Most Nile cruises are priced two to a cabin, and travelling alone means paying a supplement for the privilege. This solo Nile cruise from Aswan to Luxor does not work that way. Every price on this page is for your own cabin, single occupancy, no supplement added — and you sail alongside a small group of other solo travellers doing exactly the same thing. Some operators call this a singles cruise; what it really is, is a Nile cruise designed for people travelling on their own.
The route runs three nights from Aswan down to Luxor, calling at Kom Ombo and Edfu, with an Egyptologist guide at every site. You board in Aswan after a day that takes in the High Dam, the Unfinished Obelisk in its quarry, and the Temple of Isis at Philae — dismantled ahead of the rising reservoir and rebuilt stone by stone on Agilkia Island.
From there the ship works north. Kom Ombo, the double temple split between Sobek and Horus the Elder. Edfu, the most completely preserved temple in Egypt, reached by horse-drawn carriage before breakfast. Then Luxor: Karnak, the largest religious complex ever built at roughly 100 hectares, Luxor Temple on the riverbank, and on the final morning the Valley of the Kings and Hatshepsut’s terraces at Deir el-Bahari.
The group on this solo Nile cruise is capped at twelve, and everyone aboard is travelling independently, so meals and excursions come with company if you want it and no obligation if you don’t. Minimum age is 18.
Arrive at Aswan airport or railway station and meet your Egyptologist guide, then begin with the Aswan High Dam. Built between 1960 and 1970, it ended the annual inundation that had shaped Egyptian life for millennia, generating power and controlling the flood in a single structure.
Continue to the Temple of Philae, dedicated to Isis. Building began under Nectanebo I in the 4th century BC and continued through the Ptolemaic and Roman periods, making it one of the last places in Egypt where the old religion was still practised. When the High Dam threatened to submerge it, the temple was dismantled and reassembled on Agilkia Island, where you visit it today.
End the day at the northern granite quarry and the Unfinished Obelisk — abandoned in the bedrock after a flaw opened in the stone, and still the clearest surviving evidence of how the ancient Egyptians cut and shaped granite. Then transfer to your ship and settle into your cabin. The evening is free.
Optional tour: Nubian Village in Aswan
Meals: Lunch and dinner
A free morning aboard ship, or join the optional excursion to the temples of Abu Simbel — Ramesses II’s rock-cut temple and the smaller temple of Nefertari, reached by road across the desert. It is an early start and a long day, but few travellers regret it.
Your ship sails for Kom Ombo around midday. Disembark to visit the double temple, a rare symmetrical building shared between two gods: Sobek the crocodile deity on the southern side, Horus the Elder on the northern. Construction began under Ptolemy VI Philometor in the 2nd century BC and additions continued under the Roman emperors, including Tiberius, Domitian and Caracalla — a building programme spanning roughly four centuries. The adjacent Crocodile Museum holds mummified crocodiles recovered from the site.
Return to the ship and sail on to Edfu. Overnight moored at Edfu.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Before breakfast, take a horse-drawn carriage from the mooring to the Temple of Horus at Edfu. Built between 237 and 57 BC, it survives more completely than any other temple in Egypt — roof intact, pylons standing to full height, and the walls inscribed inside and out. What is missing is the sacred lake, now buried beneath the modern town on the east side, and the pair of obelisks that once stood before the main gate.
Return to the ship and sail north for Luxor, passing through the Esna Lock on the way. On arrival, visit the Temple of Karnak, the largest religious complex ever built at roughly 100 hectares, added to by pharaohs across some two thousand years. Then Luxor Temple, linked to Karnak by the restored avenue of sphinxes. Both were dedicated to the Theban Triad of Amun, Mut and Khonsu.
Return to the ship for your final evening aboard.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Disembark after breakfast and cross to the west bank for the Valley of the Kings, burial ground of the New Kingdom pharaohs. Sixty-five tombs have been numbered here; the standard ticket admits you to three, and your guide will advise which are open and most worth your time on the day.
Continue to the temple of Hatshepsut at Deir el-Bahari, terraced into the cliff face. Hatshepsut began as regent for Thutmose III and went on to rule as a crowned king in full pharaonic regalia — with his regnal years still running alongside hers. Finish with a photo stop at the Colossi of Memnon, the two seated statues of Amenhotep III that once fronted the largest mortuary temple ever built on the west bank.
Transfer to Luxor Airport, Luxor railway station or your Luxor hotel.
Optional tour: Sunrise hot air balloon ride over Luxor
Meals: Breakfast
