Aswan in Egypt [The Ultimate Guide for 2021]

Welcome to the Ultimate Guide for Aswan Egypt.

The city of Aswan in Egypt is one of the most famous tourist destinations not only in Egypt but worldwide. It’s most famous for the Philae Temple, The Unfinished Obelisk, and Abu Simbel Temple which is ironic because Abu Simbel temple is not even in Aswan.

I was so amazed by how beautiful this city is. You get to enjoy an awesome view of the Nile basically from everywhere. I just loved walking at night there on the Nile river, It was so peaceful and beautiful. Aswan is around 3 hours away from Luxor by train so it’s not that far to get to and it’s definitely worth visiting. I’ll tell you everything you need to know about Aswan so you can be prepared before going.

In this blog post I’ll talk about:

1. The top 7 things to do in Aswan Egypt.
2. Accommodation Options in Aswan Egypt.
3. How to get to Aswan from Cairo?
4. Weather in Aswan Egypt.
5. A Flexible Itinerary.

The Top 7 Attractions for Aswan in Egypt

1. Philae Temple

Standing on its own Island. Philae Temple is one of the most unique temples you’ll encounter in your journey it was built to honor the goddess Isis. It’s one of the things you absolutely must-do if you’re in Aswan Egypt. An interesting fact that you might want to know about the temple is that at the time of construction of the high dam the temple was submerged so they acted fast and moved the whole temple to a nearby island.

2. The Unfinished Obelisk

This might come as surprise to you but the unfinished Obelisk is actually the largest known Obelisk! Crazy right? It was unfinished due to the cracks that started to appear in the granite. I’m kind of thankful that some cracks showed up back then as it allowed us to witness how these Obelisks came to existence and how were they made. It’s really cool to witness something like this. You can find obelisks in other cities around the world, but witnessing the unfinished obelisk is totally a different thing.

3. Day Trip To Abu Simbel

The legendary temple of Abu Simbel. One of the main reasons that people visit Aswan Egypt is to go to the temple of Abu Simbel which is silly because it’s around 300KM away from Aswan but yeah don’t worry I’ll tell you how to get there. So you’ve got two options

1. Take the local buses from the bus stop they are way too cheap they usually move from Aswan at around 8:00 AM and arrive at Abu Simbel at 1:00 PM, You’ll have to spend the night over in Abu Simbel for this Option as guess what! The bus that dropped you off moves back to Aswan at around 2:00 PM and it’s the last bus. So the only choice here is to stay the night in Abu Simble and catch the bus back in the morning to Aswan.
2. Take the Local Bus and rent a private ride to get you back from Abu Simbel to Aswan, The ride will probably cost you from 700-1000EGP Depending on how well you bargain so you better bring your A-Game.

4. Elephantine Island

It’s a really cool place to have lunch or breakfast. My accommodation was actually in Elephantine Island but I’ll get to that later in the guide. The boat ride is 2EGP for Egyptians and 5EGP for Tourists to get to the island. The view from there is incredible.

5. Take A Boat And Explore

Just get on a boat and start exploring Aswan, I actually went to an abandoned island in Aswan near Elephantine island with a boat, did a hike there on some dunes, and enjoyed one of the most beautiful sunsets I’ve seen in my life. So yeah just get on a boat and explore. Don’t let them overcharge you for the boat rides if you’re going to take a private boat for a ride. It will probably cost you around 100-200EGP for the whole boat back and forth.

6. Take A Boat Trip From Aswan To Komombo

This is one of the most exciting adventures I’ve had the opportunity to do in Aswan. We rented a boat for a full day to go to Komombo from Aswan. You get to have an awesome experience sailing in the Nile. But be warned if you’re doing this in the winter make sure to have a jacket because it gets really cold at night. Then the next day after you wake up you’ll have breakfast and you’ll be in Komombo in no time. The trip always includes Lunch, Dinner, and breakfast and it usually costs around 1500-2000EGP for the whole boat. Usually, it’s a maximum capacity of 4 people so it’s a pretty good deal honestly around 350-500 each.

The temple of Komombo is very unique! It’s split into two halves. The First half is to worship the crocodile god Sobek And the other half was dedicated to Horus the falcon-headed god.

P.S: You don’t have to do this as a boat trip you can take a day trip to Komombo and just go back to Aswan.

7. The Temple Of Horus

You can arrange a full trip from the place you booked the boat trip from to arrange some transportation to take you from Komombo to Edfu after you visit the temple of Komombo I definitely recommend going to Edfu as you’re pretty close at this point but I highly recommend having an arranged transportation in advance as it’s not easy to get transportation there. 

You’ll visit the temple of Horus in Edfu. One of the most gigantic temples I’ve visited through my journey in upper Egypt. You can tell from the picture how gigantic this place is. I’m that tiny dot at the gates of the temple just in case you didn’t see me haha. 

After you’re done with your visit you can head straight to the train station and go back to Cairo or wherever you’re going or you can take a ride to Marsa Allam from the Bus-Stop.

P.S: You don’t have to be in Komombo to visit the Temple of Horus in Edfu, You can take a day trip from Aswan to the temple and get back to Aswan on the same day.

Other things that you can do in Aswan: Aswan Dam, The Nubian Museum, The Nubian Village, and Aswan botanical gardens.

Accommodation Options in Aswan

Elephantine island hands down. If you want to wake up every morning with an awesome view of the Nile. Then that’s where you have to book your accommodation. You can find a lot of places to stay on booking.com

Hostelworld is not that popular there for some reason but yeah you’ll most likely find everything on booking.com regardless of your budget.

I stayed at a place called Bob Marley Guesthouse on Elephantine Island. The place is really good, the host is super friendly, and it’s directly on the Nile.

There are lots of Hostels and cheap places to stay in Aswan Egypt especially on elephantine Island, you get an awesome view all day every day for a budget price. 

But if you’re looking for something fancy and a little bit luxurious then don’t worry you can check out the below list of best hotels in Aswan Egypt. I’m sure you’re going to find it helpful.

Hotels In Aswan Egypt

If you’re looking for the best hotels to stay in Aswan here is a list of the best hotels in Aswan Egypt:

1. Cataract Aswan Egypt Hotel.
2. Movenpick Resort Aswan.
3. Sofitel Legend Old Cataract Aswan.
4. Tolip Aswan Hotel.

How to Get to Aswan?

Cairo To Aswan

Easy! You’ve got 3 Options

1. Plane: Probably the fastest option yet it might be a little more expensive. I haven’t tried this option as I’m a budget traveler so this clearly is not an option for budget travelers.
2. Bus: Plenty of Bus Companies offer rides from Cairo to Aswan like Gobus & Blue Bus. The bus rides are kind of faster than the train, The price range is kind of wide also as there are different classes but you pick the bus ride that suits you from the website depending on your budget.
3. Train/Sleeper Train: You’ve got a lot of options here, You can take the sleeper train where you can book it from here, Or you can take the regular train which I actually took. First-class will definitely do the job and the seats are comfortable and the prices are very low if compared with any of the other options. You can book the Regular train from here.

Luxor To Aswan

If you’re planning to go to Luxor you might want to check out my guide on luxor from here.

So you want to go from Luxor to Aswan right? Well, for budget travelers the most convenient and decent option would be to take the train from Luxor to Aswan. It’s cheap, clean, and get you there in around 3-4hrs. 

You can also take a bus but if you’re going to ask me I’d stick with the train.

If you’re kind of in a hurry or you don’t like using buses or trains, then taking a flight from Luxor to Aswan would be the optimum choice for you.

Weather in Aswan Egypt

The Weather in Aswan Egypt might be a little hot in the summer for some of you reaching peaks of 42/45 Degrees in June and July.

But in the winter, Aswan is perfect the weather usually reaches a peak of 20-22 Degrees in the day and 13-16 in the night.

A Flexible Itinerary

Day 1: Drop your bags in the hostel, Have lunch/Breakfast on the Nile, Take a boat ride, and explore the town at night.

Day 2: Take a Day trip to Abu Simbel.

Day 3: Visit the unfinished Obelisk, Nubian Museum, and Philae Temple.

Day 4: Visit the High Dam, botanical gardens, Nubian Village.

Day 5: Take a boat trip to Komombo.

Day 6: Reach Komombo, Visit the temple of Komombo, Go to Edfu from Komombo, Visit the temple of Horus, head to your next destination.

If you’re staying in Aswan for a shorter duration and you want to know which days should you prioritize don’t worry I got you: 

Day 3 > Day 2 > Day 5 > Day 4 > Day 6 > Day 1. 

That’s it for this guide guys. This guide really took a lot of effort so if it was helpful just make sure to share it with your travel buddies and let me know when you’re going to Aswan Egypt in the comment section down below! You can also share it on Pinterest just use the pin down below.