Lake Nasser cruise: Aswan to Abu Simbel by ship

A Lake Nasser cruise sails the reservoir behind the Aswan High Dam, between Aswan and Abu Simbel. It is a different stretch of water with a different fleet from the classic Luxor–Aswan trip: the lake ships cannot pass the dam, and the Nile ships cannot get onto the lake. So when a brochure says "Nile cruise from Luxor to Abu Simbel", it means either two cruises back to back or a Luxor–Aswan cruise with a road excursion to the temples.

The real lake cruise is slow and quiet. You land at three temple sites that most visitors to Egypt never see and arrive at Abu Simbel by water, with a night moored nearby for the sound and light show. Two big ships keep a fixed weekly rhythm, a third doesn't publish its weekdays, and none of them is sold on GetYourGuide, Headout or Tiqets.

Lake Nasser cruise itinerary: Aswan to Abu Simbel in 4 nights

The two best-documented ships, Steigenberger Omar El Khayam and Mövenpick Prince Abbas, both leave Aswan on Monday and reach Abu Simbel on Thursday, with check-out on Friday morning. Mövenpick publishes its programme hour by hour, and it is a fair picture of the trip on either ship:

This is the direction we would choose. The pace is gentle, the biggest moment comes last, and you see the temple front from the water before you walk up to it. The weak spot is the timing of the Abu Simbel visit: 12:30 is the hottest part of the day for much of the year, so take a hat and water, and save your energy for the evening show.

Steigenberger lists the same stops in the same order. Mövenpick's printed day-by-day may have changed, so ask for the current programme when you book.

Abu Simbel to Aswan cruise: the 3-night northbound run

The same ships turn round at Abu Simbel and sail back on a 3-night programme boarding on Friday. Abu Simbel comes first, on the afternoon you board:

The catch is getting to Abu Simbel for a Friday boarding: it is about 280–300 km south of Aswan, 3.5–4 hours by road, or a flight of about 45 minutes from Aswan (EgyptAir, and Air Cairo from late October 2026 per schedules; check with the airline). Ask the operator whether the transfer is included before you compare prices.

Omar El Khayam also sells the two legs together as a 7-night round trip from Aswan on Monday. The stops repeat in both directions, so take the full week only if you want the time on the water; for the temples, 4 nights is enough.

Lake Nasser cruise ships

Three lake ships are clearly sailing and published by their operators. All call themselves five-star, a label that covers a wide range (Egypt publishes no official list of rated Nile ships), so judge them by cabins and inclusions.

Steigenberger Omar El Khayam

The Steigenberger brand's only lake ship, operated and sold by JAZ Voyages (the Travco group), which also runs the brand's four Nile ships. It has 68 double cabins (24 m²), 8 Grand Suites (35 m²) and 4 Royal Suites (70 m²), and every cabin and suite has a private balcony, which is rare on the Nile. There is a sun-deck pool with a bar and Jacuzzi, a lift and three lounge bars. Wi-Fi works only in Aswan and at Abu Simbel, so expect four days offline. Booked direct, the "sightseeing mentioned in the itinerary" is charged separately at check-in. More on the brand in our Steigenberger review; the ship is listed on jazcruises.com.

JAZ has no lake ship under its own name: this is the one it sells, under the Steigenberger brand.

Mövenpick Prince Abbas

Mövenpick's lake ship, in service since 2001, with 65 cabins including junior and royal suites; the Deluxe cabins are 22 m². It has a gym. Mövenpick's page doesn't mention a pool, so ask if that matters to you. It keeps the same Monday-south, Friday-north rhythm as Omar El Khayam. The rest of the Mövenpick fleet is covered in our Mövenpick review, and the ship's page sits on Mövenpick's Nile cruise site.

SUNRISE African Dreams

Run by SUNRISE Resorts & Cruises, the company behind the Semiramis ships on the Nile. Its factsheet lists 79 Superior cabins of 27 m² with balconies, five Presidential Suites and one Royal Suite, plus a heated pool, a Jacuzzi, a spa and two restaurants. It boards at the Lake Nasser dock beside the High Dam. The departure days are not published on sunrise-resorts.com, so ask whoever sells it which weekday it sails.

Smaller ships: Eugenie, Kasr Ibrim and others

Agencies also sell older and smaller lake ships, mainly Eugenie and Kasr Ibrim, plus names such as Nubian Sea. Eugenie went back on the water after a dry-dock refit in August 2025. For any of the smaller ships, check that it is actually sailing on your dates before you pay a deposit.

Sonesta lists no Lake Nasser ship and Viking's current Egypt programmes don't sail the lake, so "Abu Simbel" with either brand means an excursion from Aswan.

Entry fees on a Lake Nasser cruise

Ticket prices for foreign adults at the four main landings, from the official ticket shop:

That's EGP 1,322 per adult for Kalabsha, Wadi es-Sebua, Amada and Abu Simbel. On 22 February and 22 October, the sun-alignment days, Abu Simbel costs EGP 1,272 and the total rises to EGP 1,772. Students aged 24 or under pay about half with a valid card; children under 6 go in free. The Abu Simbel sound and light show is extra at USD 20 (child 6–12 USD 11), at 20:00 and 21:00. The first show needs a minimum audience of 50 Egyptians or 10 foreigners (show details). Taking photos with a mobile phone is free at ministry sites.

Who pays the fees matters. Booked direct, Omar El Khayam charges sightseeing at check-in; agency packages often include it, but ask for the list of sites included rather than trusting "all inclusive". Abu Simbel's own page on the official ticket shop shows the current price and the 16:00 last entry.

Lake Nasser cruise prices and how to book

Nobody publishes a simple fare for these ships. JAZ and Mövenpick sell through their own booking engines, SUNRISE through its site, and Egyptian agencies resell all of them with their own inclusions. No platform sells a Lake Nasser cruise: GetYourGuide, Headout and Tiqets only have Abu Simbel day trips and Luxor–Aswan cruises with an Abu Simbel excursion (how the three platforms compare).

Expect a compulsory New Year's Eve gala supplement on many ships (agencies quote roughly US$50–180 per person), and draw Egyptian pounds in Aswan before you board.

Nile and Lake Nasser cruise: Luxor to Abu Simbel in one trip

No ship sails from Luxor to Abu Simbel, but the weekdays can line up so that one cruise flows into the next.

• Southbound, Luxor to Abu Simbel: take a 4-night Luxor to Aswan cruise that leaves Luxor on a Thursday. Steigenberger Minerva and Royale, JAZ Crown Jubilee and Mövenpick Sun Ray all do. They reach Aswan on Monday morning, the same day the lake ships start boarding at 13:00. Then 4 nights south to Abu Simbel: 8 nights, Luxor to Abu Simbel. Sun Ray pauses from mid-June to the end of August.
• Northbound, Abu Simbel to Luxor: the 3-night lake cruise ends at 09:00 on Monday by the High Dam, and the same Thursday/Monday ships leave Aswan on Monday for the 3-night Aswan to Luxor cruise.
• On a Monday/Friday ship (Sonesta, Steigenberger Legacy and most of the fleet), you reach Aswan on Friday, three days before the next lake departure. That leaves time for Philae, the Nubian Museum and a felucca. See things to do in Aswan.

These are two bookings on two ships: check the Nile ship's check-out time, allow for the transfer to the High Dam dock, and get both confirmations before paying either deposit. Every Nile trip type is in our Nile cruise guide.

Nile cruise with Abu Simbel: the cheaper alternative

Most listings sold as a "Nile cruise with Abu Simbel" are Luxor–Aswan cruises that add an early road trip from Aswan. You see Abu Simbel and nothing else on the lake, but you can book it today. On GetYourGuide the best-reviewed is the 3-night Aswan to Luxor cruise with Abu Simbel and a Luxor balloon flight, from $580 with 555 reviews (4.5). Like every platform cruise, it is sold as "a 5-star ship or similar": ask for the ship's name and the list of included entry fees after you book. Most GetYourGuide bookings can be cancelled free up to 24 hours ahead, but multi-day cruises may differ, so check the listing.

Today GetYourGuide is the cheapest and the only one with a real review history; the Headout versions ($600 and $700) have one review and none. Ship, cabin, inclusions and dates may differ between listings.

◐ Daytime

GetYourGuideFull dayAswan

From Aswan: Abu Simbel Group Tour with Guide & Entrance Fees

4.6 (592)

from $65Check dates

⛵ Cairo

GetYourGuide3 nightsFrom Cairo

From Cairo: 4-Day Nile Cruise to Luxor with Balloon Flight

4.5 (157)

from $1,300Check dates

⛵ Luxor

GetYourGuide3 nightsFrom Luxor

Luxor: 4 Days Nile Cruise with Guided Tours & Abu Simbel

4.6 (132)

from $690Check dates

⛵ Luxor

GetYourGuide4 nightsFrom Luxor

From Luxor: 5-Day Nile Cruise to Aswan with Balloon Ride

4.2 (185)

from $1,343Check dates

⛵ Luxor

GetYourGuide2 nightsFrom Luxor

From Luxor: 3-Day Nile Cruise to Aswan with Private Guide

4.2 (169)

from $1,000Check dates

◐ Daytime

GetYourGuideFull dayEdfu

Luxor: Edfu, Kom Ombo, Abu Simbel Private Tour & Entry Fees

4.2 (134)

from $238Check dates

See everything on GetYourGuide →See everything on Headout →See everything on Tiqets →Prices checked on 19 October 2026

The cheapest route of all is a day trip from Aswan: a shared Abu Simbel trip with hotel pick-up from $40 (3,404 reviews), or a group tour with guide and entrance fees from $65. It's a long day, with 7–8 hours on the road for about two hours at the temples. Our Abu Simbel guide covers the day trip, the flights and the timings.

Best time for a Lake Nasser cruise

Aim for October to April. Aswan averages a daytime high of about 23 °C in January and 41–42 °C from June to August, when a 12:30 visit to Abu Simbel is hard going. January nights drop to about 10 °C, so pack a fleece for the sun deck and the evening show. Steigenberger publishes its lake weekdays all year, but check your dates with the operator for summer sailings. See when to go for the whole valley month by month.

The two sun-alignment days, 22 February and 22 October, are when sunlight reaches the statues in Abu Simbel's inner sanctuary. Thousands come (at least 2,000 on 22 February 2026) and lake cruises around those dates fill first. Whether your ship is at Abu Simbel that morning depends on the weekday, so check before you book for the festival.

Lake Nasser cruise FAQ