Cheap Tours Egypt: Affordable Egypt Tours & Packages

You have probably already fallen down the rabbit hole. Twenty browser tabs open, half of them promising cheap Egypt tours, the other half showing prices that jump by four hundred euros the moment you click “see details.” Somewhere between tab nine and tab fourteen, a reasonable question turns up: what is the actual price of seeing Egypt properly, and which parts of that price are real?

We are Turquoise Dahabiya. We sail the Nile on traditional wooden boats, we are based in Karnak in Luxor, and we are going to do something slightly unusual for a travel company writing about budget Egypt tours. We are going to tell you where we sit on the price ladder, honestly, and let you decide.

Here is the short version. Our most affordable journey, Sacred Waters, the 4 Day Dahabiya Nile Cruise from Aswan to Esna, starts from €750 per person. That is not the cheapest number on the internet. But when you break it down by day and compare what is bundled inside it, the arithmetic gets interesting fast.

Let us walk through it together.

What a Budget Egypt Tour Actually Costs Per Day

Published package examples across the travel industry generally place budget Egypt tours in the range of USD 130 to 200 per person, per day, with accommodation, transport, selected meals and guiding included. Prices swing widely depending on the route and the inclusions, so treat that as a band rather than a rule.

Now put our entry-level cruise next to it.

Our prices are quoted in euros, so the exact dollar figure shifts with the exchange rate. All prices are “from” prices per person.

Read that top row again. Our four-day sailing lands inside the standard daily band for budget Egypt tours, and what you get for that day is a cabin on a wind-powered wooden boat carrying a maximum of sixteen guests, three meals cooked fresh on board, an archaeologist guiding you through every site, and your entrance tickets already paid.

That is the whole point we want to make about affordable Egypt tours. The headline price tells you almost nothing. The daily cost, with the inclusions attached, tells you everything.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Posted on Tripadvisor  
 
  
 
 
 Philippe B 
 
 
 
 Verified 
Adventure in Egypt 🥰 Pharaonic Unforgettable moment thanks to our beloved guides Mohamed and Ahmed 2 brothers to know by their benevolence and their knowledgeTo recommend around you
  
 
 
 
 
 
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 Laetitia G 
 
 
 
 Verified 
Pharaonic! Wonderful journey along the Nile. Thanks to Mohamed for his kindness and professionalism. An unforgettable journey
  
 
 
 
 
 
 Posted on Tripadvisor  
 
  
 
 
 Aglaia A 
 
 
 
 Verified 
Excellent Trip On this second visit to Egypt, we traveled on this boat on the Nile from Luxor to Aswan. It was a small and fine boat with room for about 20 people. Downstairs were the luxurious rooms with windows and upstairs was an open area with a dining table, benches, loungers and a pool. The crew and owner were very friendly, the food was excellent and on three of the five evenings we were invited to dance, which created a great sense of community.A trip with this ship and the crew is definitely recommended.
  
 
 
 
 
 
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 Claudia K 
 
 
 
 Verified 
Wonderful days and nights on the Nile We are completely satisfied! The food has excellent high quality. The service Team is polite, openminded, helpful, charming, loving. They enlightened us with live drumming, chanting and dancing during three evenings, which created an athmosphere of inclusion for all guests who wanted to join. The ship is light, spacious, clean, offering occasions to sit together, talk, play or laying on the sofa shady or sunny.Claudia & Christian
  
 
 
 
 
 
 Posted on Tripadvisor  
 
  
 
 
 Magdalena F 
 
 
 
 Verified 
Dream vacation in dahabiya I travelled with them in January with my husband and a couple of friends.I couldn't imagine how wonderful the journey would be in this dahabiya.From day one the whole crew was very polite and very attentive.The cleanliness is perfect, all the details very careful. The cabins very spacious and comfortable. Anyway we were just going to sleep, because we made life on the beautiful deck that has all the amenities so you can relax and enjoy the crossing of the wonderful Nile.Excellent and varied food.I recommend you 100%, I am sure we will repeat in the not too distant future.I send a hug to Abdul, Hussein and all the crew who made my vacation an unforgettable moment 😘By the way, thank you also for your patience with my Egyptian lessons 🤣
  
 
 
 
 
 
 Posted on Tripadvisor  
 
  
 
 
 Chunliu W 
 
 
 
 Verified 
Great and Relaxing Trip Up the Nile The Turquoise is a very charming Dahabiya. The rooms are clean and white-modern, with comfortable big beds in the suites and twins in the cabins. It probably would have been nice to have some cabins with double/queen beds. The pillows were way too thick and need most of the stuffing to be taken out, or ideally a many new pillows with varying thickness and firmness. There should probably have been a small sofa or love seat in the suites. The rooms all have very big windows, which makes for excellent views of the Nile. The salon / indoor living room should have a projector on one wall for movie nights. The crew was helpful and accommodating. They removed the tarpaulin covers over the pool at my request, in hopes that the sun would heat the pool, however above that tarp was a big solar panel, and so the sun never even shone in the pool. Mohammed (the owner) even got us two kayaks to use, which was absolutely fantastic and personal service, and really a great way to relax. The pool was freezing cold in the winter, and ideally should have some kind of heating system for high season, as even after a long day of sightseeing, it was too cold to be enjoyable. Perhaps a small heating element could be placed in the pool during the day when we go on tour, and then when we come back in late afternoon the water would be warm. The food was good, although maybe the breakfast was a bit lacking in different selections. Most of our group wanted a proper coffee maker, not just instant coffee. Alcohol was a bit difficult and expensive to come by, but eventually a member of the crew helped us to find some at expensive rates. The sights were amazing and our guide, Dr. Mo, was incredibly knowledgeable and personable. However, we were almost tired of seeing temples by the end of the trip; it might be a good idea to have a rest day in the middle of the trip to lay on deck, read, kayak, watch movies, etc. Overall, a great experience, very peaceful and enjoyable, and highly recommended.
  
 
 
 
 
 
 Posted on Tripadvisor  
 
  
 
 
 Mario E 
 
 
 
 Verified 
Travel on the Nile I'm Mario, I traveled in January.A wonderful experience, exquisite attention, a luxurious trip because Abdul and all his crew made this trip unforgettable.In the dahabiya all the details taken care of to the maximum, the perfect cabins, the exquisite and varied food.The focus on the dahabiya and the programmed activities were successful.Our desire is to repeat journey with them.
  
 
 
 
 
 
 Posted on Tripadvisor  
 
  
 
 
 edyeric 
 
 
 
 Verified 
Incroyable Excellent family trip in a beautiful boat away from the big liners The crew is lovely and very knowledgeable Thank you.
  
 
 
 
 
 
 Posted on Tripadvisor  
 
  
 
 
 edy e 
 
 
 
 Verified 
An unforgettable experience We are a family of 4 and had a great trip. Beautiful and very comfortable boat, staff with little care and full of kindness, excellent meals.... We highly recommend.
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Sacred Waters: Our Most Affordable Egypt Tour, from €750

Four days, three nights, sailing downstream from Aswan to Esna. Maximum sixteen guests on board. This is the shortest and most accessible way to experience a Dahabiya with us, and it is the one most travellers ask about first.

Day by Day

Day 1 — Philae Temple, Kom Ombo, Maniha Island. Your private guide meets you at your Aswan hotel or at the airport. You start at Philae Temple, moved stone by stone to Agilkia Island to save it from the rising Nile, dedicated to Isis and covered in carvings telling the stories of Osiris and Horus. Then you board your Dahabiya, settle into your cabin, meet the crew, and eat lunch as the boat gets underway. The sails go up and you drift toward Kom Ombo, Egypt’s double temple, split evenly between Horus the falcon and Sobek the crocodile. Symmetrical, riverside, and carved with medical reliefs that still surprise people. Dinner is served under open sky before you sail on to Maniha Island for the night.

Day 2 — Gebel El Silsila, Bassao Island, Al Fawza Island. Breakfast on the sun deck, then Gebel El Silsila, the sandstone quarry that supplied the stone for a startling number of Egypt’s great temples. Towering cliffs, rock-cut shrines, and a chapter of history most itineraries skip entirely. There is kayaking here if you want to see those cliffs from water level. Afterwards you sail to Bassao Island, a village where the rhythm of the day still belongs to the river, and where you can walk, meet people, and see Upper Egyptian life without a barrier between you and it. Lunch on board, an afternoon of tea and slow scenery toward Al Fawza Island, dinner at sunset, overnight at Al Fawza (Al Saraj Island).

Day 3 — Edfu, Badr Village. The boat approaches Edfu and you visit the Temple of Horus, one of the best-preserved temples anywhere in Egypt. The pylons are enormous, the halls are nearly intact, and the carvings are sharp enough to read. Back on board for lunch and an afternoon of watching the banks go by: farmers in the fields, fishermen working their nets, children waving. You reach Badr Village near Esna by evening. Dinner under the stars, overnight on the river.

Day 4 — Esna, Luxor, Valley of the Kings. Final breakfast on deck while sailing into Esna. You visit the Temple of Esna, dedicated to Khnum, the ram-headed god who shaped humanity on a potter’s wheel. Its hypostyle hall and astronomical ceiling are worth the stop on their own. Then a private transfer takes you to Luxor and on to the Valley of the Kings, the royal necropolis holding the tombs of Tutankhamun, Seti I and Ramesses II. Afterwards we transfer you to your Luxor hotel or to Luxor International Airport.

Serenity Retreat: Five Days, Esna to Aswan, from €1,000

Same boat, same standard, opposite direction, one extra night. Four nights on board, maximum sixteen guests, and a slightly fuller sweep of Upper Egypt.

Day 1 — Luxor, Karnak Temple, Valley of the Kings, Esna. You begin in Luxor with Karnak, the largest religious complex ever built and the work of roughly two thousand years of pharaohs. Then the Valley of the Kings. A short drive brings you to Esna where your Dahabiya is waiting. Lunch on board as you sail toward Al Hagz Qebli, afternoon tea on the sun deck, dinner under the stars, overnight on the water.

Day 2 — El Kab, Edfu, Al Sarraj. El Kab was once the capital of the Kingdom of Nekheb, and its rock-cut tombs and city walls are one of the genuinely underexplored sites on this stretch of river. Then Edfu and the Temple of Horus in the afternoon. Overnight at Al Ramady.

Day 3 — Bassao Island, Gebel El Silsila, Maniha Island. The village, the quarry, the optional kayaking, and a long slow afternoon of sailing. Overnight at Maniha Island.

Day 4 — Kom Ombo, Al Hardiab Island, Aswan. The double temple in the morning, quiet riverbank scenery through the middle of the day, then Philae Temple in Aswan in the afternoon. Final dinner on board, overnight in Aswan.

Day 5 — Farewell Aswan. Breakfast, check out, transfer to your hotel or Aswan International Airport. If you want to extend, an optional excursion to Abu Simbel can be arranged. Just tell us when you enquire.

What Is Included in the Price

This is the section that decides whether a cheap Egypt tour package is genuinely cheap. Here is exactly what sits inside our price on both the four-day and five-day cruises.

Two things worth flagging, because we would rather you hear them from us than discover them later.

• Entrance fees are included for the sites in your itinerary. In Egypt these add up quickly, and they are one of the most common places a “budget” package quietly drops a few hundred euros back onto your bill.
• Alcohol is not included. Soft drinks are. We list it plainly rather than burying it.

Cheap Versus Luxury: Where the Money Actually Goes

The honest difference between a cheap Egypt tour and a luxury one is rarely the monuments. Everybody sees Karnak. Everybody sees the Valley of the Kings. The difference is the space between the monuments.

On a large cruise ship you share the river with several hundred people and a diesel engine. On a Dahabiya you share it with a maximum of fifteen others, and the boat moves because the wind is pushing it. That shallow draft is also what lets us stop at places like Bassao Island and Al Fawza, which the big fleet sails straight past because it physically cannot moor there.

So the fair way to frame it is this: we are not the cheapest Egypt tour you will find, and we are not going to pretend otherwise. We are a small-boat operator whose entry price happens to sit inside the standard daily range for budget packages, with the guide, the meals and the tickets already counted.

Accommodation On Board

We offer two cabin categories, Suites and Standard Rooms. If you are travelling as a couple, as a family, or on your own, the sensible move is to tell us who is coming when you send your enquiry, and we will confirm what is available for your dates and how the cabins work out.

When Is the Cheapest Time to Go?

According to our own Nile cruise guidance, October to April brings the best conditions, with temperatures around 20 to 28°C. December and January are peak season, so book two to three months ahead if you want those dates. May to September is hotter, quieter and more affordable, which is exactly the trade-off many budget travellers are happy to make.

If your priority is price rather than perfect weather, the summer months are where to look.

Honest Answers to the Questions You Are Actually Asking

The Bottom Line on Cheap Tours Egypt

If your only measure is the lowest possible number, you will find cheaper than us. We are comfortable saying that.

But if your measure is what a day in Egypt actually costs once the guide, the meals, the tickets and the transfers are counted, then from €750 per person for four days puts a private wooden sailing boat, an archaeologist, and the quietest stretch of the Nile firmly within reach of a budget trip. That is the case we are making, and it is the reason travellers from the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Europe and Australia keep choosing a Dahabiya over a floating hotel.

Ready to See the Real Numbers for Your Dates?

Fill out the enquiry form on this page with your travel dates, the number of travellers, and the journey you are considering. We will come back to you with current availability, the exact price for your group, cabin options, and honest answers about anything not covered above.

No pressure, no obligation. Just a straight conversation with the Turquoise Dahabiya team about whether this is the right Nile journey for you.