An Aswan to Luxor cruise runs three nights, boarding in Aswan on a Friday and sailing north to Luxor. You see Philae and the High Dam at the start, then Kom Ombo, Edfu and the Esna lock on the way, finishing with Karnak, Luxor Temple and the Valley of the Kings. It is the shorter of the two classic directions.
A Nile cruise between Aswan and Luxor runs 3 to 7 nights, costs $485 to $2,700 per person, and covers eight major temples across roughly 210 kilometres of river. October to April is the season. Four nights is the length most people should take. The ship and the guide matter far more than the direction you sail.
This is the guide we wish existed when travellers email us asking where to start. Everything below links to a fuller answer if you want one, but read straight through and you will know enough to book sensibly.
A floating hotel that moves between the two great archaeological cities of Upper Egypt, stopping at the temples on the bank along the way. You unpack once. Your room follows you. The transport is the accommodation.
The route is fixed because the river is fixed: Aswan at the southern end, Luxor at the northern, with Kom Ombo, Edfu and the lock at Esna in between. Every ship follows it. There is no secret alternative itinerary.
What varies is the boat, the length, the direction, the season and the guide. Those five decisions are the whole thing.
| Length | Route | From, per person | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 nights | Aswan → Luxor | $450 | Every major temple, no slack |
| 4 nights | Luxor → Aswan | $600 | The one to take |
| 5 nights | Either, or dahabiya | $750 | More port time |
| 7 nights | Round trip | $980 | Retraces itself |
Four nights is our standing recommendation. Three covers everything but leaves no unstructured time, and the unstructured time is what people remember. Seven adds Dendera and Abydos but repeats the middle section, and a meaningful number of passengers find the return leg slow.
The itineraries we run are the 3-night Aswan to Luxor, the 4-night Luxor to Aswan, the 5-night dahabiya from Esna and the 7-night Luxor round trip.
Short answer: it barely matters, and people spend far too long on it.
Both directions visit identical temples. Around 80 percent of ships sail Luxor to Aswan, which means more choice and better pricing that way. Aswan to Luxor is usually three nights rather than four, so it is cheaper. Luxor to Aswan gives you the temples in chronological order, which is real but oversold.
Book the right boat on dates that work and take whichever direction it comes in. The full comparison is in Aswan to Luxor or Luxor to Aswan.
| Ship class | 4 nights, per person |
|---|---|
| Standard (3–4 star) | $485 – $810 |
| Deluxe (5 star, 80–150 guests) | $600 – $1,200 |
| Luxury (40–80 guests) | $1,600 – $2,700 |
| Dahabiya (8–20 guests) | $1,400 – $3,500+ |
Budget another $100 to $215 per person for the things outside the fare — tips, drinks, Abu Simbel, the visa. Full breakdown in how much a Nile cruise costs and what’s included.
October to April is the season. November and March are the best two months — warm enough for the deck, cool enough to walk Karnak at midday, and cheaper than the Christmas peak.
December 21 to January 5 costs 40 to 70 percent more and sells out four to six months ahead. May to September is 30 to 50 percent cheaper and genuinely 41°C, with excursions moved to before dawn.
See best time for a Nile cruise month by month, Christmas and New Year for the holidays, and cruising in summer if the heat does not put you off.
Eight major sites, all included on a properly packaged cruise:
Abu Simbel is not included in any cruise. It is 280km south of Aswan and sold separately. Full detail on all of these in which temples you visit and Abu Simbel from Aswan.
Temple in the morning, sail through the middle of the day, a second site or free time in the afternoon, dinner and entertainment at night.
Roughly four hours of guided sightseeing and eight hours that are yours. Wake-up is 6:30 to 7:00 in winter, 4:45 in summer. Most people book for the temples and come home talking about the sailing afternoons.
The hour-by-hour version is in the day-by-day itinerary.
This is where your money should go. The temples are identical on every boat; the experience is not.
Never below four stars. Under that line, air conditioning and cleanliness become genuinely variable, and you are aboard for at least three nights.
Passenger count matters more than star rating. A 250-passenger ship arriving at Edfu alongside four others is a different morning from a 40-passenger one.
Cabin: upper deck, midship. Bigger windows, furthest from engine noise at the stern. It is the cheapest worthwhile upgrade on the boat — see which deck to book.
We work with around thirty vessels including the Oberoi Zahra and Philae, Sonesta Nile Goddess and St. George I, Mövenpick Sun Ray, MS Le Fayan and Historia. Compare ships puts them side by side.
If crowds are what spoil trips for you, consider a dahabiya instead — 8 to 20 guests under sail, at roughly three times the price.
Three to four months ahead for high season. Four to six months for Christmas and New Year. Three to six weeks for summer, where waiting genuinely saves money.
The counterintuitive part: late availability over the holidays is more expensive, not less, because the affordable cabins go first. Detail in how far in advance to book.
Almost nobody comes to Egypt only for the river.
Seven days forces a trade between Cairo and a proper cruise. Ten days is the number we recommend — three nights Cairo, four on the boat, a day in Aswan, Abu Simbel if you want it. Twelve lets you add the Red Sea or move to a dahabiya.
Internal flights between Cairo and Luxor or Aswan take about an hour and cost $180 to $290 return per person. They fill up in peak weeks, so confirm them before paying a cruise deposit.
Our Egypt packages run from $1,670 to $4,160 per person and build all of that into one arrangement — the shapes are set out in our packages guide.
Yes if this is your first trip to Egypt, you want the temples without solving logistics daily, and you value downtime between sightseeing.
Probably not if you have already done the standard route, you travel to get away from other people, or you want to sit in a tomb for two hours on your own schedule.
The longer version, including the case against, is in is a Nile cruise worth it.
Decide three things and the rest follows: how many nights, which month, and what you want to spend per person. Direction, cabin deck and excursions can all wait.
Send us those three and we will come back with a real itinerary on a named ship at a real price. We have been running these since 2013 and we are based on the river we sell — about us, reviews, or just get in touch.
Usually 3 nights southbound-to-northbound, or 4 nights the other way. Five and seven night options exist, with seven being a round trip that retraces its route.
$485 to $2,700 per person depending on the ship. A deluxe 4-night cruise runs $600 to $1,200 including full board, temple entries and a guide, plus $100 to $215 in extras.
October to April, with November and March the strongest months. December 21 to January 5 is the most expensive fortnight; May to September is the cheapest and reaches 42°C.
Philae, Kom Ombo, Edfu, Karnak, Luxor Temple, the Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut and the Colossi of Memnon. Abu Simbel is a separate excursion.
No. It sits 280km south of Aswan, off the route, and costs $85 to $160 by road or $200 to $300 by air.
Four. Three covers every major temple but leaves almost no free time; seven repeats its own route and can feel slow in the second half.
Very little. Both directions see the same temples. Luxor to Aswan offers more ships and is usually 4 nights; Aswan to Luxor is usually 3 and cheaper.
Three to four months ahead in high season, four to six for Christmas, and three to six weeks in summer when late booking actually saves money.
Send us your dates and a rough budget — a specialist replies with three ships across categories, live availability and a written price. No online payment.
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Written by
Magdy Fattouh
38 guides published on this site
Magdy Fattouh is a Cairo University history graduate and the writer behind the guides on this site. Over 13 years he has researched and written about Egypt's history, its monuments and how to travel to them — from the pharaohs and the temples to month-by-month planning, ship comparisons and day-by-day itineraries. He speaks English and Arabic, and reviews every guide here for accuracy before it is published.
Read more by Magdy Fattouh →
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