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Soul Vacation/ Destinations / Egypt / Destinations / Cairo / Legends of the Nile & Beyond – A cultural and natural escape
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Legends of the Nile & Beyond – A cultural and natural escape

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Overview

This package is a 10-day tour covering Cairo, Alexandria, Siwa Oasis, Fayoum, and Bahariya Oasis.

  • 10 Days

Attraction Highlights

What is included in this trip package?

  • • Accommodation (9 Nights):
  • o 5 Nights in a Cairo Hotel (Bed and Breakfast basis).
  • o 3 Nights in a Siwa Hotel (Bed and Breakfast basis).
  • o 1 Night of desert camping.
  • • Meals: 9 breakfasts, 3 lunches, and 8 dinners.
  • • Transfers: All transfers by A.C. vehicles with a qualified driver, including a private $4 times 4$ vehicle for the desert tours (White and Black Deserts).
  • • Guidance & Service: Private Egyptologist English-speaking tour guide(s) , meet and assist service by English-speaking representatives.
  • • Fees & Taxes: Entrance fees to all mentioned archaeological sightseeing, all local taxes and services.
  • • Other: Complimentary 1 bottle of water per day per person.

What is excluded in this trip package?

  • • International flight ticket.
  • • Entry visa to Egypt.
  • • Personal spending.
  • • Tipping (Gratuities for your tour guides and drivers)
From $1300
/ Adult

Need help with booking? Send Us A Message

Legends of the Nile & Beyond – A cultural and natural escape

Terms & Conditions

Key Attractions

  • Cairo Classics: The Great Pyramids of Giza, the famous Sphinx, and the Grand Egyptian Museum (housing the world’s largest collection of Pharaonic antiquities).
  • Siwa Oasis Wonders: Visit the Fortress of Shali (Old City) , Mountain of Deads (Tombs) , Oracle Temple & Alexander the Great Coronation Hall , and Cleopatra Spring.
  • Alexandria & Coast: Explore the Catacombs of Kom El Shofaqa , Pompey’s Pillar , Roman Theatre , and Citadel of Qait Bay.
  • Desert & Safari: Enjoy a 4×4 Jeep Safari in the Great Sand Sea, visit the Hot Spring “Bir Wahed” , Cold Lake , and try sandboarding.
  • Oasis Expedition: Discover the UNESCO World Heritage Site Wadi El Hitan (Whale Valley) , the unique Magic Lake , and the Black & White Deserts.
  • Cultural Experience: Visit a Papyrus Fair, Perfume Factory, Cotton Shop, Khan El Khalili Bazaar , and the Fayoum Pottery School in Tunis Village.

Id drivers)

Official Trip Map​

Official Trip Map​

FAQs

How can I be confident that Soul Vacation will provide a trustworthy and high-quality experience in Egypt?

We understand that trust is crucial, especially when traveling abroad. Our brand is built on decades of experience in the Egyptian travel industry, ensuring professional expertise and reliability. We address the common credibility gap by operating with complete transparency. Furthermore, our Core Values include Credibility and Excellence, meaning we deliver professional, reliable service and treat you like a cherished guest, from your first inquiry to your final goodbye.

At Soul Vacation, “tailor-made” is our defining promise. We don’t use ready-made packages; every single journey is designed from scratch. We take the time to listen to your dreams, pace, preferences, and passions. This personal approach ensures your itinerary is a unique experience that feels meaningful and reflects your inner spirit, turning your visit into a soulful awakening. Our trips are crafted to connect you to the authentic soul of Egypt, not just the famous landmarks.

While the iconic landmarks are essential, our mission is to offer Cultural Depth. We craft journeys that go beyond surface-level tourism by offering authentic interactions with Egypt’s people, traditions, and heritage. You might find yourself dining with locals by the Nile or discovering hidden gems, thanks to our team’s insider knowledge. We ensure your journey is immersive and story-driven, connecting you to the emotional soul of Egypt.

The ideal traveler for Soul Vacation is someone who values a journey that moves their soul. They are typically foreign travelers, often couples, small groups, or solo explorers, aged 30-65, who are seeking authentic, high-quality, and personalized experiences. Most importantly, our clients are emotionally driven travelers who seek connection over consumption and value cultural authenticity and personal service over generic, mass-market packages. We are here to be your trusted companion and guide.

Pyramids of Giza

The Pyramids of Giza and the Great Sphinx are among the most popular tourist destinations in the world, and indeed already were even in Roman times. Each of these spectacular structures served as the final resting place of a king of the 4th Dynasty (c.2613-2404 BC).
The Great Pyramid of Giza was built for king Khufu (c.2589-2566 BC), and the other two for Khafre and Menkaure, his son and grandson. Khufu’s pyramid is both the oldest and largest of the three, and the first building to exceed it in height would not be built for another 3,800 years!
Although the three pyramids dominate the plateau, they are in fact surrounded by many other monuments. Every king’s pyramid was just one element albeit the most important of a larger complex that included smaller, subsidiary, queens’pyramids; an additional one that acted as a second, symbolic, tomb for the king, called a satellite pyramid; mastba tombs for nobility and other family members; burials of actual and/or symbolic boats; and a pair of temples linked by a richly decorated causeway. One of these temples, called the valley temple, led into the pyramid complex, and was located on or near a body of water where boats could dock.
The other, the funerary (or upper) temple, stood near the base of the pyramid. Priests maintained the mortuary cult of the deceased king in these temples, where his divine aspect was worshiped, and where rich and diverse offerings were presented to his soul so he could have a peaceful and luxurious afterlife.

Tomb of Queen Meresankh III

Under the shadow of the Great Pyramid lies the mastba of Queen Meresankh III, the wife of Khafre and granddaughter of Khufu. Both very large and exquisitely decorated, this is indeed a tomb worthy of her rank and fortunately also contains the best preserved wall reliefs in the Eastern Cemetery. These are decorated with a diverse array of scenes, including bread baking, beer brewing, fowling, herding, mat making, metal smelting, and the sculpting of statues, apparently of Meresankh herself. These, along with the elaborate scenes of offering- bearers bringing all sorts of gifts to Meresankh, were intended to magically provide her soul with a continuous stream of food and goods in the afterlife. Interestingly, among the objects being brought to her a canopy with a bed being set up within it, an armchair, and a carrying chair. Actual examples of very similar objects were discovered in the tomb of Hetepheres I, the mother of Khufu, and can be seen today at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

Eastern and Western Cemeteries

Under the shadow of the Great Pyramid lies the mastba of Queen Meresankh III, the wife of Khafre and granddaughter of Khufu. Both very large and exquisitely decorated, this is indeed a tomb worthy of her rank and fortunately also contains the best preserved wall reliefs in the Eastern Cemetery. These are decorated with a diverse array of scenes, including bread baking, beer brewing, fowling, herding, mat making, metal smelting, and the sculpting of statues, apparently of Meresankh herself. These, along with the elaborate scenes of offering- bearers bringing all sorts of gifts to Meresankh, were intended to magically provide her soul with a continuous stream of food and goods in the afterlife. Interestingly, among the objects being brought to her a canopy with a bed being set up within it, an armchair, and a carrying chair. Actual examples of very similar objects were discovered in the tomb of Hetepheres I, the mother of Khufu, and can be seen today at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

Workers’ Town and Cemetery

The remains of a large settlement site, known as Heit al-Ghurab, were discovered in the southeastern area of the Giza Plateau. This was where the workers who built the pyramid complexes of Khafre (c.2558–2532 BC) and Menkaure (c.2532–2503 BC) lived. The tantalizing remains of an even older settlement underneath may date to Khufu’s reign (c.2589–2566 BC). Houses, magazines, three main streets, and a royal administrative building were discovered within the city walls, as were four huge galleries. These may have been the barracks in which the workers who built the pyramids slept and prepared their food. An enormous amount of fish, bird, cattle, sheep, goat, and pig bones were found, revealing that the state ensured that the workers were in good health so they could fulfill their physically demanding responsibilities.

The Great Pyramid

The Great Pyramid, the tomb of King Khufu (c.2589–2566 BC), with its original height of 146.5 meters, was the tallest structure in the world for 3,800 years. It remains the last surviving member of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, and took an estimated 10 to 20 years to build. To this day, it is not entirely certain how this was done. The Great Pyramid is made of local limestone, but its exterior was once entirely covered with high quality limestone. These casing stones were brought from Turah, south of Maadi, by ship. On the inside, the pyramid has three chambers, one cut into the bedrock underneath, and two high up within the masonry itself, a feature that no other pyramid possesses. The sarcophagus in which Khufu was once laid to rest can still be seen in the upper of these two rooms, the King’s Chamber. This room is accessed through the Grand Gallery, a majestic corbelled ascending passage, and a masterpiece of ancient engineering and architecture.

Tomb of Khufukhaf I

The mastaba tomb of Khufukhaf I is located in the Eastern Cemetery of the complex of the Great Pyramid of king Khufu (c.2589–2566 BC) at Giza. This cemetery was reserved for the closest relatives of the king, and contains some of the largest mastabas on the Giza Plateau. The term mastaba (Arabic for “bench”) refers to a type of funerary structure that was generally rectangular in shape and built over the tomb proper, which was underground. The mastaba of Khufukhaf I includes two burial shafts, one for him, and another for his wife, Neferetkau. The chapel of Khufukhaf I, inside the mastaba, where his funerary cult was conducted, is very well preserved. Many beautiful scenes survive that show him and his wife receiving a wide variety of offerings, which they would both need in the afterlife. A scene in the chapel depicts him holding his mother’s hand. The hieroglyphic inscriptions beside her reveal that she was the mother of a king, but her name is missing. It is thought that this is Henutsen, one of Khufu’s wives, who is believed to have been buried in one of the three queens’ pyramids next-door. The inscriptions in Khufukhaf I’s mastaba also identify him as a vizier, the highest-ranking official in ancient Egyptian administration. As a vizier and the son of a queen, there is no doubt that Khufukhaf I was one of the most powerful people in the kingdom during his lifetime.

Pyramid Complex of Khafre (Kheferen)

Khafre (c.2558–2532 BC), whom the ancient Greeks knew as Khefren, was a son of King Khufu (Cheops), the builder of the Great Pyramid. He built the second pyramid complex at Giza, and constructed his tomb on slightly higher ground, making it appear just as tall as his father’s. At 143.5 meters in height, however, his pyramid is only slightly shorter, and a tremendously impressive monument. Its core masonry is made of blocks of local limestone. The top of the pyramid still preserves the beautifully polished blocks of high-quality limestone that once encased the majority of the structure’s towering height. This white stone was quarried in Turah, south of Maadi, and transported here by ship. The mortuary temple of Khafre at the foot of his pyramid and the valley temple at the end of the causeway are larger than any of those of older pyramids, and also among the best preserved of the Old Kingdom. Another development in the reign of Khafre is the complexity of their layout, with the elements constituting his mortuary temple becoming the new standard that its later Old Kingdom counterparts would follow. A unique feature of Khafre’s complex is the inclusion of a colossal statue beside his valley temple the Great Sphinx. The valley temple is made of massive limestone blocks encased in granite, floors made of alabaster, and its wide hall features monolithic granite pillars. The symmetrically arranged niches along the walls of the hall once accommodated statues of the king, some of which are currently on display in the Egyptian Museum. One of these, the famous granodiorite statue of Khafre with Horus as a falcon perched behind his head, is widely considered one of the masterpieces of ancient Egyptian art.

Pyramid Complex of Menkaure

Menkaure (Mykerinos to the ancient Greeks; c.2532–2503 BC) is the builder of the third of the three large Giza Pyramids. He was most likely the son of Khafre (Khefren), and grandson of Khufu (Cheops). With a base area that is less than a quarter of their pyramids’, and with an original height of 65 meters, Menkaure’s is by far the smallest of the three. This reduction in size is due to several factors, including the limited amount of space left on the Giza Plateau. The material used for the outer casing of Menkaure’s pyramid is another. Whereas his predecessors had used limestone for this purpose, Menkaure employed granite, which was quarried in Aswan, over 800 km away. In addition to the logistics involved in transportation of the granite blocks, the material itself is much harder than limestone. However, only the bottom quarter of the casing stones are made of granite however, the rest being limestone. Like the Great Pyramid, three smaller pyramids can be seen next to Menkaure’s as well, which were used for the burials of his queens. No satellite pyramid has been discovered, however, but it is believed that the largest of the three queens’ pyramids was in fact originally intended to have been the satellite pyramid. Menkaure died before his pyramid complex was completed, and much of the pyramid’s granite casing blocks were not smoothed. His mortuary and valley temples were intended to consist of colossal limestone blocks encased in granite, but were actually completed with whitewashed mud brick. Despite this, however, the mortuary cult of Menkaure was practiced for another 300 years after his death.

The Great Sphinx

Colossal statues are one of the hallmarks of ancient Egyptian civilization, and the Great Sphinx of Giza is the most famous. It was carved directly out of the bedrock during the 4th Dynasty (c.2613–2494 BC), which also makes it the oldest. Ancient Egyptian sphinxes represented the king with the body of a lion, in a clear demonstration of his power. The evidence points to the Great Sphinx having been carved during the reign of Khafre (Khefren to the ancient Greeks; c.2558–2532 BC), the builder of the second of the Giza pyramids. The Great Sphinx and the temple in front of it, called the Sphinx Temple, lie directly next to Khafre’s valley temple and the lower portion of the causeway leading up to his mortuary temple and pyramid. Careful archaeological analysis has revealed that the valley temple was finished before work was begun on the Great Sphinx and its temple. Analysis of the Great Sphinx’s facial features has also revealed striking similarities with those of Khafre’s statues. The Great Sphinx has captured the imagination of travelers and explorers for millennia, even in ancient Egyptian times. During the 18th Dynasty (c.1550–1295 BC), it came to be seen as a manifestation of the sun god, and was called Horemakhet “Horus in the Horizon”. King Amenhotep II (c.1427–1400 BC) built a temple next to the Sphinx, which he dedicated to this god. His son, Thutmose IV (c.1400–1390 BC), erected a monumental stela between its front paws, called the Dream Stela, on which he recorded a fascinating event.

The Egyptian Museum

The Egyptian Museum is the oldest archaeological museum in the Middle East, and houses the largest collection of Pharaonic antiquities in the world. The museum displays an extensive collection spanning from the Predynastic Period to the Greco-Roman Era.
The architect of the building was selected through an international competition in 1895, which was the first of its kind, and was won by the French architect, Marcel Dourgnon. The museum was inaugurated in 1902 by Khedive Abbas Helmy II, and has become a historic landmark in downtown Cairo, and home to some of the world’s most magnificent ancient masterpieces.
Among the museum’s unrivaled collection are the complete burials of Yuya and Thuya, Psusennes I and the treasures of Tanis, and the Narmer Palette commemorating the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under one king, which is also among the
museum’s invaluable artifacts. The museum also houses the splendid statues of the great kings Khufu, Khafre, and Menkaure, the builders of the pyramids at the Giza plateau. An extensive collection of papyri, sarcophagi and jewelry, among other objects, completes this uniquely expansive museum.

Statue of the Dwarf Seneb and his Family

This group statue of the dwarf Seneb and his family was found in a naos in his mastaba tomb in Giza. Seneb is represented seated, with his legs crossed, beside his wife who embraces him affectionately. His wife is of normal height. For the sake of the symmetry of the composition, the sculptor carves the couple’s two children where Seneb’s legs would have been, had he been of the same height as his wife. The children are represented naked, with their index finger in their mouth–the standard manner in which children were typically depicted in art. The boy is seen on the viewer’s left, wearing a sidelock of youth and depicted in skin that is darker than his sister’s, who stands on his left. The sidelock of youth was typically worn by male children, and was cut off at puberty. The inscriptions on the base and the front of the seat tell us that Seneb was the funerary priest of the deceased kings Khufu and Djedefra, and in charge of the royal wardrobe. Seneb’s tomb is very interesting, for it has the first ceiling dome over a square chamber. Late Dynasty 5- Early Dynasty 6 (24th – 23rd Century BC) Provenance: Giza, Tomb of Seneb. Medium: Painted Limestone.

Amenhotep III and Tiye Colossal Statue

This colossal statue depicts the royal couple, Amenhotep III and his wife Tiye, along with their three daughters. This is the largest known ancient Egyptian family group statue ever carved, and it is fitting that it dates to the reign of Amenhotep III, whose prosperous rule was marked by great such monumentality. New Kingdom, Dynasty 18, reign of Amenhotep (c.1390–1352 BC) Medium: Limestone Provenance: Luxor

Sarcophagus of Kawit

This is the sarcophagus of Queen Kawit, the wife of King Nebhepetre Mentuhotep, the founder of the Middle Kingdom. The outer faces are beautifully decorated with daily life scenes, in one case depicting her drinking in front of a table laden with food, while one of the maids is hairdressing the queen's hair, and a maid pours her next drink. She holds a mirror in her free hand. In another scene, she is shown holding a lotus flower to her nose while dipping her finger in an unguent container held up by a servant. Her chest lies in front of her, the jewelry inside it depicted one on top of the other.
Other scenes show cows being milked or calves breastfeeding. The combination of beauty, seen in the mirror, jewelry, and unguent, together with the lotus, the cows, and milk, together form very clear allusions to fertility, youth, rebirth, and Hathor, the goddess of love, beauty, fertility, music, and motherhood.
Middle Kingdom, 11th Dynasty, reign of Nebhepetre Mentuhotep (c.2055–2004 BC)
Medium: Limestone Provenance: Deir al-Bahari

Menkaura triads

Group statue of king Menkaura. This sculpted group statue shows King «Menkaure» between two ladies. The goddess «Hathor» is on his right and goddess (Bat)is on his left. He wears the crown of Upper Egypt (The white crown). Goddess «Hathor» wears her usual crown, composed of the sun disk between the two cow's horns, while the other lady is wearing the symbol of her nome.
Provenance: Giza, Valley Temple of Menkaure. Date: Old Kingdom, Dynasty 4, Reign of Menkaure (ca. 2494-2472 BC).
Medium: Grey-green Schist.

Menkaura triads

Group statue of king Menkaura. This sculpted group statue shows King «Menkaure» between two ladies. The goddess «Hathor» is on his right and goddess (Bat)is on his left. He wears the crown of Upper Egypt (The white crown). Goddess «Hathor» wears her usual crown, composed of the sun disk between the two cow's horns, while the other lady is wearing the symbol of her nome.
Provenance: Giza, Valley Temple of Menkaure. Date: Old Kingdom, Dynasty 4, Reign of Menkaure (ca. 2494-2472 BC). Medium: Grey-green Schist.

Masks of Yuya and Thuya

The mummies of Yuya and Thuya were discovered wearing these cartonnage masks covered with gold leaf. Yuya was the father of Queen Tiye, wife of king Amenhotep III, and husband of Thuya. Yuya came from the town of Akhmim, where he probably held estates and where he was a priest of the Egyptian god Min, the chief god of the area. Thuya held important religious titles, in addition to the title of the Royal Mother of the Great Wife of the King.
New Kingdom, 18th Dynasty, reign of Amenhotep III (c.1390–1352 BC) Medium: Cartonnage, gold
Provenance: Luxor, Valley of the Kings, Tomb of Yuya and Tjuya (KV46)

Khafre Statue

The number of wooden statues that survived from ancient Egypt is very small, compared to their stone counterparts. The reasons behind this are that the quality of local wood was poor. High-quality wood, such as cedar, had to be imported from places like Lebanon. Another reason is that wood does not survive as well as stone. Many wooden statues probably disintegrated through time.
This beautiful piece was made for the priest-reader, Ka-aper. It was originally plastered and painted. He is represented in a striding pose, with his left foot forward, and holding a staff (now substituted with a copy) in his left hand.
His right would have probably held a cylinder. The level of realism with which the subject is represented is impressive, and contrasts with the extreme idealism in which kings and members of the royal family were depicted. Ka-aper is shown as a corpulent man, probably reflecting his affluent status. His eyes are inlaid with calcite, rock crystal and black stone,
outlined with copper, in imitation of eye make-up. These exquisite eyes and the portrait-like facial features add to the life-like quality of this statue, that when the workmen in Mariette’s excavations discovered it they thought it resembled the mayor of their village so much, that the statue was coined “Sheikh el-Balad” (mayor), a name by which this statue is still known today, even by non-Egyptians.
Provenance: Saqqara, Mastaba of Ka-aper Date: Old Kingdom, Dynasty 5 (ca. 2465-2323 BC) Medium: Wood; Eyes: Rock crystal, calcite, copper, black stone

Khufu Statue

This statue depicts King Khufu (known to the Greeks as Cheops), the builder of the Great Pyramid of Giza. Ironically, this small, 7.5-cm-tall statuette is the only confirmed contemporary three-dimensional statue of this king.
When it was first discovered, the head was missing. Noticing that the break was recent, Sir Flinders Petrie, aware of the importance of the find, ordered a search for the missing head, which was finally discovered three weeks later. Old Kingdom, 4th Dynasty, reign of Khufu (c.2589–2566 BC) Medium: Ivory
Provenance: Abydos

Narmer Palette

The Narmer Palette contains some of the earliest hieroglyphic inscriptions ever found. It is thought to depict the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under King Narmer. On one side, the king, wearing the Red Crown of Lower Egypt, marches in a victory procession. Below him, the necks of two mythical animals, called serpopards, intertwine, while being restrained by human
figures. They are thought to represent Upper and Lower Egypt being brought under the king's control. On the other side, the king is depicted wearing the White Crown of Upper Egypt, about to smite a Lower Egyptian chief. This image of the king smiting an enemy would become iconic of ancient Egyptian kingship, and was still carved on the very last ancient Egyptian temples ever constructed. Early Dynastic Period, 1st Dynasty, reign of Narmer (c.3100 BC)
Medium: Green schist Provenance: Hierakonpolis

Statue of Mentuhotep

Mentuhotep Nebheptre, the king who unified Upper and Lower Egypt for the second time after King Narmer. He is depicted wearing the Red Crown and the tight fitting costume of the Sed festival, a jubilee celebrated after 30 years of a reign. His black skin and the position of his crossed arms associate him with the god Osiris, god of death, fertility, and resurrection. The statue was found by chance in 1900 by Howard Carter as he rode through the forecourt of Mentuhotep’s mortuary temple at Deir al-Bahari, when his horse tripped on something.
Upon investigation, this turned out to be a stone slab covering a shaft. Carter excavated it, and discovered a small chamber containing the statue intricately wrapped in linen, along with other artifacts.
Middle Kingdom, 11th Dynasty, Nebheptre Mentuhotep (c.2055–2004 BC)
Medium: Painted sandstone Provenance: Deir al-Bahari, Mortuary complex of Mentuhotep Nebheptre