Eqyptian Red Sea liveaboard and Nile antiquities cruise – Oct 3rd to 17th 2024
Early Days – Egypt Group 2007
This Eqypt trip is in the books!
Original post for the trip will remain below for historical purposes. Man, it was awesome. Peter Montgomery has made a really cool photo magazine with high quality prints for the trip, here is the link to it.
Some of his FB posts are amazing.
Here is a link to my underwater pics
Friend request me with a message to follow future trips!
Egyptian Liveaboard Oct 3rd to 10th 2024 and a second week Oct 17th to 24th
Pick one week or do both, your choice.
It has been 15 years since the Island Divers travel team has done an Egyptian liveaboard. It was great the first time, time to go back! Just like last time we are going to follow up the liveaboard dive trip part with a cruise on the Nile to see the antiquities. All the famous stuff you’ve been hearing about your whole life. Time to go take a look in person. Just don’t let Matt book your flights (story included if you are coming with us).
Group One Part One – the liveaboard Oct 3-10th
The newly booked boat is the Emporer Elite. We met the owner (he manages over 10 liveaboards) and checked up on reputation. Especially the food. I think we will enjoy it. It also has the advantage of being a pretty good value for a liveaboard. All that is left at this point are lower deck shared twin bed cabins. Here are the prices:
$1685 twin lower deck, $1810 twin upper and main, $2150 Jr Suite, $2370 Exec Suite. All prices per person
The second is antiquity week Oct 10th to 17th and both liveaboard groups will do that together.
Group 2 liveaboard week is Oct 17th to 24th is $160 more per person due to a longer itinerary from the port (those of us doing both want to do different stuff)
Departing from Port Ghalib, Marsa Alam.
26 guests max. We reserved the whole boat for our group! both of them!
Itinerary is southern. More pelagics (mantas!), sharks (hammerheads, oceanic white tips, guitar sharks, threshers…) than the north route. Southern route also has some of the most pristine coral reefs that seem to be climate resistant. Structure, walls, tunnels, swim thrus, ledges and bommies hold life abundant.
October is a great time to dive and tour in Egypt, the daytime air temperature is on average the 80s, the Red Sea water temperature should be around 80-83 degrees.
What is not included
Alcohol onboard except that they will serve a glass of beer or wine with dinner. Tips are not included. $100 to $200 per person is reasonable, but it does depend on the service. Obviously, you have to fly to Egypt, see below for exactly what you need to do. Nitrox is included, but we may have to bring DIN tank adaptors (they get mostly Europeans). Hotel room in Port Ghalib Oct 2nd or Oct 16th if you need it (see logistics). Gear is not included. And maybe the biggest thing. You have to have Dive Accident and Trip Insurance. They require it. Here is a link for that.
Antiquity Week – The Nile Cruise and Cairo/Pyramids Week Oct 10th to 17th
If you are on the boat Oct 3rd to 10th you are in Group 1 (G1). If you are on the boat Oct 17th to 24th you are in Group 2 (G2). This section does not apply if you are not going on the antiquity week.
Oct 9th Group 1 (G1) – you are still on the liveaboard
Oct 9th: Welcome to Egypt Group 2 (G2)
Welcome to Cairo
Upon your arrival to Cairo Airport, our representative will meet and assist you then transport you to your hotel Cairo for check-in and relax.
Overnight Cairo
Oct 10th: Luxor – Embark to Dahabiya
Group 1 (G1) – Private early pickup from liveaboard and transport to Luxor. This is private overland transportation as there are no flights for this. About 4 hours.
G2 – Check out hotel and fly to Luxor, join G1
The two groups embark to the Dahabiya Nile Cruise, enjoy Lunch onboard before start Luxor evening visits.
- Visit Karnak Temple
- Visit Luxor temple at night
- Overnight Luxor
Oct 11th: Visit Luxor west Bank – Sail to Edfu
Optional tour: Hot Air Balloon trip over Luxor
Early morning (3am) pickup to fly on hot air balloon trip over Luxor. This is the only additional cost item on the itinerary, probably $90 pp. Optional because it is a 3am start time!
After landing or breakfast at your boat, your private Egyptologist will pick you up to visit:
- Valley of the Kings
The final resting place of Egypt’s rulers from the 18th to the 20th dynasty, the Valley of the Kings is home to tombs including the great pharaoh Ramses II and boy pharaoh Tutankhamun.
- Hatshepsut Temple
The queen who would-be king, Hatshepsut was a ruler loved by her people but always surrounded by controversy. See the spectacular Hatshepsut temple in Luxor’s west bank, one of the best-preserved of its kind.
- Colossi of Memnon
Two massive stone statues of king Amenhotep III are the only remains of a complete mortuary temple.
- Continue your Dahabiya Nile Cruise sailing to Esna and overnight.
- The lunch and dinner will be onboard the cruise.
Oct 12th: Visit Edfu Temple & Sail to Kom Ombo
In the morning, enjoy a delicious breakfast onboard the cruise. Then join your tour guide to visit:
- Edfu temple
Dedicated to God Horus. Edfu temple is considered the most preserved Greco-Roman temple all over Egypt and on its walls portrayed a Play shows the overcome of Horus over the devil god Seth.
Oct 13th: Explore Kom Ombo Temple & Sail to Aswan
After breakfast, Join your private tour guide to visit:
- Visit Kom Ombo Temple
overlooking the Nile. This temple divided into 2 temples with 2 entrances, 2 hypostyle Halls, and 2 sanctuaries.
- Visit Temple of Kheny (Temple of Sobek)
Then continue sailing to the ancient sandstone quarries at Gebel el-Silsila.
The principal deity of Gebel el-Silsila is Sobek, the god of crocodiles and controller of the waters. Silsila is located within the Ancient Egyptian nome of Kom Ombo.
The entire site of Gebel el Silsila covering about 20 square kilometers is in a multi-year epigraphic survey project directed by archaeologist Maria Nilsson under the auspices of Lund University, and assistant-director John Ward.
- Continue sailing to Aswan, Overnight Aswan.
Oct 14th: Visit Aswan
Optional Tour to Abu Simbel:
Early wakeup and have your breakfast box and then drive to visit Abu Simbel for 3 hours one-way. Abu Simbel is typically part of any complete tour of the antiquities, but it is 6 hours in a bus to see it. If you decide to skip it, our coordintator has other things we can do. Decide later, not now.
- Visit Abu Simbel temples
The two temples of Ramses the second and the Queen Nefertari were carved out of the Mountain on the west bank of the Nile between 1274 and 1244 B.c, The Great Temple was dedicated to Ramses the second, Ra-Harakhty, AmunRa and Ptah, with 4 Colossal statues,The second temple was dedicated to The Queen Nefertari and Goddess Hathor,the two temples were dismantled stone by stone and rebuilt on higher ground,The preservation of the two temples of Abu Simbel must Rank as the greatest Achievement of the Unesco.
- Drive back to Aswan, and enjoy your lunch onboard.
- Visit Aswan High Dam
- Visit The Unfinished Obelisk
- Visit Philae Temple.
Oct 15th: Half Day to Explore Giza Pyramids and Sphinx
After breakfast, check out from you luxury Dahabiya and transfer to Aswan airport to fly to Cairo (included)
Your Egyptologist tour guide will pick us up to visit:
- Visit Giza Pyramids complex.
- Visit the Great Sphinx
- Visit the Valley temple of Khafre
- Enjoy Lunch.
- Drive to hotel – check in.
Evening Tour:
- Enjoy your dinner on a rooftop while watching the light show on the Pyramids.
- Drive back to hotel, Overnight Cairo
Oct 16th: Half Day tour to Civilization Museum and Old Cairo
Breakfast at your hotel, then private Egyptologist will pick us up to start our half day tour.
- Visit the new Civilization museum
(if this museum is open! If it is, then some may perfer to spend the rest of the day here)
- Visit Salah El Din citadel.
- Visit Mohamed Ali mosque
- Enjoy lunch
- Free time to explore Cairo
- Drive back to hotel.
- Overnight Cairo
Oct 17th: transfer day
- G1 – Transfer to Cairo airport and meet your flight home
- G2 – Transfer to Cairo airport and fly to Marsa Alam (RMF)
Logistics for the Nile cruise and antiquity week.
Group 1 Arrival
You will be boarding the boat approximately 6pm on Oct 3rd. The boat leaves from Port Ghalib approx 15 minutes from Marsa Alam airport (RMF). So you can
- arrive to RMF on Oct 3rd (at this time there is only one nonstop flight from Cairo at 1020am arriving 1145am)
- arrive RMF on the 2nd and get a hotel for one night in Port Ghalib
- arrive in Cairo on the 2nd, get an airport hotel, and fly into RMF on the third (I’m doing this one)
Spending a night in a hotel heads off some travel delay problems if you run into any, up to you. Hotel not included in the package price. If not, make sure you have trip insurance (you should have it anyway). The transportation to the boat from the airport or your Port Ghalib hotel is included in your package. If you are in a hotel, after you check out you get a ride to the boat early, have your luggage loaded, and spend a half day in the port town until boarding.
At this point, you can disengage your planning brain. Everything is handled logistics-wise until departure.
Group 1 Departure
You will end the tours on Oct 16th in Cairo and have a prepaid hotel on that night. You can depart on the 17th to airport, transportation included.
Group 2 Arrival logistics
Arrive in Cairo on Oct 9th to check into your hotel (included), you will be met at the airport. Tours start the next day. You can turn off your planning brain at this point. Internal transportation including flights is included in the package.
Group 2 departure logistics
You are departing the boat early am on the 24th of October in Port Ghalib 15 minutes from Marsa Alam airport (RMF). Make flight arrangements onward from there and transportation to airport is included
Pricing for the Nile Cruise and Antiquity week
$2375. Slightly more than anticipated, but internal flights are included and we are using private dahibiya for our nile cruise.
Includes all the internal flights and overland transportation for Group 1, all the excursions and entrance fees, Egyptologist guides in groups 10 or less, dahabiya (private boats), air con tour buses, almost all the meals.
Not included are tips, alcohol, second bag fee on internal flights ($30) hot air balloon ride (optional), of course, any shopping you do, and your flights to your start point and ending point.
Group 2 -The second liveaboard Oct 17th to 24th
The price for this boat is $160 more per person more because of the route – Itinerary is called Simply the Best.
If you are doing the antiquity week you will be delivered from that week right to the boat, you don’t have to do anything except show up Oct 9th in Cairo. Fly out of RMF on the 24th of October, we are off the boat no later that 930am but we are staying in port that night so you can leave as early as necessary.
Reservations
As usual, send a check made out to Dive Travel Services for $500 per person for each boat ($1000pp whole trip). Mail to PO Box 30108, Honolulu HI 96820. I can take deposits via CC for 3.5% fee. Just email matt@islanddivershawaii.com for that if you need it. The final payment for the liveaboard is due 6 months before departure. March 31st 2024. And $1000 pp is due for the Antiquity week. Remaining payment can be made June 30th, 2024.
Also, my bank just added Zelle. That may work, email me.
Trip Insurance
So lots of things that probably won’t happen – might happen. Insurance is a gamble – usually you dont need it but when you do it really saves you. Possibilities – you or someone you have to take care of gets hurt or sick, you miss a connection and miss the boat, the boat sinks or goes out of business or simply breaks down, or your bags don’t show up. I’m sure there are more, but on a liveaboard, it is kinda important to get the insurance – we do. On a liveaboard the final payment is sometimes 6 months prior to departure, a lot can happen, worth it to insure. Use this link to go through the process, price depends on where you live, quotes are free.