Cairo – Luxor – Cairo

Highlights of the program: Cairo City: It’s the capital of Egypt & one of the largest cities in Africa & Middle East which built more than 1000 years old ago. It’s very rich of historical sites (Pharaonic, Coptic & Islam...

Highlights of the program:

Cairo City: It’s the capital of Egypt & one of the largest cities in Africa & Middle East which built more than 1000 years old ago.

It’s very rich of historical sites (Pharaonic, Coptic & Islamic sites) which need at least 02 full days to cover just the major of its sites.

The Giza Plateau: It’s a plateau in Giza, on the outskirts of Cairo, site of the Fourth Dynasty (around 4,500 years ago) Giza Necropolis, which includes the only ones surviving of the seven wonders of the ancient world which are the Great Pyramids of Khufu beside the pyramids of Khafre and Menkaure as well as the Sphinx, several cemeteries, a workers' village and an industrial complex and it’s a Cairo's most popular attraction & drawn thousands of visitors every year.

The Pyramid of Cheops (Khufu): The only ones surviving of the seven wonders of the ancient world & the oldest pyramid in Giza and the largest in Egypt, Khufu’s Great Pyramid stood 146m high when it was completed around 2570 BC.

Pyramid of Chephren (Khafre): it is the second-tallest and second-largest of the 3 Ancient Egyptian Pyramids of Giza and the tomb of the Fourth-Dynasty pharaoh Khafre (Chefren), who ruled c. 2558−2532 BC.

Pyramid of Menkaure (Mycerinus): It’s is the smallest of the three main Pyramids of Giza, located on the Giza Plateau in the southwestern outskirts of Cairo, Egypt. It is thought to have been built to serve as the tomb of the Fourth Dynasty Egyptian Pharaoh Menkaure.

The Great Sphinx: The Sphinx is carved from a single piece of stone. One of most famous monuments in the world, it is indeed a legendary statue for it has the body of lion and the face of a man. lt is 70 m long and 20 m high. The face of the Sphinx closely resembles that of King Kephren.

Museum of Egyptian Antiquities: known commonly as the Egyptian Museum or the Cairo Museum. It is home to an extensive collection of ancient Egyptian antiquities. It has 120,000 items, with a representative amount on display and the remainder in storerooms. Built in 1901 by the Italian construction company, Garozzo-Zaffarani, to a design by the French architect Marcel Dourgnon, the edifice is one of the largest museums in the region.

Citadel of Saladin: It is a medieval Islamic-era fortification in Cairo, built by Salah ad-Din (Saladin) and further developed by subsequent Egyptian rulers. It was the seat of government in Egypt and the residence of its rulers for nearly 700 years from the 13th to the 19th centuries. Its location on a promontory of the Mokattam hills near the center of Cairo commands a strategic position overlooking the city and dominating its skyline. At the time of its construction, it was among the most impressive and ambitious military fortification projects of its time. It is now a preserved historic site & mosques.

The Mosque of Ibn Tulun: It is one of the oldest mosques in Egypt as well as the whole of Africa surviving in its full original form, and is the largest mosque in Cairo in terms of land area. Since Ibn Tulun Mosque has much open space, it boasts both sunlight and shadows. It is built around an open square courtyard which allows natural light to travel through. Ibn Tulun Mosque features ancient architecture styles of Egypt, its decorations being created from carved stucco and wood. This mosque is a popular tourist attraction.

Al-Azhar Mosque: Known simply in Egypt as al-Azhar, is an Egyptian mosque in Islamic Cairo. Jawhar al-Siqilli commissioned its construction for the newly established capital city in 970. Its name is usually thought to derive from az-Zahrāʾ (meaning "the shining one"), a title given to Fatimah bent Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam. It was the first mosque established in Cairo, a city that has since gained the nickname "the City of a Thousand Minarets".

Khan El-Khalili: which is a famous bazaar and souq (or souk) in the historic center of Cairo. Established as a center of trade in the Mamluk era and named for one of its several historic caravanserais, the bazaar district has since become one of Cairo's main attractions for tourists and Egyptians alike. It is also home to many Egyptian artisans and workshops involved in the production of traditional crafts and souvenirs.

Luxor City: called by Thebes in the old era & it is the most famous tourist’s attraction cities in Egypt because it’s considered an open air museum where clients surrounded by monuments everywhere & that’s why hundred thousands of tourists from all over the world come to visit this wonderful city every year.

The Valley of the Kings: It was the burial site of almost all the Pharaonic kings of the 18^th till 20^th dynasties & the most known tombs are Tut-Ankh-Amon (where discovered the treasures of this Golden King), King Tutmosis I, Tutmosis III, , King Ramses VI, King AmonhotepII and King Mrenptah. The clients visit 03 tombs during their tour according the opening tombs at that time.

The Temple of Queen Hatshepsut: located in the West Bank of the River Nile & also knows by Deir El-Bahari Temple which is the Mortuary Temple of beautiful Queen Hatshepsut the first known female monarch (she ruled for about two decades) and who was stepmother of pharaoh Thutmose III.

The Colossi Statues of Memnon: located West Bank of the River Nile which are two huge stone statues of the Pharaoh Amenhotep III, who reigned in Egypt during the Dynasty XVIII (around 1350 BC).

The huge Temple of Karnak complex: located in the East Bank of the River Nile & considered the largest open-air museum which was one of ancient Egypt's grandest and most ambitious building projects with multiple temple buildings & covers more than 100 hectares.

The Temple of Luxor: located in the heart of the city in the East Bank of the River Nile & it is one of the wonderful temples of Egypt & its entrance is known as the first pylon which was built by Ramses II and was decorated with scenes of his military expeditions (Specially his victory at the battle of Kadesh).