Day 01: Wednesday December 29 , 2011

[no Meal]

Depart USA

Day 02: Thursday December 30 , 2011

Arrival at Cairo International airport “Meet & Assist “

Transfer: An Odyssey Representative will meet you at airport   

and escort you to your Cairo hotel an air-conditioned vehicle.

New Year Dinner at the Hotel: We gather today for New Year Dinner

Check in & Overnight at The Four Seasons First Residence.

Day 02: Friday Dec 31^st, 2012

[B, L]

Breakfast: buffet breakfast at hotel

Insider Access: Morning Lecture by Dr. Zahi Hawass : Dr. Zahi Hawass, Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities and Director of Excavations at Giza, Saqqara and the Bahareyya Oasis, is a world-renowned archeologist responsible for many exciting recent discoveries, including the Tombs of the Pyramid Builders at Giza and the Valley of the Golden Mummies at Bahareyya Oasis. He also led the examination of King Tut’s mummy with CT-scan and conducted a major conservation project on the Great Sphinx. Dr. Hawass’s dynamic personality and knowledge have sparked global interest in ancient Egypt, with his many television appearances and books for general audiences. Dr. Hawas has lectured worldwide.

Pyramids: Your Egyptologist will meet you at the hotel to escort you on an unforgettable tour of the Great Pyramids of Giza.  The only present-day survivors of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, they are among the world’s greatest tourist attractions and never lose their ability to inspire and overwhelm visitors.  Your tour today includes an opportunity to enter inside one of these fabulous monuments and explore the mysteries of its ancient past for yourself.

Sphinx: Enter the temple of the mysterious Sphinx, an ancient figure shrouded in legend and mystery.  Your Egyptologist will enthrall you with the tales told of this fascinating figure.

Insider Access: Private access to the paws of the Sphinx and the dream stela, this area is not open for public, you will be able to go as close as possible to the paws of the sphinx and take photos there

Lunch: Lunch today will be at the historic Mena House Oberoi Hotel, next to the Pyramids.  Built as a palace for the Empress Eugenie, during her visit to Egypt for the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, the Mena House “Khan El-Khalili Café” has floor-to-ceiling windows with views over the lush gardens of the hotel, and out onto the Great Pyramids themselves.

Return to your Hotel

Overnight: Overnight at Four Seasons First Residence.

Day 03: Saturday January 01^nd, 2012

[B, L]

Breakfast: Buffet breakfast at your Hotel

Memphis: At the site of Memphis, you will see the ancient capital that once stood as a flourishing metropolis during the time of the Pharaohs. The place is thickly surrounded by lush palm groves and bushes, isolating the site of the old city from modern civilization.

Return to hotel

Sakkara: Experience Egypt’s long and rich history in our exciting double tour to the city of Memphis and the necropolis of Sakkara. At vast Sakkara, you will see the famous Step Pyramid of King Zoser, the first freestanding stone structure in the world. Our Egyptologist will guide you to some tombs belonging to the nobles of the past. They show the beauty and excellence of Ancient Egyptian art on their walls and give an insight in the daily life of Ancient Egypt.

Lunch: Enjoy Lunch at Local restaurant

Dahshur: This southern extension of the necropolis of Sakkara is a field of Royal tombs about 3.5km long, only opened to tourists in 1996. Several pyramids can be found here, including the famed “Bent Pyramid”. As one of the most unusual pyramids in Egypt, and also one of the best preserved as much of its casing remains, it has attracted considerable attention over the centuries.

Another of the three pyramids at Dahshur which were built by the Pharaoh Sneferu, father of Cheops (of the Great Pyramid at Giza) is the Red Pyramid. This monument gets its common name from the reddish limestone used to build most of its core, but it is also sometimes referred to as the Shining or Northern Pyramid. It is the fourth highest pyramid ever built in Egypt, with almost 160 layers of stone. Significantly, the Red Pyramid was the first successful, true, cased Pyramid built in Egypt. Together, these pyramids represent the transition from the step-pyramid of Sakkara to the smooth-sided pyramids of Giza.

Return to your Hotel

Overnight at Four Seasons First Residence Hotel 

Day 04: Sunday January 02^rd, 2013

[B, L, D]

Breakfast: Buffet breakfast at your hotel

Check out: Odyssey Tour Coordinator will be at the Hotel to assist with check out procedures

Transfer: Transfer in modern Air-conditioned vehicle to Cairo domestic Airport to board your flight to Luxor

Arrival: Arrive at Luxor where Odyssey Tour Coordinator will be waiting you

Karnak Temple: Visit the Temple of Karnak, built over more than a thousand years by generations of Pharaohs.  The great “Hypostyle Hall” is an incredible forest of giant pillars, covering an area larger than the whole of Notre Dame Cathedral.

Check-in at noon time: Arrive on your 5-star deluxe Nile cruise boat, the “Sun Boat IV”, moored in private dock in Luxor. On board, you will be welcomed by the reception staff, who will offer you chilled fruit juice while assisting with your check-in.

Entertainment: Exact entertainment schedules during your cruise are adjusted according to the needs of each group and the exact sailing schedule of the boat, and, therefore, the day of each feature is subject to change.  However, every cruise on the Sun Boat IV will include:

§  A colorful  “galabeyya party” which gives each guest the opportunity to dress up in traditional Egyptian dress and dance to Arabic music.

§  A belly dancer, accompanied by a whirling dervish show in Luxor.

§  A trio of authentic Egyptian musicians in Aswan during afternoon tea.

§  A lecture accompanied by a slide show, by your Egyptologist guide.

Food & Beverage: Menus are changed on a seasonal basis to enable the Chef to use the freshest ingredients at all times.  However, the following is applicable to every cruise:

§  Most meals are served in the restaurant.  However, at least one barbecue lunch (while sailing) and breakfast will be served on deck (weather permitting).

§  Afternoon tea includes a range of teas and herbal infusions, fresh coffee and a selection of freshly baked, homemade cake, cookies and finger food

§  Mineral water, tea and coffee are included on a complimentary basis during meals.

Lunch: to be served on board

Valley of the Kings & Queens: Afternoon visit to the West Bank of Luxor to explore the Valley of the Kings, a vast City of the Dead where magnificent tombs were carved into the desert rocks, decorated richly, and filled with treasures for the afterlife by generations of Pharaohs.  You will also have the chance to visit at least one tomb in the Valley of the Queens.

Insider Access: Private opening for Seti I tomb at the Valley of the Kings and Nefertari Tomb at the valley of the Queens.

Private access to Set I Tomb: This tomb is not open for public private access will require special permission. The tomb made international headlines when it was discovered in 1817 and is one of the most important royal tombs. It is the most completely finished tomb in  the Valley of the Kings and the first that had decorations covering every passage and chamber. The refined and colorful relief work set the standard for all the tombs that came after it

Private access to Nefertari Tomb: At the Valley of the Queens, the highlight is visiting the beautiful tomb of Queen Nefertari, Ramses II’s beloved wife. It’s said to be the finest tomb you can see in Egypt, with vividly colored relief work and a ceiling painted with stars, giving an idea of how other, now faded tombs would have looked in their day. The 6 million dollar restoration of the tomb was led by the Getty Institute

Hatshepsut Temple: Rising out of the desert plain in a series of terraces, the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut (Ancient Egypt’s only female Pharaoh) merges with the sheer limestone cliffs that surround it, as if nature herself had built this extraordinary monument.

Photostop at Colossi of Memnon: On the way back to the river Nile, your road passes by the famed Colossi of Memnon, known in Ancient Greek times for their haunting voices at dawn.

Cocktail Reception: Tonight you will be greeted by your Boat Manager, who will introduce you to the boat staff and review on-board facilities and your cruise program for the next few days.  Complimentary cocktail and a selection of canapés will be served.

Dinner: Gourmet menu on board.

Overnight: On board in Luxor.

Day 02: Monday January 03^th, 2012

[B, L, D]

Very early sailing to Qena

Breakfast: Breakfast buffet on board while you cruise northwards to Qena, a particularly alluring part of Upper Egypt's landscape.

Denderah: Visit the Ptolemaic Temple of Goddess Hathor in Denderah. This wonderfully preserved temple complex is a rare sight to behold, complete with a massive stone roof, dark chambers, underground passages and towering columns inscribed with hieroglyphs. The main Temple of Hathor is almost intact. Hathor was the goddess or pleasure and of love, usually represented as a cow, or a woman with a cow’s head. She was the beneficent deity of maternal and family love, of beauty and light; the Greeks associated her with Aphrodite.

Lunch: Return to your boat for Lunch during sailing back to Luxor.

Afternoon Tea: Afternoon tea will be served while you cruise to Luxor.

Luxor Temple: Your Egyptologist will guide you on a tour of the East Bank of Luxor, to the strikingly graceful Temple of Luxor dedicated to the God Amun.

Dinner: Gourmet menu on board followed by a belly dancer, accompanied by a whirling dervish show.

Overnight: On board in Luxor.

Day 03: Tuesday January 04^th, 2012

[B, L, D]

Early sailing to Edfu passing by Esna

Breakfast: Breakfast buffet on board while you cruise to Edfu.

Lunch: Lunch on board, while you continue cruising to Edfu.

Edfu Temple: This afternoon, explore the largest and most completely preserved Pharaonic – albeit Greek-built – temple in Egypt, the extraordinary Temple of Horus at Edfu.

Cooking lesson: Egyptian cooking lesson will be presented on board.

Afternoon Tea: Afternoon tea will be served while you cruise to Kom Ombo.

Kom Ombo Temple: Visit the Temple of Kom Ombo, dedicated to the crocodile-god Sobek.  The temple stands at a bend in the Nile where in ancient times sacred crocodiles basked in the sun on the riverbank.

Dinner: Tonight’s dinner on board will be an “Egyptian Night” costume party for all guests, with a chance to dress up in traditional Egyptian “galabeyas”.  Dinner will be a lavish buffet of Egyptian specialities, followed by oriental music and dancing for everyone.

Overnight: On board in Kom Ombo.

Day 04: Wednesday January 05^th, 2012

[B, L, D]

Breakfast: Breakfast buffet on board during sailing to Aswan.

Philae Temple: Take a short motorboat ride to visit the romantic and majestic Philae Temple on the Island of Agilka.

Unfinished Obelisk: Next we proceed to the Granite Quarries, which supplied the ancient Egyptians with most of the hard stone used in pyramids and temples, and still hold a huge unfinished obelisk.

Lunch: Lunch on board.

Felucca Ride: In the afternoon proceed  (weather permitting) by taking a ride on a felucca, a typical Egyptian sail boat, around Elephantine Island, Lord Kitchener’s Botanical Gardens, and the Agha Khan Mausoleum (life jackets will be provided).

Afternoon tea: Enjoy your afternoon tea served in the lounge with a trio of authentic Egyptian musicians.

Dinner: Tonight’s farewell dinner will be a formal gala dinner, with white-gloved waiters serving gourmet cuisine.

Overnight: On board in Aswan.

Day 05: Thursday January 06^th, 2012

[B, L, D]

Breakfast: Buffet breakfast on board, and check out at 8:00 AM.

Transfer: Your Odyssey Representative will escort you to Aswan airport for your brief return flight to Abu Simbel

Abu Simbel Excursion: Visit the world-renowned site where Ramses II ordered two sun temples carved from the limestone mountains at Abu Simble, between 1290-1124 BC. At the Great Temple of Ra-Harakhte, the four famous colossal statues of Ramses II sit majestically over 20 meters high, staring out across the desert. Six massive standing statues front the Temple of Hathor, dedicated to the cow-headed goddess of love and built in honor of Ramses’ favorite wife, Queen Nefertari,, each 10 meters high. In modern times the waters that would rise with the completion of the High Dam threatened the two temples of Abu Simble. A campaign to save them was organized by UNESCO, with the temples being cut into blocks, raised piece-by-piece, and reassembled in a new position higher up the hillside. The massive job took two years to complete, 1966-1968.

Transfer: Transfer to Abu Simbel Airport to board your flight to Cairo via Aswan

Farwell dinner: Today we gather for farewell dinner at the Hotel

Overnight at: Four Seasons Nile Plaza   

Day 08: Friday January 07^th, 2012

[B, L]

Breakfast: buffet breakfast at your hotel

Museum: Your Egyptologist will escort you today on a fascinating tour of 7,000 years of Egyptian history with a visit to the Egyptian Museum of Antiquities.  The Museum houses the world’s greatest collection of Ancient Egyptian artifacts, including 12 rooms filled with golden treasures from the world-famous tomb of the boy-king Tutankhamun. 

Insider Access: Access to the Egyptian Museum before official working hours, enjoy visit the Museum before crowds

Coptic Cairo: Your Egyptologist will guide you today round the highlights of Coptic Cairo. There you will find the remains of the old Fortress of Babylon, built at the time of the Romans in Egypt to protect the country from invading enemies.

Churches: The walls of the fortress enclose the Church of St. Sergius, which is built on a crypt considered to be one of the resting places of the Holy Family during their flight to Egypt 200 years ago.  You will also see the “Hanging Church”, supported by only one column, and boasting incredible paintings inside.

Synagogue of Ben Ezra: Visit the Synagogue of Ben Ezra, from the time of the once thriving Jewish community in Egypt under the leadership of Rabbi Ben Ezra. Inside were discovered the so-called “Geniza Documents”, which showed an unparalleled source of information about life of the Jews in Egypt’s past. 

Lunch: Enjoy a 5-star lunch of traditional oriental dishes today, at the Arabian-style Neguib Mahfouz Restaurant.  Named after the Nobel-prize-winning Egyptian author, the restaurant lies in the very heart of the Khan El-Khalili Bazaar, and is steeped in atmosphere and history.

Islamic Cairo: Take a fascinating tour of Islamic Cairo, including the beautiful and graceful Mohamed Ali Mosque and the ancient Citadel, a spectacular medieval fortress perched on a hill above the city. Originally built by Salah El-Din in 1176 to fortify the city against the Crusaders, the Citadel was modified and enlarged over the centuries by subsequent rulers and today is a complex of three mosques and four museums. In the shadow of the citadel visit Sultan Hassan mosque

Return to Hotel for overnight at Four Seasons Nile Plaza    

Day 9: Sunday January 08^th, 2012

[B]

Breakfast: buffet breakfast at hotel

Check out & transfer to Cairo International airport for your departure flight back home