How Much Does a Nile Cruise Cost from the US?

Key Takeaways

• A complete Egypt trip with a Nile sailing starts at $4,995 per person on our Unforgettable Egypt itinerary. Across every cruise line we sell, fares run from $3,308 to $13,512.
• You will spend fewer nights on the river than the trip length suggests. Our own itineraries put 5 to 8 nights aboard, with the rest in Cairo and Luxor hotels.
• The boat, the nights aboard, the cabin category, and whether international airfare is bundled move the price more than the travel month does.
• Every fare below is live inventory, checked August 28, 2026, and linked to the page where it is on sale.

A complete Egypt trip with a Nile cruise costs $4,995 per person on our flagship itinerary, and anywhere from $3,308 to $13,512 across the cruise lines we sell. The $4,995 fare belongs to Unforgettable Egypt and Nile River Cruise, our own itinerary. It pairs Cairo and Luxor touring with a sailing on a dahabiya, Egypt's traditional wooden sailing boat. Sailings aboard the Azhar run 13 days with 5 nights on the river. Choose the newer Laila and the trip stretches to 14 days with 7 nights aboard.

Beyond our own itineraries, the range covers the whole market. At the entry point, Avalon Waterways sells its Taste of Egypt from $3,308 per person. At the top, Passage Through Egypt Aboard Oberoi Philae with National Geographic/Lindblad Expeditions reaches $13,512.

Where a trip lands in that range comes down to the boat, the nights you spend aboard, the cabin you choose, and whether international airfare is part of the fare. Every price here is live booking inventory as of August 28, 2026, each linked to its itinerary page.

Nile Cruise Prices at a Glance

This table lists every core Egypt river itinerary currently bookable through us, with the lowest fare in our inventory. Fares are per person at double occupancy, for the least expensive cabin and departure. Trip length counts the full itinerary, including Cairo hotel nights, not only the days on the river.

Fares move with availability, so treat each number as that itinerary's current floor rather than a quote. Every itinerary in the table is linked from the sections below, and the live pages always show the departures and cabin prices on sale today.

How Our Own Egypt Itineraries Compare on Nights and Airfare

Our three Egypt departures are the ones where we can show you exactly what sits inside the fare, because we build them. The table below answers the two questions most travelers ask before they call. How many nights do you sleep on the river, and are your flights from the US already paid for?

Two patterns stand out. On both Unforgettable Egypt and Incredible Egypt, international airfare comes bundled only on promotional departure dates, so the itinerary page's current offers decide whether you price flights separately. The eclipse departure carries the most river nights of anything we sell, and its fare includes airfare.

What Does the $4,995 Unforgettable Egypt Fare Buy?

The Unforgettable Egypt is our own itinerary and the trip behind this guide's headline number. Azhar sailings run 13 days and 12 nights, counted from the day you leave the US. You spend three nights in Cairo and Giza before flying south to Aswan on day five. From Aswan the dahabiya sails downriver toward Luxor, calling at Kom Ombo on day seven and Edfu on day nine, with the rock-cut shrines of Gebel el-Silsila between them. Luxor's West Bank and the Valley of the Kings fill day eleven, and a final night in Cairo closes the trip on day thirteen.

Your choice of boat sets the trip length. Azhar, launched in 2025, carries no more than 16 guests in 8 suites, and her sailings spend 5 nights on the river. Laila, built in 2026, is larger at 20 guests across 10 cabins with a crew of 20, and her 14-day sailings put 7 nights on the water. Each departure on the itinerary page shows its own cabin prices, so check the date you want for the exact fare.

On both ships the fare covers five-star hotels in Cairo and Luxor, all meals aboard, and the internal flights between Cairo, Aswan, and Luxor. It also includes entrance fees at every listed site, bottled water on tours, and private guided sightseeing with a certified Egyptologist. Azhar sailings include 27 meals across the trip, while Laila sailings include every meal, all gratuities, and two glasses of local beer or wine with lunch and dinner. On Azhar, tips for the boat crew and the Egyptologist are left to you.

International airfare to Cairo sits outside the base fare, though select departure dates include it, so check the current offers on the itinerary page before pricing flights separately. Egypt visa fees and travel insurance are also yours to arrange. Optional extras are priced on the page. A sunrise hot air balloon flight over Luxor starts at $125, and the Abu Simbel excursion, with round-trip flights from Aswan, starts at $425.

There are 34 departures bookable today, from September 15, 2026 into December 2028, concentrated in Egypt's September to May travel season. A five-night Jordan extension covering Amman, Jerash, Petra, and the Dead Sea is priced from $2,995 per person. The 16-guest Azhar can also be taken as a whole-boat charter for a family or a friends group, quoted on request.

Incredible Egypt: The All-Inclusive Luxury Option

For travelers who want the fare to cover nearly everything once they land, our Incredible Egypt & 7-Night Luxury Nile River Cruise starts at $5,995 per person. That fare covers every one of the trip's 35 meals, all gratuities, and beer or wine with lunch and dinner. It also includes the Abu Simbel excursion that Unforgettable Egypt prices as an option, and on select promotional dates it includes round-trip international airfare from the US as well. One private Egyptologist stays with you for the entire journey, and private transfers meet you at every airport. Hotel nights are at the Four Seasons Hotel Cairo at Nile Plaza and The St. Regis Cairo.

At 14 days and 13 nights, the trip puts 7 nights on the Nile aboard the Nebu Ra, a three-deck luxury dahabiya launched in 2026. She carries 16 guests in 8 accommodations, 6 Deluxe Cabins and 2 Signature Suites, with a crew of 16. Sailings begin June 5, 2027, with 17 departures open through December 2028.

Cairo opens the route with Saqqara, Dahshur, and the Pyramids of Giza on day three, then the Egyptian Museum and the Citadel on day four. On day five you fly to Luxor and board. The Nebu Ra first sails north to Dendera and the Temple of Hathor, a call most Nile boats skip. She then turns south past the Theban west bank, Esna, Edfu, and Gebel el-Silsila to a private island mooring at Balooli. Abu Simbel follows near Aswan, and the Cairo finale brings the Grand Egyptian Museum and the complete Tutankhamun collection before you fly home.

Price the two trips with airfare in mind. Both include international flights only on select promotional dates, so check the current offers on each itinerary page before you compare the $4,995 and $5,995 fares. When one of them is running an airfare promotion, the real gap between the two moves by the cost of a round-trip ticket. A five-night Jordan extension is available on this itinerary too, from $3,995 per person.

How Much Do Other Nile Cruises Cost?

Most river cruise lines we sell run Egypt programs in the same shape. Cairo hotels sit on either side of a sailing aboard a river ship carrying 80 or more guests. AmaWaterways prices its 12-day Secrets of Egypt & the Nile from $5,839 per person. Splendors of Egypt & the Nile from UNIWORLD Boutique River Cruises runs 12 days from $6,299 aboard the S.S. Sphinx or River Tosca. Avalon Waterways' Taste of Egypt remains the least expensive Egypt itinerary we sell, 10 days from $3,308 aboard the Avalon MS Farah.

At the upper end, the boats themselves set the price. Scenic River Cruises sails the Scenic Sanctuary Sun Boat III on Treasures of Egypt, 13 days from $9,490 per person. Abercrombie and Kent pairs its Egypt and the Nile program with the Sun Boat IV, 10 days from $11,056. Tauck and National Geographic/Lindblad both sail river boats run by the Oberoi hotel group. Tauck's Egypt: Jewels of the Nile runs 11 days from $11,490 with 4 nights aboard, and Lindblad's Passage Through Egypt Aboard Oberoi Philae runs 12 days from $13,512.

The total solar eclipse of August 2, 2027 has produced two special departures. Viking River Cruises sails Total Eclipse on the Nile, 12 days aboard the Viking Sekhmet from $10,999 per person. Our own Solar Eclipse of the Ages over Ancient Egypt puts you aboard Laila for 14 days with 8 nights on the river, from $14,995 per person. Round-trip international airfare is included.

You can browse every bookable itinerary on our Nile river page. To see which hull sits under which brochure name, our complete guide to Nile river boats and dahabiyas maps the entire fleet, and What Is a Dahabiya? explains the boat type behind our own itineraries.

What Moves a Nile Cruise Price Up or Down?

The Boat Sets the Baseline

No single variable matters more than the vessel. Most Egypt itineraries visit the same temples, so the fare tracks the boat more than the route. A 16-guest dahabiya under sail, an 80-guest river ship, and a hotel-run boat with a high crew ratio are three different products on the same water. The spread between $3,308 and $13,512 mostly reflects that choice.

Nights Aboard Versus Nights Ashore

Every Egypt itinerary splits its time between the river and the cities. Our own departures put between 5 and 8 nights aboard out of 12 or 13 in total. The pattern holds across the market, where Tauck's 11-day program spends 4 nights on its river boat. The rest of the time goes to Cairo and Luxor, which hold the Pyramids, the Grand Egyptian Museum, and the Valley of the Kings. When you compare fares, count the nights spent on the water rather than the trip length in the name.

Cabin Category and Departure Date

Every fare in this guide is the lowest cabin on the least expensive departure, so a suite or a peak-week date raises the number. Holiday sailings show the effect clearly. AmaWaterways prices its Christmas Day and New Year's versions of Secrets of Egypt & the Nile from $8,268 and $7,569, against $5,839 for the standard dates.

Airfare and What Sits Outside the Fare

Read the inclusions before you compare bottom lines. Both of our Egypt itineraries include Egypt's internal flights on every date and add round-trip international airfare only on select promotional dates, while the eclipse departure lists airfare in its fare. Wherever airfare sits outside the fare, budget it separately, along with travel insurance and any gratuities that are not included. US citizens also need an Egypt entry visa, which you apply for through the official Egypt e-Visa portal.

Extensions and Optional Excursions

Extensions are where a $4,995 trip quietly becomes a $7,990 one. The five-night Jordan extension runs from $2,995 on Unforgettable Egypt and from $3,995 on Incredible Egypt. It adds Petra and the Dead Sea to a trip that already covers the Pyramids and the Valley of the Kings. Smaller add-ons matter less but still count. On Unforgettable Egypt, the hot air balloon over Luxor starts at $125 and the Abu Simbel excursion at $425. Incredible Egypt already includes Abu Simbel and offers the balloon as the same option.

Why Book Your Nile Cruise with Us?

We are a small specialist agency, and Egypt is a destination we sell in depth. Our inventory runs from our own dahabiya itineraries to the river fleets of AmaWaterways, Uniworld, Scenic, Tauck, Abercrombie and Kent, Viking, and National Geographic/Lindblad. You pay the published fare, and you get an advisor who can price two departures side by side and tell you which cabin is worth the difference.

Members of the Small Ship Travel Loyalty Program earn 2 to 5 percent back on every booking as credit toward the next one. New members receive a $250 sign-up credit. Credits accumulate across every cruise line we book, so a river ship this year and a dahabiya next year both count.

If a fare in this guide has moved by the time you read it, call 1-888-318-3110 and we will confirm what is live.