Tours to Egypt - Tours to Israel, tours to Jordan, Cruise on the Nile, Guided tours to Egypt, Egyptian vacation

The Crossroads of Civilization
Egypt, Israel & Jordan
20 Days/18 nights with A 4-Day Nile Cruise!!
Only $6739 per person

Day	Itinerary
Day 1	Depart U.S.A. on a scheduled flight to Cairo. All meals and beverages served on board flight.
Day 2	Arrive Cairo, where you will be met by our tour manager who will help you with your immigration and customs formalities. Later you will be transferred to your hotel, the historical Mena House Oberoi Hotel for an overnight.
Day 3	Breakfast, then start your sightseeing tour at the Pyramids of Giza. Cheops Pyramid, the largest of the three, built in the 4th Dynasty about 2690 B.C., and is one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. In front of the Pyramid of Chephren (Khafre), we find the Sphinx carved from a single piece of stone. It is a lion with a Pharaoh's head thought to be a portrait of the Pharaoh Chephren (Khafre). Take a camel ride by the Pyramids area, then continue your tour to the Egyptian Museum, famous for its antiquities from Egypt's Pharaonic period, which dates back some 50 centuries and includes the fabulous treasures of King Tut-Ankh-Amon. Visit the unforgettable Mummy Room that was closed by President Sadat of Egypt and ordered reopened by President Mubarak. Afternoon excursion to Old Cairo, visiting the old Coptic Churches and the oldest Jewish Synagogue of Beni Ezra. Continue your visit to the Citadel of Salah El-Din, the Mohammed Ali Mosque and the Medieval Bazaars of Khan-El-Khalili, where you can bargain for your jewelry and hand-tooled leather items. Return to your hotel for an overnight. (B)
Day 4	Breakfast, then you will be met and transferred to Cairo Airport for your flight to Aswan. Upon arrival at Aswan Airport, you will be met and transferred to embark your cruise ship. Later you will be taken by "Felucca" (Sail Boat) to visit the Elephantine Island, the temple of Philae. Lunch, dinner and overnight on board your Nile cruise ship. (B,L,D)
Day 5	Breakfast, then visit the Unfinished Obelisk at the Ancient Granite Quarries, and the famous High Dam. Lunch, then cruise to Kom-Ombo. Visit the Ptolemaic Temple of Kom-Ombo, which was dedicated to two gods: The Crocodile god Sobek and the Falcon-Headed god Haroeris. Sail to Edfu. Dinner and overnight on board on your Nile cruise ship. (B,L,D)
Day 6	Breakfast, then visit the Temple of Horus (237 B.C.), the best preserved Egyptian temple in existence. Lunch. Sail to Luxor. Dinner and overnight on board your Nile cruise ship. (B,L,D)
Day 7	Breakfast, then cross to the West Bank of the Nile to visit the Necropolis of Ancient Thebes. Explore the Valley of the Kings and Queens where tombs of 64 Pharaohs and 57 Queens have been discovered, and enter some of the most famous burials. Visit the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut and the Colossi of Memnon. Lunch. Afternoon, visit the Temple of Karnak, which took over 1500 years to build and is considered the world's largest religious complex. Then visit the Temple of Luxor, which was started by Amenhotep III, and completed by Ramses II. Disembark your cruise ship, where you will be met and transferred to Luxor Airport for your flight back to Cairo. Upon arrival at Cairo Airport, you will be met and transferred to your hotel, the luxurious Gezirah Sheraton Hotel for an overnight. (B,L) Cairo: The Gezirah Sheraton Hotel
Day 8	Breakfast and a day at leisure for last minute shopping. You might wish to purchase an optional tour from our Cairo office. Overnight at your hotel. (B)
Day 9	Breakfast, then you will be met by your tour manager and transferred to Cairo Airport, where you will be helped with your check-in and immigration formalities for your departure flight to Tel Aviv. Arrive Tel Aviv where you will be met and transferred to your luxurious hotel in Tel Aviv, the Dan Hotel for an overnight. (B)
Day 10	Breakfast, then travel through the Sharon Plain and via Netanya to Caesarea, once the Roman capital of the Holy land. See the excavations of the Roman statues, the aqueduct and the Roman theater, which has been restored to its former glory as a concert venue. Drive along the Via Maris to Megiddo. Visit this biblical city rebuilt by King Solomon and walk through the 9th century B.C. water tunnel. End our day in Haifa, overnight at the Dan Carmel Hotel. (B)
Day 11	Breakfast, then start your tour of Haifa at the summit of Mount Carmel, for a panoramic view of Haifa Bay and the Western Galilee. Proceed to the Bahai Center and visit the exotic Persian Gardens. Drive to Acre, once the capital of the Crusader Kingdom to visit the Crypt of St. John and the underground Crusader city. Continue to Safed, the mystic city in the Upper Galilee to visit the beautiful ancient synagogues and the artists' colony. Then on to the Golan Heights to see the former Syrian fortifications and the new Israeli town of Katzrin. Continue to a kibbutz, a wonderful opportunity to learn about kibbutz life. Dinner and overnight at the kibbutz. (B,D)
Day 12	Breakfast, then start the day with a visit to the Church of Annunciation in Nazareth. Drive to Capernaum on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee. See the ruins of the Synagogue and the Church of St. Peter. Continue to Tiberias, the lovely resort town and visit the Synagogue of the Hammat. Then travel through the fertile Jezreel Valley to Beit Alpha, where the most beautiful synagogue mosaic floor is displayed. Drive along the Jordan Valley to Jericho, the oldest city on earth and explore the ruins of the biblical site. Then proceed to Jerusalem. Overnight at the luxurious and historical King David Hotel. (B) Jerusalem: Dome of the Rock
Day 13	Breakfast, then visit the Tomb of King David and the room of the Last Supper on Mount Zion. Enter the Old City and walk through the newly restored Jewish Quarter and visit the Cardo and the Western Wall. Walk along the Via Dolorosa to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Then drive around the old city, view Mount Scopus, and enjoy a magnificent panoramic view of the old city from the Mount of Olives. Continue to Bethlehem, stopping at Rachel's Tomb. Visit the Church of Nativity and then return to Jerusalem. Overnight at the King David Hotel. (B) Jerusalem: The luxurious King David Hotel
Day 14	Breakfast, then drive to Hadassah Medical Center at Ein Karem to see the famous Chagall stained glass windows. Proceed to Bayit Vagan to view the scale model of Jerusalem as it was during the second temple period. Continue to Yad Vashem, a memorial of the holocaust. Continue to Israel Museum, visit the Shrine of the Book, where the Dead Sea scrolls are housed. See the Knesset, Israel's Parliament, and the Givat Ram Campus of the Hebrew University. Overnight at the King David hotel in Jerusalem. (B) Jerusalem: Gethsemane General View
Day 15	Breakfast, then drive to Hadassah Medical Center at Ein Karem to see the famous Chagall stained glass windows. Proceed to Bayit Vagan to view the scale model of Jerusalem as it was during the second temple period. Continue to Yad Vashem, a memorial of the Holocaust. Continue to the Israel Museum and visit the Shrine of the Book where the Dead Sea Scrolls are housed. See the Knesset, Israel's Parliament, and the Givat Ram Campus of the Hebrew University. Overnight at the King David Hotel. (B)
Day 16	Breakfast, then you will be met and transferred to the Allenby Bridge (the crossing point between Israel and Jordan) around 10:00 A.M. You will be met by our Jordanian representative who will help you with your passport control. Then you will be transferred to Jerash, the best preserved city of Roman times, to visit its theaters, temple, churches and colonnaded streets. Then continue to Ajlun to tour the 12th century Saracen Castle built by one of Saladin's lieutenants in the campaign against the Crusaders. Transfer to your hotel in Amman, the Forte Grand Hotel for an overnight. (B) Jordan: The Treasury of Petra
Day 17	Breakfast, then drive southward along the Kings' Way to Petra. En route, visit Madaba with the oldest map of the Holy Land and its Mosaic School; then visit Mt. Nebo, the alleged burial site of Moses, overlooking the Dead Sea and the Jordan Valley; then drive through the magnificent scenery of Wadi Mujib to Kerak to visit the Crusader Castle. Continue to Petra and overnight at the historical village of Tibat Zaman. (B).
Day 18	Breakfast, and a full day tour visiting the many sites and ruins of Petra, first on a horseback and then on foot, this city that was carved into the rose-red Sharah Mountains by the Nabateans and lost to Civilization until re-discovered by the Swiss Burkhardt. Walk through the Siq, a narrow and winding fissure between the cliffs, to reach the Treasury, the Roman Theater, the Courts, Qasr Bint Pharaoun, Temple of the Winged Lion and other monuments. A break for lunch, or if you wish you may climb up the Monastery. Overnight in Petra at Tibat Zaman village. (B) Jordan: Um Qeis
Day 19	Breakfast, then drive to the lowest spot on Earth and experience floating in the waters of the Dead Sea. Continue northwards to Pella in the Jordan Valley, considered to be one of the largest, richest and most important archeological sites in Jordan. Continue our tour to Um Qeis, Gedara which was renowned in its time as a cultural center. Um Qeis boasts an impressive colonnaded terrace and the ruins of two theaters as well as a spectacular view of the Sea of Galilee, the Yarmouk River and the Golan Heights. Transfer back to Amman for check-in at your hotel, the Forte Grand. In the evening you will be met and transferred by our representative to a Jordanian home for dinner and a friendly social discussion to get to know the Jordanian people and see their way of life. Later transfer back to your hotel for an overnight. (B,D)
Day 20	Breakfast, then you will be met and transferred to Amman Airport for your flight back home. (B)

Also Included: All transfers and touring within Egypt and Jordan is operated by private car (personalized service) with a guide and driver with you at all times. Entrance fees to all sights mentioned, and the services of a professional English speaking guide. Also included in the package price are the service charge imposed by hotels, porterage, meeting and assistance at hotels, airports, docks as well as all shore excursions on board your Nile cruise.

SINGLE SUPPLEMENT: For single occupancy in hotels and on board cruise, please add $1279.

Please add a peak season supplement of $540 per person if traveling between Dec. 09th to Jan. 14th or from Mar. 19th to Apr. 23rd.

EXTENSIONS & OPTIONAL TOURS: Extra days and optional tours to additional sites are available upon request.

If airfare from the U.S.A. is not required, please deduct $1080 from posted rate.

If you need a different tour package of Egypt, Israel and Jordan, we will customize it for you.