How to get to Abu Simbel from Aswan? Practical guide Egypt
By bus
There are 2 buses leaving Aswan for Abu Simbel: around 4am and around 7am. Contact your hotel directly. I have been given a rate around 250-300 pounds per person for the round trip . The 4h bus is taken by tourists. The 7h bus is taken by the locals (there are some who smoke inside) and our guide does not recommend it. The return is a few hours later, in the same day (in this case at 9 am for the bus which leaves at 4 am).
It is possible, for those who want to sleep in Abu Simbel, to book a bus for the outward journey (around 4am), and to book the bus back the next day (9am the next day).
On excursion
If you wish to book a group excursion with a French-speaking guide, you can book it here for 73€ per person. The bus leaves at 4 am, and the tour lasts 2 hours, and the bus returns to Aswan the same day.
With a private driver
Before the journey was considered risky and everything was done in a military convoy. Now it is no longer the case so to leave after 7 am you need a private driver like us. The only condition is to arrive before sunset so departure from Aswan at 2pm. You can contact Mohamed from our Egyptian agency who can arrange a private car & guide for you (his contact details are available at the end of this article). However, I have no idea how much it will cost as we paid for a package including Cairo.
By airplane
There is also a flight leaving Aswan at 11:55am to Abu Simbel (count 50€ – there isn’t one every day) and a return flight at 8:10am (which I don’t recommend as you won’t have enough time to visit the temples).
Travel authorization
Be careful, do not expect to show up in Aswan and leave for Abu Simbel in the day. It is necessary to book at least one day in advance, to do the paperwork, ask for authorization etc… I recommend you to contact your hotel in Aswan and ask them to book the bus for you. Don’t forget to send them a photocopy of your passport beforehand. If you take the plane, you don’t need to declare anything to the police 😀
I strongly recommend you to spend a night in Abu Simbel to witness the sound and light + visit the temples very early in the morning like us. You’ll see, it’s incredible. Hotel Nefertari (link Booking ) is only 5 minutes walk from the temples.
