Pharaohs & Pyramids

Roundtrip Cairo, Egypt | 12 days

Uncover the ancient secrets of Egypt amid the welcoming culture of today. See the pyramids from astride a majestic camel. Explore the Temple of Karnak’s 136 soaring pillars. Visit Queen Nefertari’s tomb in the Valley of the Kings. Skim the waters of the Nile by traditional felucca. Enjoy the fragrances of Aswan’s spice market. Join our expert Egyptologists on a 12-day cruisetour through Egypt on board our modern Nile ships, owned and operated by Viking.

Cairo: The City Victorious

By Max Rodenbeck

From a noted journalist who has spent much of his life in Cairo, here is a dazzling cultural excavation of that most ancient, colorful, and multifaceted of cities. The seat of pharaohs and sultans, the prize of conquerors from Alexander to Saladin to Napoleon, Cairo--nicknamed "the Victorious"--has never ceased reinventing herself.

With intimate knowlege, humor, and affection, Rodenbeck takes us on an insider's tour of the magnificent city: its backstreets and bazaars, its belly-dance theaters and hashish dens, its crowded slums and fashionable salons, its incomparably rich past and its challenging future. Cairo: The City Victorious is a unique blend of travel and history, an epic, resonant work that brings one of the world's great metropolises to life in all its dusty, chaotic beauty.

Luxor Illustrated: With Aswan, Abu Simbel, and the Nile

By Michael Haag

Luxor stands on the site of ancient Thebes, Egypt's opulent New Kingdom capital. It encompasses the spectacular temples of Luxor and Karnak on the east bank of the Nile, and on the west bank the vast necropolis, which includes the Colossi of Memnon, the famed Ramesseum, Queen Hatshepsut's magnificent funerary temple, and the Valley of the Kings, riddled with royal tombs, among them the fabled resting place of Tutankhamun. The splendor and profusion of pharaonic monuments at Luxor justifies its reputation as the greatest outdoor museum in the world. Reaching beyond Luxor, this book also covers all the major sites of Upper Egypt, including Abydos, Dendera, Esna, Edfu, and Kom Ombo. Special attention is given to Aswan, one of the most beautiful places in Egypt, with its nearby island temple of Isis at Philae. The climax of this informed and richly illustrated book comes with the remarkable temples at Abu Simbel, with their colossal figures of Ramesses II and his lovely wife Nefertari cut from the living rock.

The Search For Ancient Egypt

By Jean Vercoutter

The world of the pharaohs, rediscovered and revealed by such men as Howard Carter, discoverer of the tomb of Tutankhamun.

Traveling Through Egypt: From 450 B.C. to the Twentieth Century

By Deborah Manley

To travelers, Egypt is a place of dreams: a country whose lifeblood is a mighty river, flowing from the heart of Africa. Along the fertile fringe of its banks an astonishing civilization raised spectacular monuments that our modern minds can hardly encompass. For centuries this past dominated travelers' minds--yet the present and its great buildings too engaged their interest and admiration and gave them pleasure.

The experience of Egypt has over the centuries inspired travelers to write of what they saw and tried to understand. These travelers' observations are part of the history of modern Egypt, for seeing ourselves through others' eyes helps us to understand ourselves. The compilers of this anthology have selected records of travelers from many countries and cultures over many centuries, and, mainly using the Nile for a pathway, here offer these travelers' observations on the many facets of Egypt. The collection includes extracts from the writings of Herodotus, Strabo, Ibn Hawkal, al-Muqaddasi, Pierre Loti, Rudyard Kipling, Florence Nightingale, and many more.

Ancient Egypt: Anatomy of a Civilization

By Barry J. Kemp

Completely revised and updated to reflect the latest developments in the field, this second edition of Barry J. Kemp's popular text presents a compelling reassessment of what gave ancient Egypt its distinctive and enduring characteristics.

Ranging across Ancient Egyptian material culture, social and economic experiences, and the mindset of its people, the book also includes two new chapters exploring the last ten centuries of Ancient Egyptian civilization and who, in ethnic terms, the ancients were.

Fully illustrated, the book draws on both ancient written materials and decades of excavation evidence, transforming our understanding of this remarkable civilization. Broad ranging yet impressively detailed, Kemp's work is an indispensable text for all students of Ancient Egypt.

Mountains of the Pharaohs: The Untold Story of the Pyramid Builders

By Zahi A. Hawass

The great pyramids of Giza have intrigued humanity for thousands of years. Questions about the construction and the purpose of these majestic monuments have existed since the middle period of ancient Egyptian civilization, but recent cutting-edge research has uncovered information about how and why they were built. In Mountains of the Pharaohs, Zahi Hawass, a world-renowned archaeologist and the official guardian of Egypt’s timeless treasures, weaves the latest archaeological data and an enthralling family history into spellbinding narrative.

Nearly five thousand years ago, the 4th Dynasty of Egypt’s Old Kingdom reigned over a highly advanced civilization. Believed to be gods, the royal family lived amid colossal palaces and temples built to honor them and their deified ancestors. Hawass brings these extraordinary historical figures to life, spinning a soap opera–like saga complete with murder, incest, and the triumphant ascension to the throne of one of only four queens ever to rule Egypt.

The Art of Ancient Egypt: Revised Edition

By Gay Robins

From the awesome grandeur of the Great Pyramids to the delicacy of a face etched on an amulet, the spellbinding power of ancient Egyptian art persists to this day. Spanning three thousand years, this beautifully illustrated history offers a thorough and delightfully readable introduction to the artwork even as it provides insight into questions that have long engaged experts and amateurs alike. In its scope, its detail, and its eloquent reproduction of over 250 objects, Gay Robins's classic book is without parallel as a guide to the art of ancient Egypt. And her eagerly awaited new edition includes many new color photographs and a fully revised and updated bibliography.

The Complete Pyramids: Solving the Ancient Mysteries

By Mark Lehner

For centuries the pyramids have inspired passionate theories about their origins, purpose and method of construction. In this fully work on the major pyramids of Ancient Egypt, the author surveys the history, building and use of the pyramids. He examines both the practicalities and logostics of their construction and their conceptual aspects - their cosmology and iconography and their intriguing texts.

The Complete Temples of Ancient Egypt

By Richard H. Wilkinson

The temples of ancient Egypt include the largest and perhaps most impressive religious monuments the world has ever known. Mansions of the gods, models of Egypt and of the universe, focal points of worship, great treasure houses and islands of order in a cosmic sea of chaos—the temples were all these things and more.

Death on the Nile

By Agatha Christie

Agatha Christie's most daring travel mystery.

The tranquility of a lovely cruise along the Nile is shattered by the discovery that Linnet Ridgeway has been shot through the head. She was young, stylish and beautiful, a girl who had everything – until she lost her life.

Who's also on board? Christie's great detective Hercule Poirot. He recalls an earlier outburst by a fellow passenger: ‘I’d like to put my dear little pistol against her head and just press the trigger.’ Despite the exotic setting, nothing is ever quite what it seems…

Librarian's note: this Hercule Poirot novel should not be confused with the short story of the same name. Also by Christie. But it starred Parker Pyne. It came out several years earlier. The title and locale are the same, but the contents are quite different. It is not a precursor of this story.

The Exodus Decoded

Simcha Jacobovici

The biblical exodus is explored in this documentary that shares archaeological evidence, explanations for the plagues that disrupted Egypt and thoughts on the time frame when the exodus may have taken place. Filmed in multiple locations including Egypt, Greece and Israel.

Egypt Unwrapped

David Lee, Ian A. Hunt and others

A stunning National Geographic production that explores Egypt’s greatest mysteries, including the construction of the pyramids, the legacy of Ramses II and the story behind the Screaming Man’s haunting expression. Originally titled Secrets of Egypt.

Egypt 3D

Benjamin Eicher and Timo Joh. Mayer

Look at Egypt like never before in this 3-D documentary that explores gods, hieroglyphs, mummification, pharaohs, pyramids and the Great Sphinx.

Of Time, Tombs and Treasures

James R. Messenger

This Academy Award–nominated documentary follows archaeologist Howard Carter to a hidden tomb in the Valley of the Kings and reenacts the discovery of King Tutankhamen’s tomb.

Mysteries of Egypt

Bruce Neibaur

A gorgeous visual survey of the history, ancient sites and natural wonders of Egypt as narrated by Egyptian actor Omar Sharif. Filmed in multiple locations including Cairo and Luxor.

Mystery of the Nile

Jordi Llompart

The epic 3,260-mile descent down the world’s greatest river has eluded humankind for centuries—until now. In this documentary, a team of explorers sets off to become the first to navigate the Blue Nile from source to sea. Filmed in multiple locations including Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan.

Whatever Lola Wants

Nabil Ayouch

After Lola is encouraged to belly dance at a local restaurant, she decides that she wants to become a professional dancer and travels to Egypt to seek lessons from retired dancing star Ismahan. Lola also meets famous impresario Nasser Radi, who helps her perform at the prestigious Nile Tower. When she learns that Ismahan and Nasser were once lovers who were forced apart, she takes it upon herself to reunite the two. Filmed in multiple locations including Cairo and New York City.

Egypt: Beyond the Pyramids

Karin Muller

In this documentary, Karin Muller fasts with local Muslims during the month of Ramadan and takes viewers on a journey through the streets of Cairo and into the community, including libraries and theater groups. Filmed in Egypt.

Cairo Time

Ruba Nadda

This romantic drama is about an unexpected love affair that catches a married woman and her husband’s colleague completely off-guard while exploring ancient Egypt by land and by sea. Filmed in Cairo and Giza.

Death on the Nile

John Guillermin

Belgian sleuth Hercule Poirot (Peter Ustinov) must unravel the mystery of heiress Linnet Ridgeway’s death on board the SS Karnak as it cruises the Nile. This all-star cast includes Jane Birkin, Bette Davis, Mia Farrow, Olivia Hussey, George Kennedy, David Niven and more. Filmed in multiple locations including Abu Simbel, Aswan, Cairo and Luxor.