Twelve days across Egypt, built around five and a half minutes in the dark.

On 2 August 2027 the Moon's shadow crosses the Western Desert. We watch from Siwa — eight hours west of the coast, near the Libyan border, and reachable that morning only the way we're doing it: a private charter in for the day. Luxor gets slightly more totality and will get tens of thousands of people with it. We hold a private viewing site above the oasis, forty travellers, and the horizon to ourselves.

The eleven days before it are the country properly done: the Pyramids of Giza and the Grand Egyptian Museum, Philae at Aswan, Abu Simbel, Karnak and the Valley of the Kings, a balloon over the west bank at sunrise, and the Citadel and old bazaars of Cairo. The eclipse lands at the end, not the start, so everything builds toward it.

Forty travellers. One guide with you throughout. Then, for five and a half minutes, the corona comes out over the Great Sand Sea and nobody says anything at all.

A short walk off the plane, before you reach customs, someone is holding a Travel With Amen Ra sign. They take care of the visa queue and walk you out to your car.

You're on Gezira Island at the Novotel El Borg, the Nile on both sides and Zamalek a walk away. Your driver and your Egyptologist guide are with you for the whole twelve days. If you've landed early enough, we'll put you on a felucca for the sunset.

A morning flight south to Aswan — an hour in the air, and the country changes underneath you: the desert opens out, then the Nile narrows to a hard green line through it.

In the afternoon, a short boat out to Philae. The temple of Isis stood on an island the old dam left half-drowned for most of the year, so in the 1970s it was cut into forty thousand blocks and rebuilt on higher ground, stone for stone. You can still see the waterline on the columns, and the graffiti Napoleon's soldiers left on them.

Tonight at the Obelisk Nile Hotel, on the water at Aswan — the gentlest city in Egypt, and a deliberate change of pace before Abu Simbel tomorrow.

The day begins with a trip to the Abu Simbel Temples in Aswan, where colossal statues of Ramses II rise from the mountainside. Visitors can walk through the grand interiors and examine the intricate hieroglyphics that tell stories of ancient Egypt. After exploring the temples, take a moment to unwind at a nearby café and reflect on the scale of this remarkable site.

The shuttle ride from Aswan to Luxor takes about 3.5 hours along the Nile, offering views of the riverbanks and local life. Upon arrival, visit Edfu to see the Temple of Horus, known for its massive stone walls and intricate hieroglyphics. In the evening, check in at a luxury hotel in Luxor for a restful stay.

Your alarm goes before dawn. You lift off over the west bank as the sun comes up — the river, the green strip of farmland along it, and the desert beyond, in the still air that only exists at that hour.

Back on the ground for breakfast, then Karnak: less a temple than a city of them, added to by successive pharaohs for two thousand years. The hypostyle hall alone runs to a hundred and thirty-four columns, the tallest twenty-one metres. Shuttles run you between the sites, and the afternoon stays slow — Luxor in August rewards an early start and a long lunch.

The west bank today. The Valley of the Kings, where the tombs run deep into the rock and the painted ceilings are still bright three thousand years on; the Valley of the Queens beside it; and Hatshepsut's mortuary temple rising in terraces against the cliff behind.

Which tombs are open rotates — they're closed and rested to protect the paint — so your guide will pick the best of what's accessible on the day. Another night at the Farida Palace.

A late-morning flight back north to Cairo, the Nile valley unspooling beneath you the whole way — the same green thread you've been following on the ground for the last five days, finally visible end to end.

Back at the Novotel Cairo El Borg on Gezira Island for the rest of the trip. Nothing scheduled this afternoon: you've had six days of early starts and there's an eclipse coming.

Begin the day at Giza, home to the Great Pyramids and the Sphinx, which showcase ancient engineering. Explore the tombs with a guided tour and enjoy a camel ride for a unique perspective of these monumental structures. Afterward, visit the Grand Egyptian Museum to see an extensive collection of artifacts, including treasures from King Tutankhamun, and engage in interactive workshops that highlight ancient history.

Begin the day at Salah El Din Citadel, exploring its vast grounds and multiple museums. The Mosque of Muhammad Ali stands out with its striking architecture and views over Cairo. Afterward, visit El Hussein Bazaar, a busy market with narrow streets where you can shop for Egyptian souvenirs and antiques amid the lively atmosphere.

Nothing scheduled. You've had eight days of sites and there's an eclipse the day after tomorrow, so this one is deliberately empty.

The hotel is on Gezira Island, so Zamalek's cafés and bookshops are a walk away, and the Corniche is right there for the evening. If you'd rather fill it, your guide can arrange whatever you've been eyeing — a felucca hour, the Coptic quarter, a cooking class, the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir for the things the new museum didn't take. Otherwise: rest. Tomorrow is a long one.

Eclipse day. A private charter takes the group west from Cairo to Siwa in the morning — a couple of hours over open desert to an oasis near the Libyan border, and well clear of the crowds that will fill Luxor.

We hold a private viewing site above the oasis for the day: food and refreshments, shade, and a clear horizon in every direction. Ramy plays records through the early afternoon. Then, at around 3pm, everything stops — roughly five and a half minutes of totality over the Great Sand Sea, with the corona out and the horizon glowing on all sides. Afterwards the party starts again and runs until it's time for the airstrip.

We're still finalising the programme for the day and will confirm the details closer to the date. What's fixed is the part that matters: the site, the location, and the fact that you'll be standing under it well away from anyone else.

Breakfast, and a private car to Cairo International whenever your flight goes. If you're leaving late we'll hold your bags rather than have you sit in a terminal — the Egyptian Museum and Zamalek are both close, and twelve days in you'll know what you want a last hour for.

You go home having seen the country end to end and stood under a total eclipse in the Western Desert. Not many people can say the second part.