Private Tour: Philae Temple, Aswan High Dam and Unfinished Obelisk

Take a private tour to explore three of Aswan most popular and well known sites. Walk on the High Dam which separates Lake Nasser from the Nile, be astounded at the size of the Unfinished Obelisk, and enjoy the beauty of Philae Temple's island location.

Depart your Aswan hotel or cruise ship and travel to the High Dam of Aswan, an engineering miracle when it was built in the 1960s. Containing more material than used in the Great Pyramid of Cheops, the Dam is 11,811 ft long, 3215 ft thick at the base, 364 ft tall and is carved into from the existing granite, providing irrigation and electricity for the whole of Egypt. From the top of the High Dam you can gaze across Lake Nasser to Kalabsha temple in the south and the huge power station to the north.

Continue to the Unfinished Obelisk in the granite quarries of Aswan where much of the red granite used for ancient temples and colossi came from. The Unfinished Obelisk still lies where it was carved when a crack was discovered as it was being hewn from the rock. Your qualified Egyptologist guide will explain how the 1 tonne obelisk was carved, and why the crack caused it to be abandoned.

The last of the 3 famous Aswan sites you will see today is generally regarded as the best. Philae Temple was carefully moved to its current location (around 500 meters from the original site) when the construction of the High Dam caused surrounding Nile waters to rise. A short motorboat ride takes you to the island where your guide will take you on a walking tour through the temple before allowing you free time to explore further on your own.

Dedicated to the goddess Isis, Philae Temple has a beautiful setting on an island in the river which has been landscaped to match its original site. It's various shrines and sanctuaries celebrate the deities involved in the myth of Isis and Osiris.

This is a private tour allowing you to determine the amount of time spent at each of the sites during the tour.