See our Classic Tours for suggested itineraries and prices featuring this destination.

The great temple at Abu Simbel is one of the highlights of any trip to Egypt. The four colossal statues of Pharaoh Ramesses II stand 65 feet tall, hewn out of the sandstone cliff. Not only is this a mightily impressive exterior, but the interior of the temple is one of the best preserved of all Egypt’s ancient monuments - with reliefs showing Ramesses’s victories over the Hittites as well as the Pharaoh making offerings to the gods.

Ramesses built a second temple nearby dedicated to his wife Queen Nefertari, which is also an amazing visit, with colossal statues of Ramesses and Nefertari on the outside and scenes inside showing the Queen in the company of the goddesses Hathor and Isis.

Abu Simbel is in the far south of Egypt, a short flight from Aswan. It is included in our classic Pyramids and Nile Cruise tour, but you can also combine a visit to Abu Simbel with an extended stay in Aswan or you can take a cruise on Lake Nasser with the Movenpick Prince Abbas, which sails from Aswan to Abu Simbel, pausing to take in the temples at Kalabsha, Wadi Es Sebua and Amada along the way.