Luxury EgyptPrivate Nile Cruise: 5-Day Ultra Deluxe Luxor to Aswan
This private nile cruise runs 5 days and 4 nights from Luxor to Aswan on an ultra-deluxe 5-star ship, priced from $2,500 per person on Viator with the operator CRUISE ERA. A qualified Egyptologist guides your own group, entry fees to the historical sites on the itinerary are included, and all meals are covered on a full-board basis. The listing holds a 5.0 rating, though from only 13 reviews, which is a small sample. There are no domestic flights and no Abu Simbel, and Christmas, New Year and Easter are separate options with unstated prices. This page sets out what the price buys, what it leaves out and which travellers should pick a different listing from the luxury Egypt tours comparison. Compare it with the other luxury Egypt tours.
About This Tour
CRUISE ERA sells a private 5-day, 4-night cruise from Luxor to Aswan on an ultra-deluxe 5-star ship, with a private balcony in the cabin. The route covers the Valley of the Kings, Karnak, Edfu and Kom Ombo before ending in Aswan. A qualified Egyptologist guides private tours, and the price covers full-board meals, excursions as per the itinerary, entry fees to historical sites, an air-conditioned vehicle and meet and assist on arrival and departure.
The ship depends on the option chosen and may be the May Fair, Minerva, Sonesta, Esplanade or Concerto 2. Gratuities are extra. There are no flights and no Abu Simbel, and holiday periods are priced separately.
$2,500 per person, the lowest of three options on the listing. Christmas and New Year, and Easter, are separate options whose amounts are not stated.
5 days and 4 nights, all four nights on the ship.
Hotel pickup included, the time is not stated. Meet and assist on arrival and departure with an air-conditioned vehicle.
Private group, with private tours led by a qualified Egyptologist.
4 nights on an ultra-deluxe 5-star ship on full board, breakfast, lunch and dinner. The ship may be May Fair, Minerva, Sonesta, Esplanade or Concerto 2. Drinks are not stated as included.
Gratuities for cruise staff, guides and drivers are not included, and flights, Abu Simbel and drinks are absent from the inclusions. Free cancellation 6 full days before departure, 50% refund between 2 and 6 days, none inside 2 days.
Check Dates and Availability
Starting times are shown when you check a date. The listing has three options, so confirm which ship and which period you are booking.
You'll confirm the exact date and time on the secure booking page.
Quick answer The short answer
This private nile cruise starts at $2,500 per person for 5 days and 4 nights from Luxor to Aswan on an ultra-deluxe 5-star ship, with a private Egyptologist, full-board meals and entry fees included.
Key takeaways
- No flights and no Abu Simbel: add your own flight into Luxor Airport (LXR), about 6 km east of downtown, or pair it with a Cairo tour such as the 8-day Cairo, Aswan and Luxor private tour.
- The 5.0 rating rests on 13 reviews, a small sample compared with the 166 reviews at 4.9 on the 5-day luxury Nile cruise from Luxor to Aswan.
- Tips are excluded, so budget for cruise staff, guides and drivers on top of the fare.
- Prefer a sailing boat to a ship? Read the dahabiya Nile cruise guide and see the 5-day dahabiya cruise from Luxor to Aswan.
What the Price Actually Covers
The inclusions come straight from the operator's own listing, and so do the exclusions. There is no Abu Simbel, no balloon, no domestic flight and no drink package.
Included and Excluded
The $2,500 fare covers the cabin for 4 nights, full board, the private Egyptologist, entry fees to the historical sites on the itinerary, the excursions listed, meet and assist and air-conditioned transfers. Everything else is on you. The listing names only gratuities as excluded, but it also never states that drinks are included, so treat bar bills as extra.
Holiday periods are sold as separate options whose amounts are not stated, so the $2,500 may not be what you pay for Christmas, New Year or Easter. Because a solo traveller must book a single, and no single price is published, confirm the solo fare before committing.
| Line | In the price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Cabin, 4 nights | Yes | Ultra-deluxe 5-star ship with a private balcony, ship not fixed |
| Meals | Yes, full board | Breakfast, lunch and dinner. Drinks not stated |
| Egyptologist guide | Yes | Qualified, private tours |
| Entry fees | Yes | Historical sites per the itinerary: Valley of the Kings, Karnak, Edfu, Kom Ombo |
| Transfers | Yes | Meet and assist, air-conditioned vehicle |
| Flights | No | Not stated in the inclusions |
| Abu Simbel | No | Not stated in the inclusions |
| Drinks | Not stated | No inclusion line mentions them |
| Tips | No | Gratuities for cruise staff, guides and drivers are excluded |
| Holiday dates | Separate options | Christmas, New Year and Easter amounts not stated |
| Solo or triple | Rules apply | Solo books a single, three share a triple |
What You May Still Pay on the Day
Tipping is the main on-the-ground cost. One tipping guide suggests EGP 250 to 500 a day for a private guide, and cruise crew tips commonly quoted at US$5 to 10 per person per night, though sources differ. Keep Egyptian pounds handy for porters and housekeeping.
The visa is also yours to buy: sources disagree, with one citing US$30 on arrival per the FCDO and another reporting US$45 via Gulf News, and an earlier US$25 figure also in circulation. The FCDO also caps Egyptian pounds taken in or out of the country at EGP 5,000.
Sources: UK FCDO travel advice: Egypt, Wikipedia: Egypt
The ruined colonnade and walls of the Temple of Kom Ombo in warm evening light. Photo: Ovedc, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
What the Day Is Really Like
The listing confirms the sites and the route but gives few clock times, so most of this follows the structure it publishes rather than a minute-by-minute schedule.
Luxor Embarkation
Pickup is included, the time is not stated. Meet and assist covers arrival, and an air-conditioned vehicle handles the transfer to the ship, an ultra-deluxe 5-star vessel with a private balcony in the cabin. Check availability to see starting times.
Embarkation, lunch and the first afternoon on board follow the cruise line's own rhythm, which the listing does not spell out.
Luxor Sightseeing
The itinerary covers the Valley of the Kings on the west bank and Karnak Temple on the east, each a private tour with the qualified Egyptologist. Entry fees to these historical sites are included. Ancient Thebes, inscribed by UNESCO in 1979, covers roughly 93 km2 on both banks of the Nile, with the living city on the east side and the necropolis on the west.
Karnak's Great Hypostyle Hall covers 5,000 m2 with 134 columns in 16 rows.
Edfu
The ship sails south from Luxor toward Edfu, a temple Auguste Mariette began clearing in 1860. The Esna barrage south of Luxor sits about 55 km from the city and its locks regularly delay cruise ships, so sailing times can shift. The Edfu visit is a private guided excursion with entry fees covered.
Kom Ombo
The cruise continues to Kom Ombo Temple, the last of the four sites the listing names, again with the private Egyptologist and entry included. The road distance from Luxor to Aswan is about 213.8 km.
Aswan and Disembarkation
The cruise ends in Aswan, on the east bank at the first cataract, a city of about 370,000 people. Meet and assist on departure is included, and the air-conditioned vehicle covers the transfer out. The listing does not state a return point or time, so confirm both when booking.
A 5-Star Nile Cruise from Luxor to Aswan
A walk through a five-star Nile cruise ship from Luxor to Aswan, with cabins, dining and stops. Third-party video by Jumping Places. This site did not shoot it and has no relationship with the creator.
Who This Tour Rules Out
The listing is welcoming on access but strict on money, and it leaves gaps that matter to some travellers.
Travellers Who Need Flights or Abu Simbel Handled
Neither flights nor Abu Simbel appear in the inclusions, and the tour has no Cairo nights at all. If you want the pyramids, the flights and an optional Abu Simbel visit in one booking, look at the 8-day Cairo, Aswan and Luxor private tour instead, which adds both flights and a Cairo hotel.
Travellers Who Want a Lower Fare or a Sailing Boat
At $2,500 this is the dearest of the three 5-day Luxor to Aswan cruises compared here. The 5-day luxury Nile cruise from Luxor to Aswan runs the same route privately for $1,900, and the 5-day dahabiya cruise from Luxor to Aswan sails a traditional boat for $1,750 with all entrance fees.
Travellers Wary of Cancellation Terms and Thin Reviews
You get no refund inside 2 days and only 50% between 2 and 6 days, tighter than the free 24-hour cancellation on several shorter listings. The 5.0 score comes from 13 reviews, so the evidence base is thin. Ask for the ship name and the holiday-option price in writing before you pay, since neither is stated.
Access and Fitness
The listing says the tour suits all physical fitness levels and is wheelchair accessible, with wheelchair-accessible transport and prams allowed. The listing shows age bands of 0 to 4, 5 to 11 and 12 to 99 and states no minimum age. Note that tomb corridors in the Valley of the Kings are steep and can be hot, and Luxor summer highs average above 41 C from June to August, so visit October to February when conditions suit sightseeing.
The pylon of the Temple of Horus at Edfu. Photo: Ad Meskens, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Getting There and What to Add
The cruise starts in Luxor and ends in Aswan, so your flights, trains and onward plans are your own arrangements.
Getting to Luxor
Luxor Airport (LXR) lies about 6 km east of downtown. Cairo to Luxor is 637.2 km by road, and Rome2Rio shows a flight at 3h13m door to door, a train at 10h45m and a bus at 8h55m. The sleeper train departs Giza at 20:00 and 20:30 and takes about 9 hours to Luxor, though Rome2Rio's train listing puts it at 10h45m, so the sources differ.
Meet and assist covers your arrival, and pickup from a Luxor hotel is included.
Leaving Aswan
Aswan International Airport sits about 10 km from the city centre, though one source puts it 16 km southwest, so the exact distance differs by source. Cairo to Aswan is 753 km straight line and 848.4 km by road, with a flight at 3h48m door to door, about 1h25m in the air, and a 14h15m train. If you fly home through Cairo, add the pyramids before or after the cruise.
What the Cruise Skips
Abu Simbel is the big one: Ramesses II began the temples around 1264 BC and the two facades stand 230 to 280 km from Aswan depending on the source, with a foreign ticket at EGP 750 on the ministry price list. The Grand Egyptian Museum near Giza charges EGP 1,450 per a 2026 visitor guide or EGP 1,000 per a 2024 trial-period review. Saqqara sits about 30 to 40 km south of Cairo with an area ticket of EGP 600 on the ministry list.
Add Cairo days with the 8-day Cairo, Aswan and Luxor private tour, or read the pyramids of Giza tour and Valley of the Kings guides before you go.
Itinerary Day by Day
The listing fixes the route and the sites but states few clock times, so the structure below follows its own outline.
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Start
Luxor pickup and embarkation
Included pickup, the time not stated, and meet and assist on arrival. An air-conditioned vehicle transfers you to the ultra-deluxe 5-star ship, where the cabin has a private balcony. First night on board, full board.
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Luxor
Karnak Temple
A private guided visit to Karnak on Luxor's east bank with the qualified Egyptologist, entry fees included. The Great Hypostyle Hall covers 5,000 m2 with 134 columns.
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Luxor west bank
Valley of the Kings
The west bank necropolis, used for royal burials from about 1539 BC to 1075 BC. Entry is covered, and the private Egyptologist walks you through the tombs on the itinerary.
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Sailing day
South to Edfu
The ship cruises south. The Esna locks about 55 km from Luxor can delay the schedule, so timings flex. A private excursion covers Edfu Temple with entry included.
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Sailing day
Kom Ombo
Continue toward Aswan with a private guided stop at Kom Ombo Temple, entry fees covered, on the Luxor to Aswan stretch, about 213.8 km by road.
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Last day
Aswan and disembarkation
The cruise ends in Aswan at the first cataract. Meet and assist on departure is included with the air-conditioned transfer. Return point and time are not stated.
Pros and Cons
What this listing does well and where it falls short against the other cruises compared here.
What we genuinely like
- A genuinely private cruise: your own group and a qualified Egyptologist on every excursion, at $2,500 per person
- Ultra-deluxe 5-star ship with a private balcony, on full board for 4 nights
- Entry fees to the Valley of the Kings, Karnak, Edfu and Kom Ombo are in the price
- Free cancellation up to 6 full days before departure, plus a bad-weather cancellation clause
- Wheelchair-accessible tour and transport, suitable for all fitness levels
The honest downsides
- No flights, no Abu Simbel and no Cairo nights, so the itinerary is river-only
- Tips are excluded, and drinks are never stated as included
- The ship is not fixed: it may be May Fair, Minerva, Sonesta, Esplanade or Concerto 2
- The 5.0 rating rests on only 13 reviews
- Christmas, New Year and Easter are separate options with unstated prices
- No refund inside 2 days and only 50% between 2 and 6 days
Who it's NOT for: Travellers who want flights, Cairo and Abu Simbel in one booking should pick a longer private tour instead.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does this private Nile cruise cost?
The listing shows $2,500 per person as its lowest option, and Christmas, New Year and Easter are separate options whose amounts are not stated. Compare it with the $1,900 5-day luxury Nile cruise from Luxor to Aswan before you book.
Are flights and Abu Simbel included?
No. The inclusions cover the cruise, guide, meals, transfers and entry fees only, so you arrange flights to Luxor Airport (LXR), about 6 km east of downtown, yourself. For a booking that bundles flights and a Cairo stay, with Abu Simbel as an optional extra, see the 8-day Cairo, Aswan and Luxor private tour.
Which ship will I sail on?
The listing names five possibilities: May Fair, Minerva, Sonesta, Esplanade or Concerto 2, and the choice depends on the option booked. If a fixed vessel matters to you, ask before paying, or consider the 5-day dahabiya Nile cruise for a traditional sailing boat.
What are the cancellation terms?
A full refund if you cancel at least 6 full days before departure, 50% between 2 and 6 days, and none inside 2 days, with a bad-weather cancellation clause. That is stricter than the free 24-hour cancellation on the shared 4-day Nile cruise with Abu Simbel.
Is the tour private and who guides it?
Yes, it is a private group with private tours led by a qualified Egyptologist, and the entry fees to the Valley of the Kings, Karnak, Edfu and Kom Ombo are included. The Valley of the Kings guide explains what those tombs hold.
What extra costs should I budget for?
Gratuities for cruise staff, guides and drivers are excluded, and drinks are not stated as included, so plan cash for tips and the bar. One tipping guide suggests EGP 250 to 500 a day for a private guide, and cruise crew tips are commonly quoted at US$5 to 10 per person per night. Read the Nile river cruise guide for more on onboard costs.
When is the best time to sail this route?
Cruises between Luxor and Aswan run mainly in the October to February window, when Luxor average highs fall from 35.5 C in October to 22.8 C in January, against summer averages above 41 C. The best time to visit Egypt guide breaks the year down month by month.
Prices, availability and terms are set by the operator and confirmed at checkout.
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