Cox & Kings Cox MIDDLE EAST North Africa • Central Asia • The Gulf 2018-19 Group Tours & Tailor-Made Travel Middle East • 2018-19 • East Middle MIDDLE EAST Inspiring Travel for 260 Years Why entrust your holiday to Cox & Kings? • Our extraordinary heritage – In an age that has witnessed an explosion in the popularity of travel, when new travel founded in 1758 companies appear and disappear with bewildering frequency, Cox & Kings is, above all else, • Award-winning holidays a travel company you can trust. Our experience, knowledge, service and business ethics are all underpinned by 260 years of heritage. • Big company value & small company service Cox & Kings’ illustrious history is extraordinary, not just in its longevity but in how it has • The expert advice of your reinvented itself as the world around it has changed. You can read more about our personal tour consultant company’s story online at CoxandKings.co.uk/history. • Equal expertise at organising small group tours and private A common strand running through the entire history is the spirit of innovation, which has tailor-made travel remained a driving force for the business to this day. Our company may be old but it’s • The best guides to bring a full of youthful energy. destination to life I am proud that we continue to build on the tradition of high quality service, attention to detail and innovation that made Richard Cox so successful 260 years ago. I very much hope What we offer to the that this brochure will inspire and that you will entrust your next adventure to Cox & Kings. Middle East • Private tailored travel • Small group tours • Special group tours for Solo Travellers • Expert-led Arts & Culture tours • Family Adventures Peter Kerkar Managing Director • Luxury train journeys • Serene river cruises • Stylish tented camps Design & production: Cox & Kings Travel Ltd Printing: Henry Stone Photography: iStock, Shutterstock, Bigstock, Alamy, Cox & Kings Travel Ltd, Robert Harding t 020 3930 5211 e [email protected] w CoxandKings.co.uk Tashkent UZBEKISTAN ISRAEL & THE OPT Tehran Rabat Jerusalem Amman IRAN MOROCCO Cairo JORDAN EGYPT Muscat OMAN Contents by Region Small Group Tours 6 Introduction Morocco Group tours • Private & tailor-made travel • 16 Moroccan Explorer: Imperial Cities to Desert Family Adventures Superior tour • 10 Days & 9 Nights 10 Morocco 18 Mystical Marrakech Small group tours • Solo Travellers tours • Arts & Culture tours • Family Adventures • Solo Travellers tour • Superior tour • 5 Days & 4 Nights Private tailor-made travel 20 Kasbahs, Palaces & the Sahara 28 Egypt Arts & Culture tour • Standard tour • 12 Days & 11 Nights Private tailor-made travel • River cruises Jordan 46 Jordan 52 Splendours of Jordan Small group tours • Solo Travellers tours • Superior tour • 8 Days & 7 Nights Arts & Culture tours • Private tailor-made travel 56 Treasures of Jordan 64 Israel & the OPT Solo Travellers tour • Superior tour • 8 Days & 7 Nights Private tailor-made travel 70 Iran 58 Crusaders, Traders & Raiders Small group tours • Solo Travellers tours • Arts & Culture tour • Superior tour • 8 Days & 7 Nights Arts & Culture tours • Rail journeys • Private tailor-made travel Iran 88 Uzbekistan & Beyond 74 Treasures of Persia Small group tours • Arts & Culture tours • Standard tour • 11 Days & 9 Nights Rail journeys • Private tailor-made travel 76 Persian Odyssey 100 Oman Solo Travellers tour • Standard tour • 11 Days & 9 Nights Small group tours • Family Adventures • Private tailor-made travel 78 Persian Palaces & Gardens Arts & Culture tour • Standard tour • 15 Days & 13 Nights 114 Important Information Booking conditions • Travel insurance • Details on travel in the Middle East • Documents & health • Airline upgrades Uzbekistan 92 Heart of Central Asia 122 Cox & Kings Holidays Explained Discovery tour • 12 Days & 10 Nights Tour categories • Accommodation ratings • Our prices 94 The Golden Road to Samarkand Arts & Culture tour • Standard tour • 12 Days & 10 Nights Oman 106 An Arabian Odyssey Superior tour • 9 Days & 8 Nights Find out more at CoxandKings.co.uk or from your travel agent 5 Escorted Group Tours Designed by Experts • Small Group Sizes • All Entrance Fees Included • Arts & Culture Tours We keep our groups compact and manageable, All sightseeing entrance fees included where This brochure includes a selection of expert- with an average group size of 14 and a maximum possible as well as local taxes. accompanied tours, designed for all art of 26 (a maximum of 18 for Solo Travellers tours). enthusiasts (see page 122 for further details). • Balanced Pace • Local Tour Managers Opportunities to relax or explore independently • 24-Hour Emergency Support We employ local tour managers for their in-depth are built into most tours. While you are away you will have 24-hour phone knowledge of the places, people and culture, numbers for both our local representatives and which in turn supports the local community. • Tailored to You our UK emergency phone. We are delighted to organise extensions before • Excellent Value for Money or after your tour, as well as room and flight • Full Holiday Protection For those seeking a premium touring experience, upgrades. We are members of AITO and ABTA, our air comparing all inclusions, Cox & Kings tours offer holidays are fully ATOL protected and we follow superb value for money. • Flight Flexibility British Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) Flights are included as standard with the option advice regarding destination safety (see page • High Quality Accommodation to choose an alternative airline (where available), 118 for details). We take great care in our selection of add regional flights or join the tour on a land-only accommodation. Typically, we feature basis. Please see page 5 for a list of all the group well-located, 4- and 5-star character hotels. tours featured in this brochure. If you would • Solo Travellers Tours like to find out more about how our holidays • C&K Signature Experiences This brochure includes a selection of tours operate, please refer to Cox & Kings Holidays Each tour includes a number of exceptional specially created for individual travellers (see page Explained on pages 122-123 of this brochure. experiences, revealing hidden wonders and 122 for further details). cultural secrets. 6 Contact us on 020 3930 5211 or [email protected] Private Travel Tailored for You • 100% Flexibility as many questions as you like, based on your create an itinerary to suit the particular interests, All our itineraries can be tailored to suit your needs, particular interests. dates and budget of the group. or we can create an itinerary for you entirely from scratch, no matter how complex your requirements. • C&K Signature Experiences • 24-Hour Emergency Support From market tours and cooking classes to While you are away you will have 24-hour phone • Planned by Experts helicopter rides and glacier hikes, we can arrange a numbers for both our local representatives and our Throughout the planning process you will be whole variety of experiences. UK emergency phone. guided by your personal tour consultant, who will design an itinerary around your particular interests • Wide Choice of Accommodation • Full Holiday Protection and requirements. Whether it’s a sophisticated city centre hotel or a We are members of AITO and ABTA, our air ‘back-to-nature’ wilderness lodge, we can cater to holidays are fully ATOL protected and we follow • Support on the Ground all tastes and a range of budgets. British Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) At each new destination on your journey, you will advice regarding destination safety (see page be welcomed by a Cox & Kings representative who • Multi-Country Itineraries 118 for details). will accompany you to your hotel and ensure you We are experts at combining multiple countries in are happy with all the arrangements. a single journey. If you would like to find out more about how our holidays operate, please refer to Cox & Kings • Private Car Travel • Family Holidays Holidays Explained on pages 122-123 of this For road journeys, you will typically be driven by We arrange seamless itineraries that include brochure. There is also a wealth of additional private car, allowing the flexibility to make stops en experiences to inspire older and younger information about the countries featured in this route. Where suitable, we can arrange car hire. generations alike. brochure in Middle East sections of our website, reached via the ‘Destinations’ link. Please visit • Private Guides • Private Groups CoxandKings.co.uk An English-speaking local guide will accompany If you are a member of a club, society or simply a most sightseeing excursions, so you can ask group of friends with a common interest, we can Find out more at CoxandKings.co.uk or from your travel agent 7 INTRODUCTION Family Adventures Inspiring Travel for Generations Cox & Kings family holidays are specially created for families seeking adventure and discovery without compromising on comfort and peace of mind. All families are unique, so the ideas we have put together in our family adventures range are intended purely as suggestions – our specialist tour consultants are experts in designing holidays completely tailored to your family’s interests, different ages and varying spirit of adventure. We do not specialise in resort-based, kids-club type holidays. Instead, we create inspiring itineraries to enable family members of all generations to get out into the world, experiencing its countless wonders together and collecting enduring memories. In this brochure we have included some ideas for adventures in the Middle East. However, to see a full list of all our suggestions please visit CoxandKings.co.uk/family. Desert safari, Wadi Rum, Jordan • Trusted for generations broaden children’s horizons before they fly the by day, coupled with stylish and comfortable Cox & Kings’ extraordinary longevity is no nest; to take grown-up offspring on the kind accommodation in which to relax and enjoy accident; the company has served many roles of trip they may not be able to afford on their the eye-closing time at night.