Best time to visit Egypt: month by month for Luxor and Aswan

The short answer

October to April is the comfortable half of the year in Luxor and Aswan. Days are warm, evenings are cool, and you can stand in a temple at noon without suffering.

May to September is hot, and it is also the cheapest and the quietest. Cruises still run every week. You see the sites early and spend the afternoon on the sun deck.

There is no wet season and no month when the river closes. The only thing that really changes is the heat, the price and how many people are standing in front of you.

Month by month in Luxor

Average daytime highs. Upper Egypt is dry all year, so rain is not a factor in the way it is almost anywhere else.

Jan23°

Feb25°

Mar30°

Apr35°

May39°

Jun41°

Jul42°

Aug41°

Sep39°

Oct36°

Nov29°

Dec24°

Luxor daytime highs. Blue months are the cool half of the year, orange the shoulder, red the hot months.

Month	Luxor		Aswan		What it is like
Month	Day	Night	Day	Night	What it is like
January	23°	7°	23°	10°	The coolest month and the busiest on the river. Bright dry days, evenings that need a jacket on deck.
February	25°	9°	26°	11°	The same weather with a little more daylight. Cool enough to walk the West Bank at any hour.
March	30°	13°	30°	15°	Warm rather than hot, and one of the most popular months to sail.
April	35°	17°	35°	20°	Hot by midday, comfortable at eight in the morning. The last of the mild months.
May	39°	22°	40°	25°	Properly hot. Sites early, then the pool. Prices begin to come down.
June	41°	25°	42°	27°	The quiet half of the year starts. Temples almost empty at opening time.
July	42°	26°	42°	28°	The hottest stretch and the cheapest. Dry heat, not humid.
August	41°	26°	42°	28°	The same heat. Families on school holidays make up most of the boats.
September	39°	23°	40°	26°	Still hot, easing in the last week or two.
October	36°	20°	36°	22°	The turn of the season. Warm days, comfortable mornings, the river filling again.
November	29°	13°	30°	16°	One of the best months of the year on the Nile, and busy for exactly that reason.
December	24°	9°	24°	11°	Cool and clear. Christmas and New Year are the two busiest weeks of the year.

Averages, rounded. Aswan sits 200 km further south and runs one to two degrees hotter than Luxor in every month.

The best months for a Nile cruise

Nov to FebFor comfortWarm days, cool nights, every site walkable at any hour. Book earlier, the good ships fill.

Mar, Apr, OctFor the balanceHot at midday, pleasant the rest of the time, fewer people than midwinter.

May to SepFor price and quietThe lowest prices of the year and the emptiest temples, if you can handle the heat.

The best month for a Nile cruise

If somebody asks us for one month, we say November. The heat has gone, the light is at its best for photographs, the river is full without being crowded, and the ships are running their full schedule.

If the budget matters more than the thermometer, we say June. The same temples, the same guiding, a much lower price, and you will share Karnak with almost nobody at eight in the morning.

Christmas and New Year are the two busiest weeks of the year on the river. The boats fill, the temples are full by mid morning and the best ships go first, so if that is when you can travel, book it early rather than late. It is a good time to be here, it just rewards planning.

A few practical things

What the heat actually means on a cruise

A Nile cruise handles the summer better than a land tour does. You are out at seven or eight in the morning while it is still bearable, and back on an air conditioned ship with a pool before the worst of the day. The sites you walk furthest at, the Valley of the Kings and Karnak, are done first.

Evenings and what to bring

From November to February the temperature drops sharply once the sun goes down, and the sun deck gets cold while the ship is moving. A jumper or a light jacket is worth packing even when the daytime reads 24 degrees.

Rain and wind

Rain in Luxor and Aswan is rare enough that it is not worth planning around. Wind matters more: a sandy wind for a day or two in spring can flatten the light, and it passes.

Ramadan, Eid and the Egyptian calendar

Egypt runs on two calendars at once. Everyday life, flights and cruise schedules use the Gregorian year you already know. The religious holidays follow the Hijri calendar, which is lunar, and a lunar year is about eleven days shorter than a solar one. That is why Ramadan and the two Eids move earlier by roughly eleven days every year rather than falling on a fixed date.

Ramadan 2027Expected to begin around 8 or 9 February and run for 29 or 30 days

Eid al-Fitr 2027Around 10 March, the three days that end Ramadan

Ramadan 2028Expected to begin around 29 January

The exact day is confirmed by the sighting of the crescent moon, so it can shift by a day either way. For a year we have not listed, count back about eleven days from the year before, or check the Hijri date for 1 Ramadan.

What it means for a cruise

Very little. Temples, tombs and museums keep their normal hours, the ships sail on their normal days, and the food on board is served as usual. In the towns some restaurants close during daylight and the streets are quiet in the afternoon, then busy and cheerful after sunset. The two Eids are the Egyptian holidays proper: domestic travel is heavy and the sites are full of Egyptian families, which is a good thing to see and a reason to be at the Valley of the Kings early.

Questions we get asked

What is the best month to visit Egypt?

November, if you want one answer. Warm days, cool evenings, clear light for photographs, and every ship running its full schedule. February and March are close behind.

What is the best month for a Nile cruise specifically?

The same answer, with one addition: the cruise itself handles heat better than a land tour does, so the summer months are more viable on the river than they are in Cairo. June to September is a real option, not a compromise.

Is Egypt too hot in summer?

July and August average 42 degrees in Luxor and Aswan. It is dry heat rather than humid, and on a cruise you are out at seven or eight in the morning and back on an air conditioned ship with a pool before the worst of the day. Plenty of people choose those months on purpose.

When is a Nile cruise cheapest?

May to September. The same ships, the same programme and the same guiding cost noticeably less than the same week in December.

When is the busiest time?

Christmas and New Year, then January and February. If you are travelling then, book the ship well ahead rather than a few weeks out, because the better boats go first.

Does it rain in Luxor or Aswan?

Almost never. Upper Egypt is dry all year and a wet day is something people remember. You do not need to plan around rain.

How cold does it get at night in winter?

Luxor drops to around 7 to 9 degrees on a January night and Aswan a couple of degrees warmer. The cabins are heated, but the sun deck is cold once the ship is moving, so bring a jumper.

Do Nile cruises run all year?

Yes. Ships leave Luxor and Aswan every week of the year. Nothing sails on a Tuesday or a Sunday, whatever the month.

Is it worth visiting during Ramadan?

Yes. Temples, tombs and museums keep normal hours and cruises run as usual. Some restaurants in town close during daylight, and the streets are quiet in the afternoon and busy after sunset. If you are curious about Egyptian life, it is one of the more interesting times to be here.

How many days do I need?

Three or four nights covers the whole route between Luxor and Aswan. A week on the river suits people who would rather not see a temple every morning. Adding Cairo takes it to six or seven days.

Is the Nile too low or too high at any time of year?

No. The river has been controlled by the dam since 1970, so the level is steady all year and sailings are not affected by the old flood season.

What should I wear?

Light, loose, covering clothes work in every month, both for the sun and out of respect at the sites. Add a hat and proper shoes for the Valley of the Kings, and a jacket for winter evenings.

Know your month?

See which ships sail on the day you land, and what they cost.

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