Ancient Splendours of Greece & Egypt

This 11-day itinerary combining history and archaeology will take you from Jordan to Greece. During your cruise, Le Lapérouse will visit several unmissable sites between the Red Sea and the Mediterranean Sea.

Throughout your journey, you will benefit from an excursion included per person per port of call, to choose from a selection offered by PONANT. During this cruise, admire the verdant landscapes and discover the ancestral history of the picture-postcard villages of Naoussa and Lefkes from Paros, or discover the monastery of Saint John and the Cave of the Apocalypse where the last book of the New Testament was revealed to John the Apostle,from Patmos. The diversity of experiences on offer promises you intense and varied moments (to discover the full range of excursions, go to the itinerary tab).

After your embarkation in Aqaba, Jordan's only port, you will reach Ain Soukhna, the gateway to the Great Pyramids of Egypt.

You will cross the world-famous Suez Canal, built by Ferdinand de Lesseps and widened recently to facilitate trade. You will then join Rhodes, whose old medieval town, built by the Knights of St John, is surrounded by ramparts. It is the largest of the Dodecanese islands and was once home to one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World: its famous Colossus. 

Le Lapérouse will then take you to Patmos, also known as the 'Jerusalem of the Aegean Sea', this divine island where Saint John is said to have received his visions features unique landscapes that blend long white beaches with rocky coves.

You will discover Delos, a minuscule island in the Cyclades archipelago. According to mythology, Apollo was born here. Like an open-air museum, Delos offers unique testimony of the civilisations that followed one another in the Aegean world.

Next comes Mykonos, its beaches and windmills, with Alefkandra, a district that is typical of the island, with houses built right on the water's edge.

Le Lapérouse will then head towards Paros. Nestling in the heart of the Cyclades archipelago, this island reputed for its sublime white marble offers a real concentration of Greek beauty, from whitewashed houses to olive groves to ancient monuments.

Le Lapérouse will finally set sail to the charming town of Nafplion, the departure point for visiting the famous Epidaurus Theatre and the Mycenae site, listed as World Heritage Sites by UNESCO.

Your cruise will end in Athens, the mythical city dominated by the Acropolis and its monuments that form the most extraordinary architectural and artistic collection bequeathed by Ancient Greece to the rest of the world.