Most people take a 3-night ship cruise (4 days): Philae, Kom Ombo, Edfu, then Luxor.
Cruises start from $450 per person
See the best cruises →
A Nile cruise from Aswan to Luxor takes one to three nights. The 3-night ship cruise is the standard and starts at $450 per person on GetYourGuide. Two nights start at $590, a dahabiya at $900 and a felucca at $230.
Updated Nov 2026 · Prices checked Nov 2026 · per person, two sharing
Six situations cover almost every traveller on this stretch of river. Choose the one closest to yours to see the cruise that fits, what it includes and what it costs. Prices are GetYourGuide “from” prices per person for two sharing, checked in November 2026, and every pick has its own live calendar.
The classic 3-night cruise is also the cheapest way onto the river. You get full board, a guide and all four stops, and you can add Abu Simbel when you book.
These six are the strongest choice in their role: the most booked classic, the all-in cruise, the short option, the best-rated ship, the dahabiya and the one-night taster. Each shows nights aboard and which extras the price covers. Prices are per person for two sharing, taken from the GetYourGuide listing in November 2026.
The classic, most booked1 / 4Full board on a 5-star ship. Add Abu Simbel as an option when you book.
All-in: Abu Simbel + balloon1 / 4Both big extras are already in the price. Temple tickets are paid locally.
2 nights, private tour1 / 4A private guide and car for a shorter cruise that still includes the balloon.
Best rated ship1 / 4A small group for the Abu Simbel trip, plus a carriage ride at Edfu.
Dahabiya, top rated1 / 4A small sailing boat instead of a ship, with all meals and hot drinks.
1 night with meals1 / 4Kom Ombo and Edfu in one night for travellers short on time.
Eleven cruises with at least ten reviews and a rating of 4.0 or higher, sorted by nights. The columns are the things that separate them: nights on the water, Abu Simbel, the balloon flight and the price per person for two sharing.
Source: GetYourGuide · Nov 2026 · prices are the listing “from” price
The cruise sails north with the current and makes four stops. You visit Aswan's sights before the ship leaves, stop at two temples that stand close to the river, pass the lock at Esna and end with a full day on both banks at Luxor.
Philae by motorboat, the High Dam and the Unfinished Obelisk.
A twin temple on the riverbank, often visited late in the day.
The Temple of Horus, reached by horse-drawn carriage.
Karnak, Luxor Temple, the Valley of the Kings and Hatshepsut.
Aswan comes first because most ships stay moored there on the first night. Philae is reached by a short motorboat ride, and the High Dam and the Unfinished Obelisk are usually seen on the same outing. Kom Ombo and Edfu are half-day stops, and at Edfu a horse-drawn carriage takes you from the dock to the temple.
Route map · Aswan → Kom Ombo → Edfu → Esna → Luxor
Three nights is the full route at an easy pace and it is also the cheapest way in. Two nights keep the river but cut either the Aswan sights or part of the Luxor day. One night covers Kom Ombo and Edfu only, so you see Aswan and Luxor on your own.
Every stop at an easy pace, with time for Abu Simbel before sailing.
The same river with a tighter plan at one end.
A taste of the cruise between two cities you explore yourself.
Eight of the eighteen cruises include a hot-air balloon flight at Luxor. It takes off around sunrise on the west bank and drifts over the fields, Hatshepsut's temple and the hills around the Valley of the Kings, so it happens on the last morning before the west bank tour.
Two things to know before you choose a cruise for the balloon. Children under six cannot fly. And flights depend on the weather: if yours is cancelled, the all-in cruise refunds $25 per person, which tells you roughly what the flight is worth inside the price. On a cruise without the flight, a separate sunrise balloon ride can be booked in Luxor, so you can add it to any cruise that ends there.
The price covers the cabin, meals on board, a guide and the transfers between ship and sights. It usually does not cover temple tickets, drinks or tips, so add those to any “from” price before you compare two cruises. Temple tickets for the usual sites add roughly 3,400 Egyptian pounds per person, which can close the gap between two listings once you count them.
Single travellers pay a supplement for a cabin of their own, and groups of three can ask for a triple room on some cruises. The cruise ends after the Luxor tour on the last day, so a night in Luxor afterwards is not included on the most booked cruise. Read the inclusions of the cruise you pick before you set its price against another.
Source: GetYourGuide tour pages and official ticket prices · Nov 2026
The temples are the same either way. Start in Aswan if you want the shortest and cheapest cruises and prefer to end among Luxor's big sites. Start in Luxor if you want four nights or more on the water. Both directions visit Philae, Kom Ombo, Edfu, Karnak and the Valley of the Kings; what changes is the time on board and where Abu Simbel fits.
From Luxor the boat sails south against the current, so the same distance takes longer, and most cruises spend two days in Luxor before they sail. Abu Simbel then comes at the end, from Aswan. From Aswan you sail with the current, which is why the cruises are shorter and why the cheapest one costs $450 against $500 from Luxor.
December to February is peak season with mild days. March, April, October and November are warm and clear. May to September is very hot, and that is when the lowest prices appear: on some ships the winter price is more than double the summer one.
Warm and clear, with a good balance of weather, crowds and price.
Source: long-term monthly averages for Aswan and Luxor
On GetYourGuide a package is the cruise itself with the guide, the meals and the local transfers bundled in. That is what every cruise on this page is. None of them includes flights from Cairo or a hotel before or after, so you arrange your own way to Aswan and out of Luxor.
If you want more than the river, two longer packages of six and seven nights add days in Aswan and the Abu Simbel trip around the same sailing. They are new or have very few reviews, so we list them on the 3-nights page with that warning and keep them out of the comparison above. Neither long package has more than two reviews yet, so the 3-night cruises remain the safer choice.
See the longer packages →Guests praise the guides, Philae and the food most often. The complaints repeat too: very early starts on Abu Simbel days, a rushed final day in Luxor, and being moved to a different ship than expected. Every quote below comes from a guest review on GetYourGuide and sits on a photo of the cruise that guest took.
“The 4-day, 3-night tour in Aswan, Abu Simbel, and Luxor was amazing. The drivers and guides were all perfect, and everything was very well organized.”
“Our time on the Nile River Cruise was amazing. Not only were the sights breathtaking, but our guides were simply outstanding.”
“A wonderful French speaking guide in Aswan. The itinerary was perfectly organized, full of discoveries and memorable moments.”
“Riding a cruise on the Nile is such a great experience. You experience the beauty of the Nile while also seeing all of the important temples.”
Reviews from GetYourGuide, shown on a photo of the cruise they describe
Pack for strong sun by day and, in winter, cool evenings on deck. Bring your passport and some cash in Egyptian pounds for tips and small purchases. The temples have little shade and some are a walk from the dock, so comfortable shoes and a hat matter more than evening wear.
Pick a date to see the live price for your group size. You can reserve now and pay later, and cancel free up to 24 hours before departure. The calendar is GetYourGuide's own, so it shows the price for your date, your group and the ship category you choose.
One, two or three. Three nights (four days) is the standard and covers every stop at an easy pace. Two nights shorten one end of the route, and one night covers Kom Ombo and Edfu only.
No. On GetYourGuide the four-night cruises only sail the other way, from Luxor to Aswan. If you want four nights or more, look at the Luxor to Aswan page.
On most cruises, no. Budget for them separately: Valley of the Kings 750 EGP, Karnak 600, Philae 550, Edfu 550, Luxor Temple 500 and Kom Ombo 450.
Nine of the eighteen cruises offer it, either in the price or as an option you add when booking. It means a pre-dawn start from Aswan and a long drive each way.
Children aged six and over can fly. Younger children cannot, so a family with small children is better off on a cruise without the balloon.
No. None of the Aswan to Luxor cruises names its ship. You choose a category such as standard, deluxe or luxury, and the operator assigns the ship.
Prices on this site are per person for two people sharing a cabin. A single traveller pays more, and the booking calendar shows the exact amount for one person.
Yes. Every cruise listed here has free cancellation up to 24 hours before departure, and you can reserve now and pay later.
Most travellers are well served by the most booked 3-night cruise, from $450 per person. If you already know what you want, go straight to the type: three nights, a dahabiya, a cruise with Abu Simbel, the price guide, the luxury options or the cruises from Luxor.
