A cruise along the Nile River is the perfect, relaxing way to experience the relics of ancient civilizations, while watching life go by in present day Egypt.
There are dozens of cruise ships and companies that offer anywhere from three to seven day cruises along the Nile, traveling between Luxor and Aswan with stops along the way. Cruisecritic is one of my favorite websites for searching for cruise deals, following reviews of cruise companies and ships, and checking out photos and deck plans of specific ships.
As part of a larger tour package to Egypt provided by Gate1 Travel, we spent four days cruising the Nile River aboard the MS Esplanade. After flying from Cairo to Luxor, and spending the night in a hotel, we boarded the boat for our cruise.
The MS Esplanade is considered a five star luxury cruise ship, and includes air conditioned rooms, a full service restaurant, lounge, library, sundeck and pool, bar, boutique, wi-fi availability, and laundry service. During our leisure time, we enjoyed sitting on the sun deck watching small villages and farms pass by, and observing fishermen and cows grazing along the shore. One surreal moment was during sunset, passing a rural village while listening to the call to prayer through loud speakers. Another memorable moment was when two men on a colorful small wooden boat rowed up to our ship, and tagged along for a half hour selling their goods, mostly clothing, to passengers.
Luxor – Luxor is the siting of the ancient city of Thebes, and its numerous ruins on both the east and west banks of the Nile date to the 14th century BC. It is here where the magnificent Temple of Karnak, Luxor Temple, the Valley of the Kings and Valley of the Queens are located. Both Karnak and Luxor Temples are located on the east bank. One of the unique aspects of Karnak Temple is the massive Great Hypostyle Hall which consists of 134 massive and beautifully designed columns arranged in 16 rows. A tall ancient obelisk stands at the entrance to the temple. Luxor Temple, constructed in 1400 BC, is guarded by a large obelisk and a series of large statues of Ramses II. Connecting the Luxor Temple and Karnak Temple is the two mile long Avenue of the Sphinxes. Completed around 360 BC, and unearthed starting in 1949, this avenue is lined on both sides with over 1,000 ram and sphinx statues.
On the west bank is the Valley of the Kings, where the tombs of at least 63 pharaohs and nobles were constructed within large rock formations between the 16th and 11th centuries BC. The royal tombs are decorated with scenes from Egyptian mythology, providing indications of the beliefs and funeral practices of the period. Today, 18 tombs are open to the public. The walls of both the long corridors and burial chambers are decorated with colorful images and religious texts. One of the more famous and most visited tombs is that of King Tutankhamun (Tut), where you can photograph the remains of his mummy, the only royal mummy to have been found entirely undisturbed.
A great way to experience the magic of Luxor is from above. We booked an independent hot air balloon tour where we spent about 45 minutes observing the monuments and green sugar cane fields from 1,500 feet above the ground. Taking a hot air balloon ride is a perfect way to capture Instagram worthy photographs of not only the sights below, but also the sunrise, and dozens of other colorful balloons. Balloon tours can be reserved through Viator.
Edfu – Midway between Luxor and Aswan is the dusty city of Edfu. Our highlight here was taking a horse carriage ride from the river port to the Temple of Horus, the most completely preserved temple in Egypt. The temple was built during the Ptolemaic times over a period of nearly 200 years. The extravagantly designed temple is dedicated to the falcon god Horus, son of Isis and Osiris. Further up river, the Greco-Roman Temple of Kom Ombo, with its detailed reliefs, was dedicated to Horus and Sobek, the crocodile god.
Aswan – Our last stop was Aswan, a pretty, arid city north of Lake Nassar, that is home to many monuments, monasteries and temples. Other attractions include the famous Old Cataract Hotel, built during the British colonial era, and the massive Aswan market. I purchased a bag of beautiful Iranian saffron at the market at a price that could never be found in the US. At Aswan, the Nile River flows around a series of attractive granite rocks and islands. One of these islands contains the lush Aswan Botanical Garden, home to thousands of birds and exotic plants. Nearby, the Philae temple, dedicated to the goddess of Isis, is located on another island.
We traveled by boat to a traditional Nubian village, where all of the buildings are painted in colorful patterns. We met the friendly residents of a Nubian house where we were given a tour, refreshments and a history of the Nubian people and their culture.
Traveling by bus from Aswan deep into the Nubian desert, we visited our last landmark, the famous Abu Simbel, built above Lake Nassar. When the massive Aswan High dam was about to be constructed, an international campaign headed by UNESCO saved 22 monuments in Nubia between 1960 and 1980. The most infamous of these is Abu Simbel, where two massive rock cut temples constructed in the 13th century BC were dismantled starting in 1964 and relocated in their entirety on higher ground. These beautiful temples were built during the reign of Ramesses II, when he was trying to impress upon the Nubians Egypt’s might while excavating nearby gold. The Great Temple’s entrance is flanked by four colossal 70 foot tall statues, each representing Ramesses II seated on a throne wearing the double crown of Upper and Lower Egypt. Within the temple is a large hall supported by eight huge decorated pillars. It leads to a secondary hall, which then leads to the sanctuary. A series of side chambers lead from both sides of the halls. The nearby Temple of Queen Nefertari includes murals with images of the queen manifested in the form of goddess Hathor. Given how difficult it was to painstakingly rebuild Abu Simbel in the 20th century, what a feat it must have been to build it 3,000 years prior!
