Experience Egypt & Jordan — Self-Launched Budget Version (15 Days, Cairo to Amman)

Land at Cairo International Airport and make your own way in or pre-arrange a cheap airport transfer. Base yourself in the Downtown Cairo area (near Talaat Harb or off Tahrir Square) where hostels and budget hotels cluster and everything is walkable. Spend the afternoon getting a local SIM (Vodafone/Orange, ~£8-12 for data), changing cash, and buying your onward train ticket from Ramses or Misr station at the tourist office counter. Grab koshari from a street stall for dinner — a filling local staple for under £2.

🚌Airport transfer by Uber/Careem ~£6-9, or public bus ~£1

🛏Budget hotel or hostel in Downtown Cairo (~£15-22)

• →Airport arrival and SIM/cash admin
• →Buy overnight sleeper or day train ticket to Aswan
• →Evening walk around Downtown Cairo and Tahrir Square

Get an early start to beat the heat and the crowds at the Giza Plateau. Take an Uber or the metro to Giza then a local taxi, or join a cheap shared minibus. Buy your Giza and Sakkara entry tickets on arrival (bundle the combined ticket where offered). Rather than a private guide, book a small-group or audio-guide version via GetYourGuide/Klook if you want context, or just download a good audio guide. In the afternoon head to Sakkara for the Step Pyramid of Djoser and the surrounding Pharonic tombs. Back in the city, eat falafel and fuul at a local sit-down for pennies.

🚌Uber/Careem to Giza ~£3 and Giza to Sakkara ~£8 each way

🛏Budget hotel or hostel in Downtown Cairo (~£15-22)

• →Great Pyramids of Giza and Sphinx at Giza Plateau
• →Step Pyramid of Djoser at Sakkara
• →Ancient Pharonic tombs at Sakkara
• →Optional: GetYourGuide small-group Giza + Sakkara guide (~£25-35)

Daytime free to see more of Cairo or rest before travelling. In the evening board the Watania sleeper train from Cairo to Aswan (book in advance at the station or online; a bed in a twin sleeper compartment is the cheap comfortable option, or take the reclining-seat day train to save more). Note the independent traveller workaround: foreigners can usually only book the higher-tier sleeper online, so if it's sold out, buy a first-class seated ticket at the station window. You wake up in Aswan the next morning.

🚌Watania sleeper train Cairo-Aswan, ~£45-60 for a berth

🛏Overnight Watania sleeper train compartment (~£45-60)

• →Free morning in Cairo (optional Grand Egyptian Museum or Old Cairo)
• →Board overnight train to Aswan

Arrive Aswan in the morning and check into a guesthouse on the Corniche or in the Nubian village area. Cross by public ferry or shared motorboat to Agilkia Island to visit Philae Temple (buy tickets at the island landing). Book a small-group Philae tour via GetYourGuide if you want guiding. In the afternoon take a boat out to a Nubian village and drink tea with a local family, or wander the Aswan souk. Optional: an early-morning trip to Abu Simbel by shared minibus (add £30-45 for transport plus entry) — usually done as a dawn convoy.

🚌Local boats and microbuses ~£4-6 total

🛏Nubian guesthouse or budget hotel in Aswan (~£12-20)

• →Guided or self-guided visit to Philae Temple
• →Public boat crossing to Agilkia Island
• →Aswan souk and Nubian village walk

This is your DIY replacement for the 5-star cruise — a one- or two-night felucca sailing north from Aswan is the classic backpacker version, or catch the public Nile ferry/train to Kom Ombo and Luxor. Stop at the riverside Kom Ombo Temple (twin temple of Sobek and Haroeris) en route and, if time allows, Edfu's Temple of Horus. Felucca trips can be arranged on the Aswan Corniche for roughly £25-40 per person per night including simple meals cooked aboard by the crew — agree the price in writing first. Continue to Luxor by train or shared minibus and check in near the West Bank or Luxor town.

🚌Felucca hire or public ferry + train Aswan-Kom Ombo-Luxor ~£10-15

🛏Felucca night (~£30 incl. meals) OR budget hotel in Luxor (~£12-18)

• →Sail down the Nile (felucca or public ferry)
• →Visit Kom Ombo Temple
• →Optional: Edfu Temple of Horus en route

Base in Luxor and spend the day on the East Bank. Tour Karnak Temple in the morning (allow 3+ hours — it's vast) and walk the newly opened Avenue of Sphinxes connecting Karnak to Luxor Temple. Visit Luxor Temple in the cooler late afternoon and again after dark when it's floodlit — one of the best-value sights of the trip. Cyclists and independent travellers can rent a bike for ~£2/day or hop in a shared microbus. If you want guiding, a GetYourGuide East Bank small-group tour runs around £20-30.

🚌Bike hire ~£2, taxi/microbus ~£4

🛏Budget hotel or hostel in Luxor (~£12-18)

• →Karnak Temple tour (self-guided or small-group)
• →Luxor Temple and Avenue of Sphinxes (day and floodlit at night)

Cross to the West Bank early to beat the heat. See the Valley of the Kings (ticket covers three tombs; Tutankhamun's tomb costs extra), the terraced Temple of Hatshepsut at Deir el-Bahari, and the Colossi of Memnon on the roadside. Do it independently by shared microbus and local taxi, or rent a bike and ride between sites. Add the Tomb of Ramesses VI / Seti I if you're willing to pay the premium ticket — genuinely worth it. Optional sunset hot-air balloon flight over the West Bank can be booked cheaply through your guesthouse or GetYourGuide for ~£70-90.

🚌West Bank ferry ~£1 plus shared microbus/taxi loop ~£6-8

🛏Budget hotel or hostel in Luxor (~£12-18)

• →Valley of the Kings
• →Temple of Hatshepsut
• →Colossi of Memnon
• →Optional: sunrise hot-air balloon (~£70-90)

Travel by Go Bus or public coach from Luxor to Hurghada (straightforward day bus, roughly £8-14). Check into a cheap guesthouse or a budget dive hostel near the beach and reset. Hurghada is the relaxation stop in the original tour — use it to rest, swim, and eat something other than travel food. If you want a day of organised fun, day boats and dive packages can be booked locally or via GetYourGuide for a fraction of resort prices.

🚌Go Bus / coach Luxor-Hurghada ~£8-14

🛏Budget guesthouse/hostel near the beach in Hurghada (~£15-25)

• →Bus transfer to Hurghada
• →Beach time and evening promenade walk

The Red Sea reefs here are superb and accessible even on a budget. Join a shared snorkelling or dive day trip — many include lunch, gear and transfers. A snorkelling day boat runs roughly £20-30; an introductory dive package ~£40-55. Book via GetYourGuide, Klook or directly with local dive shops (ask about PADI Open Water courses too — Hurghada is one of the cheapest places in the world to learn). Eat fresh fish and grilled mezze in the evening.

🚌Local transport included in tour or taxis ~£4

🛏Budget guesthouse/hostel near the beach in Hurghada (~£15-25)

• →Red Sea snorkelling day trip
• →Optional: introductory scuba dive or dive course
• →Beach relaxation

Take a morning Go Bus back to Cairo (~£10-15, roughly 6-7 hours), or fly if you snag a cheap domestic fare. In Cairo, head straight to the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) — you'll want at least half a day for the Tutankhamun galleries. In the evening explore the atmospheric Khan el-Khalili bazaar for souvenirs, mint tea at El Fishawy, and street food. If you have time the following morning, the Egyptian Museum on Tahrir Square still holds many treasures too.

🚌Go Bus Hurghada-Cairo ~£10-15, plus Ubers ~£5

🛏Budget hotel or hostel in Downtown Cairo (~£15-22)

• →Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) — King Tutankhamun treasures
• →Khan el-Khalili bazaar and old Cairo walk

A flexible day. Either do the half-day-plus you still owe the GEM, or take a day trip to Alexandria on the Mediterranean: train from Cairo's Ramses/Misr station takes about 2.5 hours and costs next to nothing (~£5-8 each way). In Alexandria, see the seafront Corniche, the Catacombs of Kom el Shoqafa, the Qaitbay Fortress and the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, and eat fried seafood by the sea. Alternatively spend the day doing Cairo's Islamic and Coptic old city. Sort any paperwork before the Jordan leg.

🚌Train Cairo-Alexandria return ~£10-16 OR local Ubers ~£5

🛏Budget hotel or hostel in Downtown Cairo (~£15-22)

• →Optional day trip to Alexandria (Catacombs, Qaitbay Fortress, Corniche)
• →Or Islamic/Coptic Cairo old city walk

Fly Cairo to Amman (book early for the cheapest fares — Royal Jordanian, EgyptAir and low-cost carriers all run this route; budget £90-160 one way). On arrival buy your Jordan Pass online before you travel — it bundles the visa fee and entry to Petra and most major sites and saves real money. From Amman, take the JETT bus or a shared taxi south to Wadi Musa (the Petra gateway), roughly 3 hours and ~£6-9. Check into a cheap guesthouse in Wadi Musa; Petra gate opens early tomorrow.

🚌Flight Cairo-Amman ~£90-160, then JETT bus to Petra ~£6-9

🛏Budget guesthouse in Wadi Musa (~£15-25)

• →Fly Cairo to Amman
• →JETT bus/shared taxi to Wadi Musa (Petra)

Enter Petra through the Siq canyon on foot (the original tour includes a horse ride; here you just walk it — it's short and magical). Emerge at the Treasury (Al Khazneh), then climb to the Monastery and the High Place of Sacrifice if your legs allow — Petra's scale deserves a full day, so buy the two-day ticket if you want to return. A self-bookable local guide via your guesthouse or GetYourGuide costs ~£20-35 for half a day and genuinely adds context. Carry water and sunscreen; Petra has little shade and few places to buy food inside. Optional: Petra by Night on Monday/Wednesday/Thursday evenings.

🚌On foot; local taxis to gate ~£2

🛏Budget guesthouse in Wadi Musa (~£15-25)

• →Walk the Siq to the Treasury (Al Khazneh)
• →Explore Petra's tombs, Monastery and Royal Tombs
• →Optional: local guide (~£20-35) or Petra by Night

Travel from Wadi Musa to Wadi Rum village (shared taxi or JETT, ~1.5-2 hours, ~£8-15). Join a shared 4x4 jeep tour through the desert — this is a local, bookable-anywhere experience (GetYourGuide, Klook or directly with camps). You'll see Lawrence of Arabia's spring, the dunes, and rock bridges. Stay overnight in a budget desert camp (Bedouin camp with dinner, ~£25-40). Note Wadi Rum Protect Area entry fee ~£5. Star-filled skies after dark are the real highlight.

🚌Shared taxi Wadi Musa-Wadi Rum ~£8-15, jeep tour included in camp package

🛏Budget Bedouin camp in Wadi Rum (~£25-40 incl. dinner)

• →Shared 4x4 jeep tour of Wadi Rum
• →Lawrence of Arabia spring and dunes
• →Overnight Bedouin desert camp with dinner

Head north towards Amman, stopping at Madaba's St George Church to see the 6th-century mosaic map of the Holy Land, then Mount Nebo for its panoramic views over the Jordan Valley. Finish with a float in the Dead Sea — bring sturdy water shoes and don't shave beforehand. Most camps and local operators run a shared day-transfer package covering Madaba, Nebo and the Dead Sea before dropping you in Amman (~£40-60 including Dead Sea use). Stay near Amman's downtown or the airport depending on your flight. Jordan's departure tax is typically included in your ticket.

🚌Shared day tour/transfer Wadi Rum-Madaba-Nebo-Dead Sea-Amman ~£40-60

🛏Budget hotel/hostel in Amman (~£18-28)

• →Madaba St George Church mosaic map
• →Mount Nebo viewpoint
• →Swim/float in the Dead Sea
• →Evening in Amman (Citadel and Roman Theatre if time)