Itinerary of Your Journey Through Egypt

Day 1: Arrival in Cairo

You have arrived in Kemet—the Black Land—where the Mysteries were born. This is not a vacation; it is a pilgrimage. Egypt is the wellspring of much of the magic and mystery that forms the foundation of modern Witchcraft, and here, the veil between worlds has always been thin. Tonight, as you settle into your accommodations and meet your fellow travelers, you begin the process of shifting consciousness from the mundane world into sacred time. The work begins now.

• Arrive in Cairo and transfer to the Hyatt Regency Cairo West
• Meet your hosts and fellow pilgrims for an opening circle
• Begin attuning to the land and setting intentions for the journey ahead

Day 2 – Grand Egyptian Museum

The Grand Egyptian Museum houses the greatest collection of magical artifacts ever assembled—foremost among them, the treasures of Tutankhamun's tomb. The Egyptians believed that the only organ essential to the afterlife was the heart, which they left within the mummy as the seat of the soul. Today you will stand before objects designed to ensure immortality: canopic jars holding sacred viscera, the golden death mask that transformed a boy-king into Osiris, and the funerary boat meant to carry the pharaoh Khufu across the celestial waters. These are not mere relics. They are instruments of resurrection.

• Explore the Grand Egyptian Museum's extraordinary collections
• Stand in the presence of Tutankhamun's golden treasures and funerary equipment
• Witness the sacred Solar funerary boat built to carry the pharaoh Khufu to eternity
• All meals included

Day 3 – The Pyramids and the Sphinx

The pyramids of Giza were not merely tombs—they were resurrection machines. Their smooth, sloping sides recreate the sun's rays descending from heaven to earth, along which the king could ascend to join the gods. Each pyramid represented the primordial mound of creation, a place of immense magical potency where the deceased could renew their life-force. Before them crouches the Great Sphinx, guardian of the necropolis, whom the ancients called Horemakhet—Horus of the Horizon. At Saqqara, the Djed-pillar carved in stone symbolizes the backbone of Osiris and the promise of resurrection. Here, the oldest stone monument in the world stands as testament to humanity's eternal refusal to accept death.

• Walk the Giza plateau in the shadow of the Great Pyramids
• Stand before the Great Sphinx, solar guardian of the sacred necropolis
• Explore Saqqara and the Step Pyramid complex where resurrection magic was born
• All meals included

Day 4 – The Temples of Karnak and Luxor

Today you fly south to Luxor—ancient Thebes—and enter the sacred precincts of Karnak, the greatest temple complex ever built. Here, Amun-Ra reigned as King of the Gods, his presence everywhere unseen but felt, like the wind. The Temple of Amun employed over 80,000 people and owned more land than the king himself; its priesthood wielded unprecedented power. As you walk between towering columns that dwarf the human form, remember: the Egyptians believed that every temple recreated the Island of Creation, the first land to emerge from the primordial waters. You are walking on holy ground. Tonight, we board a luxury Dahabiya and begin our journey along the sacred Nile.

• Fly from Cairo to Luxor (flight included)
• Enter the vast temple complex of Karnak, seat of Amun-Ra's power
• Experience the Temple of Luxor illuminated at night (conditions permitting)
• Board your private Dahabiya for the journey upriver
• All meals included

Day 5: The Valley of the Kings

Cross to the West Bank—the realm of the dead, where the sun sets each night to be reborn. The ancient Egyptians held the Festival of the Valley here, when the people of Thebes would cross the Nile in a grand procession to dine with their ancestors and receive their blessings. In the Valley of the Kings, you will descend into tombs whose walls are painted with the Books of the Dead, the Netherworld, and Gates—magical texts designed to guide the pharaoh through the twelve hours of night and ensure his resurrection at dawn. The tomb of Seti I contains some of the finest examples of Egyptian tomb art ever created. Here, the dead do not rest. They are transformed.

• Cross to the West Bank and enter the Valley of the Kings
• Explore the mortuary temple of Hatshepsut
• Descend into the tombs of Seti I and Tutankhamun
• Walk the processional route of the ancient Festival of the Valley
• Return to the Dahabiya for evening sailing
• All meals included

Day 6: The Temples of Dandara and Abydos

Hathor was the golden goddess of love, beauty, music, and ecstatic celebration—but she was also the Lady of the West who welcomed the dead into her arms and eased their transition from death to new life. At Dendera, her temple still bears the grooves worn by pilgrims who scraped particles of sacred stone to drink in water or wear as amulets. The crypts of this temple are still visited by those seeking fertility and healing. At Abydos, we enter the holiest site in all Egypt: the cult center of Osiris, god of the dead and resurrection. Here, the annual Mysteries enacted his death and rebirth, and pilgrims traveled from across the land to participate. The Stela of Ikhernofret records these sacred rites, which enabled the lay people to participate directly in the god's resurrection.

• Enter the Temple of Hathor at Dendera with its famous zodiac ceiling
• Experience the sacred crypts where healing magic was practiced
• Journey to Abydos, holiest site of the Osirian Mysteries
• Walk the halls where the death and resurrection of the god were enacted
• Return to the Dahabiya for continued sailing
• All meals included

Day 7: The Temple of Horus at Edfu

The Temple of Horus at Edfu is the most completely preserved temple in all Egypt, and its walls tell the story of the eternal conflict between order and chaos. Here, the forces of good—represented by Horus—triumph over the forces of evil, represented by Seth in the form of a hippopotamus shown deliberately small because to depict evil at full power would be to empower it. This is magical technique as well as artistic convention. The inscriptions at Edfu contain the Building Texts that explain how the temple recreates the Island of Creation, and the Sacred Drama of Horus's victory was enacted here annually. You are entering a place where the triumph of light over darkness was ritually renewed.

• Travel by shuttle to the Temple of Horus at Edfu
• Explore the best-preserved temple in Egypt
• Study the wall reliefs depicting the triumph of Horus over Seth
• Return to the Dahabiya to journey further upriver
• All meals included

Day 8: The Temples of Kom Ombo

Kom Ombo is unique in all of Egypt: a double temple dedicated jointly to Sobek, the crocodile god, and Horus the Elder. Sobek was Lord of the Nile, Lord of the Marsh, dwelling in the liminal spaces between river and desert, between order and chaos. He was both feared and revered—a god who could save or destroy, whose sacred crocodiles were mummified and honored. Some believe this temple celebrated the reconciliation of the Two Lords, Horus and Seth, for the good of Egypt. Here, in the borderlands where the Nile meets the desert, you stand at the threshold between worlds.

• Explore the unique double temple of Kom Ombo
• Visit the chambers dedicated to Sobek and view the mummified sacred crocodiles
• Study the medical instruments carved in relief, evidence of temple healing practices
• Continue sailing toward Aswan
• All meals included

Day 9: Temple of Isis at Philae

Isis was the Goddess of all mysteries and magic. She who gathered the scattered limbs of Osiris and restored him to life. She who forged his golden phallus and conceived Horus, the divine child. Her cult spread from Egypt across the entire ancient world—from Alexandria to Athens, from the Danube to Britain—and her priesthood engaged in practices that would later be associated with Witches: healing, magic, nocturnal gatherings, and three degrees of initiation. At Philae, hymns inscribed on temple walls emphasized her role as divine mother, mistress of magic, Lady of Heaven, Earth, and the Netherworld. She was, as Plutarch recorded, "all that has been, and is, and shall be, and my robe no mortal has yet uncovered." Today, we lift the veil.

• Take a boat to the island temple of Philae, rescued from the rising waters
• Enter the sanctuary of Isis, Goddess of Magic and the Mysteries, and participate in a private rite within her temple walls.
• Stand where pilgrims came for healing and initiation for over a thousand years
• Fly back to Cairo (flight included) and be shuttled to the Le Méridien for your final night in Egypt
• All meals included

Day 10: Departing Egypt

Every initiation requires a return. You have walked the halls where resurrection magic was born, stood before the tombs of god-kings, and entered temples where the Mysteries were enacted for millennia. You carry something back with you now—a connection to the oldest magical tradition in the Western world, the source from which so much of our Craft has flowed. The journey along the Nile ends, but the work continues. Go forth as those ancient pilgrims did: transformed.