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You can do Egypt on your own or with a guide – it really depends on whether you want a guided experience or to do it yourself. One gives you less to think about and coordinate yourself, the other gives you more freedom.

Ultimately, knowing Arabic is not important. I don’t know arabic and I never had any trouble. English is surprisingly common in touristy areas.

There’s a train system running straight down from Cairo to Aswan, and it’s incredibly cheap. Trust me when I say it’s worth it to get first class.

Within cities, you will often see minibusses going down main roads. These are for you – flag one down and tell them where you want to go. They will charge you 2 to 5 Egyptian pounds a trip, which is like 20 cents USD. So if you need to get from Cairo station to the Pyramids, for example, or down Aswan, you will have no trouble.

There are LOADS of Taxis everywhere and you never have any trouble finding one. But you need to be a solid haggler with taxi drivers.

Most cities will have ferries that go across the Nile. This costs 5 EGP for foreigners. If anyone asks for more, they’re trying to scam you.

Day 1

Giza Necropolis, Al Haram, Egypt
The Egyptian Museum, Ismailia, Qasr El Nil, Cairo Governorate, Egypt

You can get from the centre of Cairo to Giza station on the metro, then get a minibus to the pyramids.

Sadat is the station with the museum, it’s the big pink building.

Day 2

Mosque of Muhammad Ali, Al Abageyah, El-Khalifa, Egypt
The Hanging Church, Kom Ghorab, Old Cairo, Egypt
Mosque of Ibn Tulun, Tolon, El-Sayeda Zainab, Egypt

Spend the day in Islamic Cairo. This isn’t ancient but it’s incredibly beautiful and absolutely worth your time. It’s also extremely large, and if you add in things like the Mohammed Ali mosque or the Coptic Quarter or the Ibn Tulun mosque, you will easily fill a day. On the evening of day 2, get a night train to Luxor.

Day 3

Karnak, Luxor, Egypt
Luxor Temple, Luxor City, Luxor, Egypt
Luxor Museum, Kornish Al Nile, Luxor City, Luxor, Egypt

Full day on the East Bank. Explore Karnak, the Luxor Temple and the Luxor Museum. They’re all a short taxi drive away from each other.

Day 4

Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut, Kings Valley Road, قسم الواحات الخارجة، Egypt
Valley of the Kings, Luxor, Egypt
Madinat Habu, Al Bairat, Luxor, Egypt
Deir el-Bahari, قسم الواحات الخارجة، Egypt
Ramesseum, Edfo, Egypt
Valley of the Queens, Luxor, Egypt
Colossi of Memnon, Al Bairat, الأقصر، Egypt

West Bank. This includes the Temple of Hatshepsut, Valley of the Kings, Madinat Habu, Dier El Bahari, Ramesseum, Valley of the Queens, Colossi of Memnon, etc. All this stuff is in close proximity a taxi ride from one to the next is not expensive. Most hotels in Luxor do some kind of tour of the West Bank for a modest cost.

Day 5

The Temple of Horus at Edfu, Adfo, Edfo, Egypt
Philae Temple, Aswan First, Egypt

Get a train to Edfu, get off, get a taxi to Edfu temple, peel your jaw off the floor, and get on another train to Aswan. When you get to Aswan, you should have time to get a taxi to Philae Temple. You will have to pay for a boat ride to the temple itself, so group with some other tourists.

Day 6

Abu Simbel, Kharga, Egypt

Go to the Aswan bus station (just ask the minibus driver) and then go around the station just saying ‘Abu Simbel’ to anyone who will listen and you will rapidly get cajoled towards the right bus. This is a full day trip. A bus or minibus will take you there, give you an hour or so to look around, and then take you back.

On the next day, get wherever you need to get to go home.

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Egypt: Cairo, Luxor, and Aswan