Jan 28, Sat
If we have arranged your international travel you will depart from New York for Egypt at 6:30 pm on Egypt Air

Jan 29, 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 30, 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 31,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). 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)
 
Feb 1, Wed
This morning we 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)

Feb 2, 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)
 
Feb 3, 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 nights.
Boat - Eugenie
 
Feb4, 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.
Boat - Eugenie
 
Feb 5, Sun
We will continue sailing to Aswan, visiting Amada (the oldest surviving Nubian Temple, containing some of the best preserved 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.
Boat - Eugenie
 
Feb 6, Mon
After breakfast on board, we will fly to Aswan and the drive to Luxor, stoping at the Temple at Edfu along the way.
Hotel - Steigenberger Nile Palace
 
Feb 7, 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 - Steigerbenger Nile Palace (see Comments)
 
Feb 8, 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), 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 - Steigerbenger Nile Palace (see Comments)
 
Feb 9, 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 10, 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 11, Sat
This morning you will transfer to the airport for your flight home.
 
NOTE:  Though we have made preliminary arrangements for thespecial 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.
 

Egypt's Hidden Treasures

This itinerary is based on the Hidden Treasures tour sponsored by the AIA in 2011. It is anticipated that the 2012 version will be very similar, but due to the constantly changing situation in Egypt there will certainly be some changes.

Egypt's Hidden Treasures sponsored by the
Archaeological Institute of America
January 28 - February 12, 2012

Photo - Kmt/Forbes
About Egypt's Hidden Treasures
Tentative Itinerary
Notes
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.
 
Check onthe AIA web site for the full itinerary details and to make a reseration
Stephen Harvey, Archaeological Institute of America lecturer and host, has been the Director of the Ahmose and Tetisheri Project since 1993. The project 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. Steve has also worked in Egypt at Giza and Memphis, as well as on archaeological projects in the United States, Syria, and Turkey. He has taught at Stony Brook University (New York), The University of Chicago, and the University of Memphis, Tennessee. Steve received his Ph.D. in Egyptian Archaeology (1998) from the University of Pennsylvania, and his B.A. in Archaeological Studies from Yale University (1987). He has been invited to lecture at a number of institutions in the U.S., as well as in Canada, England, Egypt, France, Australia, and New Zealand; and has been a study leader to excellent reviews on a number of previous travel programs in Egypt.
Thutmose III
Study Leader