Highlights

• Discover fascinating Nile confluence at Khartoum as well as National Museum – one of Sudan’s best museums displaying royal statues and 3,500-year-old artifacts.
• Watch an incredible display of faith and celebration as whirling dervishes from the Sufi Community twirl, dance and worship outside the tomb of Hamad Elneel before sunset.
• Ditch the phone and settle in for evenings spent in stargazing at an endless sky while enjoying mobile camps in the Nubian Desert.
• Naqa – a ruined ancient city and trading station, east of the Nile, with two striking temples.
• See an unforgettable hundreds of pyramids at the Royal Necropolis of Meroe, watching as crumbling sandstone is warmed by the light of day.
• Kerma – one of the oldest inhabited towns in Africa and a vast archaeological site in Nubia.
• Kerma Museum – an edifice displaying relics from the Kerma site, with seven granite statues and Nubian artifacts.
• Sai Island, with an Egyptian temple, Ottoman fort and a medieval church.
• Explore the biggest national park in Africa – Dinder.

Trip Itinerary

DAY 0: ARRIVAL TO KHARTOUM

MARHABA! Welcome to Khartoum, the capital city of Sudan. This is 14-day tour to Capital City of Khartoum and to discover the Meroe Island treasures. Upon arrival our staff will meet you at Khartoum international airport and arrange your complimentary transfer to hotel.

• None
• Three-Star Hotel

DAY 1: KHARTOUM CITY-TOUR

This morning you should get ready for almost full day drive to explore the capital city of Khartoum and surroundings. On the way to the National Museum, we pass the Presidential Palace that stands since the English General Charles George Gordon was Sudan’s ruler at the beginning of 19^th century. We continue driving to the National Museum of Sudan, which accommodates ancient civilization of Sudan. You continue your journey into history and cross the confluence of the Blue and the White Nile to Omdurman, the old capital of Sudan, to see the Mahdi tomb, Khalifa’s House Museum. After lunch break, you pay a quick visit to Omdurman traditional market. As the sun begins to set, you proceed to the tomb of Hamad Elneel where we have the rare chance to witness the bizarre dances of the Dervish [on Friday only]. Now it may be the time to get back and relax at your hotel.

• Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner
• Three-Star Hotel

DAY 2: KHARTOUM – OLD DONGOLA – DESERT

Following breakfast immediately you will be picked up from your hotel and will start driving northward from Khartoum to visit Old Dongola, 400km, [formerly Christian and later Islamic capital of Nubia], site for several Coptic Christian churches. Centre of the Nubian region has many colorful houses that are decorated with floral motives. You will be able to see the ruins of the seventh-century Church of the Granite Columns, plus the defensive structure archaeologists call the Throne Hall, and more. After visiting old Dongola we continue driving towards new Dongola for an overnight on the way.

• Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner
• Tent Mobile Camp

DAY 3: DESERT - SESEBI – SOLEB

Next day early morning and once breakfast is served; we drive through the west river bank to Sesebi, 50km, a military outpost of Pharaoh Akhenaten. We will be visiting the temple of Soleb, a Nubian copy of the temples of the Egyptian New Kingdom, with many remaining pillars and walls covered in hieroglyphic inscriptions. The structures are believed to date from 1500 BC.

• Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner
• Nubian House

DAY 4: SOLEB – SDEINGA –SAI - SOLEB

Next dayearly morning, we will drive to Sdeinga, 50 km to pay a visit to the temple dedicated to the Queen Teje, the mother of Akhenaten. After that we are visiting the island of Sai, with settlement ruins from old Nubian, Pharaonic and Christian times. Afterwards, we return to Soleb through the desert along taking the old Darb el-Arbaeen – the “Road of Forty” – which means a camel took 40 days from Khartoum to Cairo on this road.

• Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner
• Nubian House

DAY 5: SOLEB – 3RD CATARACT – TOMBOS

Next day morning, we drive to the 3rd cataract for a quick fascinating photo stop and checking out the naturally shallow parts of the river that caused issues for ancient Egyptian sailors. Then we will drive to Tombos, passing prehistoric rock inscriptions near Sebu where hundreds of images dating from the prehistoric to Egyptian era can be seen. We will pay a visit to hieroglyphic inscriptions and a recumbent statue of King Taharqa in the granite quarries.

• Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner
• Nubian House

DAY 6: TOMBOS - KERMA – KAWA - KARIMA

This morning we will visit the capital of Upper Nubia during the 3rd and 2nd millennium B.C. and specifically the epic site of the ancient city of Kerma, including the only diffufa’s (unique earthen temples) in known existence. Spend time in the small Kerma Museum, where seven granite statues depicting pharaohs discovered in 2003 are on display. Then we drive to KAWA, to see the sand-covered temple ruins. Thereafter, we drive to Karima to visit the sites that surround the nearby mountain of Jebel Berkal are particularly beautiful in the morning light, so an early start is on the cards today. We start to explore the Jebel Berkal archaeological sites which are on the World Heritage list. Here we see Temples and Pyramids from the Royal necropolis of the ancient city of Napata.

• Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner
• Nubian House

DAY 7: KARIMA – EL KURRU – NURI - KARIMA

This morning we drive southwards to the village of El Kurru, 18 km to explore the subterranean tomb of king Tanwetamani that is decorated in the classical pharaonic style. Afterward, we drive to Nuri, 25 km to visit the cemetery containing the pyramids of the 26^th dynasty, among them that of Pharaoh Taharqa. Not far from there, there is aninteresting site of petrified wood, an ancient forest with hundreds of huge trunks.

• Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner
• Nubian House

DAY 8: KARIMA – EL DAMER – MEROE

This morning we have deep-drive through Bayouda desert to Meroe. Once get there, we visit a treasure trove of hundreds of pyramids in Meroe – Kingdom of Black Pharaohs – that offer rare insight into life and death in ancient Nubia, located among undulating sand dunes. These Pyramids belong to the Royal Necropolis of Meroe and some of them are perfectly preserved. Each pyramid has its own funerary chapel with the walls fully decorated with bas-reliefs that show the King’s life and offers to the gods. You enjoy the incredible sunset in front of the pyramids and spend the night under an open sky. Next day, you also enjoy incredible sunrise and unforgettable walk around the pyramids.

• Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner
• Mobile Tent Camp

DAY 9: MEROE - NAQA - MUSAWARAT - KHARTOUM

We drive north to visit the temple of Amun, the Roman chapel and the lion temple at Naga, which is developed during the Meroitic period. Afterwards, we drive to towards Musawarat es-Sufra around 20km, an extensive temple area with rare elephant depictions. Thereafter, we drive back to Khartoum.

• Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner
• Three-star Hotel

DAY 10: KHARTOUM – JEBEL MOYA - SENNAR

This early morning we drive towards the destination to visit Jebel Moya [35km] away from the city to see the archeological sites dated back between 5000 BCE-500 CE, with an approximate area of 104,000 square meters. The site is one of the largest pastoralist cemeteries in Africa, with over 3000 burials excavated by Sir Henry Wellcome from 1911-1914. Then we visit Sennar Dam.

• Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner
• Motel

DAY 11: SENNAR – SINJA - DINDER VILLAGE - DINDER NATIONAL PARK

We start driving early morning to have quick stop at Sinja town, and another stop in Dinder villageto get the necessary permissions before proceeding to Dinder National Park [around 100 kms, off-road] to catch an evening tour over there.

• Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner
• Mobile tent camp

DAY 12: DINDER NATIONAL PARK

We plan for two tours on this day – one in the morning and one in the evening to explore different species.

• Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner
• Mobile tent camp

DAY 13: DINDER NATIONAL PARK - SENNAR

We plan forth morning tour and drive back to Sennar.

• Breakfast, Lunch
• Motel

DAY 14: SENNAR - KHARTOUM

Next day morning we pack, visit Sennar Museum and drive back to Khartoum.

• Breakfast, Lunch,
• Mid-range Hotel

DAY 15: KHARTOUM

Free Time before we drop you to the airport.

• Breakfast
• None

Notes:

• The section of this tour out of Khartoum operates in two directions on different dates – either starting with Meroe, or starting with Karima. The same sites and overnight stops are maintained, just in the opposite order. Hence, itinerary may start either way.
• Pricing depends on your travel dates, number of travelers, and category of accommodations you would like to stay in.

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