A Traventira driver meets you at Cairo International Airport with a name sign and takes you straight to your hotel to check in and rest after your flight.

After resting at your hotel, head out in the afternoon to explore the Grand Egyptian Museum, home to the full Tutankhamun collection, the colossal Ramesses II statue, the Grand Staircase and the Khufu solar boats. You will be back at your hotel by early evening to rest before Day 2.

A full day with your Egyptologist guide. Start on the Giza Plateau with the Great Pyramid of Khufu, the pyramids of Khafre and Menkaure, the panoramic viewpoint and the Great Sphinx, with free time for photos. From there continue south to Saqqara, home of the Step Pyramid of Djoser, the world’s oldest monumental stone structure, then on to Memphis, the ancient capital of Egypt, where the alabaster sphinx and the fallen colossus of Ramesses II sit in an open-air museum. You are back at your hotel in the late afternoon.

A full day exploring Islamic and Coptic Cairo. Visit the Citadel of Saladin with its panoramic views and the Mosque of Muhammad Ali, then head down to the Coptic Quarter to see its ancient churches. Continue to Al-Muizz Street and finish at Khan El Khalili bazaar for shopping and local flavor. An early night is a good idea: tomorrow's drive to Siwa starts early.

An early start from your Cairo hotel in a private air-conditioned vehicle, heading west along the Mediterranean coast with a stop at El Alamein and a lunch break near Marsa Matrouh before turning south into the Western Desert. It is a long road, about 750 km and 9 to 10 hours with stops, and the reward is arriving in one of Egypt's most remote and beautiful oases in time for sunset. Check in at your lodge and enjoy a quiet first evening in Siwa.

A full day inside the oasis with your local guide. Start at the mud-brick Shali Fortress in the heart of the old town, then visit the Mountain of the Dead with its painted tombs and the Temple of the Oracle of Amun, which Alexander the Great came to consult. Cool off at Cleopatra's Spring, float in the turquoise salt lakes, and end the day watching the sunset over the lake at Fatnas Island with a glass of Siwan tea.

A slow morning at your lodge, with free time for the old-town market, dates and olive oil, or a traditional Siwan sand bath. In the afternoon a 4x4 takes you into the Great Sand Sea: dune driving, sandboarding, a swim in the cold lake of Bir Wahed and a soak in its hot spring. Watch the last sunset of the year from the top of a dune, then welcome the New Year with a Bedouin dinner around the fire, under one of the clearest night skies in Egypt.

After breakfast and check-out you leave Siwa in your private vehicle and drive back to Cairo, about 9 to 10 hours with stops along the way. You reach Cairo in the evening. This day suits departure flights after 11:00 PM. If your flight is earlier, we add one extra night in Cairo and take you to the airport the next morning.

On arrival in Cairo, your private vehicle takes you straight to Cairo International Airport in time for your flight.