Luxury EgyptLuxor to Aswan Nile Cruise: The 5-Day Private Tour
This luxor to aswan nile cruise is a private 5-day trip sold by Luxor and Aswan Travel on Viator at $1,900 per person. You get your own English-speaking Egyptologist guide, breakfast, lunch and dinner every day, a meet and assist service on arrival and departure, and a choice of single, double or triple cabin. The rating is 4.9 from 166 reviews. What you do not get is detail: the ship is not named, the number of nights on board is not stated, entrance fees are not itemised and all sales are final. This page sets out what the price covers, what to ask before you book, and which of the other luxury Egypt tours may suit you better. Compare it with the other Luxury Egypt.
About This Tour
Luxor and Aswan Travel sells this as a private 5-day Nile cruise between Luxor and Aswan with a private English-speaking Egyptologist guide. The listing calls Luxor the world's greatest open-air museum and Aswan the Jewel of the Nile. Meals are full board at breakfast, lunch and dinner, and staff assist during your stay and excursions.
The gaps matter as much as the inclusions. The ship is not named, the number of nights on board is not stated, and the $1,900 is the lowest of three cabin options without saying which one. Entrance fees, domestic flights and Abu Simbel are all absent from the inclusion list. Sales are final with no refund.
$1,900 per person, the lowest of three cabin options. The listing does not say whether that is the single, double or triple cabin.
5 days. The number of nights on board the ship is not stated.
Hotel pickup is included, the pickup time is not stated. The group is private, with your own Egyptologist guide in English.
A Nile cruise cabin, single, double or triple. No hotel nights are listed and the ship name and class are not stated.
Domestic flights are not included. Abu Simbel is not mentioned in the listing, so treat it as an add-on to arrange yourself.
Breakfast, lunch and dinner included. Laundry, tips for the guide, driver and cruise staff, and any optional tours cost extra. All sales are final, no refund.
Check Dates and Availability
The listing says to check availability for starting times, which it does not publish in advance. Cabin type is chosen at booking from single, double and triple.
You'll confirm the exact date and time on the secure booking page.
Quick answer The short answer
This private 5-day Luxor to Aswan Nile cruise costs $1,900 per person and carries a 4.9 rating from 166 reviews, with a private Egyptologist guide and full board included.
Key takeaways
- Entrance fees, flights and Abu Simbel are not listed as included. Compare what each cruise covers on the comparison table.
- All sales are final. If a refund matters, the 4-day Nile cruise with Abu Simbel has free cancellation 24 hours ahead.
- The ship is not named. If you want the ship class and the entry fees spelled out, see the 5-day ultra deluxe Nile cruise.
- The Nile river cruise guide shows how the route works.
What the Price Actually Covers
The inclusion list is short and honest, but it leaves out the items that usually decide a cruise booking. Here is the line-by-line, with what you may still pay on the day.
The Inclusion List, Line by Line
Six things are included: a meet and assist service on arrival and departure, a private English-speaking Egyptologist guide, breakfast, lunch and dinner, and staff assistance during your stay and excursions. Hotel pickup is included, though the pickup time is not stated.
Everything else is open. Entrance fees are not mentioned, so ask the operator before booking whether site tickets are in the price. On the ministry price list the Valley of the Kings foreign adult ticket is EGP 750 and Abu Simbel is EGP 750, so an uncovered ticket run adds up fast. Drinks are not stated as included. A valid passport is required on the day of travel, and the Egypt visa on arrival costs US$30 per the FCDO, or US$45 since the December rise reported by Gulf News. Vegetarian meals are available on request at booking.
| Line | In the price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Private Egyptologist guide | Yes | English-speaking, your own private guide |
| Full board | Yes | Breakfast, lunch and dinner, vegetarian on request |
| Meet and assist on arrival and departure | Yes | Transfers by meet and assist service |
| Cruise cabin | Yes | Single, double or triple, ship and nights not stated |
| Entrance fees | Not stated | Ask before booking |
| Domestic flights | No | Not included at all |
| Abu Simbel | Not stated | Not mentioned in the listing |
| Drinks | Not stated | Not listed as included |
| Tips | No | Guide, driver and cruise staff tipped separately |
| Cancellation | No refund | All sales are final |
How It Sits Against the Other 5-Day Cruises
Three other cruises run the same Luxor to Aswan water. The 5-Day Ultra Deluxe Nile Cruise costs $2,500 and states a 5-star ultra deluxe ship with entry fees included and free cancellation 6 days out. The 5-Day Dahabiya Nile Cruise costs $1,750 with entrance fees and 4 stated nights.
The 4-day small-group cruise with Abu Simbel is $690, the cheapest, with entry fees and Abu Simbel included and 24-hour cancellation. This listing is the only one of the four that leaves the ship, the nights and the fees all unstated at the from-price.
| Cruise | Price | Ship and fees |
|---|---|---|
| This 5-day private cruise | $1,900 | Ship, nights and fees not stated |
| 5-Day Ultra Deluxe Nile Cruise | $2,500 | 5-star ultra deluxe ship, entry fees included |
| 5-Day Dahabiya Nile Cruise | $1,750 | Dahabiya, 4 nights, entry fees included |
| 4-Day Nile Cruise with Abu Simbel | $690 | Shared group up to 18, fees and Abu Simbel included |
Sources: UK FCDO travel advice: Egypt, Wikipedia: Egypt
A multi-deck Nile cruise ship passing palm groves with desert cliffs behind. Photo: Marc Ryckaert (MJJR), CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
What the Day Is Really Like
The listing publishes no day-by-day itinerary, no clock times and no return point. What it does state is the shape of the trip, and that is what follows.
Arrival in Luxor
The cruise starts in Luxor, 420 miles south of Cairo by the listing's own description. A meet and assist service meets you on arrival, and hotel pickup is included, so if you are already in Luxor the crew collects you from your hotel at a time the listing leaves unstated. Your private Egyptologist guide is with you from the start.
Luxor sits on the site of ancient Thebes, and the east bank held the living city while the west bank across the Nile held the necropolis.
Sailing South to Aswan
The river leg runs from Luxor to Aswan, a road distance of about 213.8 km according to Rome2Rio, with Esna and its lock partway along. The Esna lock closes from mid-April for water management, which can require transfers between boats, a point worth raising with the operator if you travel in that window. Meals on board are full board.
How many nights you actually sleep on the ship within the 5 days is not stated, so confirm it before paying.
Aswan and the End of the Trip
The trip ends in Aswan, where the Nile runs clear below the first cataract and the granite hills close in on the banks. The meet and assist service covers your departure, and staff assist during the stay and excursions here. The listing states no return point and no return time, and Abu Simbel lies south of Aswan, which is a separate day trip the listing does not mention at all.
Plan that add-on independently if the temples are why you came.
A 5-Day Nile River Cruise from Luxor to Aswan
A five-day Nile cruise from Luxor to Aswan, shown stop by stop. Third-party video by The Usual Traveller. This site did not shoot it and has no relationship with the creator.
Who This Tour Rules Out
The listing's own terms and the gaps in it exclude several kinds of traveller outright. Match yourself against this list before booking.
Anyone Who Might Need to Cancel
All sales are final and no refund is available for cancellations, and reserve-now-pay-later is not offered. That is the single hardest term on this page. If your plans could shift, the 9-day private tour with flights and Nile cruise offers free cancellation 24 hours ahead for $2,300, and the dahabiya cruise at $1,750 has the same 24-hour term.
Travellers Who Need the Details Up Front
The ship is not named, the number of nights on board is not stated, and the $1,900 is the lowest of three cabin tiers without saying which. If you will not pay blind, the 5-day ultra deluxe cruise states a 5-star ultra deluxe ship, states 4 nights and includes entry fees at $2,500. If a sailing boat appeals instead, the dahabiya Nile cruise guide explains the difference.
Visitors Who Want Abu Simbel and the Pyramids Built In
Abu Simbel is not mentioned, domestic flights are excluded and the route never touches Cairo or Giza. Travellers who want the whole country in one booking should look at the 12-day luxury Egypt Nile tour at $6,527, which includes flights, Abu Simbel, 30 entrance fees and 11 nights in 5-star stays, or browse the full set of luxury Egypt tours before committing.
Fitness, Access and Season Notes
The listing asks for at least a moderate level of physical fitness. Wheelchair access is stated for the tour and its transport, infants must sit on an adult lap and specialised infant seats are available. Viator lists child pricing for ages 6 to 11 and adult pricing from 12 to 99, which are price bands, not boarding limits.
Heat is the other filter: Luxor averages above 41 C in June and July, so the comfortable cruise season is October to February.
Feluccas moored among the granite rocks of the Nile at Aswan. Photo: Marc Ryckaert (MJJR), CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Getting There and What to Add
The cruise starts in Luxor and ends in Aswan, so your flights and any add-ons sit outside the booking. Here is how to reach the start and what to bolt on.
Reaching Luxor
Rome2Rio puts a Cairo to Luxor flight at 3h13m door to door, against a 10h45m train and an 8h55m bus, and the road distance is 637.2 km. Luxor Airport (LXR) lies about 6 km east of downtown. If you come overland from Cairo, the sleeper train departs Giza at 20:00 and 20:30.
Alternative Egypt gives about 9 hours to Luxor and Rome2Rio lists 10h45m. The meet and assist service covers the arrival, and the pickup time is not stated.
Adding Days Before and After
The pyramids are the obvious pre-cruise add-on, and the pyramids of Giza tour guide covers the plateau, where the ministry price list has the adult ticket at EGP 700 and the Great Pyramid interior at EGP 1,000. The Grand Egyptian Museum is next door to Giza, with the foreign adult ticket at EGP 1,450 on one current guide or EGP 1,000 on an earlier review, so check both figures. From Aswan after the cruise, Abu Simbel is a drive of 3 to 4 hours each way depending on the source, and the Abu Simbel guide covers the temples Ramesses II built from around 1264 BC.
Cairo to Alexandria is about 220 km with trains in around 3h50m.
Day-by-Day Outline
The listing publishes no timed itinerary, so this outline follows the stated structure of the 5 days and flags everything the operator has left open.
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Day 1
Arrive in Luxor and board
Meet and assist on arrival, then pickup from your Luxor hotel, time not stated. Your private Egyptologist guide starts with you. Board the cruise ship in Luxor, the modern name for ancient Thebes. Lunch and dinner on board are included.
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Days 2 to 4
Sailing Luxor to Aswan
The boat works south along the Nile towards Aswan, roughly 213.8 km by road, passing the Esna lock. Full board continues at breakfast, lunch and dinner. Which sites are visited on which day, and whether entrance tickets are covered, are not stated. Ask the operator for the day plan in writing.
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Day 5
Aswan and departure
The cruise concludes in Aswan, the listing's Jewel of the Nile, where granite hills rise over the first cataract. The meet and assist service covers departure. No return point or return time is stated, so confirm your transfer or onward flight, remembering flights are not included.
Pros and Cons
An honest read of the listing against the other cruises at the same price level.
What we genuinely like
- A private group with your own English-speaking Egyptologist guide for the full 5 days
- Full board at breakfast, lunch and dinner, with vegetarian meals on request
- A 4.9 rating from 166 reviews
- Choice of single, double or triple cabin, and wheelchair access stated for the tour and its transport
- Meet and assist on arrival and departure, plus hotel pickup included
The honest downsides
- The ship is not named and the number of nights on board is not stated, so you book without knowing the boat
- The $1,900 from-price does not say which of the three cabin tiers it buys
- Entrance fees are not itemised, and the Valley of the Kings ticket alone is EGP 750 on the ministry price list
- All sales are final, with no refund and no reserve-now-pay-later
- Abu Simbel, domestic flights and drinks are all absent from the inclusions
Who it's NOT for: Not for anyone who needs a refundable booking, a named ship or Abu Simbel and entry fees in the price, all of which the 5-day ultra deluxe cruise and the 4-day small-group cruise state up front.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does this Luxor to Aswan Nile cruise cost?
$1,900 per person, which is the lowest of the three cabin options, single, double and triple, and the listing does not say which tier that price buys. The 5-day ultra deluxe cruise states its full board and entry fees at $2,500.
How long is the cruise and how many nights are on board?
The trip runs 5 days from Luxor to Aswan, but the number of nights spent on the ship is not stated anywhere in the listing. The Nile river cruise guide explains how the common cruise lengths work.
Is this cruise private and who guides it?
Yes, it is a private group with your own English-speaking Egyptologist guide, plus meet and assist on arrival and departure. The 12-day luxury Egypt Nile tour offers the same private Egyptologist model across a full country route.
Are entrance fees, flights and Abu Simbel included?
No domestic flights are included, entrance fees are not mentioned in the inclusion list and Abu Simbel is not mentioned at all, so confirm all three with the operator before paying. The 4-day Nile cruise with Abu Simbel includes entry fees and Abu Simbel from $690.
Can I cancel this booking?
No. All sales are final and no refund is available for cancellations. If that risk is too high, the dahabiya Nile cruise from Luxor to Aswan offers free cancellation 24 hours ahead.
When is the best time to sail from Luxor to Aswan?
The preferred season for Nile cruises is October to February, and Luxor averages above 41 C in June and July, so summer sailings are hot work. The best time to visit Egypt guide breaks the year down month by month.
Is the tour suitable for children and wheelchair users?
Wheelchair access is stated for the tour and its transportation, and specialised infant seats are available, while infants must sit on an adult's lap. The ages 6 to 11 and 12 to 99 bands on Viator are price categories, not limits. You should still have at least a moderate level of physical fitness for the sightseeing.
Prices, availability and terms are set by the operator and confirmed at checkout.
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