Day 1 - Arrive Cairo

Upon arrival at Cairo International Airport, you are met by your Tour Coordinator who assists you with immigration and obtaining your luggage. You are then transferred by air-conditioned vehicle to your centrally-located hotel and assisted with check-in.

Overnight: The Four Seasons

Meal Plan:

Day 2 - Cairo

After breakfast at your hotel, you are introduced to your Egyptologist and begin your tour with a visit to the Egyptian Museum of Antiquities. Exhibiting over 120,000 objects in its 107 halls, the Museum of Antiquities boasts the world’s greatest collection of Ancient Egyptian artifacts. Venture into the fascinating Mummy Room within the museum, housing eleven royal Kings and Queens of ancient Egypt, including the Great Ramses II; Egypt’s longest ruling pharaoh.

Enjoy lunch at one of Cairo's finest restaurants.

Next, visit the fascinating Khan El-Khalili Bazaar, reputed to be the largest bazaar in the Middle East. Originally founded as a watering stop for caravanserai in the 14th century, the bazaar has now grown to vast proportions.  Wander through the labyrinth of narrow streets to find workshops and stalls selling all manner of things from woodwork and glassware to leather goods and perfumes. 

Overnight: The Four Seasons

Meal Plan: B,L

Day 3 - Cairo

After breakfast, your day begins with a visit of the Great Pyramids of Giza which are the only present-day survivors of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, built over 4,500 years ago as giant tombs for the mummies of the pharaohs Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure, who were father, son and grandson. The pyramids are truly monumental in scale, with the largest, Khufu's, constructed from over two million blocks. The pyramids were not built by slaves but by Egyptian peasants, whose labor in building the pyramids paid their taxes to the Pharaoh, who also fed, clothed and housed them.

Nearby sits the enigmatic Sphinx with the body of a lion and the face of a man wearing a royal head cloth, which workers may have based on King Khafre to guard his enormous funerary monument. About a thousand years after the Sphinx was built, it was covered in sand until a young prince had a dream in which the Sphinx told him that if he cleared the sand away, he would become Pharaoh. This story is told on the Dream Stela that was placed between the Sphinx's paws by King Tuthmose IV.

Lunch is served at a local restaurant.

This afternoon, visit the pyramids of Sakkara. Sakkara is the former necropolis (cemetery) for the ancient Egyptian city of Memphis and the place where the very first pyramids were built as tombs for kings. Instead of the smooth sides featured on other pyramids, the pyramids here feature six steps on the outside, representing the pharaoh's stepladder to heaven. Discover the famous Step Pyramid of King Zoser, the first pyramid ever built and the world's oldest freestanding stone structure. Admire the beautiful tomb art at Sakkara, which gives great insight into the lives of the ancient Egyptians.

Overnight: The Four Seasons

Meal Plan: B,L

Day 4 - Cairo – Alexandria

Enjoy breakfast and then meet your guide in the lobby of your hotel to start your trip to Alexandria.

Upon arrival at Alexandria, visit the Catacombs of Kom El Shugafa, the largest Roman burial site in Egypt and the final resting place for 300 individuals, whose tombs are cut into the bedrock in massive tiers, descending 35 meters (115 feet) into the ground. There is even a banquet hall where grieving relatives paid their last respects at a funeral feast. The artisans who built the tombs in the second century combined ancient Egyptian and Greco-Roman motifs in a fascinating style. Next, visit the Roman Amphitheater - the only one of its kind in Egypt - and imagine the crowds of a bygone era cheering at a musical performance or a wrestling match. With room for 800 spectators on white, marble seats, the acoustics are such that if you stand on the stage and whisper, a person in the back row should be able to hear you.

After your tour, you are transferred by air-conditioned vehicle to your centrally-located hotel where your Tour Coordinator assists you with check-in.

Lunch today is at Four Seasons San Stefano and then the rest of your day is at leisure.

Overnight: The Four Seasons

Meal Plan: B,L

Day 5 - Alexandria- Cairo

Breakfast is on offer at your hotel before check-out. From here, explore the marvelous city of Alexandria, beginning with the Fort of Qait Bay, the 15th century Mamluk fort that overlooks the entrance to Alexandria’s eastern harbor. Built on the foundations of the Pharos lighthouse, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, it incorporates both a castle and a mosque within its walls. Just north of Qait Bay lies the site of the famous underwater excavation where hundreds of pillars, statues and sphinxes have been found.

Next it’s on to Rosetta, one of the few remaining cities to boast houses (originally a fort) still in their original, 9th Century, Islamic architecture. Because of this, Rosetta is considered a large, open-air museum and is also where the famous Rosetta stone was found. Explore the Rosetta National Museum, which consists of four floors, to learn about the French invasion of Egypt, Napoleon’s expedition, and the British campaign.  Next discover the Rosetta Fort, a smaller copy of the Qaitbay Citadel in Alexandria and constructed by the same Mamluk King.

Enjoy lunch at one of Alexandria's finest restaurants.

End your day by visiting the Bibliotheca Alexandrina which is not only a library, but an integrated cultural complex with museums, exhibition areas, educational centers and an international conference center. The principal objective of reviving the Bibliotheca Alexandrina is to establish a comprehensive research library with a unique collection and intention. The new library is designed as a modern state-of-the-art translation of the old, adequate for crossing the frontiers and meeting the challenges of the 21st century. It will certainly contribute to excellence in the research and advancement of human knowledge.

At the end of your tour, you are transferred back to your original hotel in Cairo.

Overnight: The Four Seasons

Meal Plan: B,L

Day 6 - Depart Cairo

Enjoy breakfast at your hotel.

Transfer with your Tour Coordinator to Cairo Airport for your departure flight.

Overnight:

Meal Plan: B