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Nile Cruises Luxor to Aswan: Routes, Boats and Prices
Classic Egypt Tours: Cairo, Luxor and Aswan Itineraries
Nile Cruise and Red Sea Holidays: Two-Week Egypt Trips
White Desert Tours from Cairo: Oases and Desert Camping
Short Breaks in Egypt: Three and Four Day Cairo Trips
Tailor-made Egypt Tours: Private Trips Built Around You
Route guide · Updated October 2026
Luxor to Aswan is about 215 km by road. The best way to cover it is a Nile cruise, if you have three or four nights. If you only need to get there, the train takes about three hours and a car takes about the same. A cruise going south takes four nights. Coming north from Aswan to Luxor it takes three, because the boat sails with the current. Both stop at Edfu and Kom Ombo. A dahabiya is the slow, small-boat version. Everything below works in both directions, with times and figures checked in October 2026.
Luxor to Aswan (south)
Aswan to Luxor (north)| Luxor to Aswan (south) | Aswan to Luxor (north) | |
|---|---|---|
| Cruise length | Four nights, five days | Three nights, four days |
| Our cruise | Nile Cruise from Luxor to Aswan, from US$1,095 per person | Nile Cruise from Aswan to Luxor, from US$840 per person |
| Order of sights | Karnak and the Valley of the Kings first, Philae last | Philae first, Karnak on the morning you leave |
| Sleeper train departures | From Luxor, roughly 05:15 to 09:00 | From Aswan, roughly 16:20 to 20:20 |
| Train journey | 2 hours 40 to 3 hours 20 | 3 hours to 3 hours 25 |
| By road | About 215 km, two and a half to three hours with no stops | The same road and distance |
| Optional extra on the last day | Abu Simbel from Aswan | A hot air balloon over Luxor's west bank |
The short answer
Sail south if you have five days. You see the big sites while you are fresh and finish in the calmer city, with Abu Simbel within reach. Sail north if you have four days, want the lower price, or fly home from Luxor. For a plain transfer in either direction, take the train.
Pick by what the day is for. If you want the temples between the two cities, take a cruise. It is your hotel, your transport and your guide for three or four nights. If you want to arrive, take the train. It runs about three hours. If you want to stop where you like, hire a car and driver for the day.
Skip the flight. The two cities are close, and check-in and transfers take longer than the train or the drive. A dahabiya suits travellers with time, a flexible plan and a taste for quiet. It is the slowest way to make the trip.
Most cruises between the two cities run Luxor to Aswan over four nights. The boat stays in Luxor for the first two days. You see Karnak and Luxor temples on the day you board. Day two is the Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut's temple and the Colossi of Memnon. On day three the boat reaches Edfu for the Temple of Horus, then Kom Ombo in the afternoon. On day four it arrives in Aswan for the Unfinished Obelisk and Philae. You leave the boat on day five.
We sell this trip as the Nile Cruise from Luxor to Aswan, 5 days, from US$1,095 per person. Three boats are offered: Radamis II, Movenpick Royal Lily and Sonesta St. George. All meals on board are included. Flights to Luxor and home from Aswan are not, and sightseeing is in a shared group of about fifteen. Abu Simbel is offered as an extra on the last morning.
Between Luxor and Edfu, boats pass through the lock at Esna. Queues there can last an hour or a whole evening, and no one can schedule around them. Neither of our cruises stops to visit the temple at Esna. If you want to see it, plan a road trip from Luxor.
Aswan to Luxor takes three nights, because the boat sails with the current. You board in Aswan and see the Unfinished Obelisk and Philae that afternoon. Day two is Kom Ombo and then Edfu. Day three is the Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut and the Colossi of Memnon. On day four you leave the boat, see Karnak and Luxor temples, and fly out.
We sell this as the Nile Cruise from Aswan to Luxor, 4 days, from US$840 per person, on the same three boats. It is the cheaper way to see the river. The cost is a tighter schedule. Karnak comes on your departure morning, and you have no spare day in Aswan. A hot air balloon over the west bank is offered on the last morning.
The train is the simplest transfer. The sleeper operator, Abela Trains, publishes a timetable with several trains each way. Going south, they leave Luxor between about 05:15 and 09:00. They reach Aswan two hours 40 minutes to three hours 20 minutes later. Going north, they leave Aswan between about 16:20 and 20:20 and take three hours to three hours 25. We checked this timetable on its website in October 2026.
These are the overnight sleeper trains from Cairo. Luxor to Aswan is the last leg of the journey south, and Aswan to Luxor the first leg of the trip north. That makes the timing useful: a morning in Luxor, lunch in Aswan. Check which class a given train carries when you book, and check the fare on the operator's site at the time.
Egyptian National Railways also sells tickets on this line. Its website did not load when we checked, so ask at Luxor or Aswan station for times.
The Luxor to Aswan distance is about 215 km by road. That is the OpenStreetMap route from Luxor Temple to central Aswan, checked October 2026. In a straight line the two cities are 181 km apart. The road follows the Nile valley the whole way. Expect about two and a half to three hours of driving without stops.
A car and driver is the only way to choose your own stops. Edfu and Kom Ombo are both on the road, and so is Esna near the Luxor end. A full day with two temples on the way is a fair plan. Check the US State Department and UK FCDO pages for current advice on road travel in Upper Egypt before you go.
A dahabiya is a small sailing boat with a shallow hull. It carries one small group and can moor at a bank, an island or a village, away from the town quays. Many start from Esna, with a road transfer from Luxor. Their schedule depends on the wind, so arrival times move. It takes longer than a motor cruise over the same stretch. Check the number of nights and which days are travel days before you book. Our dahabiya Nile cruise page explains who they suit and what to ask before you book.
The cruise is the best way to see the stretch. Three things wear thin. The boats keep similar schedules and often tie up several deep at Luxor, Edfu, Kom Ombo and Aswan. Temples get busy when they all arrive together. And the sightseeing is a group of about fifteen.
Skip the cruise if you have been to Egypt before, or only have a week and want more time in Cairo. Take the train in the morning and spend two nights in Aswan. Skip the train if you have heavy luggage and no one to meet you. A car with a driver handles both ends for you.
About 215 km by road, using the OpenStreetMap route from Luxor Temple to central Aswan, checked October 2026. In a straight line it is 181 km. The drive takes about two and a half to three hours without stops.
A Nile cruise, if you have four nights and want the temples on the way. Our Nile Cruise from Luxor to Aswan starts at US$1,095 per person. For a plain transfer, the train is the easiest option at about three hours.
Four nights on a standard cruise, sailing south. The boat spends the first two days in Luxor, then sails to Edfu, Kom Ombo and Aswan. The sailing is spread across the days between temple visits.
Three nights, one fewer than going south, because the boat sails with the current. Our Nile Cruise from Aswan to Luxor runs four days and starts at US$840 per person.
Yes. The sleeper trains heading north to Cairo leave Aswan between about 16:20 and 20:20. They reach Luxor three hours to three hours 25 minutes later. That is from the operator's timetable, checked October 2026.
Between two hours 40 minutes and three hours 20 minutes, depending on the train and its stops. Southbound trains leave Luxor between about 05:15 and 09:00.
Similar to the road distance of about 215 km, because the road runs beside the river down the same valley. The cruise still takes three or four nights, because it stops at each temple and moors at night.
Yes, with a car and driver. It is about 215 km and two and a half to three hours on the road. Esna, Edfu and Kom Ombo are all on the way. You can see one or two temples and still reach Aswan by evening.
No. Both of our cruise-only trips exclude domestic and international flights. You are met at the airport where the cruise starts and taken to the airport where it ends.
Entry rules, opening hours, security advice and exchange rates all move. Check them at the source, not here.
Written and checked by the Nile Trip Guide editorial team · Last reviewed . Entry rules, prices and opening hours change — check anything critical against the official sources linked on this page.
Plan this trip
A real itinerary with real prices, usually within 24 hours. Nothing is booked and nothing is charged until you say yes.
8 days · Classic Egypt
The route most people take first, at the length it was built for: Giza and the Grand Egyptian Museum, then a flight to Luxor and four nights sailing down to Aswan.
from US$2,135 / per person
8 days · Nile & Red Sea
No boat on this one. Giza and the Grand Egyptian Museum, a night in Luxor for both banks, two nights on the Red Sea, then back to Cairo for the Citadel, Coptic Cairo and the Royal Mummies.
from US$2,040 / per person
10 days · Classic Egypt
Five nights in Cairo either side of a four-night sail from Luxor to Aswan. The Cairo days are private, just your party and a guide; the sightseeing off the boat is shared with a small group.
from US$2,635 / per person
