Ancient World Odyssey

On arrival at Cairo International Airport, you are met by our representative and transferred to your hotel. This is simply an arrival day so you may arrive in Cairo at any time. Note that hotel rooms are generally only available after midday. The balance of the day is free to explore your surroundings, but normally a Welcome Meeting is held in the evening where you meet your tour leader and fellow travellers.

The Egyptian Museum is simply one of the world’s great museums, home to a stupendous collection of antiquities and the perfect introduction to our tour, exhibiting many of the region’s treasures. We head there after breakfast and our expert guide takes us through Egypt’s rich and fascinating dynastic history. You will then have some free time to explore on your own; you may wish to visit the Royal Mummy Room (optional and at extra cost). We then drive out to Giza, home to perhaps the greatest iconic structures ever created by man - the pyramids and the Sphinx. Instantly familiar yet retaining a mystique and power, getting up close to these incredible pharaonic tombs is captivating. For an additional charge you may be able to go inside the Great Pyramid of Khufu (or Cheops), although occasionally it may be closed to visitors. Afterwards we return to our hotel, where there is plenty of time to freshen up and pack before we are transferred to the railway station for the overnight sleeper train to Luxor. Sleeping berths (beds and linen) are provided in private cabins and an airline-style dinner is served. It is worth bringing additional snacks and your tour leader can help you to arrange this. A toilet is located at the end of each carriage.

After an early breakfast on board, the train rolls into Luxor - a buzzing place with a great bazaar and situated close to some of ancient Egypt’s most important and extraordinary sights. We transfer to our Nile cruise boat, which will be our home for the next four nights. We can relax by the pool on the boat or explore the town. Later in the day we take horse-drawn carriages to Karnak - one of the world’s most celebrated temple complexes, built over a period of some 200 years. Our guided tour of the temple reveals the complex’s finest sections. For the rest of the afternoon and evening we are free to relax, shop in the bazaar (open until quite late) or perhaps experience the atmosphere of a local tea house.

We rise early this morning (very much earlier during summer!) and head into the Valley of the Kings, where buried under the arid hills are over 60 tombs of pharaohs, many richly decorated with reliefs and paintings. It’s a compelling place, vast and spectacular, and discoveries are still being made. Tutankhamun’s final resting place is also located here, but entry to this small tomb is quite limited. It is at additional cost, but you will be given some free time when you will have the opportunity to visit it. Our guide explains the funerary rites of the ancient Egyptians and significance of the many paintings and hieroglyphics. We visit three royal tombs and then continue to the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut, set in a spectacular natural amphitheatre. Our final stop is at the Colossi of Memnon - giant statues that were once part of an impressive colonnade. We return to our boat and enjoy lunch on board. There is time to relax on deck or in your cabin before we set sail for Edfu. Departure time may vary, depending on river traffic – please refer to the note regarding cruise schedules in the ‘Other Information’ section. We pass through Esna Lock, which can sometimes be a slow process depending on the number of vessels waiting to get through, and continue our journey upstream.

Morning finds us moored near Edfu, an excellently-preserved temple dedicated to Horus - the falcon-headed god. We disembark and explore the temple as well as experiencing the bustling town centre. Returning to our cruise boat we continue travelling upriver, relaxing on the sundeck and taking in the surrounding sights - desert hills forming a backdrop to lush riverbanks, fishermen casting their nets and farmers working their land. Arriving at Komombo, our short walk around the Temple of Sobek (the crocodile-headed god) that lies picturesquely ruined on the river’s edge provides an interesting insight into the Greco-Roman period.

We arrive in Aswan, Egypt’s southernmost city and a place with an easygoing charm that is due in no small part to its large Nubian population. Depending on our arrival time, we may visit the beautiful Temple of Isis that was rescued from the rising waters of the Nile and relocated on Philae Island (alternatively we will visit it tomorrow). It is an absolute gem, its decorative pylons featuring some of Egypt’s finest carvings - definitely one of the highlights of Upper Egypt. The rest of our day is free to wander – and Aswan is a great place for it. The Nubian Bazaar is a must, while the excellent Nubian Museum is recommended by many. The waterfront promenade, or Aswan’s 'corniche', runs alongside the one of Nile’s most appealing stretches and is the perfect place to stop for a mint tea. Aswan is a great little town and there are plenty of relaxing and interesting options here. Dusk is when the waterfront comes alive with families out strolling, socialising and relaxing along the corniche.

We disembark our cruise boat and check into our hotel. The rest of the day is free for us to make our own discoveries. The visit to Abu Simbel will take place this morning for those of us who booked this option with our tour leader back in Cairo. This optional trip is well worth it. With the four gargantuan statues of Ramses guarding the Great Temple, this is one of Egypt's most memorable sights. A popular afternoon option in Aswan is a sailboat ride around the islands in a traditional felucca, stopping off at the botanical gardens on Kitchener's Island. Alternatively, take a camel ride to the Monastery of St Simeon - an abandoned 7th century fortress monastery located in the desert on the Nile's west bank. Our tour leader is on hand to help us arrange any excursions. Alternatively, you may just prefer to relax by the hotel pool or do some shopping in the friendly bazaar. In the evening we visit a Nubian village and enjoy the hospitality of our hosts as we dine out on some delicious local cuisine. We are also treated to some Nubian dancing and may even have the chance to perform some of the moves ourselves!

After breakfast we are transferred to Aswan airport for the short flight back to Cairo where we are transferred to our hotel. Today we dive into another layer of Egyptian history: medieval Cairo. We head to Khan al-Khalili Bazaar, Cairo’s oldest mosque and the Gayer-Anderson Museum. The ‘Khan’, sprawling around an old area known as Al-Azhar, is a quintessentially Cairo experience - a warren of alleys with stalls serving up a succession of intoxicating scenes and retaining a distinctly medieval and sometimes carnivalesque feel. It’s Cairo’s finest area for you to practice your bartering skills! We explore the gold market, ‘perfume street’ and the spice market, where heady aromas hang in the air like a thick blanket of Damascene cloth (which can be purchased next door in the cloth market!). The beautiful 9th century Ibn Tulun Mosque is one of the oldest, largest and arguably the most beautiful mosque in Egypt – the perfectly proportioned courtyard and distinctive minaret both help to mark it out as a masterpiece of Islamic architecture, Nearby stands the Gayer-Anderson Museum, housed in two fine old villas (dating to the 16th and 17th centuries AD). Once owned by an English army officer, the two houses contain a fascinating collection of Arabic artefacts, furniture and memorabilia, giving us a great insight into Cairene life during the Ottoman period.

This morning we travel east towards Suez, where we drive through the Ahmed Hamdi Tunnel that takes us under the Suez Canal and then turn south towards St Catherine’s, at the base of Mount Sinai. It’s a long drive (around eight hours) and on the way we stop for a light lunch. We reach our hotel in the late afternoon, where there may be time to relax before dinner.

Those wishing to ascend Mount Sinai to watch the sun rise over the peninsula will be woken up between 2 am and 3 am (depending on the season). It is a fairly steep climb (with steps all the way) and as it is dark, most people take two to three hours to reach the summit. Unquestionably the view is worth the effort – the countless granite folds of the Sinai Mountains glowing in the gathering dawn are hauntingly beautiful. Afterwards, we return to our hotel for a well-earned breakfast. Note that during winter months (October to March) it can get very cold on the mountain and may even snow during the height of winter. Please ensure you have warm thermal clothes during this period. Around mid-morning we drive to Nuweiba to board the hydrofoil to Aqaba. It is important that you read the notes below regarding the ferry journey. On arrival in Aqaba we are transferred to our hotel for our first night in Jordan.

With our guide we take a brief orientation of Aqaba, Jordan’s principal Red Sea resort. We can visit the old castle (time permitting) before driving to spellbinding Wadi Rum, a landscape of rugged sandstone mountains standing tall among an ochre desert floor. We head into this desolate, romantic protected area in rather rickety old jeeps, operated by the local Bedouin community. This is an attempt by the Jordanian Government to bring much-needed income into this region - an initiative we also support. After time for lunch in the small village of Rum and a browse around the excellent and informative visitor’s centre, we visit several of Wadi Rum’s distinctive rock formations and soak in the vast silence and spectacular desert landscapes. Wadi Rum is a truly beautiful place with towering sandstone mountains. It fully deserves the amount of time we spend here, with the wind-sculpted rock formations changing hue throughout the day from sunrise to sunset. We also meet our Bedouin friends and ride camels to our traditional Bedouin tent situated deep within Wadi Rum. The Bedouins live in scattered camps throughout the area. We enjoy an evening with them at one of their camps, which is set in an amazing location. Wadi Rum is probably best known because of its connection with the enigmatic British officer T.E. Lawrence, who was based here during the Great Arab Revolt of 1917-18. Much of David Lean’s movie on his exploits, 'Lawrence of Arabia', was actually filmed in Wadi Rum.

It’s well worth rising early and watching the cliffs change colour as the sun comes up. We enjoy a walk in the morning (the length of the walk will depend on how energetic we are feeling) and scaling one of the large dunes to enjoy sensational views of the surrounding area. Keen photographers will be delighted! We then take 4WDs from our camp back to the main entrance. The visitor's centre is also a great spot to buy some jewellery and knick-knacks, mostly made by a women’s co-operative which is aimed at supporting traditional local industries. We then continue our journey to Petra. On arrival there is time in the afternoon to check out the town, withdraw or change money and just relax…ready for a big day of exploring Petra tomorrow.

A regular and fully justified contender for the ‘8th Wonder of the World’ title, the iconic Petra view – the Treasury’s glorious façade, glimpsed from the narrow cleft known as the Siq – is arguably the single most striking sight of the entire region. The first sight of the exquisite craftsmanship among such stark scenery is a moment that both manage to be eagerly anticipated and also be still an unlikely and almost surreal surprise. Petra’s greatest surprise, however, is its size. With our guide we explore the old Roman road, amphitheatre and several old tombs. We also climb up to the Monastery – the site’s second beautiful façade – from where we have a magnificent view of the entire site. This is a memorable day exploring a truly extraordinary destination and sure to be one of the highlights of our trip. There is a cafeteria on the site, where we can enjoy a light lunch. In the mid-afternoon we return to our hotel and our tour leader will try hard to persuade us to take a Turkish bath! It’s perfect timing after a day exploring Petra, as well as being his a great experience - Petra is an excellent – and safe - place to try this tradition of the region. The rest of the day is at leisure.

This morning we drive along the King’s Highway, a road that pre-dates Old Testament times. We reach Shobak Castle, originally built to protect the eastern flank of the Latin Kingdom and its trade routes to the sea before it fell to Saladin in 1189. We stroll through the site and continue to the ancient village at Dana, where local artisans sell attractive silver jewellery and charms. We then reach Madaba, where we visit the Greek Orthodox Church of St. George that houses an ancient mosaic map. This is of particular interest as it clearly depicts Palestine and Lower Egypt around 550 AD. We expect to arrive in Amman in the late afternoon, where in the evening we can try one of its several fine restaurants. (Please note that Kerak Castle is not included in your tour, as it is often very congested and busy. However, if there is sufficient interest among members of the group, your leader can also arrange an optional visit to Kerak Castle. Many travellers however prefer to spend extra time in Amman.)

The Roman city of Jerash is one of the grandest ancient cities in the world, its archways and theatres, baths, public buildings and colonnaded streets constitute a striking collection and make it a beautiful place to explore. Grand ionic columns encircle the city’s centrepiece, the Oval Plaza, a wonderfully atmospheric place to linger after exploring Jerash’s riches. We visit the site in the morning and later drive down to spend the afternoon at the Dead Sea. Relax on the shore or take a dip like no other – the warm, highly saline waters make swimming difficult but bobbing on the water’s surface a unique pleasure. Afterwards we return to Amman for the night.

This morning we transfer to the airport for a short flight to Istanbul. You’ll be met at the airport and transferred to our hotel to settle into your hotel room before a visit to Aya Sofya, one of Istanbul's most famous sights. Tonight, a welcome dinner in this spectacular, intercontinental city.

This morning you enjoy a guided tour of the Blue Mosque and Topkapi Palace, the labyrinthine residence of four centuries of Ottoman sultans overlooking the Bosphorus. The afternoon is free to shop for (more) bargains at the famous Grand Bazaar, the massive market where shoppers and merchants have been haggling merrily for over 500 years!

• Depart Istanbul early to visit the battlefields and cemeteries of Gallipoli. The sombre memorials and the dramatic location itself won’t fail to move visitors of all nationalities. In the afternoon a ferry takes you across the Dardanelles to Canakkale, where you can unwind on its pleasant waterfront.

Depart Canakkale and stop by the ancient site of Troy. The ruins may not be as obviously evocative as Ephesus but for those who have read Homer’s ‘The Iliad’, this is an important stop, and the whiff of the glorious deeds and legends of the Trojan Wars is unmistakeable. Continue on, eventually following a coastal road lined with pine trees and olive groves to the seaside town of Ayvalik.

Travel to Selcuk and visit the nearby site of Ephesus, one of the greatest cities in the ancient Roman Empire, and one of the best preserved. Many of the paved streets and monumental buildings are still largely intact, and it isn’t hard to imagine the metropolis it once was.

Selcuk itself is a delightful town of Roman remains and Ottoman pensions and is worth exploring in the morning before continuing to the Mediterranean playground of Fethiye. We have a free evening to enjoy a meal and the views from a lively restaurant on the waterfront.

Today is a free day to relax in Fethiye, which is set on a natural harbour. If it’s a beach you’re after, the gorgeous lagoon at Oludeniz is not far away. You can explore the ghost town of Kayakoy, sail to one of the nearby islands, or just hang around town and soak up the sun and the views.

On one last scenic drive you follow the coastal road to the charming city of Antalya. On the way we stop by a series of highlights from bygone times; the flames of Chimaera, the ruined Lycian city of Phaselis and Poseidon’s Homeric lookout point, Olympos.

Your tour ends this morning after breakfast (Mon). Antalya has a host of attractions to tempt you to extend your stay for a day or two, from Roman ruins and the atmospheric Kaleici quarter to the bustling bazaar and impressive museums. A highlight here is a half-day trip to the beautifully preserved theatre at Aspendos, one of the finest in the ancient world.