Itinerary
Day 1: Arrival in Casablanca (D)
You will be greeted upon your arrival at Mohammad V airport in Casablanca and will be escorted to your hotel. Our tour guide will deliver your vouchers and will provide brief review of your tour. Overnight: Casablanca
Day 2: Casablanca - Rabat - Meknes - Fes (B, D)
This morning, tour the impressive Hassan II Mosque, a stunning, high-tech, architectural masterpiece. Then we are off to Rabat, the capital of Morocco, to visit the Mausoleum of Mohammed V and explore the Oudaya Kasbah. Continue to the imperial city of Meknes (UNESCO). Lush rolling hills studded with ancient olive groves await you in this cultural city where you will see Bab El Mansour and Bab El Khamis. Arrive in Fes in time for dinner prepared by local women, known as “dadas.” Taste traditional Moroccan delights passed down from generation to generation.
Day 3: Fes (B, D)
Discover Fes, one of the holiest cities in the world. Learn of its historical importance as a center of government, philosophy, medicine and religion during a fascinating panoramic tour, including the Medersa Bou Inania, built in 1325. See the Jewish Quarter, the city ramparts and the gates of the palace. Set out on walking tour in the Medina. Founded in the 9th century, it is home to one of the world’s oldest universities. Amid the cobbled alleyways of this ancient market you’ll see donkeys and mules laden with goods walking alongside buyers. Spend time at the famous leather tanneries, a honeycomb of vats exploding in brilliant colors.
Day 4: Fes - Ifrane - Erfoud (B, D)
Continue towards Erfoud. Along the way we pause in Ifrane for excellent views of the Middle Atlas Mountains and the surrounding villages. Overnight in a kasbah.
Day 5: Erfoud - Rissani - Sahara Desert Expedition - Merzouga
Your day begins at Erfoud’s fossil factory and museum where they turn fossil rocks into decorative items. Next, travel to the Saharaoui town of Rissani. Enjoy a true taste of the region as you learn how madfouna (homemade stuffed bread with potato, meat, onion and Moroccan spices) is made. Jump into a 4x4 vehicle and stop in one of the nomadic villages of the Sahara before arriving at the edge of the dunes. Board your camel for a ride to a desert camp. Cross the stunning fine sands of Merzouga while the red sun slips toward the horizon. As night falls, listen to intoxicating Berber drums during the traditional pouring of mint tea followed by a delightful Moroccan feast. Sleep in a fully equipped Berber-style tent and experience an unrivaled sense of tranquility in the serene desert.
Day 6: Merzouga - Todra Gorge - Boumalne du Dades (B, D)
Enjoy amazing views of the sunrise as you return to the edge of the dunes via camel. Then, begin the journey to Todra Gorge.* Spend time in the Jewish quarter where you may sample some local favorites at a bakery. Arrive in vibrant Boumalne du Dades. Along its river valleys, palmeries and burnished mud-brick homes light up in the desert sun.
Day 7: Boumalne du Dades - Ksar Ait-Ben-Haddou - Marrakech (B, D)
Follow the rugged “Road of a Thousand Kasbahs.” These fortress-like structures rise up like turreted sandcastles along the ancient trading route. Drive through the Valley of Roses, stopping en route at a local cooperative. Then, it’s on to the UNESCO World Heritage site of the Ksar Ait-Ben-Haddou, an impressive feat of Moroccan architecture. Continue along the High Atlas Mountains following the Tizi n’ Tichka Pass. This scenic route brings you through lush oasis valleys, imposing mountains and several Berber villages before you reach the exotic city of Marrakech.
Day 8: Marrakech (B, D)
Explore Marrakech and its ancient El Bahia Palace where today you’ll find a sentry of nesting storks standing guard. Enter the royal Saadian Tombs, explore the vibrant and historic Jewish Mellah, and see the majestic 12th-century Koutoubia Mosque. Tour the ancient city wall, passing by the Royal Palace. Savor lunch and tea in the home of a local family and get a true taste of Moroccan hospitality. Then, enter the 9th-century walled Medina and enjoy time to mingle with locals and artisans as you shop at the ancient market. This evening enjoy time on your own to explore the city. Or, perhaps you’ll choose to join an optional excursion and dinner at Jemaa el Fna, Marrakech’s main square.
Day 9: Marrakech, Flight to Cairo, Overnight Cairo (B)
A morning transfer brings you back to Casablanca to connect to your flight to Cairo
Welcome to Cairo, both Egypt’s capital and its largest city! Upon arrival at Cairo International Airport, you will be met and assisted through customs and formalities, then transferred to your hotel. After some time at leisure, Cairo Marriott Hotel
Day 10: Pyramids tour (B, L)
A private Egyptologist guide will meet your at your hotel after breakfast, then drive to the Giza Pyramids and Sphinx, a must for any first-time traveler to Egypt (your guide can arrange for you to climb inside a pyramid at an additional charge). Complimentary Camel Ride for 30 minutes, Complimentary lunch at 139 restaurant at Mena House Hotel, head to Saqqara to see the Step Pyramid of King Djoser, believed to be the oldest of Egypt's many pyramids. Overnight in Cairo
Day 11: Cairo city tour (B, L)
After breakfast at your hotel, visit the iconic Egyptian Antiquities Museum, with its trove of treasures, many salvaged from the sites you've just visited (tickets to the Royal Mummy Room are available as an optional extra). After lunch at a local restaurant, it's time to discover UNESCO-listed Old Cairo, visiting the Citadel of Saladin and the historic Christian and Islamic monuments of the Old City. No visit to Cairo would be complete without trying your haggling skills in the Khan el-Khalili bazaar , complimentary lunch at Nagib Mahfouz restaurant , and strolling along Mu'Izz li-Din Allah street. Overnight Cairo
Day 12: Flight Cairo/Luxor - Nile Cruise Ship (B, L, D)
Fly to Luxor, meet your expert Egyptologist. and start a visit to the Temples of Luxor and Karnak, Proceed to your Nile cruise (Sonesta St. George or Movenpick Royal Lily or Farah or MyFair or Movenpick Royal Louts) lunch. Join an excursion to the Luxor Library and Heritage Center, Dinner on board.
Day 13: Nile Cruise Ship (B, L, D)
Join an optional early-morning hot air balloon ride over Luxor’s temples and monuments. Later, head to the Nile’s west bank to visit the Valley of the Kings, and the Valley of the Queens, Access to the tomb of Queen Nefertari, an exquisitely preserved tomb only a few visitors get to see. Among the sites is the Mortuary Temple of Queen Hatshepsut, Lunch, Dinner on board
Day 14: Nile Cruise Ship (B, L, D)
Visit the Temple of Horus, falcon-headed god of the sky. Built in 230 BC by Ptolemy III and once buried in sand and debris. Later, disembark at Kom Ombo (hill of gold) to visit the Greco-Roman temple dedicated to Haroeris (the sun god) and Sobek (the crocodile god). Return to your ship
Day 15: Nile Cruise Ship (B, L,D)
Ride a motorized boat to Philae Temple. This sacred complex was dedicated to the Goddess Isis and reflects a fusion of three great civilizations — Egyptian, Greek and Roman. Proceed to the Unfinished Obelisk.Ride like a Local around the Aswan islands in a felucca, weather permitting. Dinner
Day 16: Optional Abu Simbel tour - Fly to Cairo (B)
Breakfast, disembarking - optional tour to Abu Simbel by flight to discover the commanding twin temples of Ramses II and his wife, Queen Nefertari. Head for the airport, flight back to Cairo. Check into hotel and overnight.
Day 17: Islamic Cairo Tour (B)
Explore the Mosque and Madrasa of Sultan Hassan, built in AD 1356 and among the finest examples of early Mamluk architecture. Next, walk from the twin-towered Bab el-Foutouh, a fortified gate in Cairo’s Old City walls, to Khan el-Khalili Bazaar, one of the city’s major souks (open-air marketplaces). Browse the tightly packed stalls displaying everything from spices and leather goods to jewelry and vegetables, all on a street that has hardly changed for centuries. Then a visit to Coptic Cairo, back to the hotel
Day 18: Flight from Cairo to Amman – Overnight Amman [B]
After breakfast, check out for transfer to Cairo airport for flight to Amman. Upon arrival at Amman, transfer to your hotel, check in then overnight at your hotel (B)
Day 19: Amman – Petra [B]
After breakfast, check out Depart early for the first stop, Mt Nebo. Learn the ancient history of this spot and check out the views. Continue on to Madaba to see the famous Byzantine mosaics, dating back to the sixth century. After, visit Karak Castle, built during the Crusades. Arrive in the early evening to Wadi Musa, the town just outside Petra. Overnight Petra
Day 20: Rose City of Petra [B]
Morning walk through the mysterious mile-long Siq, to explore the Khazneh (the temple of Indiana Jones fame), Theatre, Colonnaded Street and Museum. After lunch, climb to ad-Deir (the Monastery) and this evening, why not try your hand at Jordanian cooking, on our Petra Kitchen Add-on?
Day 21: Wadi Rum [B, D]
Petra - Wadi Rum. There is a chance to revisit Petra this morning before our afternoon drive to Wadi Rum to board our 4x4 jeeps and we take an exhilarating desert safari. Tonight, we enjoy a Jordanian dinner at our desert camp.
Day 22: Crusader Castles, Wadi Mujib Canyoning & Dead Sea [B]
Wadi Rum - Shobak – Wadi Mujib - Dead Sea. After breakfast at the campsite, we head north along the Desert Highway. Visit Shobak Crusader Castle en route to the Dead Sea, to bob in the mineral rich waters. Later trek the Siq Trail of Wadi Mujib before returning to our resort by the Dead Sea.
Day 23: Dead Sea [B]
A free day to bob about in the buoyant mineral rich waters of the Dead Sea.
Day 24: Jerusalem [B]
Dead Sea – Jerusalem. This morning you’ll be transferred to the Jordanian border, where after immigration formalities you will transferred onto your hotel in Jerusalem.
Day 25: Bethlehem (West Bank) [B]
This morning we tour Jerusalem, visiting the holy Mount of Olives and the old city. Continue to the Christian quarter and the famous Wailing Wall. Retracing the final laboured steps of Jesus to the hallowed Church of the Sepulchre; the site of the crucifixion. Onto Bethlehem in the West Bank; where we visit Manger Square and the Church of Nativity.
Day 26: Nazareth & Miracle Sites [B]
This morning we head out for another full day of sightseeing around the Holy Land including Nazareth – the home of Joseph and Mary, Cana – where Jesus turned water into wine. We will also visit the significant Christian sites of Capernaum, historic Tiberias and Tabgha.
Day 27: Jerusalem [B]
Our tour comes to an end after breakfast today. Included departure transfer to Ben Gurion International Airport.