Family Jordan and Egypt Tour with Nile Cruise

The day begins with a drive north to Jerash, the “Jewel of the North” and one of the best-preserved Roman cities outside Italy. With more than 6,500 years of continuous human occupation, its colonnaded streets, triumphal arches, and grand temples are nothing short of breathtaking. Excavations over the past 70 years have brought this extraordinary city back to life from beneath the sand. Returning to Amman in the afternoon, you’ll tour the famous Citadel — home to the ancient Temple of Hercules, the Umayyad Palace, and a Byzantine Church — before heading to the 6,000-seat Roman Theatre, built when Amman was still the Roman city of Philadelphia. Together, these sites paint a vivid picture of Amman’s rich and layered history.
Overnight: Amman
Meals: Breakfast

Bid Amman farewell and set off along the legendary King’s Highway, one of the world’s oldest continuously used roads. First stop is Madaba, where the 6th-century Byzantine mosaic map of the Holy Land — housed in the Greek Orthodox Church of St. George — is a remarkable piece of ancient cartography. A short detour brings you to Mt. Nebo, Moses’s burial place, with sweeping views across the Jordan Valley. The route then winds through deep canyon wadis, including the dramatic Wadi al-Mujib, before arriving at the Crusader fortress of Kerak Castle, built in 1132 AD and later captured by Saladin in 1188. By evening, you arrive in Petra. An optional atmospheric Petra by Candlelight tour offers a magical first glimpse of the Siq and Treasury.
Overnight: Petra
Meals: Breakfast

Today is dedicated to Petra — the ancient Nabataean capital carved into rose-red sandstone cliffs. A guided tour leads you through the narrow Siq gorge, its walls rising 200 metres overhead, until the legendary Treasury (Khazneh) dramatically reveals itself around a bend. Your guide explains the spiritual symbolism behind these rock-cut facades, built top-down by Nabataean craftsmen. Free time allows you to hike to the towering 50-metre-high Monastery (over 800 steps), visit the High Place of Sacrifice, or explore the colonnaded Roman street. Horse carriages are available for those who need them. In the afternoon, you drive into Wadi Rum — the vast, rust-coloured desert that inspired TE Lawrence — where Bedouin hosts welcome you to a comfortable camp under a sky blazing with stars.
Overnight: Wadi Rum Bedouin camp
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

After breakfast, a thrilling Jeep safari takes you deep into Wadi Rum’s landscape of towering rocky jebels, ancient inscriptions, and sweeping dunes — the same terrain that awed Lawrence of Arabia during the 1917–18 Arab Revolt. From there, you head north to the Dead Sea, the lowest point on earth at over 400 metres below sea level. Fed by the River Jordan but entirely landlocked, its waters evaporate to leave an intensely saline mineral broth unlike anything else on the planet. “Swimming” here is really floating — you simply cannot sink. Marvel at the otherworldly beauty of the salt shores framed by the Judean Hills, take your photos, and rinse off well (salt in the eyes stings sharply). The day ends back in Amman with time to reflect on an extraordinary few days in Jordan.
Overnight: Amman
Meals: Breakfast

Today marks the end of your Jordan chapter. Your team will transfer you to Amman Airport for your flight to Cairo — note that the Amman–Cairo flight is not included in the base tour price, as it’s typically more economical to incorporate into your main international ticket. EgyptAir and Royal Jordanian both offer direct services throughout the day. On arrival at Cairo International, a local representative will meet you, assist with your visa and baggage, and transfer you to your central Cairo hotel. After check-in, the evening is yours. An optional dinner cruise on the Nile is a wonderful way to experience the great river at night, drifting past illuminated monuments and the glittering city skyline — a gentle preview of the wonders that await you in Egypt.
Overnight: Cairo 
Meals: Breakfast

Egypt begins with its most iconic moment. An expert Egyptologist guide leads you to the three Great Pyramids of Giza — built for Pharaohs Khufu, Khafre, and Menkaure around 2500 BC — still the most recognisable ancient structures on earth. Your guide explains how and why pyramids were built and how they fit into the grand Pharaonic story. The adventurous can descend into one of the pyramid interiors (a memorable if mildly claustrophobic experience). Nearby, the Great Sphinx — fully excavated only in the 1920s — gazes enigmatically across the plateau. After this morning of ancient wonders, you leave Cairo and drive south along the banks of the Nile, arriving in Luxor — the world’s greatest open-air museum — in time to check in and settle for the evening.
Overnight: Luxor 
Meals: Breakfast

Today takes you off the well-trodden tourist trail to two of Egypt’s most spectacular yet undervisited temple complexes. Dendara, dedicated to Hathor — the goddess of love, beauty, and music — frequently becomes travellers’ favourite Egyptian site thanks to its astonishing state of preservation. Its painted ceilings and detailed reliefs retain vivid colour even after two millennia, giving you a rare sense of what ancient temples originally looked like. Nearby Abydos was the sacred cult centre of Osiris, god of the dead, and one of Egypt’s most important pilgrimage destinations in antiquity — at its peak, at least ten temples stood here. The site’s deeply spiritual atmosphere and extraordinary carvings are profoundly moving. You return to Luxor in the evening refreshed and enriched.
Overnight: Luxor 
Meals: Breakfast

Today you board your five-star Nile cruise ship — your floating home for the next several days. Before lunch, visit the Temple of Karnak, the largest religious complex ever constructed, built and expanded over 2,000 years by successive pharaohs. Walk the Avenue of Sphinxes, pass through the Hypostyle Hall with its 134 massive columns, and admire the towering obelisks of Hatshepsut and Tuthmosis III. This afternoon, Luxor Temple offers a remarkable contrast — a later complex where ancient Egyptian, early Christian, and medieval Islamic layers exist side by side. Its soaring obelisk (the partner stands in Paris today) and colossal statues of Ramesses the Great are strikingly photogenic. Return to the ship for a leisurely dinner as the Nile flows gently past.
Overnight: On board in Luxor
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

An optional pre-dawn pick-up at 4:30 AM rewards the early risers with a breathtaking hot-air balloon ride over Luxor’s West Bank as the sun rises over the Valley of the Kings — arguably the most memorable experience of the entire journey. After breakfast, the West Bank tour begins in earnest. The Valley of the Kings holds the royal tombs of 18th–20th Dynasty pharaohs, their walls adorned with vivid religious texts and painted scenes. The magnificent mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut — Egypt’s most accomplished female pharaoh, who died in 1458 BC — cascades in three terraces against the limestone cliffs of Deir el-Bahari. En route back, the monumental Colossi of Memnon rise stoically from the fields. The ship then sails south towards Edfu.
Overnight: On board in Edfu
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

After breakfast on board, disembark at Edfu for the Temple of Horus — the finest and most complete Ptolemaic temple in all of Egypt, stretching over 140 metres and covering some 7,000 square metres. Dedicated to Horus of Behedet, its towering pylons, pillared halls, and inner sanctuaries give a vivid sense of how Egyptian temples functioned as active centres of ritual and religion. Back on board for lunch, the ship continues south to the unique Temple of Kom Ombo, dramatically situated on a bend in the Nile. Unusually, it is a double temple — perfectly symmetrical — shared between Sobek the crocodile god and Horus the Elder, each with mirrored entrances, hypostyle halls, and sanctuaries. Afternoon tea on deck as the Nile landscape slips past is a serene pleasure.
Overnight: On board in Kom Ombo
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Arriving in Aswan — Egypt’s southernmost city and one of its most beautiful — the morning begins with a visit to the Aswan High Dam, the vast rock-fill barrier that transformed Egypt’s economy and landscape when it was completed in 1968 and inaugurated in 1971. Its creation formed Lake Nasser, one of the world’s largest man-made reservoirs. From there, head to the ancient granite quarries to view the Unfinished Obelisk — the largest known ancient obelisk, commissioned by Hatshepsut, which was abandoned mid-carving when a crack appeared in the stone. Seeing it still lying in the quarry gives a remarkable insight into how ancient Egyptians actually worked stone on such a monumental scale. The rest of the afternoon is free to enjoy Aswan’s relaxed atmosphere and scenic Nile views.
Overnight: On board in Aswan
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

An early 5:00 AM start is richly rewarded by an optional excursion to Abu Simbel — the extraordinary rock-cut temples of Ramesses II and his beloved Queen Nefertari, relocated in one of history’s most audacious UNESCO engineering feats to save them from the rising waters of Lake Nasser. Back in Aswan, a visit to the Temple of Philae — dedicated to the goddess Isis and similarly relocated by UNESCO — sits amid the Nile’s rocky islands in a picturesque setting that feels almost too beautiful to be real. Its graceful colonnades and romantic island position make it one of Egypt’s most atmospheric sites. By evening, you fly back to Cairo and check into a central hotel for a final night together as a group before tomorrow’s departures.
Overnight: Cairo
Meals: Breakfast

Your final day is delightfully open. If you’ve booked an afternoon or evening flight — which is strongly recommended — the morning is perfect for a visit to the Egyptian Museum on Tahrir Square, home to the world’s greatest collection of ancient artefacts, including the golden treasures of Tutankhamun. Cairo’s labyrinthine Khan el-Khalili bazaar is ideal for last-minute shopping: spices, papyrus, scarabs, handmade jewellery, and aromatic perfumes. Optional extended tours are available to Saqqara (Egypt’s oldest pyramid complex), Dahshur (the Bent and Red Pyramids), and Memphis (the ancient capital). Extra nights in Cairo can also be arranged if you’d like more time. When your transfer departs for Cairo International, you’ll leave with a suitcase full of memories from one of the world’s most extraordinary journeys.
Meals: Breakfast