First day of your Nile Cruise sees us beginning our journey from Luxor to Aswan on our elegant dahabiya, ABUNDANCE.

We collect you from your hotel and drive to Esna, around 45 minutes away, where our ship is anchored.

But before we hoist the sails, we will visit the Khnum Temple of Esna. Despite its sleepy atmosphere, it is unjustifiably overshadowed by its more monumental cousins. Only the portico of the original temple building remains, but its 24 columns over 13 metres in height with lotus-leaf capitals are a highlight of pharaonic architecture. Let your gaze drift higher and drink in the beauty of this luxuriant stone vegetation.

After marvelling at these wonders of the ancient world, you are ready for your magical cruise.

Today we sail to Edfu, where you will encounter a temple dating back to the end – and, simultaneously, the culmination – of an architectural tradition spanning over 3 millennia. This pharaonic temple was dedicated to Horus, the falcon god, celebrated here in many text and image cycles. Explore the many chambers and halls with us and marvel at the immensity and magnificence of these monuments.

You now have time to digest your impressions on the deck of our ship while the Nile Valley glides past. We soon arrive at the wadi of Shatt er-Rigale, where you can stroll through lush green palm groves on the very fringe of the barren, inhospitable desert. We will anchor in Gebel el Silsila.

The chain of sandstone cliffs at Gebel el Silsila was used as a gigantic quarry, where tons of stone were chiselled for many of the pharaonic temples we have already visited on our dahabiya tour. But this was also the location of numerous shrines and cult buildings, including the famous Great Speos of Pharaoh Horemheb and the fascinating Nile chapels from the New Kingdom, once chosen to be inundated by the Nile in the annual flooding.

Our next stop is the Temple of Kom Ombo, picturesquely located on a bend of the Nile.The exceptionally beautiful double temple of Kom Ombo, construction of which began in the Ptolemaic dynasty, was dedicated to the crocodile god Sobek and the falcon god Haroeris. Sobek was celebrated by the burial of countless mummified crocodiles, whose astonishingly well-preserved bodies are on display today in a museum.

In the small town of Daraw we visit the famous camel market, where hordes of camels from Sudan are sold to the highest bidders. An ideal location to study unfamiliar cultures and traditions associated with trading and selling. We leave the bustling market and take a stroll through the town.

After a final substantial breakfast on our dahabiya ABUNDANCE, Captain Mohammed and his crew bid you farewell.

We take you to your hotel in Aswan or the train station or the airport.