NEW! Grand Nile Journey I

After breakfast, check out of your hotel. Souks (marketplaces) are central to Egypt’s social, cultural and economic traditions. A microcosm of the city, they provide a glimpse into local life, history, art, crafts and food. And in Cairo, they are in abundance, with one of its most notable lying in the historic heart of the city. Originally established as a caravansary in 1382, Khan el-Khalili is not only the largest souk in Cairo, but also the oldest in the Middle East. Its vast labyrinth of passageways is lined with bustling stalls and shops offering a wide range of goods. Embark your ship and settle into your stateroom.

For millennia, life has flourished along the fertile banks of the Nile. Towering palms and low-lying shrubs line the riverfront, creating a green corridor amid the arid sands of the desert that reach west to the Sahara and east to the Red Sea. Myriad birds, including Egyptian geese, Pied Kingfishers and various egrets and herons, flock to this oasis. Farmers dressed in long, flowing jellabiyas tend to their fields of sugar cane and dates while women balancing baskets atop their heads walk through riverfront villages, their children in tow.