6-Day Cairo & Sharm El Sheikh Package

Overview 

Egypt's most popular short-break combination: the ancient monuments of Cairo, followed by the clear waters of Sharm El Sheikh. This 6-day itinerary gives you two focused days on the Giza Plateau, the Grand Egyptian Museum, Saqqara, and Old Cairo, before flying to Sharm El Sheikh for two nights at Stella Di Mare Beach Hotel & Spa. Activities in Sharm include a full-day snorkelling excursion, a glass-bottom boat trip, and an optional jeep safari into the Sinai desert.

Tour Highlights

◆ Giza Pyramids & Great Sphinx — private Egyptologist guide 

◆ Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) — Tutankhamun collection 

◆ Saqqara Step Pyramid of Djoser — the oldest monumental stone structure 

◆ Old Cairo: Hanging Church & Coptic quarter 

◆ Stella Di Mare Beach Hotel & Spa, Sharm El Sheikh — 2 nights 

◆ Snorkelling excursion + glass-bottom boat, Red Sea 

◆ Optional Sinai jeep safari (Coloured Canyon + Bedouin tea)

 ◆ All transfers, flights, and entrance fees included

Who This Tour Is For

• Travelers with 6 days who want a complete but efficient Egypt short break — the Cairo monuments done properly in two focused days, followed by three nights at the Red Sea. No padding, nothing rushed.
• Those who want Sharm El Sheikh specifically — the calmer, more sheltered Red Sea setting compared to Hurghada, with better reef access from the southern Sinai Peninsula and the option of a Sinai jeep safari.
• First-time visitors to Egypt who want the essential Cairo experience — Giza, the Grand Egyptian Museum, Saqqara — without committing to a 10-day itinerary.
• Couples and honeymooners who want monuments and a beach in one short trip. The 3 nights at Stella Di Mare give enough time for both the reef and a genuinely relaxed ending.
• Travelers combining this with a stopover — flying into Cairo, doing the monuments, and departing from Sharm, or vice versa.

What Makes This Tour Different

• Saqqara included as standard — the Step Pyramid of Djoser and the painted Old Kingdom mastaba tombs are on Day 3, not treated as an optional extra. Many 6-day Cairo + Sharm packages skip Saqqara in favour of a longer visit to Giza or Old Cairo. This itinerary includes both.
• Stella Di Mare Beach Hotel & Spa — a specific, positioned hotel choice rather than 'a Sharm 4-star'. Stella Di Mare is on the Sharks Bay peninsula, quieter than the Naama Bay strip, with direct beach access and a strong spa. It's chosen for the honeymoon and short-break traveler rather than the party resort crowd.
• The Sinai jeep safari (optional but structured) — the Coloured Canyon is 80-million-year-old sandstone carved into a narrow slot canyon with extraordinary colour banding. It's accessible as a half-day from Sharm. Most packages list it as 'optional' and say nothing more; this itinerary explains what it actually is and builds it into Day 5 as the default Sharm afternoon activity.
• Cairo–Sharm as a continuous private journey — your Egyptologist handles the Day 4 transfer to Cairo Airport and the Sharm check-in logistics. There's no gap day or self-managed transit between the two halves.

What You'll Experience

Day 1 — Arrive Cairo 

Private airport transfer to your 4-star Cairo hotel. Your Egyptologist contacts you to confirm Day 2 arrangements and brief you on what to expect. Dinner recommendation provided. No touring today — early arrival, rest, or an independent evening in the city. 

Day 2 — Cairo: Grand Egyptian Museum & Giza Plateau 

The Grand Egyptian Museum in the morning — your Egyptologist leads the session around the Tutankhamun collection: the golden death mask, the gilded shrine, the canopic chest, the miniature golden coffins. The Royal Mummies Hall in the afternoon: nineteen pharaohs in glass cases, including Ramesses II. This is the interpretive foundation for everything you'll see at Giza. Giza Plateau: the three pyramid complexes and the Sphinx. Your Egyptologist explains the construction — logistics, engineering, scale — rather than mythology. The Valley Temple of Khafre is one of the best-preserved Old Kingdom buildings in Egypt. Evening at leisure. 

Day 3 — Cairo: Saqqara & Old Cairo 

Saqqara in the morning: the Step Pyramid of Djoser — the first monumental stone structure in history, predating Giza by several decades — and the Imhotep Museum at the site entrance. The painted mastaba tombs of the Old Kingdom viziers Mereruka and Ti, with wall reliefs recording daily life in a kind of intimate detail that the larger temples don't match. Saqqara is consistently the site that first-time Cairo visitors say they wish they'd spent more time at. Old Cairo in the afternoon: the Hanging Church, Ben Ezra Synagogue, and Coptic Museum in the Babylon district — the oldest continuously inhabited part of Cairo. Two thousand years of religious history in one walkable neighbourhood. Optional: Khan el-Khalili bazaar for an hour before the evening, within easy reach of most Cairo hotels. 

Day 4 — Fly Cairo to Sharm El Sheikh 

Private transfer to Cairo Airport for the morning domestic flight to Sharm El Sheikh (approximately 55 minutes). Private transfer from Sharm Airport to Stella Di Mare Beach Hotel & Spa. Check in — the resort is on the quieter Sharks Bay peninsula, directly on the beach. Afternoon at leisure: first look at the Red Sea, the hotel beach, and the pool. No schedule, no guide, no agenda from this point on. Dinner at the resort. 

Day 5 — Sharm: Red Sea Snorkelling & Optional Sinai Safari 

Full-day Red Sea snorkelling excursion — boat departure from the nearby marina to the reef. The Red Sea off southern Sinai has some of the clearest water and most intact coral in the region. Snorkelling equipment provided; glass-bottom boat section available for non-swimmers. Return to the resort by mid-afternoon. Optional afternoon/evening: private 4WD Sinai safari to the Coloured Canyon — 80-million-year-old sandstone carved by flash floods into a narrow slot canyon with extraordinary layered colour banding. Bedouin tea stop en route. Return to the resort for dinner. 

Day 6 — Sharm El Sheikh, then Departure 

Morning at leisure — final swim, beach, or resort breakfast. Private transfer to Sharm El Sheikh International Airport for the return domestic flight to Cairo. International departure from Cairo, or connection to your onward destination. If your international departure is directly from Sharm, the Day 6 transfer goes only to Sharm Airport, and no Cairo connection is needed.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is 2 days enough for Cairo? 

For the Grand Egyptian Museum, Giza, Saqqara, and Old Cairo — yes, with an early start on both days. The GEM and Giza share Day 2 (morning and afternoon, respectively), and Saqqara and Old Cairo share Day 3. Each pairing works at a measured pace with a private guide. What two days don't include: Dahshur, the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir, or the full Islamic Cairo quarter. If those specifically matter, the 10-day version of this tour adds two more days in Cairo. 

Can we do this tour in reverse — starting in Sharm? 

Yes. The reverse routing is: fly into Sharm, 3 nights Red Sea, fly Sharm–Cairo, 2 days monuments, depart internationally from Cairo. The itinerary content is identical; only the flight direction changes. If you're arriving from abroad via Sharm or want the beach first, tell us at the time of enquiry, and we'll arrange accordingly. 

What is the Coloured Canyon, and is it physically demanding? 

The Coloured Canyon is a narrow sandstone slot canyon in the Sinai desert, approximately 1.5 hours from Sharm by private 4WD. The walls are layered with 80-million-year-old rock in shades of red, orange, yellow, and purple. The walk through the canyon is approximately 1 kilometre and involves some scrambling over rocks — manageable for most fitness levels but not suitable for those with significant mobility restrictions. The optional Bedouin tea stop adds about 30 minutes. If the canyon itself is difficult, the desert drive and tea experience alone is worthwhile. 

What is Stella Di Mare Beach Hotel like? 

Stella Di Mare is a 5-star resort on the Sharks Bay peninsula in Sharm El Sheikh — quieter than the main Naama Bay strip. It has private beach access, multiple pools, a spa, and several restaurants. It's chosen for this itinerary because its setting suits the short-break and honeymoon traveler rather than the nightlife crowd. The snorkelling excursion on Day 5 departs from a marina nearby. If you'd prefer a different Sharm hotel — closer to Naama Bay, all-inclusive, or at a different price point — tell us at enquiry. 

Can we add a Luxor day trip from Sharm? 

Technically, yes — Sharm to Luxor is a domestic flight (approximately 1 hour). Adding a Luxor day trip on Day 5 or 6 replaces the Red Sea day with a full Luxor touring day: Valley of the Kings, Karnak, West Bank. It makes for a very full 6 days and removes the decompression that makes the Sharm portion worthwhile. If Luxor matters, the better structure is a 9- or 10-day itinerary that includes both. A rushed day trip from Sharm to Luxor is not the way to see Luxor.