Monday 18 February 2013. Welcome to Egypt and the start of a wonderful holiday. Arrive Cairo airport and included transfer to your hotel and check in. Overnight - Cairo

Cairo - Aswan. Visit to the famous pyramids and lion-headed Sphinx at Giza Plateau. Sole survivors from the ancient Greek-listed Seven Wonders of the World, the pyramids are the planet’s oldest tourist attraction! Gaze in awe at Cheops (Khufu), the largest of the three great pyramids. Constructed from over 2.5 million limestone blocks it is thought to have taken more than 20 years to construct. Continuing to Saqqara, we can explore the myriad tombs and temples at this site and see Zhoser’s step pyramid - constructed by Imhotep, the pharaoh’s chief architect in 2700 BC! There is time for dinner before our overnight train to Aswan. Upgrade to sleeper cabin, should you require! Overnight - Train (B)

Arrive Aswan and transfer to our hotel. Spend the day at leisure, relax and enjoy the hotel facilities or consider taking a walk along the majestic Nile corniche, framed by rolling sand dunes of the Sahara Desert. This evening we'll head to the colourful local souq (market) for a little bargain hunting. The lively night market offers comic entertainment as the sellers go about the business of hocking their wares. The market also offers an extensive array of cotton products, spices, wooden and copper ornaments, alabaster statues, beaded jewellery and mother of pearl trinkets at some of the best prices in the country. Overnight - Aswan (B)

Aswan - Abu Simbel. Today we enjoy a visit out of town to the mighty High Dam. A modern feat of engineering, the by–product is Lake Nasser, the world’s largest artificial lake! Continuing, we enjoy a short boat trip to Agilika Island for Philae Temple, dedicated to the goddess Isis.

There is time to rest before departing in the wee hours of the morning on our coach journey toward the Grand Temples of Abu Simbel. In readiness we await for the first rays of golden sunlight to touch the temple gate signifying the start of the Sun Festival of the mighty King Ramses II. Overnight - Overnight – hotel/ coach journey to Abu Simbel (B)

Friday 22 February 2013. Abu Simbel – Aswan - Nile Felucca Cruise. Possibly the most awe-inspiring temple of all ancient Egypt, with its gargantuan rock-cut façade, the great Sun Temple of King Ramses II at Abu Simbel was created to revere the mighty pharaonic ruler King Ramses II. Guarding the entrance to the temple (built between 1290 and 1224 BC) hewn into the side of a mountain are four famous colossal statues of the pharaoh himself, which sit majestically staring out across the desert. Over the centuries, the desert sands imperceptibly shifted until the temple was all but lost to humanity. It was rediscovered by chance in 1813 by a Swiss explorer called John Lewis Burkhardt. Only one of the heads of the pharaohs was showing and only a small part of the rest of the colossal temple peeked above the desert sands. It wasn’t until the British happened upon Abu Simbel and starting excavating, that the full glory of the temple of Abu Simbel was revealed to the modern world.

In a fit of precision and architectural egotism, Ramses II had the entire temple carefully angled and oriented in order that the sun’s rays would align twice a year on his date of his ascension to the throne (21 February) and on his birthday (21 October) and illuminate the inner sanctum of the temple. This incredible natural phenomenon provides for a most spectacular sight, which has come to be referred to as the Sun Festival of King Ramses II. Crowds pack in to the temple before sunrise and watch the shafts of light slowly creeping through the rock hewn inner Hypostyle Hall (replete with further statues of the king) and through to the Sanctuary. As we are lead through the temple there will be time to pause for a moment to watch the sun illuminating the statues of Amun-Re, Re-Herakhte and Ramses the god, whilst the statute of Ptah - the god of darkness - remains in the shadows.

Famously, the temple was re-located in a multi-million dollar operation in 1972, further up from the shoreline of Lake Nasser, which had threatened to erode the foundations of this monolithic temple complex. For this reason, the sun now strikes a day later than Ramses had originally planned, though the event this morning itself is no less stunning. After the event, there will also be plenty of time to explore the Sun Temple of King Ramses II and also the Temple of Hathor and take plenty of pictures.

After watching the incredible event unfold, we return to Aswan, to board our Nile felucca for a 2 night voyage downstream on the River Nile. Or opt to cruise the Nile in style, with our 5 star Nile cruise upgrade. Travellers undertaking this upgrade will check in today and enjoy a 3 night stay. Overnight - Felucca or Nile Cruiser (B, L, D)

Relax, go for a swim or just chill out in the sun on deck. Let your troubles melt away, as the felucca plies its route. Overnight - Felucca or Nile Cruiser (B, L, D)

Kom Ombo - Edfu - Luxor. Disembarking our felucca, we visit the riverside Temple of Kom Ombo and continue onward to the Temple of Horus at Edfu, before driving north to Luxor. Home of the legendary Valley of the Kings and Temple of Karnak, 4000 year old Luxor is ancient Egypt at it’s best. Enjoy some rest and relaxation. Tonight, an optional excursion to visit the Temple of Luxor - wonderfully illuminated at night is available for those interested. Overnight - Luxor or Nile Cruiser (B)

Luxor - Cairo. Optional early morning hot air balloon ride over Luxor before crossing to the west side of the Nile and commencing our tour of the Valley of the Kings. One of the first sights you’ll see is the Colossi of Memnon, this huge pair of enthroned statues is all that remains of the temple of Amenophis III. Explore the highly decorated tombs at the Valley of the Kings and the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut. After a little R&R, we visit Karnak Temple. This evening we travel by overnight train to Cairo. Overnight - Train (B)

Arrive to Cairo and time to freshen up. Later, we take a guided tour of the Egyptian Museum, commonly referred to as the Egyptian Museum. The museum is home to an extensive collection of some 120 000 ancient Egyptian antiquities, with a representative amount on display, the remainder in storerooms. Opt to visit the Royal Mummy Room, where 9 royal mummies from the New Kingdom is displayed. The later part of the afternoon and evening are free to do your own thing. Maybe head over to Khan el-Khalili bazaar. It's a top spot for the purchase of ornate free-standing tobacco pipes, pharaonic tat, belly dancing costumes, spices and carpets. Overnight - Cairo (B)

Cairo - Dahab. Today we cross the Suez Canal and travel onto Dahab, located on the Red Sea. Dahab is our base for the coming days and there is plenty of free time to explore the Sinai – a region of incredible beauty. Dahab offers great diving, snorkelling, swimming and sun-worshipping possibilities. Overnight - Dahab (B:3)

Dahab - Cairo. After a leisurely breakfast we return to Cairo. The remainder of the day and evening offer free to enjoy Cairo your way. Overnight - Cairo (B)

Sunday 03 March 2013. Hotel check out and included transfer to airport. (B)