Explorer Egypt: Cairo, Aswan & Luxor — Self-Launched

Land at Cairo International Airport (CAI). Skip the private transfer and take the airport bus or Careem/Uber to downtown (roughly £3–5). Check into a hostel or budget guesthouse around Talaat Harb / Talat Harb Square or near the Pyramids in Giza if you want the view. Spend the afternoon easing in: walk the Nile corniche, grab koshari for dinner (£1.50–2.50), and pick up a local SIM from Vodafone or Orange at the airport or downtown (£4–6 for data). Sort your visa beforehand — most nationalities can get an e-visa online or visa on arrival for ~£20–25. Book your Giza day guide on GetYourGuide tonight if you want one.

🚌Airport bus or Careem/Uber from CAI to downtown, ~£3–5

🛏Hostel or budget guesthouse, downtown Cairo or Giza (£12–18 dorm/private budget room)

• →Nile corniche walk
• →Koshari dinner downtown
• →Buy local SIM card

Start early (aim for gates opening, ~8am) to beat the heat and crowds. Take a Careem/Uber from downtown to the Giza plateau (~£3). Entry to the plateau is around £4–5; going inside the Great Pyramid of Khufu is a separate ticket (~£10–12). You can walk between Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure and see the Sphinx from the plateau. A local site guide can be hired at the gate for £15–25, or pre-book a small-group Giza + GEM day tour on GetYourGuide (~£35–50 including transport). After lunch, head to the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) near Giza — allow 3 hours for the Tutankhamun galleries. Evening: overnight train planning — buy your Cairo–Aswan sleeper train ticket tonight (Watania sleeper, ~£50–65 one-way for a single cabin; reclining-seat trains are ~£10–15 but long).

🚌Careem/Uber to Giza and GEM, ~£5–8 total; overnight train booking

🛏Hostel or budget guesthouse, Cairo (£12–18)

• →Giza plateau: Great Pyramid of Khufu, Khafre, Menkaure
• →The Sphinx
• →Grand Egyptian Museum incl. Tutankhamun collection
• →Book sleeper train to Aswan

Arrive Aswan in the morning on the sleeper (or fly Cairo–Aswan on a budget carrier like Nile Air/Air Cairo for £40–70 if you'd rather save the day). Drop bags at a guesthouse in the Nubian Quarter or along the Corniche (£12–18). In the afternoon, take a local ferry or a short taxi to the Philae Temple boat dock and cross by motorboat (boat ~£4–6 shared). Philae entry ~£5. Follow with the Unfinished Obelisk in the Northern Quarries (~£3) and, if time allows, a drive to the Aswan High Dam viewpoint (~£3 entry, taxi ~£8 return). Sunset by the Nile with tea at a Nubian café. Optional: book a Nubian Village boat trip via a local captain at the Corniche, ~£10–15.

🚌Overnight sleeper train Cairo–Aswan ~£50–65, or budget flight £40–70; local taxis/ferries £5–10

🛏Budget guesthouse or hostel, Aswan (£12–18)

• →Temple of Philae by boat
• →Unfinished Obelisk
• →Aswan High Dam
• →Nubian Quarter evening

This is the day the cruise ships do by boat — you do it by road. Take an early shared minibus or train from Aswan to Kom Ombo (~1hr, £2–4), and visit the twin Temple of Kom Ombo on the riverbank (~£4). Continue to Edfu by minibus or train (~1hr, £2–4) and see the Temple of Horus, one of Egypt's best-preserved temples (~£5). You can take a horse-drawn caleche from the town to the temple for a couple of pounds, which is the local version of the operator's chariot ride. Late afternoon minibus or train on to Luxor (~2hrs, £3–5) and check into a budget hotel on the East Bank near Luxor Temple. Optional splurge: an Abu Simbel day trip from Aswan is best done as a pre-dawn shared convoy — book through your Aswan guesthouse for ~£25–35 including entry, but note it eats a full morning.

🚌Shared minibus/train Aswan–Kom Ombo–Edfu–Luxor, ~£8–12 total

🛏Budget hotel or guesthouse, East Bank Luxor (£12–18)

• →Temple of Kom Ombo
• →Temple of Horus at Edfu
• →Caleche ride to Edfu Temple

Hire a bicycle (£3–4/day) or take local microtaxis to Karnak Temple Complex (~2.5km north of town) and give it a solid 3 hours — the Hypostyle Hall is the highlight (~£7 entry). Return via Luxor Museum if you want context (£5) or the Mummification Museum (£4). In the late afternoon and evening, visit Luxor Temple (~£5), which is at its best lit up after dark — the operator's Sound & Light show is bookable direct or via Klook for ~£20–25 if you want it. Dinner at a local restaurant on the Corniche, £5–8.

🚌Bicycle hire ~£3–4, or local microtaxis £2–4 per hop

🛏Budget hotel or guesthouse, East Bank Luxor (£12–18)

• →Karnak Temple Complex
• →Luxor Temple at night
• →Optional Luxor or Mummification Museum
• →Optional Sound & Light show

Cross the Nile by the public ferry (£0.30) or a shared boat and hire a West Bank taxi/driver for the half-day (~£12–18 for the vehicle, split between travellers). Valley of the Kings entry ~£8 covers three tombs; Tutankhamun's tomb and Seti I are extra. Then Temple of Hatshepsut at Deir el-Bahari (~£5) and a photo stop at the Colossi of Memnon (free). Optional early-morning hot air balloon flight over the West Bank — book direct or via GetYourGuide for ~£65–90 and be ready for a 4:30am pickup. Back on the East Bank by mid-afternoon for a nap and a wander through the Luxor souk.

🚌Public ferry £0.30 + shared West Bank taxi £12–18 per vehicle

🛏Budget hotel or guesthouse, East Bank Luxor (£12–18)

• →Valley of the Kings
• →Temple of Hatshepsut
• →Colossi of Memnon
• →Optional hot air balloon flight

Choose your day. Option A: shared taxi or minibus north to Dendera (~1hr, ~£5–8 return shared) to see the wonderfully intact Hathor Temple with its painted ceiling (~£5 entry) — go early, the site is quiet. Option B: stay in Luxor — West Bank again for the Valley of the Queens, Medinet Habu and the Ramesseum, or a felucca sail at sunset (~£8–12 for an hour). In the evening, sort your onward transport: either a budget flight Luxor–Cairo (~£35–60, book a few weeks ahead) or the overnight sleeper back to Cairo (~£50–65).

🚌Shared taxi to Dendera ~£8, or overnight sleeper Luxor–Cairo ~£50–65

🛏Budget hotel or guesthouse, Luxor (£12–18)

• →Dendera Temple complex
• →Optional Valley of the Queens and Medinet Habu
• →Optional felucca sunset sail

If you flew in on Day 7's evening flight, you'll wake in Cairo — use the morning for Old Cairo (Coptic Quarter and the Hanging Church, free–£2) or the Khan el-Khalili bazaar for last-minute shopping and mint tea at El Fishawy. If you took the overnight sleeper, you arrive Cairo early morning with time for a final koshari before heading to the airport. Airport bus or Careem to CAI (£3–5). Depart.

🚌Luxor–Cairo budget flight £35–60 or sleeper train £50–65; Cairo transport to airport £3–5

🛏None (departure day)

• →Old Cairo / Coptic Quarter
• →Khan el-Khalili bazaar