A Nile cruise is priced nothing like an ocean cruise, and comparing headline fares between the two is meaningless. Three to four nights between Luxor and Aswan costs $400 per person on a solid five-star boat and $1,400 on a genuinely luxurious one — full board and guided temple visits included. The extras are where the truth lives. Here is the whole picture, at 2026 prices.
The fare, by class and season
Per person, two sharing, for the standard three- or four-night sailing between Luxor and Aswan:
| Ship class | Low season (June–August) | Winter peak (December–January) | |---|---|---| | Standard five-star (60–120 cabins) | $350–400 | $450–550 | | Deluxe (Mövenpick, Sonesta tier) | from $650–700 | $800–950 | | Luxury (Oberoi, Steigenberger tier) | from $1,200–1,400 | toward $1,900 | | Dahabiya (8–16 guests, sailing boat) | private charters well above $4,000; split among 4–6 people, per-person rates can approach the deluxe tier |
Seven-night sailings, which most boats also run, roughly double the per-person total. Summer is 30–40% cheaper than the December–January peak for the identical cabin — the trade is Upper Egypt at over 40°C, when the temples have no shade at all. October–November and February–March are the compromise: tolerable heat, mid-range prices. Most travellers pay $600–1,900 all told for a well-run five-star sailing, and what moves a quote within that band is class, month and cabin deck — in that order.
What is included — and what is not
Included almost everywhere: full board, the cabin, and the standard guided excursions with an Egyptologist — Karnak and Luxor temples, the Valley of the Kings, Edfu, Kom Ombo, Philae. Almost never included: drinks, Wi-Fi, the Abu Simbel add-on, tipping, and the visa. "All-inclusive" means different things to different operators on this river, so ask for the actual list before comparing two quotes side by side. Our Nile cruise guide covers what the trip itself is like, and the seven-day route shows the longer version day by day.
Flights and getting to the boat
Round trips from the US to Cairo average around $900, typically $700–1,200 depending on season, with November the cheapest month. The onward hop Cairo–Luxor or Cairo–Aswan costs roughly $60–120 one way on EgyptAir or Air Cairo and takes an hour; the overnight sleeper train is the slower alternative. Most operators meet you at the airport — confirm this before booking, because it removes the one genuinely fiddly part of the trip.
The cost nobody tells you about
Tipping. In Egyptian tourism it is structural, not a courtesy, and operators almost never put it in the quote. Budget $8–12 per person per day for the boat crew, plus separate tips for your guide and driver — across a four-night trip with land days either side, call it $100–150 per person, carried in small bills. Add the visa: $30 for a single-entry tourist e-Visa for US passport holders, via Egypt's official online portal. And add Abu Simbel: for many travellers the single best site of the trip, and almost always a paid extra — about $100–150 per person by road convoy from Aswan, $160–215 by air. A fare that excludes it is not comparable to one that includes it. Taken together, these unquoted lines add roughly $250–400 per person to whatever number you were first shown.
The all-in picture
Per person, four-night sailing plus flights from most of the US:
- Careful budget: about $1,600–1,900 — standard boat in shoulder season, the cheaper flight, road convoy to Abu Simbel.
- Comfortable mid-range: $2,300–2,800 — deluxe boat in winter, one Cairo hotel night, all the add-ons done properly.
- Luxury boat or dahabiya: $3,500–4,500 and up.
Nile sailings appear only occasionally in our fare database — it is a market still booked mostly through specialist operators, which is all the more reason to insist on the itemised inclusion list.
The short version
- Fare: $350–550 standard, $650–950 deluxe, $1,200–1,900 luxury, per person for three to four nights. Dahabiyas above that.
- Summer costs 30–40% less than December–January; the trade is 40°C heat.
- Included: full board and the standard temples. Not included: drinks, Wi-Fi, Abu Simbel, tips, visa.
- Flights: about $900 to Cairo round trip, plus $60–120 each way to Luxor or Aswan.
- The unquoted bill: tipping $8–12 a day, visa $30, Abu Simbel $100–215. Together $250–400 per person.
- All in: $1,600–1,900 careful, $2,300–2,800 comfortable, per person.