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3 night Nile cruise: ports, temples and what each day holds

Last checked: October 2026

Cruise ships moored along the Edfu riverfront, another one under way on the Nile
Edfu from Nile, Egypt

Sonesta Star Goddess route

The plan, port by port

Leaves Aswan every Wednesday1

A plan built from public sources: the cruise operator's published itinerary, and opening hours from Google Maps. A sailing time is shown only where a source gives one. Not a trip report.

It follows this published itinerary:

  • The Sonesta Star Goddess runs a 3-night Aswan–Luxor cruise every Wednesday.1
  • On Sonesta Star Goddess's 3-night Aswan–Luxor cruise, guests board in Aswan at 11:00, before lunch.2
  • On day 2 at 07:30, the Sonesta cruise visits the High Dam, the granite quarries and the Temple of Philae.2
  • The Sonesta cruise sails from Aswan to Kom Ombo at 13:30 on day 2.2
  • The Sonesta cruise visits the Kom Ombo temple of Sobek and Haroeris at 17:30 and sails on to Edfu at 19:00.2
  • The Sonesta cruise visits the Horus Temple in Edfu at 06:30 on day 3 and sails for Luxor at 08:15.2
  • Guests leave the Sonesta cruise in Luxor at 08:00 on day 4.2
  • On day 4 at 08:00, the Sonesta cruise visits the West Bank: the Valley of the Kings, the Valley of the Queens and Hatshepsut's temple.2
  • On day 4 at 14:30, the Sonesta cruise visits Karnak Temple and Luxor Temple on the East Bank.2

Day 1

  1. Aswan

    Port of call

Night on board

Day 2

  1. Aswan

    Port of call

  2. By boat to Kom Ombo. The Sonesta cruise sails from Aswan to Kom Ombo at 13:30 on day 2.2

  3. Kom Ombo

    Port of call

  4. By boat to Edfu. The Sonesta cruise visits the Kom Ombo temple of Sobek and Haroeris at 17:30 and sails on to Edfu at 19:00.2

  5. Edfu

    Port of call

Night on board

Day 3

  1. Edfu

    Port of call

    What you see here:

    • Edfu Temple Opening hours: Mon–Tue 07:00–17:00; Wed 06:00–17:00; Thu–Sat 07:00–17:00; Sun 06:00–17:0013 Time to spend: Wikivoyage notes that cruise boats may give 2-2½ hours ashore at Edfu and warns against caleche drivers who will only wait an hour at the temple.7On Luxor and Aswan Travel's day tour from Luxor, the drive along the Nile to Edfu takes about 2 hours.17Luxor and Aswan Travel's Edfu and Kom Ombo day tour from Luxor lasts 12 hours.17 Open in Google Maps
  2. By boat to Luxor. The Sonesta cruise visits the Horus Temple in Edfu at 06:30 on day 3 and sails for Luxor at 08:15.2

  3. Luxor

    Port of call

Night on board

Day 4

  1. Luxor

    Port of call

  2. By road to Valley of the Kings: About 25 min by car, 16 km10

  3. Valley of the Kings

    Land visit by road

    What you see here:

  4. By road to Valley of the Queens: About 15 min by car, 8 km10

  5. Valley of the Queens

    Land visit by road

    What you see here:

  6. By road to Karnak (East Bank): About 20 min by car, 14 km10

  7. Karnak (East Bank)

    Land visit by road

    What you see here:

  8. By road to Luxor: About 2 min by car, 1 km10

  9. Luxor

    Land visit by road

    What you see here:

Aswan, Kom Ombo and Edfu

Why the boat stops where it does

The boat calls at Aswan, Kom Ombo and Edfu before Luxor, with one guided visit at each.

Kom Ombo open 7AM to 9PM6

  • Aswan. On day 2 at 07:302, Sonesta’s tour covers the High Dam, the granite quarries and the Temple of Philae. Philae is open every day from 7AM to 4PM3, and Wikivoyage finds the one-hour wait4 there generally enough. It also calls the High Dam a bit of a letdown for visitors4.
  • Kom Ombo. The temple stands right beside the dock5 and honours the crocodile god Sobek and the falcon god Har wer (Horus the Elder)6. Sonesta’s visit at 17:302 sits well inside the temple’s daily hours of 7AM to 9PM6.
  • Edfu. Wikivoyage calls the Temple of Horus the best-preserved ancient temple in Egypt7. Sonesta’s visit starts at 06:30 and the boat sails for Luxor at 08:152. Civitatis makes this visit by horse-drawn carriage8.
Five Nile cruise ships sailing in a line on a hazy day
Cruise ships on Nile between Edfu and Kom Ombo, Egypt

Last day ashore

The Luxor day: West Bank first, then Karnak

Luxor splits into the land of the living on the East Bank and the burial grounds on the West Bank9, and the last day covers both.

West Bank tour from 08:002

Sonesta’s West Bank tour starts at 08:002 with the Valley of the Kings, the Valley of the Queens and Hatshepsut’s temple. Karnak and Luxor Temple follow at 14:302. The morning stops sit close together: the Valley of the Kings to the Valley of the Queens is about 15 min by car, 8 km, and the drive back to Karnak is about 20 min by car, 14 km10.

There are no closures to plan around: Google Maps lists Karnak as open Mon–Sun 06:00–17:0013, and Luxor’s main temples rarely, if ever, close11. Before the day, look through the Valley of the Kings photos and tomb notes and the visitor guide to Karnak Temple.

White cruise ship on the Nile, its reflection in calm water, the West Bank hills behind
River cruise ship MS Amarco II on the Nile in Luxor (Egypt)

Before and after the boat

Getting to Aswan and home from Luxor

You start in Aswan and finish in Luxor, so plan a one-way trip in and a separate one home.

Boarding in Aswan at 11:002

  1. Get to Aswan

    Wikivoyage recommends the train between Luxor and Aswan, which takes 3–4 hours. From Cairo, the AC1 single fare for foreigners is US$80.

  2. Reach the boat

    Civitatis's 3-night cruise picks you up at Aswan airport, your hotel or the train station. In Aswan, the inDrive app works but takes cash only.

  3. Board in Aswan

    On the Sonesta Star Goddess you board in Aswan at 11:00, before lunch.

  4. Leave the boat in Luxor

    Sonesta guests leave the boat at 08:00 on day 4, as the West Bank tour starts.

  5. Head home

    Cairo is about 1 hour away by air or about 10 hours by train. The Civitatis cruise ends at about 4:30pm with a transfer to Luxor airport.

For flights, trains and buses at the Luxor end, read more on getting there. If you’d rather stay on after the boat, choose a Luxor hotel for after the cruise.

Evenings ashore

What to do in Luxor at night

Luxor Temple open 6AM to 8PM14

Visit Luxor Temple after dark, watch the sound and light show at Karnak or sail a felucca at sunset. Your options for an evening ashore:

For a museum stop in your free time, the visitor guide to Luxor’s Mummification Museum covers what you’ll find inside.

Local fares

Costs if you stay on in Luxor

Local ferry EGP 2011

Cruise boats sell package itineraries, not point-to-point trips11, so you book the whole route as one package. Getting around on your own costs this:

Local fares and a ticket in Luxor

CostAdult
Blue local ferry, foreigners
EGP 20
Motorboat launch across the Nile
EGP 80–100
Short taxi trip in town
EGP 40–60
Taxi round trip to the West Bank
EGP 200
Valley of the Queens ticket
EGP 220

Wikivoyage

Uber doesn’t work in Luxor, but its sister app Careem does11.

Same river, other direction

Booking a similar cruise

None of the bookable tours here copies Sonesta’s Aswan start: these two sail from Luxor to Aswan instead. On the way, the Esna lock works like a lift for boats, handling a 10-metre drop8 in the river level.

Two-deck sailing boat under a white sail on a wide, calm stretch of the Nile Multi-day tour

4 daysPickup includedFree cancellation

Egyptology Travel CO

Luxor: 4 Days Nile Cruise with Guided Tours & Abu Simbel

4.6 (132 reviews) on GetYourGuide, checked October 2026

fromUS$690

See dates on GetYourGuide
Stern of a cruise ship moored at a Luxor quay, palms behind Multi-day tour

5 daysPickup includedFree cancellation

Mody Egypt Tours

4 nights Luxor to Aswan Nile Cruise with Abu Simbel & Air Balloon

4.4 (107 reviews) on Viator, checked October 2026

fromUS$950

See dates on Viator

To weigh big boats against smaller ones first, see the main Nile cruise types compared.

Questions people ask

How many nights do cruises between Luxor and Aswan last?

Wikivoyage lists trips of 2-3 nights. Sonesta also runs a 4-night Luxor-to-Aswan sailing every Saturday.

When is the best time for a Nile cruise from Aswan?

Winter, from November to the beginning of March. Average summer highs in June, July and August are above 40 °C.

Does the Valley of the Queens ticket include Nefertari's tomb?

No. The LE220 ticket covers the 3 open tombs; Nefertari's needs its own ticket, and some sources say the tomb is currently closed.

Photos: Wikimedia Commons and Pexels. Authors and licences: image credits

Checked against 17 sources · last checked October 2026
  1. Sonesta (operator) · checked October 2026
  2. Sonesta (operator) · checked October 2026
  3. egymonuments.gov.eg (official) · checked October 2026
  4. Wikivoyage · checked October 2026
  5. Wikivoyage · checked October 2026
  6. egymonuments.gov.eg (official) · checked October 2026
  7. Wikivoyage · checked October 2026
  8. Civitatis (booking agent) · checked October 2026
  9. Experience Egypt (official) · checked October 2026
  10. OpenRouteService (route data © OpenStreetMap contributors) · checked October 2026
  11. Wikivoyage · checked October 2026
  12. Wikipedia · checked October 2026
  13. Google Maps listings via DataForSEO · checked October 2026
  14. egymonuments.gov.eg (official) · checked October 2026
  15. Wikivoyage · checked October 2026
  16. Wikivoyage · checked October 2026
  17. luxorandaswan.com (tour company) · checked October 2026
Page history · last changed 23 October 2026
  • First written