Egypt's Pyramids, Alexandria & Red Sea Tour

This morning you meet your private Egyptologist guide for a full day across the Giza Pyramids Complex. Standing before the Great Pyramid of Khufu, you grasp the sheer scale of the only surviving Wonder of the Ancient World, then walk down to the enigmatic Great Sphinx and the beautifully preserved Valley Temple, raised from colossal granite and limestone blocks. Next you step into the Grand Egyptian Museum, the vast new home of Tutankhamun's complete treasures and tens of thousands of artefacts displayed against the backdrop of the plateau itself. In the afternoon your private guided tour continues to Saqqara and the Step Pyramid of Djoser, the world's oldest monumental stone building and the blueprint for every pyramid that followed. Between sites you pause for a leisurely lunch at a local restaurant, your guide bringing each tomb and statue to life before you return to your Cairo hotel for the night.

• Giza Pyramids Complex
• The Great Pyramid — The tomb of Khufu and the last standing Wonder of the Ancient World.
• The Great Sphinx
• The Valley Temple
• The Grand Egyptian Museum — The world's largest museum devoted to a single civilisation, and home to the full Tutankhamun collection.
• Saqqara Step Pyramid — The Step Pyramid of Djoser, the earliest colossal stone monument in Egypt.

After breakfast you travel north to Alexandria, the Mediterranean city founded by Alexander the Great. Your private guided tour begins underground at the Catacombs of Kom El Shoqafa, a haunting three-level necropolis where Egyptian, Greek and Roman art blend across the carved walls. Nearby rises Pompey's Pillar, a single towering column of red granite standing amid the ruins of the ancient Serapeum. You break for a seafood lunch along the corniche before continuing to the Qaitbay Citadel, the fifteenth-century fortress guarding the harbour on the very spot where the fabled Lighthouse of Alexandria once stood. Finally you explore the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, the striking modern library that revives the spirit of antiquity's greatest centre of learning. With sea breezes and a rhythm all its own, Alexandria reveals Egypt's cosmopolitan, coastal side before you check into your seafront hotel for the night.

• Catacombs of Kom El Shoqafa — A three-tiered Greco-Roman burial complex carved deep beneath the city.
• Pompey's Pillar — A soaring red granite column, the largest of its kind erected outside the imperial capitals.
• Qaitbay Citadel — A medieval fort built on the ruins of the ancient Pharos lighthouse.
• Bibliotheca Alexandrina — The modern reincarnation of the legendary Library of Alexandria.

Today you journey west along the coast to El Alamein, the desert town whose name is written into the history of the Second World War. Your guide leads you through the Alamein Military Museum, where uniforms, weapons, maps and armoured vehicles tell the story of the decisive 1942 battles fought across these sands between the Allied and Axis forces. Walking among the exhibits and past the quiet nearby war cemeteries, you sense the human cost behind the headlines and the strategic weight of this stretch of North Africa. After a relaxed lunch you begin the scenic drive back east, the Mediterranean on one side and open desert on the other. This evening you transfer to Cairo, settling into your hotel and resting ahead of tomorrow's early flight south to Luxor and the temple cities of the Nile.

• Alamein Military Museum — A museum tracing the pivotal North African campaign of the Second World War, alongside the Commonwealth war cemeteries.

An early transfer to the airport puts you on a short domestic flight to Luxor, the open-air museum built over ancient Thebes. Landing on the Nile's East Bank, you meet your Egyptologist guide and step straight into its grandest monuments. At the vast Karnak Temple you wander the Great Hypostyle Hall, a forest of 134 giant columns raised over generations of pharaohs, and trace the avenues of ram-headed sphinxes. After lunch you continue to the elegant Luxor Temple, best appreciated as the afternoon light softens, where colossal statues of Ramesses II and a graceful colonnade line the processional way once linked directly to Karnak. Your guide unravels the religious and political stories carved into every wall, giving real depth to what you see. As evening falls you settle into your Luxor hotel, the timeless river drifting past and the West Bank's royal tombs waiting for tomorrow.

• Karnak Temple — An immense complex of sanctuaries and pylons built over some two thousand years, centred on its famous columned hall.
• Luxor Temple — A graceful riverside temple once joined to Karnak by an avenue of sphinxes.

After breakfast you cross to Luxor's West Bank, the realm of the dead where Egypt's greatest rulers were laid to rest. In the Valley of the Kings you descend into several vividly painted tombs, their corridors still glowing with the colours meant to guide the pharaohs into the afterlife. Nearby the terraced Temple of Hatshepsut rises dramatically against sheer desert cliffs, a bold monument to Egypt's most powerful female pharaoh. You pause too at the towering Colossi of Memnon, twin seated statues that have guarded the plain for over three thousand years. Following a relaxed lunch you begin the road transfer across the Eastern Desert to Hurghada on the Red Sea coast, watching the landscape shift from lush riverbanks to rugged mountains and open sky. Arriving by evening, you check into your beach resort, trading ancient stone for sea air and the promise of days beneath the waves.

• Valley of the Kings — The royal necropolis of the New Kingdom, its rock-cut tombs still bright with painted scenes.
• Temple of Hatshepsut — The dramatic terraced mortuary temple of Egypt's celebrated female pharaoh.
• Colossi of Memnon — Two enormous seated statues of Amenhotep III standing sentinel over the Theban plain.

With the temples behind you, the Red Sea takes centre stage. This morning your dive boat heads out from Hurghada toward one of the coast's celebrated wreck sites, where a sunken vessel now rests as an artificial reef teeming with marine life. Guided by qualified local dive masters, you descend along the hull to explore corridors and decks slowly reclaimed by soft corals, glassfish and the occasional lionfish or moray eel. Certified divers relish the atmosphere of exploring history underwater, while the crew tailors each descent's depth and route to your experience level, keeping safety first at every stage. Between dives you relax on deck with lunch served aboard, the warm sun and clear horizon a world away from the desert. By late afternoon you cruise back to shore, salt on your skin and a memory card full of images, returning to your Hurghada resort for the evening.

• Red Sea Wreck Dive — A guided dive over a sunken vessel now transformed into a thriving artificial reef.

Today you swap fins for four wheels on an exhilarating super safari into the Sahara behind Hurghada. Climbing aboard a rugged jeep or a quad bike, you race across golden dunes and stony plains, the Red Sea mountains shimmering on the horizon. Your guides lead you to a traditional Bedouin village where you learn how desert communities have thrived here for centuries, sample sweet herbal tea and perhaps take a short camel ride across the sand. As the sun dips, the desert glows amber and rose, an unforgettable backdrop for photographs. The adventure culminates in a festive dinner beneath a canopy of stars, complete with grilled specialities and local music that drifts across the stillness. It is a joyful, active counterpoint to your diving days, revealing the raw beauty of Egypt's Eastern Desert before you return to the comforts of your Hurghada resort for the night.

• Sahara Desert Super Safari — A jeep and quad-bike adventure across the dunes behind the Red Sea coast.
• Bedouin Village — A traditional desert settlement where you share tea and learn local customs.

Back on the water, this morning is dedicated to the living coral gardens that make the Red Sea one of the world's premier diving destinations. Your boat anchors over vibrant reefs, possibly near Giftun Island, where visibility stretches for tens of metres through warm, crystalline water. Slipping beneath the surface, you glide above hard and soft corals in electric colours, surrounded by clouds of anthias, parrotfish and butterflyfish and, if fortune favours you, a gliding sea turtle or a passing reef shark. Your dive master points out the reef's hidden residents and keeps every descent safe and unhurried, whether you are logging an advanced dive or quietly building confidence. Snorkellers in the group enjoy the very same spectacle from the surface. Lunch is served on board between dives as you soak up the sun. By late afternoon you sail back to Hurghada, the reef's colours still vivid in your mind.

• Red Sea Coral Reefs — Shallow, sun-lit reefs bursting with corals and reef fish, often explored near Giftun Island.

Today is entirely yours to spend as you please in Hurghada. After a leisurely breakfast you might sink into a sun lounger by the resort pool, stroll the lively Hurghada Marina, or treat yourself to a spa afternoon. Water lovers can add an optional snorkelling excursion, a glass-bottom boat trip or a submarine tour, while those wanting more culture can browse the shops and cafés of El Dahar, the atmospheric old town. It is the perfect pause to rest tired muscles after several days of diving and desert adventure, or simply to enjoy the Red Sea's famously warm, calm waters at your own pace. Your Travel Joy team is on hand to arrange any extras you fancy and to point you toward the best local spots. Recharged and unhurried, you overnight once more in Hurghada before flying back to Cairo tomorrow for the grand finale of your Egyptian journey.

A morning flight returns you to Cairo for a rich final day of sightseeing. You begin at the original Egyptian Museum on Tahrir Square, home to a staggering collection of pharaonic masterpieces and centuries of archaeological treasure. From there you climb to the medieval Salah El Din Citadel for sweeping views over the city, and step inside the alabaster-clad Mohamed Ali Mosque with its soaring domes. After lunch you visit the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization, where the Royal Mummies rest in dramatic surroundings, before exploring Coptic and Islamic Cairo: the ancient Hanging Church, the historic Amr Ibn Al Aas Mosque and the Ben Ezra Synagogue stand side by side as testament to Egypt's layered faiths. Finally you wander atmospheric Al Muizz Street and lose yourself among the lanterns and spices of the Khan El Khalili bazaar, a perfect place to find souvenirs before returning to your hotel.

• The Egyptian Museum — The historic Tahrir Square museum, brimming with pharaonic antiquities.
• Salah El Din Citadel — Saladin's medieval hilltop fortress overlooking Cairo.
• Mohamed Ali Mosque — The alabaster-domed Ottoman mosque crowning the Citadel.
• The National Museum of Egyptian Civilization — A modern museum showcasing the Royal Mummies and 5,000 years of Egyptian life.
• The Hanging Church — One of Cairo's oldest Coptic churches, suspended above a Roman gatehouse.
• Amr Ibn Al Aas Mosque — The first mosque built in Egypt and in all of Africa.
• Ben Ezra Synagogue — An ancient synagogue in the heart of Coptic Cairo.
• Al Muizz Street — A living open-air museum of medieval Islamic architecture.
• Khan El Khalili Bazaar — Cairo's centuries-old market of lanterns, spices and handicrafts.

Your unforgettable twelve-day journey through Egypt draws to a close. After a final breakfast you have time, schedule permitting, for any last-minute shopping or a quiet coffee before checking out. At the appointed hour your private Travel Joy driver collects you from your hotel and transfers you to Cairo International Airport in good time for your departure flight, assisting with the formalities along the way. As you fly home you carry with you the memory of the Pyramids and the Sphinx, the temples of Luxor, cosmopolitan Alexandria, the wartime sands of El Alamein and the coral reefs of the Red Sea — a sweeping tour that traced Egypt's story from the age of the pharaohs to the depths of the sea. We hope to welcome you back to Egypt again before long.