How many days in Egypt? Five, nine or twelve nights, drawn by our planner
The short answer: Five nights cover the essentials: three in Cairo and Giza, two in Luxor. About nine add the Nile and Aswan, with a day to Abu Simbel. About twelve add the Red Sea or the desert. Fewer nights mean choosing, not rushing.
Three lengths, drawn by our planner
These routes come from the same rules as our planner: each place gets the nights its destination guide recommends, in a sensible order. Open any row to change the nights, add a place or choose what fills each day.
| Nights | Where you stay | What it leaves out | Edit it |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Cairo and Giza, 3 · Luxor, 2 | The Nile between Luxor and Aswan, Aswan itself and Abu Simbel | Open five nights |
| 9 | Cairo and Giza, 3 · Luxor, 2 · The Nile and Aswan, 4 · Abu Simbel as a day from Aswan | The coast and the desert | Open nine nights |
| 12 | Cairo and Giza, 3 · Luxor, 2 · The Nile and Aswan, 4 · Abu Simbel from Aswan · The Red Sea, 3 | Little of the classic route; the desert and Alexandria remain | Open twelve nights |
Nights per place are our judgement, from each destination guide. The planner never adds a place you did not choose.
Why these numbers
- Cairo and Giza, three nights: one full day for the pyramids and the Grand Egyptian Museum, one for historic Cairo, and one for Saqqara or rest. The museum alone deserves half a day.
- Luxor, two nights: the West Bank is best started early, and the East Bank temples are best late. One night forces a choice.
- The Nile and Aswan, four nights: enough for a boat between Luxor and Aswan, or for Aswan itself with a day to Abu Simbel.
- The Red Sea, three nights or more: a coast is for slowing down; less than three is mostly travel.
Getting between places
- Sleeper train, Cairo to Aswan: one timetable listed by Seat 61 (updated 14 September 2026) leaves Cairo at 21:10 and reaches Aswan at 11:10. A night on the train replaces a night in a hotel.
- Abu Simbel: a road day from Aswan spends roughly six hours of the day in transit, according to our Abu Simbel guide; flying saves road time.
- Flights: Cairo, Luxor, Aswan, Hurghada, Sharm el-Sheikh and Marsa Alam have airports. Our judgement: fly the long legs and keep the road for short ones.
When to add a night
Our judgement: add a night where one of these applies.
- Your flight lands in the afternoon or evening: the first day is not a sightseeing day.
- You want the Grand Egyptian Museum and the pyramids on different days.
- You are travelling with children, or anyone who tires in heat.
- You want one day with nothing planned. On a long trip it is the day people remember.
Where to go from here
Sources and review
Reviewed on by Deluxe Trips Egypt. Official statements are attributed to their source; where we give a judgement, we say so. This guide names no school, boat or hotel.
Photo: KennyOMG, CC BY-SA 4.0
