Twelve things that will surprise you about a Nile cruise

Reckon the Middle East is a no-go zone for tourists right now? Think again. Egypt is a particularly red-hot destination, welcoming an estimated 15.7 million visitors in 2024 (a record annual high, beating the 14.9 million figure from 2023).

Cruising the Nile with Viking is a bucket-list moment.Credit: Viking Cruises

I was one of them. Inspired by a short but sweet trip to Cairo – and the pyramids of Giza – 12 months earlier, I returned to Egypt for a Nile cruise. On my bucket list for ages, it’s every bit as good as I’d hoped. In fact, it’s better. Here are some of the reasons why.

It’s overwhelming – in a good way

The Karnak Temple complex in Luxor is littered with wondrous columns, obelisks and statues.Credit: Getty Images

“Seven thousand years in seven days!” That’s how tour guide Mohamed sums up our journey into Egypt’s ancient history (and prehistory). Like most Nile cruises, ours begins and ends in Luxor. Formerly Thebes, this one-time royal capital, 675 kilometres south of Cairo, is festooned with a truly astonishing array of tombs and temples, not least the epic complex at Karnak, where we’re dwarfed and dazzled by hulking obelisks and papyrus-shaped columns from Egypt’s New Kingdom (1550-1070 BCE). More mind-blowing spectacles – giant statues of great pharaohs, intricately carved hieroglyphic murals, ongoing archeological digs – await as we sail upriver, delving deeper into the mind-boggling pantheon of gods, kings, queens and explorers. There’s so much to absorb I’d recommend swotting up a little on ancient Egypt before your trip – and packing some holiday reading too (scroll to the bottom for suggestions).

The natural beauty is sublime

The riverbanks are lush and fertile.Credit: iStock

Cruising along the Nile, you’ll appreciate why it’s been worshipped since time immemorial. Without its life-giving properties, there would be no Egypt (about 95 per cent of the current 112 million population live within the Nile corridor). Lush and fertile, the irrigated banks are flush with fields of wheat, sugar cane, banana trees and date palms. It’s so bucolic, evoking tropical Bali and Laos, but there are reminders you’re in North Africa, from the working farmers in galabeyas (traditional loose-fitting fabric garments) to the surreal desert backdrop, from rolling sand dunes to craggy peaks that have had no rain in years.

There are an unbelievable number of islands on the Nile

The Philae Temple, also known as the Temple of Isis, on Agilika Island.Credit: Getty Images

You’ll glide past hundreds of grassy isles – some grazed by oxen and donkeys. But in Aswan city, where cruise ships typically berth for a few nights, you’ll transfer to smaller vessels, including feluccas (one-masted sailboats), to visit islands with evocative ruins, botanical gardens and quarries that supplied granite for monuments in Luxor and beyond. Most beguiling is Agilkia Island, the gorgeous setting of the Philae Temple. That site was moved here, piece by piece (in 40,000 blocks), after its original island location became submerged following the construction of the first Aswan dam in 1902.

You’re unlikely to see any crocs – in the wild at least

Hieroglyphs in the Tomb of Princess Idut, Saqqara picture a croc lurking in the depths.Credit: Getty Images

Nile crocodiles have been feared and revered for millennia and cruises usually stop at Kom Ombo, where a temple honours the crocodile-headed god, Sobek, and a neighbouring museum displays mummified crocodiles. Today’s live crocs are now largely confined to Lake Nasser, which was created after the second – much larger – Aswan dam was completed in 1970 (finally taming the Nile’s flow and annual flood, fuelled by heavy monsoon rains upriver in Ethiopia). Snaking 550 kilometres through Nubia, a region straddling southern Egypt and northern Sudan, Lake Nasser displaced many native Nubians. Some relocated to villages around Aswan and raise crocodiles as pets, showing them off to tourists in their colourfully painted homes.

Birders will be in their element

A carving of the ibis-headed god Thoth at the Temple of Kom Ombo... Ibises were sacred to the ancient Egyptians.Credit: Getty Images

Bring binoculars as there are heaps of birds to view, from herons, cormorants and egrets to pied kingfishers, Nile Valley sunbirds and ibises. The latter were sacred to the ancient Egyptians, who mummified these winged creatures and glorified them in hieroglyphs. The ibis-headed god Thoth is depicted at tombs and temples, as are falcon-headed god Horus and vulture goddess Nekhbet.

Egypt is a (mostly) safe destination for travellers

It’s normal to feel a bit nervous visiting Egypt. The country has suffered terrorist attacks before and the wider region is undoubtedly unstable right now. But in truth, we feel safe here. Guarded checkpoints are common close to major sights, which are well-policed with airport-like security. Yet, even in our free time exploring spice-scented souks, shisha bars and streets humming with caleches (horse-drawn carriages), we never feel threatened. People are generally warm, welcoming or indifferent.

OK, you’ll be pestered by touts and vendors – but not as much as you think

Tourist keepsakes at Khan el-Khalili, Cairo.Credit: iStock

Papyrus scrolls, gold rings, essences, alabaster lamps, cotton dresses, T-shirts starring King Tut’s death mask and scarab-shaped amulets (traditional good luck charms) are among the potential gifts and keepsakes you’ll be proffered at bazaars and emporiums. Do some friendly haggling and pay in US dollars, euros or Egyptian pounds (the currency was devalued by 40 per cent in 2024). But if you don’t wish to buy anything, just walk on with a firm but polite “no, thanks” or “La, shokran” – its Arabic translation.

Prepare for early starts

You can savour Luxor’s famous sites on hot-air balloon rides.Credit: Getty Images

Don’t expect many leisurely lie-ins. Shore excursions often start from around 8am to beat the midday sun and other tourist crowds. For optional sunrise hot-air balloon rides over Luxor, you’ll be up at 3am and earlier still for the three-hour coach ride from Aswan to watch the rising sun aglow on Abu Simbel’s awe-inspiring temple facades. Various sounds can also disturb your night’s sleep, including vibrations from your ship navigating locks and dawn calls to prayer from riverside mosques. It’s OK, though. You can reward yourself with post-lunch naps on your pool deck.

It can be surprisingly cool here at night

Temperatures can drop dramatically after sunset.

Warm clear days, with temperatures between 20 and 30 degrees, are routine in the Egyptian winter (November to March), the peak cruising season. But pack layers, including a coat, as it often drops to 10 to 15 degrees after dark when some excursions might take place. Several temples are illuminated at night and some, like Karnak, stage dramatic sound and light shows.

Don’t worry too much about Tut’s tomb

Incredible reliefs and murals adorn the tombs of Luxor’s Valley of the Kings.Credit: Getty Images

Hype still swirls around the boy-king’s burial chamber, famously discovered intact at Luxor’s Valley of the Kings in 1922. But it’s actually quite modest and there are larger, deeper and more lavishly decorated tombs to delve into here, including those of Ramses IX, Merenptah and Seti I. Equally impressive are the massive nearby mortuary temples and colossi built to venerate the pharaohs after their passage into the afterlife.

You can cruise the Nile without breaking the bank

Our $2500 each fare with French company CroisiEurope includes most excursions.

It’s easy to spend over $10,000 per person doing the Nile in style, perhaps on a glamorously restored dahabiya – a traditional two-masted sailing boat – or with an upscale operator like Viking, which recently launched two sleek new ships (Viking Sobek and Viking Hathor) and will boast a 10-strong Nile fleet by 2026. But mid-range and budget-friendly alternatives abound. We pay $2500 each for our voyage with French company CroisiEurope. The fare includes most excursions, led by onboard Egyptologist guides who speak French and English, and decent Mediterranean-Middle Eastern buffet food (there’s Egyptian wine or beer with meals). It’s a no-frills choice, but comfortable, genial and value for money.

It’s worth extending your Egyptian stay

Views of the pyramids from the Grand Egyptian Museum, Cairo.Credit: Getty Images

Many cruise itineraries include a Cairo add-on with outings to the Giza pyramids, Great Sphinx and long-awaited new Grand Egyptian Museum, which fully opens in 2025, showcasing treasures from Tutankhamun’s tomb and much more. From Luxor, you could transfer to a beach resort on the Red Sea coast or linger in town at the landmark Sofitel Winter Palace, where Agatha Christie stayed. We escape central Luxor’s noisy throng at the Luxor Hilton Resort & Spa. Relaxing in its beautiful, serene riverside gardens, we savour one last fiery Nile sunset and toast a cruise that was even more extraordinary than we’d imagined in our daydreams.

Five books for a Nile cruise

Death on the Nile Hercule Poirot investigates in this 1937 whodunit, penned by Agatha Christie after a steamship cruise on this river.

The Rise and Fall of Ancient Egypt Journey back thousands of riveting years with the prolific Toby Wilkinson, expert on Egypt past and present.

A Thousand Miles up the Nile Amelia Edwards’ classic travelogue vividly captures the sites, landscapes and cultures she witnessed on her 1873 Egyptian trip.

Tutankhamun’s Curse Separating fact from fiction is Joyce Tyldesley, an Egyptologist who’s authored books about queens Hatshepsut, Nefertiti and Cleopatra.

What the River Knows A cross between Death on the Nile and The Mummy is how critics have billed Isabel Ibanez’s fantasy romance, set in 19th century Egypt.

The details

Fly

Emirates flies from Sydney and Melbourne to Cairo via Dubai. Egypt Air connects Cairo and Luxor.

Cruise

CroisiEurope has 8-day Nile cruises (Luxor roundtrip) from $2491 per person, while an 11-day trip, including Cairo, costs from $5886. See croisicruises.com

Viking’s 12-day Pharaohs & Pyramids cruise, beginning and ending in Cairo, plus a 7-night Nile cruise from Luxor, costs from $11295 per person. See vikingrivercruises.com.au

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The writer paid for his own cruise and was a guest of Hilton in Luxor.