Pyramids & Nile by Train — Self-Launched

Land at Cairo International Airport (CAI). Buy your visa on arrival at the bank counter before passport control (approx £20-25 / US$25 for most Western passports, payable in cash) and pick up a local SIM from Vodafone or Orange in arrivals (£6-10 for a tourist data package). Take the airport shuttle bus or an Uber/Careem into Downtown Cairo for roughly £4-7, or the public bus 356 for under £1 if you're feeling brave. Check into a hostel or budget hotel in Downtown or Zamalek, then spend the evening walking the Corniche and eating koshari at Abou Tarek (about £2-3).

🚌Airport shuttle or Uber/Careem to Downtown (~£4-7)

🛏Hostel or budget hotel in Downtown Cairo / Zamalek (£12-20 per night, dorm or simple private room)

• →Visa on arrival at Cairo airport
• →Local SIM card purchase
• →Evening walk along the Nile Corniche
• →Koshari dinner at Abou Tarek

Big day. Take an Uber to the Giza plateau early (7-8am) to beat the heat and the crowds — the full site ticket is around £12-14 and covers the plateau and Sphinx viewing; going inside a pyramid is extra. A licensed guide at the gate costs roughly £20-25 for a couple of hours if you want context, or pre-book a small-group or private tour on GetYourGuide from about £25-40 including transport. After lunch, head to the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) near Giza — tickets around £20-25 — or the older Egyptian Museum in Tahrir (approx £10-12) if the GEM slot is booked out. Finish in the late afternoon at Khan el-Khalili bazaar for mint tea at El Fishawy and souvenir browsing. Catch the overnight sleeper train from Cairo Ramses station to Aswan in the evening (Watania sleeper, book online in advance, approx £45-60 for a single cabin including dinner and breakfast).

🚌Uber around Cairo/Giza (~£3-5 per hop); Watania sleeper train Cairo–Aswan (~£45-60)

🛏Overnight aboard the Watania sleeper train (single cabin) — hostel berth or reclining seat is the cheaper option

• →Great Pyramids of Giza & Sphinx (self-guided or gate-hired guide)
• →Grand Egyptian Museum or Egyptian Museum, Tahrir
• →Khan el-Khalili bazaar and El Fishawy cafe
• →Overnight sleeper train Cairo to Aswan

Arrive in Aswan mid-morning and check into a guesthouse or hostel (Aswan's budget options are excellent value, especially on the West Bank). Drop your bags and take a local microbus or taxi to the High Dam (entry ~£2), then a short boat ride across to Philae Temple (boat ~£5 return, shared with other travellers; temple entry ~£8). Visit the Unfinished Obelisk in the Northern Quarries (~£4). In the late afternoon, do a two-hour felucca sail around Kitchener's Island and Elephantine (~£8-12 per person shared, or £20-25 for a private boat), and finish with dinner at a Nubian restaurant on the West Bank. Ask your guesthouse about a shared minibus to Abu Simbel for tomorrow's sunrise option if you want to add it (approx £25-35 including entry).

🚌Local microbus/taxi in Aswan (~£2-5); shared boat to Philae (~£5)

🛏Aswan guesthouse or hostel, West Bank or city centre (£10-18 per night)

• →Aswan High Dam
• →Philae Temple by boat
• →Unfinished Obelisk
• →Sunset felucca sail on the Nile

Take a local train from Aswan to Kom Ombo (roughly 1 hour, around £2-4 for second class; buy at the station window). Kom Ombo temple sits right beside the tracks, so it's a five-minute walk from the platform. Entry is about £6-8, and the dual-dedication temple to Sobek and Horus is one of the most photogenic on the Nile — go early to dodge tour-bus convoys arriving around 9-10am. Have lunch in town, then continue north by train to Edfu (about 45 minutes, £2-3) or head straight on to Luxor if you'd rather base there. Overnight in Edfu or Luxor.

🚌Local train Aswan–Kom Ombo–Edfu (~£5-7 total, second class)

🛏Budget hotel in Edfu (£12-18) or hostel in Luxor (£10-18)

• →Temple of Kom Ombo (Sobek and Horus)
• →Local train ride along the Nile
• →Crocodile Museum at Kom Ombo (optional, ~£3)

Get to Edfu Temple at opening time (7am) — it's a short walk or a £1-2 horse-cart ride from the town centre, and arriving early means you get the best-preserved temple in Egypt almost to yourself. Entry is around £7-9. Afterwards, take a local train or shared minibus to Luxor (about 1.5 hours, £2-4). Check into a hostel, then spend the afternoon wandering Luxor Temple and the Avenue of Sphinxes at golden hour (entry ~£8-10), and have dinner on the West Bank. If you fancy the belly-dance-show experience from the original cruise, swap it for a decent rooftop dinner and a shisha instead — luxor has plenty of options for under £10.

🚌Local train or shared minibus Edfu–Luxor (~£2-4)

🛏Hostel or budget guesthouse in Luxor (£10-18 per night)

• →Temple of Horus, Edfu at opening time
• →Train or minibus Edfu to Luxor
• →Luxor Temple at sunset
• →West Bank dinner

Rent a bike (about £3-4/day) or take a shared taxi/microbus across the river to the West Bank. The Valley of the Kings ticket (~£12-15) covers three tombs of your choice — Tutankhamun's tomb is a separate extra. Add the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut (~£7) and stop at the Colossi of Memnon (free) on the way back. In the afternoon, cross to the East Bank for Karnak Temple (~£10-12) — allow at least two hours. Freshen up, then board the evening sleeper train from Luxor back to Cairo (approx £45-60 single cabin with dinner and breakfast). Book Watania sleeper directly or via Egypt's national rail site well ahead in peak season.

🚌Bike or shared taxi on West Bank (~£3-5); Watania sleeper train Luxor–Cairo (~£45-60)

🛏Overnight aboard the Watania sleeper train

• →Valley of the Kings
• →Temple of Queen Hatshepsut
• →Colossi of Memnon
• →Karnak Temple
• →Overnight sleeper train Luxor to Cairo

Arrive back in Cairo in the morning and check into a hostel for a proper shower. If you have energy left, take an Uber to Sakkara to see the Step Pyramid of Djoser (~£10 entry) and then on to the open-air site of Memphis with its colossal statue of Ramses II (~£4). Total roughly £20-25 including car. Alternatively, save your money and have a slow day: coffee in Zamalek, the Nile Corniche, or a cheap hammam. Sort out your airport transfer for tomorrow and pack up.

🚌Uber to Sakkara/Memphis return (~£12-15)

🛏Hostel or budget hotel in Downtown Cairo (£12-20 per night)

• →Step Pyramid of Djoser at Sakkara (optional)
• →Ancient Memphis ruins (optional)
• →Downtown Cairo cafes and Zamalek walk

Breakfast at the hostel, a final wander for souvenir shopping if your flight is late, then Uber or airport bus to Cairo International (about £4-7). Allow extra time — Cairo traffic is genuinely legendary.

🚌Uber or airport shuttle to CAI (~£4-7)

🛏N/A — departure day

• →Last-minute souvenir shopping
• →Transfer to Cairo International Airport