

Egypt in 7 days

3 stops · 18 things to do · flight + cruise

1Cairo & Giza

Days 1-2

A sprawling capital at the foot of the Giza pyramids, the only ancient wonder still standing. The Sphinx sits below them, and the Grand Egyptian Museum a short drive away.

🎟️ Worth booking

Giza pyramids and the Sphinx, guidedFull day · from €55
A day on the plateau with an Egyptologist. The Great Pyramid held the record for tallest building on earth for close to four thousand years.
Book on GetYourGuide →
The Grand Egyptian MuseumHalf day · from €35
Half a day at the museum beside the pyramids, where the whole Tutankhamun collection is shown together for the first time.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

The Khan el-Khalili bazaar · Islamic Cairo · The Citadel of Saladin · The banks of the Nile

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Wake Up! Cairo Hostel (€22 a night) · Mid-range: Ramses Hilton (€90 a night) · Luxury: Marriott Mena House (€280 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Al Khal Egyptian Restaurant ↗ ★ 4.8 · 2377 reviews · €€
Fayruz Lebanese Restaurant ↗ ★ 4.8 · 1459 reviews
Abou al Zouz ↗ ★ 4.6 · 8926 reviews · €€
Octa cafe and restaurant ↗ ★ 4.6 · 2111 reviews · €€
Zitouni ↗ ★ 4.6 · 1313 reviews · €€€€

Photo Diego F. Parra / Pexels

✈️ Domestic flight · 1h · Cairo - Luxor

2Luxor

Days 3-4

Ancient Thebes, often called the largest open-air museum in the world. Karnak and the Luxor temple on the east bank, the Valley of the Kings on the west.

🎟️ Worth booking

Valley of the Kings and Karnak, guidedFull day · from €50
The royal tombs cut into the west bank in the morning, then Karnak, built and rebuilt over two thousand years.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Hot-air balloon at sunrise1h · from €110
An hour over the west bank as the light comes up, with the temples and the green strip of the valley below.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

Luxor temple · The west bank · The local market · The Nile corniche

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Bob Marley House (€16 a night) · Mid-range: Iberotel Luxor (€70 a night) · Luxury: Hilton Luxor Resort & Spa (€150 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

مطعم سنوبس Snobs Restaurant ↗ ★ 4.9 · 1257 reviews · €€
Restaurant Tout Ankh Amoun مطعم توت عنخ امون ↗ ★ 4.9 · 612 reviews
Fish House ↗ ★ 4.8 · 905 reviews
Nubian House ↗ ★ 4.8 · 646 reviews · €
White Coffee & Restaraunt ↗ ★ 4.8 · 597 reviews · €€

Photo Alina Zhabynska / Pexels

🚢 Nile cruise · 2 nights · Nile temples

3Aswan

Days 5-7

A Nubian town on the Nile, slower than anywhere north of it. Feluccas, the temple of Philae on its island, and the road to Abu Simbel.

🎟️ Worth booking

Philae temple, by boatHalf day · from €30
The temple of Isis, moved stone by stone onto a higher island when the High Dam flooded the old one.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Day trip to Abu SimbelFull day · from €75
Three hours south to the four seated colossi of Ramesses II, themselves lifted to safety from the rising lake in the 1960s.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

Feluccas on the river · The Nubian village · The botanical gardens · The sunsets

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Nuba Nile (€22 a night) · Mid-range: Movenpick Aswan (€140 a night) · Luxury: Tolip Aswan Hotel (€110 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Ismailia Restaurant ↗ ★ 4.8 · 406 reviews
Kerma Nubian Restaurant - Nubian village ↗ ★ 4.8 · 204 reviews
Sabaha kato ↗ ★ 4.8 · 138 reviews
Bob Marley Moonlight terrace restaurant cafe ↗ ★ 4.7 · 1665 reviews · €€
King Jamaica Restaurant & Café – Best Restaurant in Aswan ↗ ★ 4.7 · 1527 reviews

Photo Omar / Pexels

Egypt in 10 days

4 stops · 24 things to do · flight + cruise

1Cairo & Giza

Days 1-2

A sprawling capital at the foot of the Giza pyramids, the only ancient wonder still standing. The Sphinx sits below them, and the Grand Egyptian Museum a short drive away.

🎟️ Worth booking

Giza pyramids and the Sphinx, guidedFull day · from €55
A day on the plateau with an Egyptologist. The Great Pyramid held the record for tallest building on earth for close to four thousand years.
Book on GetYourGuide →
The Grand Egyptian MuseumHalf day · from €35
Half a day at the museum beside the pyramids, where the whole Tutankhamun collection is shown together for the first time.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

The Khan el-Khalili bazaar · Islamic Cairo · The Citadel of Saladin · The banks of the Nile

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Wake Up! Cairo Hostel (€22 a night) · Mid-range: Ramses Hilton (€90 a night) · Luxury: Marriott Mena House (€280 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Photo Diego F. Parra / Pexels

✈️ Domestic flight · 1h · Cairo - Luxor

2Luxor

Days 3-4

Ancient Thebes, often called the largest open-air museum in the world. Karnak and the Luxor temple on the east bank, the Valley of the Kings on the west.

🎟️ Worth booking

Valley of the Kings and Karnak, guidedFull day · from €50
The royal tombs cut into the west bank in the morning, then Karnak, built and rebuilt over two thousand years.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Hot-air balloon at sunrise1h · from €110
An hour over the west bank as the light comes up, with the temples and the green strip of the valley below.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

Luxor temple · The west bank · The local market · The Nile corniche

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Bob Marley House (€16 a night) · Mid-range: Iberotel Luxor (€70 a night) · Luxury: Hilton Luxor Resort & Spa (€150 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Photo Alina Zhabynska / Pexels

🚢 Nile cruise · 2 nights · Nile temples

3Aswan

Days 5-6

A Nubian town on the Nile, slower than anywhere north of it. Feluccas, the temple of Philae on its island, and the road to Abu Simbel.

🎟️ Worth booking

Philae temple, by boatHalf day · from €30
The temple of Isis, moved stone by stone onto a higher island when the High Dam flooded the old one.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Day trip to Abu SimbelFull day · from €75
Three hours south to the four seated colossi of Ramesses II, themselves lifted to safety from the rising lake in the 1960s.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

Feluccas on the river · The Nubian village · The botanical gardens · The sunsets

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Nuba Nile (€22 a night) · Mid-range: Movenpick Aswan (€140 a night) · Luxury: Tolip Aswan Hotel (€110 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Photo Omar / Pexels

✈️ Domestic flight · 1h · to the Red Sea

4The Red Sea (Hurghada)

Days 7-10

A resort town built on its reefs. Diving, snorkelling, and days that ask nothing of you.

🎟️ Worth booking

Diving or snorkelling on the reefsFull day · from €45
A boat day on the house reefs, in water that stays warm and clear all winter.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Giftun islands day tripFull day · from €40
A day in the marine park offshore, with two or three snorkelling stops and white sand between them.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

The sand beaches · The coral reefs · The marina · Snorkelling from the shore

🛏️ Where to sleep · Mid-range: Hurghada Marriott Beach Resort (€85 a night) · Luxury: Steigenberger Pure Lifestyle (€160 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Syake Sushi Hurghada ↗ ★ 4.9 · 3728 reviews · €€
Sky restaurant ↗ ★ 4.9 · 3447 reviews
Meat And Mood ↗ ★ 4.9 · 426 reviews
La Cantina Restaurant and Bar ↗ ★ 4.8 · 3301 reviews
Gaucho Steak House ↗ ★ 4.8 · 2758 reviews

Photo Francesco Ungaro / Pexels

Egypt in 14 days

4 stops · 24 things to do · flight + cruise

1Cairo & Giza

Days 1-3

A sprawling capital at the foot of the Giza pyramids, the only ancient wonder still standing. The Sphinx sits below them, and the Grand Egyptian Museum a short drive away.

🎟️ Worth booking

Giza pyramids and the Sphinx, guidedFull day · from €55
A day on the plateau with an Egyptologist. The Great Pyramid held the record for tallest building on earth for close to four thousand years.
Book on GetYourGuide →
The Grand Egyptian MuseumHalf day · from €35
Half a day at the museum beside the pyramids, where the whole Tutankhamun collection is shown together for the first time.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

The Khan el-Khalili bazaar · Islamic Cairo · The Citadel of Saladin · The banks of the Nile

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Wake Up! Cairo Hostel (€22 a night) · Mid-range: Ramses Hilton (€90 a night) · Luxury: Marriott Mena House (€280 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Photo Diego F. Parra / Pexels

✈️ Domestic flight · 1h · Cairo - Luxor

2Luxor

Days 4-5

Ancient Thebes, often called the largest open-air museum in the world. Karnak and the Luxor temple on the east bank, the Valley of the Kings on the west.

🎟️ Worth booking

Valley of the Kings and Karnak, guidedFull day · from €50
The royal tombs cut into the west bank in the morning, then Karnak, built and rebuilt over two thousand years.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Hot-air balloon at sunrise1h · from €110
An hour over the west bank as the light comes up, with the temples and the green strip of the valley below.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

Luxor temple · The west bank · The local market · The Nile corniche

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Bob Marley House (€16 a night) · Mid-range: Iberotel Luxor (€70 a night) · Luxury: Hilton Luxor Resort & Spa (€150 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Photo Alina Zhabynska / Pexels

🚢 Nile cruise · 3 nights · Nile temples

3Aswan

Days 6-8

A Nubian town on the Nile, slower than anywhere north of it. Feluccas, the temple of Philae on its island, and the road to Abu Simbel.

🎟️ Worth booking

Philae temple, by boatHalf day · from €30
The temple of Isis, moved stone by stone onto a higher island when the High Dam flooded the old one.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Day trip to Abu SimbelFull day · from €75
Three hours south to the four seated colossi of Ramesses II, themselves lifted to safety from the rising lake in the 1960s.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

Feluccas on the river · The Nubian village · The botanical gardens · The sunsets

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Nuba Nile (€22 a night) · Mid-range: Movenpick Aswan (€140 a night) · Luxury: Tolip Aswan Hotel (€110 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Photo Omar / Pexels

✈️ Domestic flight · 1h · to the Red Sea

4The Red Sea (Hurghada)

Days 9-14

A resort town built on its reefs. Diving, snorkelling, and days that ask nothing of you.

🎟️ Worth booking

Diving or snorkelling on the reefsFull day · from €45
A boat day on the house reefs, in water that stays warm and clear all winter.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Giftun islands day tripFull day · from €40
A day in the marine park offshore, with two or three snorkelling stops and white sand between them.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

The sand beaches · The coral reefs · The marina · Snorkelling from the shore

🛏️ Where to sleep · Mid-range: Hurghada Marriott Beach Resort (€85 a night) · Luxury: Steigenberger Pure Lifestyle (€160 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Photo Francesco Ungaro / Pexels

Hotel prices are per room per night, activity prices per person, checked when written. Some links are affiliate links (Booking, GetYourGuide): we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.

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Good to know before you go

🍽️ What to eat

Koshari: rice, pasta, lentils and a spiced tomato sauce, sold on every corner.
Ful medames: stewed fava beans, the breakfast of the country.
Taameya: the Egyptian falafel, made with fava beans rather than chickpeas.
Molokheya: a thick green soup of jute leaves, heavy on the garlic.
Sugar cane juice, and karkade, the cold hibiscus drink.

⚠️ What to avoid

Agree the price first, every time: taxi, carriage, camel.
Turn down the touts at the pyramids clearly, and keep walking.
Sealed bottled water, and skip washed salad outside good restaurants.
Carry small notes: baksheesh runs through daily life here.

Plan this trip

📒 The free printable Egypt guide→ 🗓️ Best time to visit Egypt, month by month→ 🎟️ What to book before you go→

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