Petra to the Pyramids & a Nile Yacht Cruise

Arrive in Amman, where you are met by YET representative and privately transferred to your hotel at the Dead Sea.

Proceed to Mount Nebo, where Moses is said to have seen the Promised Land he would never enter. Just beyond, Madaba — the “City of Mosaics” — reveals the oldest preserved mosaic map of the Holy Land. Composed of two million pieces of colored stone, it informed scholars about Jerusalem’s layout after its destruction and rebuilding in AD 70. Continue to Aqaba and check in to your hotel.

After a morning at leisure in Aqaba, travel to Wadi Rum — the “Valley of the Moon” — which you explore by 4x4, traversing rose-tinted vistas and visiting a place where Lawrence of Arabia once lived. Tonight, dine beneath twinkling desert skies before returning to your hotel.

Explore the once-thriving capital of Petra, a stunning city carved from the mountains around it. Pass through the Siq, the main entrance to the ancient city, to view the majestic Treasury, Temple of the Winged Lions and Palace Tomb. Eat lunch within the city of Petra before driving to your hotel.

This morning, enjoy one of these Design Your Day options.

Explore Third-Century Jerash, the “Pompeii of the Middle East,” with its well-preserved Roman ruins.

Tour Amman, visiting its historic downtown, the Citadel, a small Byzantine basilica and the Great Temple of Amman.

Visit Bethany Beyond the Jordan, on the eastern bank of the Jordan River, known as the baptism site of Jesus.

Later, enjoy time at leisure, free to take an afternoon dip in the restorative waters of the Dead Sea.

Transfer to the airport and fly to Cairo, Egypt’s bustling capital city. This afternoon, visit the Egyptian Museum of Antiquities (or the Grand Egyptian Museum, upon its opening), home to the largest collection of ancient Egyptian artifacts, including treasures from Tutankhamun and items dating to 4000 BC. Your visit will also include the famed Mummy Room, featuring the remains of ancient Egypt’s pharaohs and nobility, such as Ramses II, one of Egypt’s most powerful pharaohs.

Transfer to the airport and fly to Aswan, Arrive at your historic luxury hotel. Dating back to 1899, the property was built by Thomas Cook to house European travellers, among them Sir Winston Churchill; Margaret Thatcher; and Agatha Christie, whose novel, Death on the Nile, was set at this Victorian palace. Then visit the Tombs of the Nobles by camel. The tombs mark the final resting places of powerful governors and priests who controlled commerce between Aswan and Nubia. Proceed to Saint Simeon’s Monastery, one of Egypt’s best-preserved original Christian strongholds.This evening, sit down to dinner at the famed 1902 French restaurant.

Fly to Abu Simbel, where you visit the twin temples of Ramses II and Queen Nefertari. In Aswan, board your luxurious Dahabiya for the next three nights. After lunch on-board, join your Egyptologist to explore a granite quarry that supplied the ancient Egyptians. Take in an enormous monolith known as the “Unfinished Obelisk,” a fine example of ancient Egyptian stone-masonry. Return to Dahabiya for afternoon tea. Later this evening, enjoy cocktails and dinner aboard

This morning, journey via motor launch to the island of Agilika. Here, visit Philae, a painstakingly transplanted and reconstructed temple originally dedicated to the Egyptian goddess Isis. Return to your Nile cruise for a Chefs Table culinary experience exploring local ingredients. Disembark in Kom Ombo to visit a Greco-Roman temple dedicated to Haroeris (the sun god) and Sobek (the crocodile god). Enjoy afternoon tea aboard as you sail for Edfu. Later, visit the beautifully preserved Temple of Horus (the falcon god).

• Sailing to Esna early morning.
• Breakfast on board.

• Lunch while sailing.

• Crossing Esna lock.
• Visit the East Bank (Temples of Luxor & Karnak) by bus from Esna.

• Sail to Luxor.

• Dinner on board

Overnight in Luxor West bank.

Disembark in Luxor.Discover the Valley of the Kings, the legendary burial ground of the pharaohs, including entrance into the tomb of “the boy king,” Tutankhamun. Discover the terraced funerary temple of Queen Hatshepsut. Time permitting, visit the Valley of the Queens (Biban el-Harim). Return to the airport and fly to Cairo.

This morning, join your Egyptologist and discover the pyramids built for Cheops, Chephren and Mycerinus on the Giza Plateau. Continue to the Solar Boat Museum, which houses the funerary boat of King Cheops. Then, riding camel back, take in the panorama of the Giza Plateau, where the soaring pyramids rise from the sands. Also see the fabled Great Sphinx, a monumental limestone statue. Next, visit the ancient capital of Memphis, the city of Menes, as well as the necropolis of Sakkara, site of the storied Step Pyramid of King Djoser and the oldest-known Egyptian pyramid. Tonight, toast to your travels with fellow guests at a special farewell dinner hosted by YET.

Transfer to the airport and board your flight home.