Tour Overview
This private day trip takes you north from Aswan along the Nile to two temples built by Egypt's last pharaohs: the double temple of Kom Ombo above a bend in the river, and the Temple of Horus at Edfu, the most complete temple in the country. A private car and an Egyptologist guide collect you from your Aswan hotel or Nile cruise, lunch is at a local restaurant between the sites, and entrance fees are included.
Tour Highlights
- See Kom Ombo's rare double plan, with two entrances, two halls and two sanctuaries side by side, one for the crocodile god Sobek and one for the falcon god Haroeris.
- Look for the Kom Ombo reliefs that guides like to point out, including a temple calendar and a well-known panel of what look like surgical instruments.
- Walk through the Temple of Horus at Edfu, which still has its roof, its tall entrance pylon and its dark inner sanctuary, so you see a temple almost whole.
- Stand beside the granite falcon statues of Horus at Edfu and read the wall carvings that tell how Horus defeated Seth to avenge his father Osiris.
- Travel in a private air-conditioned car with your own Egyptologist, lunch at a local restaurant and bottled water on board, with no cruise timetable to keep to.
Tour Route
Do you need this tour if you are taking a Nile cruise?
Probably not. Kom Ombo and Edfu are stops on every Nile cruise between Aswan and Luxor, and the visits are part of the cruise program. If you are booked on one, in either direction, you will see both temples anyway, so spend your Aswan days on Philae, Abu Simbel or the Nubian villages instead.
This day trip is for travelers staying in Aswan hotels who are not cruising, who are leaving Aswan by plane or train, or who want a private guide and their own pace at both temples instead of sharing the temples with a cruise group.
Is the Edfu and Kom Ombo day trip from Aswan worth it?
Yes, if you are based in Aswan without a cruise and want to see the great late temples of the Nile Valley. Edfu is the most complete ancient temple in Egypt, and Kom Ombo is unlike any other because it was built for two gods at once. Together they show a different side of Egypt from the monuments of Aswan.
Both temples were built under the Ptolemies, the Greek-speaking dynasty that ruled Egypt after Alexander the Great. They kept to the old style, so the temples look fully Egyptian, with dense carving and long written texts.
What is the difference between Kom Ombo and Edfu temples?
Kom Ombo is smaller and more ruined, but it is a double temple, shared by Sobek and Haroeris, with everything built in pairs. Edfu is one large, almost complete temple to a single god, Horus. Seeing both in one day lets you compare a very unusual temple plan with a classic one.
- Kom Ombo: dedicated to Sobek and Haroeris. Two doorways, two halls and two sanctuaries side by side, plus a Nilometer well above the river.
- Edfu: dedicated to Horus, the falcon god. Roof, pylon, courts and sanctuary survive, with long inscriptions about the temple's festivals.
- Both: built under the Ptolemies, in the same late style of deep reliefs and crowded hieroglyphs.
What else can you do from Aswan?
If you would rather see these temples from the river, the 4-day Nile cruise from Aswan to Luxor stops at both on the way north. Staying in Luxor instead? The Edfu and Kom Ombo day trip from Luxor covers the same temples from the other end, and the Luxor day trip from Aswan takes you to Karnak and the Valley of the Kings.
Tour Itinerary
A full day on the road north of Aswan, with two major temples, a sit-down lunch between them and the drive back at the end.
Your Egyptologist guide and driver meet you at your hotel or ship in Aswan. The road heads north beside the Nile, past sugar cane fields, date palms and farming villages, with the desert never far away. There is water in the car, and your guide uses the drive to explain the Ptolemaic period you are about to see.
Kom Ombo stands on a rise right above the river. Its plan is split down the middle: the left side belongs to Haroeris, Horus the Elder, and the right side to Sobek, the crocodile god who was worshipped where crocodiles once basked on the sandbanks. Your guide shows you the carvings, the Nilometer well and the view over the water.
A sit-down lunch at a local restaurant, included in the price. It is a real break in the middle of the day, out of the sun, and a good moment to ask your guide anything the morning raised before you continue north to the larger of the two temples.
Built by the Ptolemaic kings between 237 and 57 BC, Edfu is the second-largest temple in Egypt after Karnak. Sand and silt covered it for centuries, which is why so much survived. You pass the giant pylon, cross the open court, walk the halls of columns and reach the sanctuary where the image of Horus was kept.
After Edfu you start the drive south to Aswan along the river road, and your driver drops you at your hotel or Nile cruise. Your guide, the car, lunch, water and the entrance fees are all covered, so the only money you need on the day is for tips and personal extras.
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.
The tour starts at your hotel or your Nile cruise ship in Aswan. Your guide and driver collect you there in a private air-conditioned car, and at the end of the day they bring you back to the same place. Tell us where you are staying when you book so we can confirm the pickup point.
The price includes pickup and drop-off in Aswan, a private air-conditioned vehicle, a private Egyptologist guide, entrance fees for Kom Ombo and Edfu temples, lunch at a local restaurant, bottled water in the car, and all service charges and taxes. Tips and any extras outside the program are not included.
It is a private tour, so the car and the guide are only for you and your group. The cost of the vehicle and guide is shared between everyone in the group, which is why the price per person falls as the group grows. Prices also change by season, from {price} per person.
Kom Ombo lies between Aswan and Edfu, so it is the natural first stop on the way north. You see it in the morning, have lunch, then continue to Edfu, the larger temple, before turning back toward Aswan. Visiting in this order keeps the driving simple and avoids going over the same road twice.
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.
