Pyramids, Nile Cruise & Abu Simbel — Self-Launched

Land at Cairo International Airport (CAI). Buy your visa on arrival at the bank counter before immigration (~£22–25 / $25, payable in cash — have a card or USD ready), then grab an airport SIM from Vodafone or Orange for a few pounds. Take an Uber or Careem from the airport to Downtown Cairo (~£4–7) — ignore taxi touts inside the terminal. Check into a budget hotel or hostel in Downtown or near Tahrir Square. Spend the evening wandering the streets around Talat Harb, eating koshari at a local shop (£1.50–2.50) and getting an early night before an early start.

🚌Uber/Careem from CAI to Downtown, ~£5

🛏Budget hotel/hostel, Downtown Cairo (£14–20/night)

• →Visa on arrival at CAI bank counter
• →Airport SIM card
• →Evening walk around Downtown Cairo
• →Koshari dinner

Leave at 7:30am to beat the heat and the crowds. Take an Uber to the Giza plateau entrance (~£3) and buy your own site ticket (~£12–14 for the plateau; the interior of the Great Pyramid is a separate ~£12 add-on — worth it if you like tight, hot passages). Walk between Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure, then down to the Sphinx and Valley Temple viewpoint. Short camel rides are ~£8–12 — negotiate hard before getting on. In the afternoon take an Uber to the Egyptian Museum on Tahrir Square (~£10 entry) and self-guide the Tutankhamun galleries. Optional: swap for the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) near Giza, which is pricier (~£25) but spectacular. Finish with mint tea and browsing in Khan el-Khalili bazaar — free to wander, haggle on souvenirs. A GetYourGuide half-day Giza tour with an Egyptologist runs ~£30–40 if you want commentary.

🚌Uber/Careem around Cairo, ~£6 total

🛏Budget hotel/hostel, Downtown Cairo (£14–20/night)

• →Pyramids of Giza plateau ticket
• →Sphinx & Valley Temple
• →Camel or horse ride (optional)
• →Egyptian Museum entry
• →Khan el-Khalili bazaar

Best value: take the early morning Nile Air or Air Cairo flight from Cairo to Aswan (~£35–55 booked 2–4 weeks ahead, 1h15). The cheaper, slower option is the overnight sleeper train (~£45–60 for a single cabin, or ~£15 for a second-class seat on a daytime train taking 13–14h). On arrival in Aswan, check in around the Corniche or Elephantine Island, then use an Uber or local minibus to the High Dam viewpoint (free-ish, small entry) and take the short boat across to Philae Temple (site ~£10; boat crossing for 2 people ~£5 each, agree the price first). Stop at the Unfinished Obelisk in the granite quarries (~£4) if time allows. Evening: sunset felucca sail on the Nile — negotiate directly with a boatman at the Corniche for ~£8–12/hour for the whole boat.

🚌One-way flight Cairo–Aswan ~£45 (or train seat ~£15)

🛏Budget guesthouse, Aswan Corniche/Elephantine Island (£12–18/night)

• →Philae Temple by boat
• →High Dam viewpoint
• →Unfinished Obelisk
• →Sunset felucca sail

Book a shared minibus or coach tour to Abu Simbel the day before via your guesthouse, Klook or GetYourGuide (~£18–28 including entry to both temples). Departure is brutally early — around 3:30–4:00am — because of the convoy system, with a ~3h drive each way and 2–3 hours at the site. The Great Temple of Ramses II and the smaller Temple of Nefertari are genuinely one of the world's great sights. Back in Aswan by mid-afternoon: rest, then take a local boat to a Nubian village on the west bank for tea and a look round the painted houses (~£5–8 boat, small tip for the family). Alternatively stay in town and eat at a riverside restaurant.

🚌Shared minibus to Abu Simbel ~£20 return incl. entry; local boat ~£5

🛏Budget guesthouse, Aswan (£12–18/night)

• →Abu Simbel — Great Temple of Ramses II
• →Temple of Queen Nefertari
• →Nubian village visit

Two options. Cheapest: take the local train or a shared minibus Aswan → Luxor (~£5–10, 4h), hopping off at Kom Ombo (~£5 entry, crocodile god temple right on the riverbank) and then Edfu (~£7 entry — take a tuk-tuk or horse-drawn carriage from the station, ~£3, fixed-price negotiated up front), continuing on to Luxor by train or minibus. If you want the cruise experience, book a 2-night/3-night short budget Nile cruise through a local Aswan agency or Booking.com — negotiable to roughly £70–95 per person sharing, and confirm in writing what's included before paying. Either way you arrive in Luxor in the evening; check into a guesthouse on the West Bank or in town and eat at one of the cheap local restaurants near Luxor Temple.

🚌Train/minibus Aswan–Kom Ombo–Edfu–Luxor ~£8 (or budget Nile cruise ~£80)

🛏Budget guesthouse, Luxor West Bank (£12–18/night)

• →Kom Ombo Temple
• →Edfu Temple by horse-drawn carriage/tuk-tuk

Cross the Nile by public ferry (~£0.30) or take the local motorboat (~£2) and hire a bike (~£4/day) or shared taxi (~£10 for the day) for the West Bank. Valley of the Kings ticket (~£12) covers three tombs — Tutankhamun and Seti I cost extra. Go at 6am opening to dodge both heat and tour groups. Add the Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut (~£8) and the Colossi of Memnon (free roadside stop). GetYourGuide/Airbnb-style West Bank guided half-day with an Egyptologist is ~£30–40 if you'd like the context — otherwise a decent guidebook or a site guide at the gate for ~£10 is plenty. Afternoon: nap, then Medinet Habu temple (~£6) if you've still got legs. Sunset from a rooftop on the West Bank.

🚌Ferry + bike or shared taxi on West Bank, ~£6

🛏Budget guesthouse, Luxor West Bank (£12–18/night)

• →Valley of the Kings
• →Temple of Hatshepsut
• →Colossi of Memnon
• →Medinet Habu (optional)

Walk or cycle to Karnak Temple early (~£10 entry) — give it 2–3 hours; the Hypostyle Hall is the highlight of the entire trip for many travellers. Break for lunch, then visit Luxor Temple (~£7) in the late afternoon and stay for the floodlights at dusk, which is the best value hour in Luxor. Optional extras: Luxor Museum (~£8) or the Mummification Museum. In the evening, book your onward transport back to Cairo — an early flight Luxor → Cairo (~£35–50) is far more comfortable than the 9–10h train (~£10–15 second class) if you have a flight out the next day.

🚌Local transport in Luxor ~£3

🛏Budget guesthouse, Luxor West Bank (£12–18/night)

• →Karnak Temple
• →Luxor Temple at dusk
• →Luxor Museum (optional)

Fly or train back to Cairo and use your remaining hours for last-minute souvenir shopping in Khan el-Khalili, tea at El Fishawy café, or a wander through Islamic Cairo and Bab Zuweila. If your flight is late, a day bag left at the hotel makes an easy afternoon. Allow 3 hours before an international departure for Cairo airport — traffic can be brutal. Uber to CAI ~£5–7.

🚌Luxor–Cairo flight ~£40 (or second-class train ~£12) + Uber to CAI ~£6

🛏None (departure day) — day room in Cairo ~£15 if needed

• →Khan el-Khalili shopping
• →El Fishawy café
• →Islamic Cairo walk