Pharaohs & Pyramids

Upon arrival at the airport, you will be met by a Viking Representative who will accompany you to your hotel. After check-in, relax and spend the rest of your day exploring the city on your own. Your Viking Tour Director is available to help you plan your time in Istanbul so you can make the most of your visit.

Embark on a guided tour featuring many of Istanbul’s historic landmarks. See the remains of the legendary Hippodrome of Constantinople, an ancient sports complex that was the center of Byzantine life for centuries. Visit the “Blue Mosque,” renowned for the azure İznik tiles that adorn its inspired interior, and the iconic 6th-century Hagia Sophia, a former cathedral and mosque known as the embodiment of Byzantine architecture. Afterward, enjoy the afternoon and evening at your leisure. (B)

Spend your morning on a guided tour of the 15th-century Topkapi Palace, the former imperial residence of Ottoman sultans and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Stroll through the royal harem and treasury, and admire the many artifacts that showcase the rich culture of the Ottomans. This afternoon, you may join an optional tour to the Spice Bazaar to browse the many stalls selling exotic spices. Then, take a scenic cruise along the Bosphorus Strait that separates Europe and Asia. Enjoy the evening at your leisure. (B)

After breakfast, check out of your hotel and transfer to the airport for your flight to Cairo. (B)

Arrive at the airport, then transfer to your hotel, stopping at Mt. Scopus to enjoy panoramic views of Jerusalem’s Old City. Your Viking Host is available to help you plan your time in Jerusalem so you can make the most of your visit.

Begin on the Mount of Olives and drive down to Gethsemane to see its garden and church. Proceed through the Kidron Valley and see the Western Wall, then visit the Jerusalem Archaeological Park, home to ancient discoveries from the Second Temple period. Take a scenic drive past the Church of St. Peter in Gallicantu and Rachel’s Tomb on your way to picturesque Bethlehem. After lunch, tour a local olive wood factory and visit the Church of the Nativity before returning to Jerusalem for dinner. (B, L, D)

Explore the Tower of David, a citadel on the city wall offering panoramic views. In the Muslim Quarter, see the Pools of Bethesda and follow the Via Dolorosa up to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. In the Christian Quarter, enjoy a traditional Israeli lunch, then walk through the Old City Bazaar. Tour the Jewish Quarter, see the ancient Cardo and Mt. Zion, and step inside the building that houses King David’s Tomb and the Cenacle, where the Last Supper and Pentecost took place. (B, L)

Begin your tour with a stop at the Hadassah Hospital and visit the chapel to see a set of stained glass windows by Marc Chagall depicting the 12 tribes of Israel. Continue to the Israel Museum, where the Dead Sea Scrolls are displayed in the incomparable Shrine of the Book. See the scrolls and spend an hour exploring on your own. After lunch, enjoy free time in the Old City or explore Yad Vashem, Jerusalem’s official museum of Holocaust remembrance. (B, L)

After breakfast, check out of your hotel and transfer to the airport for your flight to Cairo to begin your cruisetour. (B)

Arrive at the airport, where you will be met by a Viking Representative who will accompany you to your hotel. After check-in, take time to relax or join a guided orientation walk this afternoon to better acquaint yourself with Cairo. This evening, meet your fellow travelers and enjoy a welcome drink before dining at your leisure.

After breakfast, set out on foot through the winding alleys of Cairo's Coptic Quarter. View the world’s largest collection of Christian artifacts at the Coptic Museum and visit the Hanging Church, one of the city's oldest religious sanctuaries. This afternoon, you may choose to relax, explore on your own or join an optional excursion. Your Viking Host is available to help you plan your time in Cairo so you can make the most of your visit. This evening, have dinner at your leisure. (B)

Following breakfast, enjoy the day exploring Cairo at your leisure. Or you may choose to participate in a guided Viking optional excursion. Later today, mingle with your fellow guests as you begin your cruisetour. (B)

Arrive in London and transfer to your hotel. This evening, you join your fellow travelers for an aperitif and an introduction to the upcoming days’ events by your Viking Tour Director, an expert Egyptologist.

Enjoy a private viewing of the British Museum’s Egyptian collection before it opens to the public. After your visit, discuss the morning’s discoveries over a casual pub lunch. This afternoon, visit the Petrie Museum, which houses more than 80,000 artifacts from ancient Egypt and Sudan. This evening, head to the home of world-renowned architect Sir John Soane. Your Privileged Access visit will be illuminated by candlelight, showcasing his exquisite collection of Egyptian antiquities. (B, L)

This morning, embark on a scenic drive through the countryside to Oxford. Upon arrival, take a stroll to the Ashmolean Museum, one of the oldest in the world and home to a varied collection of Egyptian mummies and art. Behind the scenes at the University of Oxford’s Griffith Institute, you will enjoy a Privileged Access visit to Howard Carter’s archives, which detail the discovery of King Tutankhamen’s tomb. (B)

After breakfast, set off to Highclere Castle for a Privileged Access visit, known to the world as “Downton Abbey.” Enjoy an exciting opportunity to view the magnificent private collection of the 5th Earl of Carnarvon. After lunch, join a guided walking tour of Oxford—a charming university town famed for its historic colleges. This evening, enjoy dinner at your leisure. (B, L)

After a leisurely breakfast, check out of your hotel and transfer to the airport for your flight to Cairo to begin your cruisetour. (B)

Transfer to the airport for your flight to Amman. Upon arrival, drive through rolling hills and spectacular scenery before a guided tour of the Dead Sea Museum to learn about the area’s geological and cultural history. Transfer to your hotel along the shores of the Dead Sea and spend the remainder of the day relaxing; perhaps take a dip in the Dead Sea and experience the floating sensation for which it is renowned. Its mineral-rich waters have been enjoyed for centuries. (D)

After breakfast, check out of your hotel, then head to Mt. Nebo—where tradition tells us Moses was buried—before continuing to the ancient town of Madaba, known as the “City of Mosaics,” for a guided tour. See the Madaba Map in the Byzantine church of St. George, the oldest cartographic depiction of the Holy Land. After a tasty local lunch, journey to Petra, pausing to see Shobak Castle, built by the Crusader King Baldwin I in 1115. Arrive in Petra and check into your hotel. (B, L, D)

This morning, enjoy a half-day tour of Petra, carved by the Nabataeans into the rose-red Sharah Mountains. Walk through the Siq, a narrow fissure between cliffs, to visit Al Khazneh (the Treasury), the Roman amphitheater cut into the hillside, the monastery and other monuments. Before dinner, enjoy free time to explore more of Petra on your own. This evening, you may join an optional tour to experience the hospitality of a local family and a traditional Jordanian meal at their residence. (B)

After breakfast, check out of your hotel and travel to Jerash, an ethnically diverse city and one of the best-preserved Greco-Roman cities in the world. Enjoy a guided visit of the “Pompei of the Middle East,” then continue to Amman and check into your hotel. After a brief orientation tour, spend the remainder of the afternoon at your leisure to explore Jordan’s capital city on your own. Enjoy the city’s liberal culture, thriving art scene, and beautiful churches and mosques. (B, L)

This morning, check out of your hotel before proceeding to the airport for your flight home. (B)

Check out of your hotel in Cairo and transfer to your hotel in Alexandria. After check-in, you may choose to spend the afternoon at your leisure or join an optional tour to the modern Alexandria Library, designed to commemorate the Great Library of Alexandria, once the largest and one of the most significant of the ancient world. A Viking Host is available to help you plan your time in Alexandria, so you can make the most of your visit.

Today, visit the incredible catacombs of Kom el Shoqafa, considered to be one of the Seven Wonders of the Medieval Ages from the 2nd century AD. Marvel at its necropolis and carvings as you learn about its discovery during the early-20th century. Continue to the Roman Theater, the only one of its kind in Egypt. After lunch, visit the Citadel of Qaitbay, see inside the Abu Al Abbas Mosque, the largest in Alexandria, and view the Coptic Orthodox Church, before returning to your hotel. (B, L)

Check out of your hotel and transfer to the airport in Alexandria for your flight home. (B)