Ships side by side
Royal Lily: 56 cabins4
| Place to stay | Price from | What's included | Good for | Website |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steam Ship Sudan Nile (sails between Luxor and Aswan) | £6,300per person, 10-day Aswan–Luxor trip with 6 days on board (sold only as a package) |
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| Mövenpick MS Royal Lily Nile (Luxor–Aswan cruises) | US$1,109per person sharing a double cabin: 3 nights Aswan–Luxor or 4 nights Luxor–Aswan (agent prices, by season) |
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| M/S Salacia Nile (Luxor–Aswan route) | US$835per person sharing a double cabin, 3–4 nights Luxor–Aswan (Memphis Tours, valid until 30 April 2027; Luxor and Aswan Travel gives US$850 for the cheapest) |
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| Esmeralda Nile Cruise Nile (Luxor–Aswan); Luxor berth on the Corniche opposite the Winter Palace | – |
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| The Oberoi Zahra Nile, sailing between Luxor and Aswan | US$2,215per person sharing a double cabin, 3 nights/4 days, Luxor–Aswan (agent prices differ) |
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Each place is here because a checked source backs it: its own site, its booking page or its map listing gives its kind, price or who it suits. Not ranked: most searched first. A dash means our sources don't say. Each value comes from the sources listed at the end of this page.
A cruise ship on this page is a motor ship with cabins: Mövenpick calls the MS Royal Lily a flagship cruiser with 56 cabins4. A dahabiya is the other way to sail, a shallow-bottomed, barge-like boat with sails and no motor-driven propeller5.
Ship size varies more than you’d guess. The Salacia takes only 59 passengers, where most boats its size carry 140–160 or more6, Ashranda says.
Fares per person
A standard 4-day Luxor to Aswan cruise costs US$600–1,2007 per person with meals and major excursions, Egypt Tours Plus says. The named ships cost more, and agents quote different fares for the same boat.
Standard 4-day cruise: US$600–1,2007
Whole-cruise prices per person sharing a double cabin, mostly from booking agents. Not nightly rates.
The cheap end goes lower: a 2-night cruise from Aswan to Luxor should cost from US$758 per night with meals, depending on the boat, Wikivoyage says. Across all Nile river cruises the spread is US$150–1,5007 per person per night, by Egypt Tours Plus’s count.
What moves the fare:
Read the small print
What’s included varies more than the headline price, so check these before you pay:
Esmeralda sightseeing: US$38043
| Ticket | Adult |
|---|---|
| Esmeralda sightseeing package | US$380 |
| Esmeralda honeymoon or anniversary package | US$145 per person |
| Tutankhamun's tomb, not in the Civitatis fare | EUR 12 |
Esmeralda Nile Cruise (operator); Civitatis (booking agent)
Weekly sailings
Most ships leave on fixed weekdays, so your travel dates narrow the choice as much as your budget does.
Sonesta boarding: 11:0013
| Ship | Route | Length | Departs | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sonesta Star Goddess | Aswan to Luxor | 3 nights | Wednesday | Sonesta (operator) |
| Sonesta Star Goddess | Luxor to Aswan | 4 nights | Saturday | Sonesta (operator) |
| Sonesta Star Goddess | Luxor round trip | 7 nights | Saturday | Sonesta (operator) |
| The Oberoi Philae | Not stated | 4 or 6 nights | Tuesday and Saturday | Oberoi Hotels (operator) |
| Mövenpick MS Royal Lily | Aswan to Luxor | 3 nights | Friday | Egypt Tours Plus (booking agent) |
| Esmeralda Nile Cruise | Between Luxor and Aswan | 3 or 4 nights | Monday from Luxor, Friday from Aswan | getegypttour.com (booking agent); Esmeralda Nile Cruise (operator) |
| The Oberoi Zahra | Between Aswan and Luxor | 3, 4 or 7 nights | Not given | Oberoi Hotels (operator) |
| Mövenpick MS Darakum | Cairo to Aswan | 11 to 15 days | Fixed annual dates | Egypt Tours Plus (tour company) |
Sonesta (operator); Oberoi Hotels (operator); Egypt Tours Plus (booking agent); getegypttour.com (booking agent); Esmeralda Nile Cruise (operator); Egypt Tours Plus (tour company)
On the Sonesta Star Goddess’s Luxor to Aswan cruise, you board at 11:00 on Saturday and leave the ship in Aswan at 08:0013 on the final morning. Trip.com lists the Sonesta Moon Goddess the same way: check-in from 11:00, check-out by 08:0014.
On the Royal Lily cruise that ends in Luxor, you leave after breakfast with a free airport transfer4.
Before you pay
Civitatis: free cancellation to 48 hours16
Cruise ships don’t share one set of terms. These are the ones that change your plans:
Dahabiyas want money earlier. The Nile Dahabiya takes a 25%18 deposit, while Dahabeyat takes 25% on confirmation and the rest 45 days before19 embarkation.
Ship versus sailing boat
A big ship suits you if you want more facilities; a dahabiya suits a quieter setting and a smaller group22, says Swan Dahabiya, a dahabiya operator.
Motor ships with cabins, sold as package itineraries
A shallow-bottomed, barge-like Nile boat with sails
A cruise ship suits:
A cruise ship doesn’t suit:
Temples along the river
The Sonesta Star Goddess’s 3-night13 Aswan to Luxor cruise fits the river temples into its middle days:
Philae entry: EGP 55032
| When | Stop |
|---|---|
| Day 2, 07:3029 | High Dam, granite quarries and the Temple of Philae |
| Day 2, 13:3029 | Sail from Aswan to Kom Ombo |
| 17:3029 | Kom Ombo temple of Sobek and Haroeris |
| 19:0029 | Sail on to Edfu |
| Day 3, 06:3029 | Horus Temple in Edfu |
| 08:1529 | Sail for Luxor |
Kom Ombo’s temple honours the crocodile god Sobek and the falcon god Horus the Elder30. The Temple of Philae is open 7AM to 4PM31 every day, and foreign adults pay EGP 55032 (about US$10) (checked October 2026). Wikivoyage says the one-hour8 stop there is generally enough.
Some packages add Abu Simbel, on the western bank of Lake Nasser about 230 km34 southwest of Aswan.
5 daysPickup includedFree cancellation
Mody Egypt Tours
fromUS$950
See dates on Viator
4 daysPickup includedFree cancellation
Egyptology Travel CO
fromUS$690
See dates on GetYourGuideBoarding in Luxor leaves time either side for the big sights: the West Bank holds the Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Queens, and the East Bank Luxor Temple and Karnak Temple3. For a fuller plan, see what a short Luxor to Aswan cruise looks like by day.
The full river
The Mövenpick MS Darakum is one of very few vessels that can sail the full Cairo-Aswan route35, Egypt Tours Plus says. Its long cruises run 11, 13, 14 or 15 days35 on fixed annual dates.
Jules Verne: 12 nights36
| Trip | Length | Price from | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jules Verne long cruise | 12 nights36 on the MS Darakum |
£5,92536 per person |
Based on two sharing36, without flights from the UK |
| Viking, Pharaohs & Pyramids | 12 days37, via Luxor and Aswan |
AU$10,99537 |
Onboard meals, drinks with lunch and dinner, and gratuities37 included |
The Jules Verne cruise calls at Kom Ombo, Edfu, Luxor, Denderah, Abydos, Tell el-Amarna, Minya and Beni Hassan36 on the way to Cairo. On Jules Verne’s separate Cairo to Aswan tour, Day 238 covers the Giza Pyramids in the morning and the Grand Egyptian Museum after lunch.
Most of Tutankhamun’s tomb goods are now in the Grand Egyptian Museum in Giza39. Egypt Independent reported on 18 October 2026 that its ticket for foreign visitors rises to EGP 1,830 (about US$33) from 1 November 202640. For routes and lengths, see the Cairo to Aswan cruise plan.
Seasons on the Nile
Peak: November to March7
Peak cruise season runs November to March, and the shoulder months of April-May and September-October7 give excellent value, says Egypt Tours Plus. In June, July and August average highs sit above 40 °C41, and Nour El Nil doesn’t run dahabiya cruises from June to August28.
For the long Cairo route, October to April35 has the most comfortable weather.
Still deciding
Luxor lies about 220 km north of Aswan.
Direct flights from Cairo take about 1 hour; the train takes about 10 hours.
Swan Dahabiya lists a double cabin for 2 at US$2,400 for its 4-night Luxor to Aswan trip; Dahabiyat.com lists €890 per person for 4 nights Esna to Aswan.
Nour El Nil includes entrance fees, an official guide, meals, soft drinks and tips, but not alcohol or airport transfers.
Dahabeyat cancels free more than 90 days out and charges 100% under 45 days; The Nile Dahabiya charges 25% under 10 days.
Photos: Wikimedia Commons and Pexels. Authors and licences: image credits
