Welcome to Museum Tours
Egypt's Hidden Treasures
sponsored by the
Archaeological Institute of America
January 23 - February 6, 2010
Photo - Kmt/Forbes
STUDY LEADER
Since 1993, Stephen Harvey has been Director of the Ahmose and Tetisheri Project, which centers on excavation of
the monumental complex of King Ahmose at Abydos, southern Egypt, under the aegis of the Pennsylvania-Yale-Institute of Fine Arts,
NYU Expedition to Abydos.
He received his PhD in Egyptian Archaeology in 1998 from the University of Pennsylvania.
In addition
to extensive fieldwork at Abydos, Dr. Harvey has worked in Egypt at Giza and Memphis, as well as on archaeological projects in the
United States, Syria and Turkey.
From 2003-2006, Harvey was Assistant Professor of Egyptian Archaeology in the Oriental
Institute at The University of Chicago. In 2006, he led the reinstallation of the Picken Family Nubian Gallery of the Oriental
Institute Museum, together with co-Curator Bruce Williams.
From 1998 to 2002, Harvey was Assistant Director of the Institute
of Egyptian Art and Archaeology and Assistant Professor in the Department of Art of the University of Memphis, Tennessee.
He
was Assistant Curator for Egyptian Art at the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore, Maryland from 1996 to 1998.
ITINERARY
Jan 23 Sat
If we have arranged your international travel you will depart from New York for Egypt at 6:30 pm on Egypt Air
Jan
24 Sun
Your flight will arrive in Cairo about noon, where you will be met by a Museum Tours representative who will assist you with
your visa, baggage and customs. Our bus will then take you to the Mena House Hotel located near the pyramids. There will be
an evening reception before dinner at the hotel.
Hotel - Mena House Hotel (pyramid side)
Jan 25 Mon
This morning you will visit
the Giza Plateau exploring the Great Pyramid and the surrounding area. Then it's down to the Valley Temple of Khafra where we
will have a private tour inside the Sphinx complex (Closed to public). After lunch near our hotel we will have a private
tour of the village and necropolis of the workers who built the pyramids. (Closed to public)
Hotel - Mena House Hotel (pyramid
side)
Jan 26 Tue
Today we will drive south to visit Saqqara, where we will be allowed on a private tour inside the Step Pyramid
(Closed to public) gaining access through the south, Late Period entrance. A short drive will take us to the
Serrapeum (Closed to public) (May not be available in 2009). burial place of the Apis bulls from the New Kingdom through the Ptolemaic
period. After lunch at the Saqqara Palm Club we will visit the Memphis outdoor museum. This evening we will fly to Aswan and
transfer to the new section of the Movenpick Resort Hotel.
Hotel - Movenpick Resort Hotel (Nile side)
Jan 27 Wed
This morning will visit Philae Temple, perhaps the most beautiful temple in Egypt. Later we will stop
for a visit to the ancient granite quarry, with its New Kingdom inscriptions and unfinished obelisk.
Hotel - Movenpick Resort Hotel (Nile side)
Jan 28 Thu
A felucca ride will begin our day. We will visit Elephantine Island and the botanical gardens on Kitchener's
Island. The afternoon is free to relax, shop or sightsee on your own.
Hotel - Movenpick Resort Hotel (Nile side)
Jan 29 Fri
This morning we board our cruise boat (either the Prince Abbas or the Eugenie, depending on the sailing schedule a the time of the
trip). After lunch on board we will take a short motorboat ride to visit Kalabsha Temple before we set sail. Overnight aboard our
Lake Nasser cruise boat for three hights.
Jan 30 Sat
Today we will visit Wadi el Sabua temple as we continue sailing
on Lake Nasser toward Abu Simbel. The temple is noted for its avenue of sphinxes, and was partly carved directly into the rock.
Jan 31
Sun
We will continue sailing to Aswan, visiting Amada (the oldest surviving Nubian Temple, containing some of the best preseerved
Nubian reliefs) and Dakka, dedicated to the god Thoth, along the way. Upon our arrival at Abu Simbel in the afternoon, we will explore
the temples of Rameses II, including a private tour inside the man-made mountain (closed to public), constructed when the monument
was moved at the time of the building of the Aswan High Dam.
Feb 1 Mon
After breakfast on board, after which we will fly
to Aswan and the drive to Luxor.
Hotel - Steigerberger Nile Palace
Feb 2 Tue
All morning will be spent exploring Karnak temple, the
worlds largest temple complex. After a free afternoon we will take horse drawn carriages to an early evening Tea at Chicago house
(Closed to public)
Hotel - Steigerberger Nile Palace (see Comments)
Feb 3 Wed
The morning will be spent on the West Bank,
where we will visit the ancient workers village at Deir el Medina. Then we will drive to the Valley of the Kings. Here
we will visit the tomb of Tutankhamun, the tomb of Seti I (Closed to public) (May not be available in 2009). and KV 5, the tomb
of the sons of Rameses II (Closed to public). The afternoon is free to explore or shop on your own. This evening we will visit
Luxor Temple for an enchanting after dark tour.
Hotel - Steigerberger Nile Palace (see Comments)
Feb 4 Thu
Today we will
visit Deir el Bahri with Hatshepsut's Temple where we will have a private visit to the tomb of Senenmut (Closed to public).
Then on to the Valley of the Queens where we will gain access to the tomb of Nefertari (Closed to public). The afternoon is
free until our evening flight to Cairo and transfer to the Cairo Marriott Hotel.
Hotel - Cairo Marriott (see Comments)
Feb 5 Fri
The entire day will be spent at the Egyptian Museum, where we will see the treasures of Tutankhamun and the Royal
Mummy room. Join us for our farewell dinner this evening.
Hotel - Cairo Marriott (see Comments)
Feb 6 Sat
This
morning you will transfer to the airport for your flight home.
NOTE: Though we have made preliminary arrangements for the ten special events listed in the itinerary as (Closed
to public), circumstances prior to, or at the time of, our visit may require us to modify the itinerary and sites visited. Every
effort will be made to ensure that all special sites will be available to us and we will notify tour participants as soon as possible
if there are any changes. The direction of sailing on Lake Nasar may be reversed depending upon the boat schedule at the time
of the tour.
COMMENTS
Egypt's Hidden Treasures is one of the most exciting tours we have ever had the pleasure of offering.
Through special arrangements with Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities we have received permission to visit many of the most fabulous
sites in Egypt which, because of their fragile nature, are normally closed to visitors.
Because of the unique nature of this
trip and the cost of the special arrangements, there is a minimum requirement of 15 participants. In order to insure an exceptional
experience for everyone on the tour, there is an absolute maximum of 30 participants, including the Study Leader.
The tour includes
stays in the Cairo Marriott, the garden section of the Mena house (Pyramid side), the Movenpick Resort Hotel (Nile side)
and Steigenberger Nile Palace (Nile side).
The Lake Nasar cruise will be on either the Prince Abbas or the Eugenie
depending upon availability and schedule at the time of the tour.
The price of the tour includes all meals and non-alcoholic
beverages at meals. The customer is expected, but not required, to tip the guide and tour manager. All other tips are included except
for personal items.
