In Daraw, we plan dinner for that night, and you learn how to shop Egyptian style, then try your new skills in the market shopping for ingredients for dinner. We also visit a camel barn to learn about these fascinating animals and the camel trade.

We will visit a Nubian village. From about 7,000 BC, communities evolved from African Nile Valley civilizations to form the Nubian, Ancient Egyptian and Kushite civilizations. There are several Nubian communities near Daraw. Nubian civilization is one of the oldest in the Nile River valley. Nubians are a distinct ethnolinguistic group indigenous to southern Egypt and northern Sudan, but Nubians in Egypt who were displaced by the construction of the High Dam near Aswan now mostly live north of Lake Nasser. Although Nubians are historically and culturally distinct from other Egyptians, they have long been interconnected with Egypt. While many Egyptian pharaohs colonized Nubia at various times, Nubian pharaohs from the Kingdom of Kush ruled ancient Egypt in the 7th century BC.

The Temple of Kom Ombo is dedicated to the crocodile-featured god Sobek and the god Horus. The connection to the power of the Nile is unmistakable as you look towards the temple. We also visit the Crocodile Museum, which includes some impressive mummified crocodiles.

Sail to El Selsela, where we take a short walk parallel to the Nile to visit shrines and a massive quarry. Large amounts of sandstone were quarried here for temple buildings in Thebes (Luxor). Cut into the rock are the speos (chapel) of Horemheb, with its sanctuary containing rock shrines and various stelae and inscriptions. The huge quarry gives context to how much building material was sourced from this area. There is also an area of sand here where children (and children at heart) can slide and play. Dinner and overnight on the dahabiya, where you are now becoming part of the rhythms of Nile River life.

Stepping off the dahabiya at Bisaw Island and the village, we take a leisurely walk through a farm, meet some of the women and children, and learn how the unique sun bread is baked in homes here. We are welcomed by the local fishermen to their boats, learning of the skills of these men who live in harmony with the Nile. Fish caught can be enjoyed as part of dinner that evening.

We board the dahabiya for lunch and sail towards Edfu. Horse-drawn carriages take us to the imposing temple with its grand spaces and many hieroglyphic inscriptions. View Tell Edfu to the West of the temple, which includes houses dating from the Old to New Kingdom. If time allows, we also stroll through the local market.
We sail again, time to relax with dinner, overnight on board in El Hegz. El Hegz Village. This is an opportunity for true cross-cultural exchange as we visit a local family who are excited to have visitors from the wider world. Your guide will translate so you can ask them questions and enhance your understanding of village culture.

After breakfast, check out of the dahabiya. In Esna, we explore the temple dedicated to the ram-headed god Khnum. The temple sits below street level within the town, as it was excavated from layers of earth. Enjoy discovering heritage craft traditions, including beautiful textiles, as we visit the restored Wekalet Al-Geddawi, a caravanserai, and the Ottoman-era market of Al-Qissariya. Drive about an hour to Luxor.

After lunch, we visit Karnak Temple and Luxor Temple for 3 to 4 hours. On the east bank of Luxor, bookending the modern city, are the ancient Theban temples of Karnak and Luxor, with the Avenue of Sphinxes and Luxor Museum between them. Karnak Temple is huge; the site covers more than 100 hectares. Construction at Karnak began in the Middle Kingdom (2000–1700 BC) and continued into the Ptolemaic era (305–30 BC). Its size and variety within the site make it extraordinary.

We continue to Luxor Temple, located approximately three kilometers south of Karnak Temple. These temples were linked with a processional way bordered with sphinxes, now known as Avenue of the Sphinxes. As was the case with Karnak temple, unlike most other ancient Egyptian temples it is not laid out on an east‑west axis, but is oriented towards Karnak. It is the only temple in the world where ancient Egyptian religions, Greek and Roman cults, Christianity and Islam have been practiced. The temple was substantially built by Amenhotep III (c. 1390–1352 BC) and Ramesses II (1279–1213 BC). 
Go to your hotel for an overnight stay.

Modern Luxor is the location of the ancient city of Thebes. We will visit some of the most important sites and monuments on both the east and west banks of the Nile. The West Bank of Luxor is home to countless tombs, temples, and the village of the workmen who built and applied their artistry to the tombs and temples. As we start exploring the West Bank, our first visit is to the Colossi of Memnon. These two imposing sandstone statues that indicate the site of the mortuary temple of 18th-dynasty pharaoh Amenhotep III (1386–1353 BC) were completed in 1350 BC. The statues of the seated ruler are 18 metres high, and each is estimated to weigh 720 tons. The temple is the largest on the West Bank and continues to be excavated; you can see this underway behind the statues. Archeologists believe the single sandstone blocks from which each statue was carved were quarried near Cairo and transported to Thebes.

We continue inland to the Valley of the Kings, which is part of the necropolis of ancient Thebes. This is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. For more than a thousand years, the kings, queens, and nobles of the New Kingdom (1500–1070 BC) chose to be buried here. The tombs are carved into the limestone rock of a wadi (valley), and the surrounding landscape is in itself awesome. Many of the tombs are exquisitely decorated; they show scenes of the spiritual life of the ancient Egyptians. There are so many tombs worth visiting that today’s visit to three will hopefully encourage you to return to visit more of the Valley of the Kings with Real Tours.

We move next to the temple of Hatshepsut. During her reign, the female pharaoh Hatshepsut (1473–1458 BC) built a mortuary temple at Deir el Bahari, situated directly across the Nile from Karnak Temple, which was the main sanctuary of the god Amun. Many find it one of the most beautiful of all the temples constructed in Egypt. Hatshepsut clearly realised that, as a woman in what was usually a male power role, impressive structures that bettered those of previous rulers would help to impress people and legitimise her reign.

Our last fascinating site today is the ancient workmen's village. Deir el-Medina is the Arabic name for the village where the craftsmen and artisans who worked on the tombs and other monuments of the West Bank lived, including those in the Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Queens. It is an important site due to the abundant information it has given about the daily life of those who lived here. At Deir el-Medina, the lives of the workers responsible for the magnificent tombs were coming to light. 
Return to your hotel at the end of your tour.

*Optional activity:  Hot Air Balloon ride over Luxor West Bank for the sun rise. (about 50 min flying)