Tour Overview
This private 2-day trip from Marsa Alam joins Egypt's two great ancient capitals. On day one a car takes you across the desert to Luxor for the Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut Temple, the Colossi of Memnon, a Nile boat ride to lunch on an island and Karnak, followed by a night in a 5-star hotel. On day two you fly from Luxor to Cairo for the Pyramids, the Sphinx, the Grand Egyptian Museum and the Egyptian Museum, then fly to Hurghada and drive back to Marsa Alam.
Tour Highlights
- See Luxor and Cairo in one short trip, with a night in Luxor so neither city is squeezed into a day that also holds a long drive.
- Visit the painted royal tombs of the Valley of the Kings and Hatshepsut's terraced temple on Luxor's West Bank on the first morning.
- Cross the Nile by boat to lunch on an island, then explore Karnak, the vast temple of Amun built over two thousand years.
- Fly north on day two to stand before the Great Pyramid of Khufu and the Sphinx, the oldest of all the sights on this trip.
- Compare Egypt's two great museums in one afternoon: the new Grand Egyptian Museum at Giza and the historic Egyptian Museum in Tahrir.
Tour Route
Can you see Luxor and Cairo in 2 days from Marsa Alam?
Yes, the highlights of both. You get Luxor's West Bank and Karnak on day one and the Pyramids, the Sphinx and two museums on day two. What you give up is time: there is no Luxor Temple, no Islamic Cairo and little free time, so this suits travelers who want the essentials of both cities.
How do you travel between Marsa Alam, Luxor and Cairo?
You go by road to Luxor and by air for the rest. A private car drives you from Marsa Alam to Luxor on day one. On day two you fly from Luxor to Cairo, then from Cairo to Hurghada, and a private car takes you from Hurghada airport back down the coast to Marsa Alam.
Starting in Luxor makes sense from Marsa Alam: the road across the desert reaches the Nile Valley far more easily than it reaches Cairo, and the two flights then cover the long distance north and back to the coast.
Which sights are on each day?
The order runs from Thebes to Giza, so you see New Kingdom tombs and temples on day one and the far older Pyramids, built over a thousand years earlier, on day two. Here is how the sightseeing splits between the two cities.
- Day 1, Luxor: Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut Temple, Colossi of Memnon, Nile boat ride and Karnak.
- Day 2, Cairo: Great Pyramid, Great Sphinx, Valley Temple, Grand Egyptian Museum and the Egyptian Museum.
How is this different from the other Cairo and Luxor trips from Marsa Alam?
This is the shortest trip from Marsa Alam that includes both cities. The 2-day Cairo trip by plane spends both days in Cairo, and the 2-day Luxor trip stays in Luxor with the Sound and Light Show instead of flying north.
If you also want Abu Simbel, the 3-day Cairo, Luxor and Abu Simbel trip adds a night in Aswan and the temples of Ramesses II before the flight to Cairo.
Tour Itinerary
Day one is a road trip to Luxor and a full afternoon of temples; day two is two flights and a fast-moving day of Cairo's highlights.
A private, modern air-conditioned car collects you from your hotel in Marsa Alam and crosses the Eastern Desert to the Nile Valley. In Luxor your private guide meets you and you head straight to the West Bank, the ancient city of the dead opposite the town.
From the 16th to the 11th century BC, Egypt's New Kingdom rulers were buried in this desert valley in tombs cut deep into the rock. Around 63 are known, including those of Seti I, Ramesses II and Tutankhamun. Your ticket gives entry to a selection of open tombs.
Queen Hatshepsut's mortuary temple at Deir el-Bahari climbs in terraces toward the cliff face and shows scenes of her trading voyage to the land of Punt. Then you stop at the Colossi of Memnon, two weathered seated statues of Amenhotep III that ancient Greek travelers came to hear sing at dawn.
A boat takes you over the Nile to an island for lunch, which is included. It is a slower moment on the river between the West Bank and the afternoon temple visit, with views of farmland and the hills of Thebes.
At Karnak, your guide leads you through the pylons into the hypostyle hall of 134 columns and past the obelisks to the sacred lake, explaining how each king added his part. In the evening you check in at your 5-star hotel in Luxor for the night.
After breakfast you check out with your bags and are taken to Luxor airport for the included flight to Cairo. On arrival your Egyptologist guide meets you and you drive to the Giza Plateau, on the western edge of the city.
At Giza you see the Great Pyramid of Khufu, the Great Sphinx and the granite Valley Temple of Khafre. Your guide then takes you into the Grand Egyptian Museum nearby, where the full Tutankhamun collection and a colossal Ramesses II statue are among the highlights.
Lunch is included at a restaurant with a view of the Pyramids or the Nile. Then you drive to Tahrir Square for the Egyptian Museum, the city's historic museum of antiquities, where rooms of statues, coffins and jewelry cover every period of ancient Egypt.
At the end of the day you are taken to Cairo airport for the included flight to Hurghada. A private air-conditioned car meets you there and drives you south along the coast to your hotel in Marsa Alam, where the trip ends.
What's Included
What the tour price covers, and what to plan for separately.
Paid
★
Your
Own
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers about this tour. For anything else, message us on WhatsApp — we reply fast.
It starts at your hotel in Marsa Alam, where a private car picks you up on day one for the drive to Luxor. It ends back at the same hotel on day two, after the flight from Cairo to Hurghada and the private road transfer south along the coast.
The price includes the flights from Luxor to Cairo and from Cairo to Hurghada, one night in a 5-star Luxor hotel with breakfast, two lunches, the Nile boat trip, private transfers, a private guide, water and soft drinks in the car, entrance fees to the Luxor sites, and taxes.
Yes. Your guide and car are reserved for you and your own group. The per-person price drops as the group gets bigger, because the guide, car and transfer costs are shared, and it changes by season, with flights and hotels costing more in winter and over Christmas and New Year.
You check out of the Luxor hotel after breakfast and take your bags with you on the flight to Cairo, then on to Hurghada in the evening. Packing one small bag each makes the airports and the Cairo stops much simpler.
Yes. Avicon Travel is a Class "A" travel agency licensed by the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism under License No. 1962 and registered since 2010. Our office and team are in Karnak, Luxor, so the guides, drivers and cars on this tour are our own local team, not a booking desk abroad.
