Private Tailor-Made Holidays in Egypt: Your Trip, Your Pace, Led by Locals

Egypt, without the crowd around you

Egypt rewards the traveller who slows down. The pyramids are every bit as vast as you imagine, but the moments people talk about afterwards are smaller: tea on deck as the Nile slides past, a guide pointing out a carving most visitors walk straight by, an hour lost in the lanes of Khan El Khalili.

That is why we build our Egypt tours and holidays as private journeys. No coach of forty, no fixed timetable set by someone else. Just you, your travelling companions and a local Egyptologist who knows these places as home.

Here is how a private tailor-made holiday in Egypt works with Our Local Tour, and three itineraries to get you started.

What a private tailor-made Egypt holiday really means

Every one of our Egypt itineraries is a private tour. It runs for your party alone and can start on any date that suits you.

• Your dates. Travel when you want, not when a group departs.
• Your pace. Linger at Karnak, skip a museum, add a lazy day by the sea.
• Your guide. A certified local guide or Egyptologist leads your sightseeing and answers your questions, not a crowd’s.
• Your route. Use one of our itineraries as it stands, or treat it as a starting point and reshape it.
• The details handled. Hotels, cruise cabins, entrance fees, permits and air-conditioned transfers are arranged before you land.

Our local travel experts in Egypt design and run each trip on the ground. That is what makes room for the personal encounters, such as visits to homes, markets, workshops and riverside communities, that turn ancient history into something living.

Three private Egypt tours to start from

Most travellers begin with one of these three and adjust from there. Prices are per person, based on two people sharing.

Egypt Highlights: Cairo, Luxor and the Red Sea in eight days

Short on time? Our Egypt Highlights tour balances Pharaonic and Islamic Egypt in just over a week.

You start in Cairo with the mosques of Islamic Cairo, Al-Muizz Street and free time in the Khan El Khalili bazaar. Then come the Giza Pyramids and the Sphinx, the new Egyptian Museum and the Citadel of Saladin with its views across the city.

A short flight takes you to Luxor for Karnak and Luxor Temples on the East Bank, then the Valley of the Kings, the Temple of Hatshepsut and the Colossi of Memnon on the West Bank. You finish by the sea in Hurghada.

Make it yours: add a sunrise hot air balloon over Luxor, the Karnak Sound and Light Show, a day at Memphis and Saqqara, or extra nights on the Red Sea.

Egypt History Tour & Red Sea Holiday: the classic fortnight

Our Egypt History Tour & Red Sea Holiday is the trip for travellers who want it all without rushing: 14 days of temples, river and reef.

Three nights in Cairo cover the Giza Pyramids, the Step Pyramid at Sakkara, the Egyptian Museum and Old Cairo. You then fly south to Aswan and board a five-star Nile cruise for three nights, sailing past Philae, Kom Ombo and Edfu to Luxor and the Valley of the Kings.

After Karnak and Luxor Temples, a private transfer takes you to Hurghada for three nights of sunshine and coral reefs before a final night or two in Cairo.

Make it yours: add a day trip to Abu Simbel, snorkelling and a fish barbecue at Giftun Island, a felucca sail on the Nile, or an upgrade to five-star hotels.

Egypt in Depth Tour: two cruises and the temples few people reach

If you have been dreaming of Egypt for years, the Egypt in Depth Tour is the one. Over 13 days it travels from the Red Sea to Cairo and pairs a classic Nile cruise with a second cruise on Lake Nasser.

The Nile leg takes in Karnak, Luxor Temple, Edfu, Kom Ombo and Philae with your Egyptologist guide. Then you cross the High Dam and board a Lake Nasser cruise ship for the Nubian monuments most visitors never see: Kalabsha, Wadi El Seboua, Amada and a deck-side view of Kasr Ibrim.

The cruise ends at Abu Simbel, the great temples of Ramses II. From there you fly to Cairo for the Giza Pyramids, the Sphinx and the Egyptian Museum.

Make it yours: use your free day in Cairo for Memphis and Saqqara or Coptic and Islamic Cairo, and finish with a few extra nights at a Red Sea resort.

Beyond the itinerary: ways to tailor your Egypt holiday

None of these routes is fixed. Tell us what you love and we will shape the trip around it.

• Choose your cruise style. Sail on a comfortable Nile cruise ship, or ask us about a dahabiya, a traditional sailing boat with a handful of cabins.
• Pick your Red Sea base. Hurghada is the easy choice, with year-round sunshine, snorkelling and diving. We can suggest quieter resorts nearby too.
• Add a city. Spend longer in Cairo, Luxor or Aswan, or head north to Alexandria on the Mediterranean.
• Go off the tourist trail. Ask about the White Desert, Siwa Oasis and Sinai.
• Meet the people. Markets, workshops, home visits and riverside villages can all be woven in.
• Set the comfort level. Upgrade hotels, add a balloon flight, or build in rest days. It is your holiday.

Good to know before you go

When to travel. October to April brings the most comfortable temperatures for temples and tombs. Summer is very hot in Luxor and Aswan, though the Red Sea coast is a year-round choice. Because every tour is private, you can travel on any date. If your trip includes a Nile cruise, we will match your start date to the ship’s sailing days.

What is included. Accommodation, a certified guide or Egyptologist, entrance fees to the listed sights, transfers and the meals shown in your itinerary. International flights, your Egypt visa and travel insurance are separate, and we are happy to advise on flights.

Travelling Egypt now. Check the latest Foreign Office travel advice before you book and again before you fly. Travelling with a reputable operator and trusted local guides makes a real difference.

Your money is protected. Our Local Tour holds ATOL protection and is a member of ABTOT. Read more about financial protection and our Travel Smile Promise.

Start planning your private Egypt holiday

Tell us when you would like to travel, who is coming and what you most want to see. Our local experts will come back with a tailor-made itinerary and a clear price, with no obligation.

Explore our Egypt tours and send a quick enquiry, or call us on 0330 088 5894.