Carnival in Brazil

Carnaval 2009 in Rio de Janeiro (6 Days, 5 Nights)
Welcome to the Greatest Show on Earth!

The world’s biggest and most glamorous party is held annually in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil for those lucky enough to go!

Now, you have the chance through this special package tour to view and enjoy one of the world’s greatest events!

Besides the carnival high point of the parades held at the Sambadromo, there are the fascinating street parades, bands in the streets and in the music halls, elaborate costumes, and fun and exuberant fanfare for all locals and visitors alike!

Carnival street celebrations are one of the most common features of this centuries old tradition.

If you wish to see or participate in one of the world’s biggest and most sought after events, sign-up now, as the fun, the excitement, as well as the seats and places are always limited to a lucky few!

DAY 1 – February 19th

Departure from United States for Brazil!

DAY 2 – February 20th

Welcome to the International Airport of Rio de Janeiro where you will be greeted by your local guide and transferred to your hotel. After an orientation brief, you will be given the rest of the day free for your leisure.

You will be to walk along the beach, do some shopping of handcraft items in one of the local markets or shops, or just relax in the exotic and fabulous atmosphere that is Rio de Janeiro.

Overnight at your chosen hotel.

DAY 3 – February 21st

Today is the first official day of Carnival!

After an enjoyable breakfast, you will delight in a morning, panoramic city tour, passing by the Maracana (soccer stadium), the Sambódromo (where the samba schools parade during carnival), the São Sebastião Cathedral, Cinelandia Square and Flamengo Park. Proceeding to the enchanting Urca district, we will ride the cable car up to Sugar Loaf for a spectacular view of the city and its dozens
of beaches. Rest of the day free for personal activities.

During the afternoon you can enjoy an explosion of colors and happiness, with the street block parties, where you will find the true Carioca Carnival Spirit!” You can start with Sa Ferreira street band near your hotel or the Carlinhos de Jesus street block party, led by a famous dancer and teacher, in the Botafogo district. Your guide will let you know where everything is and how you can take advantage of it all!

At night, go to the Copacabana Palace Hotel and participate in its Luxury Ball full of exotic charm, fantasy and sophistication. Costumes or tuxedo is required. If you have interest, please contact us as tickets are available only upon pre-request.

Overnight at your chosen hotel.

DAY 4 – February 22nd

After a hearty buffet breakfast the day, you will embark on your way to see the stupendous Sugar Loaf Mountains. Located in the heart of the city, these two mountains are reached on suspended air car and give you the best views possible of the Guanabara Bay and the strip at Copacabana.

It’s amazing! In the afternoon, you will be free to explore more of Rio. Rio is full of parks, eco-activities, shopping, or opportunities for just relaxing and taking in the old colonial charms of the city.

Tonight however, you will want to think Brazilian Samba!!!!! This is the first night of the Samba Schools Parade for a Special Group and it is really worthwhile for you to go and enjoy it!

DAY 5 – February 23rd

After a delicious tropical buffet breakfast, you will be free to explore some of the city’s most vibrant beaches and enchanting sea-side board-walks. Shops, Restaurants, Boutiques, and Jewelers combine for a fun day in the city that never sleeps.

During the afternoon, the street bands continue making their wonderful music at various parties throughout the city. In Copacabana, around 4:00pm, you can join the street band Banda da Sá Ferreira and have a great time throughout the evening.

The fun and fantasy continues at the second night of the Samba Schools Parade or the Skol Ball at the Scala. Bring your dancing shoes and plenty of energy!

Overnight at your chosen hotel.

DAY 6 – February 24th

After a heart break tropical breakfast, the day is yours for more exotic leisure. Your guide however will be happy to assist you in selecting various options for the day as there are so many fun and exciting this to do in and around the city of Rio!

There are also more street bands performing through the districts of Copacabana and Ipanema all afternoon. If you like walking, you can go from one street party to another in your neighborhood and make brief stops for refreshments and snacks.

At night you have a choice of various balls and parties, the main one is the Unique Scala Gay in the Leblon district. Undoubtedly this is the most fashionable ball of Rio! Overnight at your chosen hotel.

DAY 7 – February 25th

After your amazing tropical breakfast, and some free time transfer to the International airport for your afternoon or evening return flight…you will be exhausted probably but you will always remember your Carnival experience in fabulous Rio de Janeiro!!!

Prices are based upon double occupancy: $1,549 per person + airfare

Itinerary Includes:

• 5 night´s accommodation at the 4 star **** Astoria Palace Hotel, with full
  buffet breakfast. Mandatory stay package included from February 20-25 February,
  2009. Hotel located in Copacabana and on the Ocean front.
• Transfers to/from hotel, with air-conditioned vehicles. (Driver assistance)
• HD Sightseeing Tour Sugar Loaf (no lunch) SIB HD Corcovado/Christ Statue (no lunch) SIB
• Sightseeing transfers to/from the Samba Schools Parade with one Grandstand ticket to the
• Carnival Show at the Sambadrome! Sector 2 or 3.

Hotel and Carnival seating upgrades available upon request.

Creating vacations you’ll remember for a life time.

This just one of the Brazil’s Carnival tour packages. Contact one of our Brazil specialist and find the right Carnival tour package for you.

The Nile

Few places arouse more fascination and curiosity than Egypt, one of the world´s oldest civilizations, with a recorded history of more than 5,000 years.

Flowing through the country´s desert, the great Nile River has supported large populations along its lush, fertile banks since the beginning of time.

Greek historian Herodotus wrote nearly 2,500 years ago that Egypt is the gift of the Nile, its existence depending solely upon the mighty waters. Despite its distinction as the kingdom of the Pharaohs, Egypt also conceals a remarkable Christian heritage; discover it firsthand when you visit St. Catherine’s Monastery in the Sinai Desert.

Then looking deeper into antiquity at Jordan´s Petra, the rose-red rock city that lay hidden from the world for more than 1,000 years.

Your journey concludes with a relaxing stay along the scenic shores of the Dead Sea, which includes a visit to ancient Jerash, a remarkably preserved city often labeled the Pompeii of the East. Explore it all Egypt and Jordan, by private chartered plane!

Your itinerary will include:

• All flights within Egypt and to Jordan by private chartered plane
• Deluxe accommodations at the Mena House Oberoi Hotel (3 Nights); Grand Hyatt Hotel (2 Nights); Petra Movenpick Hotel (2 Nights); and Jordan Valley Marriott Resort & Spa (2 Nights)
• Four nights aboard the River Deluxe-Plus Oberoi Philae in outside staterooms with lower beds, individual temperature controls, private bath facilities, and balconies
• All sightseeing and shore excursions
• 12 breakfasts, 9 lunches, and 8 dinners, including all meals during the cruise and these special events: Cairo welcome reception and dinner, Egyptian dinner and costumed galabia party on board ship, and farewell dinner at the Dead Sea
• Egyptologist and other experts throughout Egypt and Jordan, enhancing your enjoyment of the areas visited
• Professional travel director
• Exclusive concierge service and hospitality desks
• All overseas airport/hotel/ship transfers for air passengers traveling on scheduled dates of departure and return, including tips to hotel/ship porters for luggage handling
• Full pretrip information and assistance

Daily activities
Day 1 Depart U.S.A.

Day 2 Cairo/Giza, Egypt
Evening brings you to Cairo, located at the mouth of the Nile River delta. Upon arrival, transfer to Giza and the Mena House Oberoi Hotel, where you´ll have dramatic views of the Great Pyramid of Cheops.

Day 3 Cairo/Giza
The last remaining of the original Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, the Giza Pyramids are the only vestiges from that time to survive in their original form. Also view the Sun Boat, the well preserved, wooden funeral boat that carried Cheops body from Memphis to Giza.

If you choose, even ride a camel during the tour. Tonight, gather for a welcome reception, dinner, and folkloric show at Rubayyat Restaurant.

Day 4 Cairo/Giza
Journey to Egypt´s ancient capital of Memphis” site of the enormous, limestone colossus of a young Pharaoh Ramses II and the alabaster sphinx. Continue to Sakkara to see the Step Pyramid Complex of King Zoser.

After a barbecue lunch and relaxing afternoon, join us under the star-filled Egyptian sky for a sound and laser light show at the Pyramids.

Day 5 Abu Simbel/Aswan (Embark)
Our chartered private plane takes you to the magnificent Temple of Abu Simbel, carved from the side of a sandstone cliff more than 3,000 years ago in honor of Ramses II.

Also visit the site’s smaller temple, dedicated to Nefertari, Ramses II´s favorite wife. Next, continue by private plane to Aswan gateway to the Nubian Desert and the Sudan, and also site of the great High Dam constructed to harness the power of the Nile.

Upon arrival, transfer to the River Deluxe-Plus Oberoi Philae for your four-night cruise. Late this afternoon, enjoy a short jaunt aboard an Egyptian felucca.

Day 6 Aswan/Cruising the Nile/Kom Ombo
This morning, see the High Dam and visit the Temple of Isis at Philae. At the nearby granite quarry, where the Pyramids´ building blocks were excavated, also view the 1,320- ton, 137-foot-high unfinished obelisk.

Return to the Oberoi Philae and begin your cruise to Kom Ombo the strategic point on the ancient desert route to Nubia and Ethiopia.

Though much of the town´s Greco-Roman temple has fallen, its aesthetic proportions are still quite evident today.

Enjoy an Egyptian dinner and costumed galabia (a long, loose Egyptian garment) party this evening.

Day 7 Edfu/Cruising the Nile/Luxor
The ancient Greeks called the site of Edfu Apollonopolis,  after Apollo (or Horus, the Egyptian god of light).

The nearly intact Temple of Horus is one of Egypt’s finest examples of Ptolemaic art. Next, cruise a bit farther downstream to Luxor, on the Nile’s East bank at the site of ancient Thebes, where the ship will dock for the night.

Day 8 Luxor
A morning West Bank tour takes you across the Nile to the remote Valley of the Kings, site of the Tomb of King Tutankhamen. Sixty-four of Egypt’s rulers were buried here in ornate subterranean

chambers. Also visit the Valley of the Nobles. And, finally, marvel at the Colossi of Memnon two giant statues that once stood watch over the funerary temple of Amenophis III. This afternoon, explore the massive temples of Karnak and Luxor, surprisingly well-preserved. Enter the Hypostle Hall, reputedly the largest hall of any temple in the world, before reaching nearby Luxor Temple.

Day 9 Luxor (Disembark)/St. Catherine’s Monastery/ Cairo

Disembark the Oberoi Philae for your flight by chartered private plane to the heart of the Sinai Desert and St. Catherine’s Monastery.

According to religious tradition, it was here that Moses saw the Burning Bush and received the Ten Commandments.

Examine the collection of priceless icons and hanging lamps in the Chapel of the Burning Bush. Reboard the private plane and return to Cairo, where you´ll enjoy a Nile-view room at the Grand Hyatt Hotel, located nearby the Egyptian Antiquities Museum.

Day 10 Cairo
Discover Old Cairo during a tour that includes the Muhammad Ali Mosque, which commands a complete view of Cairo, the Nile and, in the far distance, the Giza Pyramids. Continue to colorful Khan el-Khalili Bazaar and delight in a lunch of local specialties at Naguib Mahfouz Restaurant.

Later, visit the renowned Egyptian Antiquities Museum. Included as part of your guided tour are the treasures from the tomb of the boy-king Tutankhamen and entrance into the Royal Mummies Room.

Day 11 Petra, Jordan
Fly by chartered private plane to Al Aqabah, Jordan, and drive to Petra the fabled city that lay hidden to the world until its 1812 discovery. Stay at the Petra Movenpick Hotel.

Day 12 Petra
Time appears frozen in Petra, the abandoned capital of the Nabataeans ´” Arabs who dominated this area in the pre-Roman era.

Follow the Siq, a narrow gorge winding through the regionPetras rock, on a walking tour that includes the impressive Treasury, royal tombs, colonnaded street, and amphitheater.

Monumental in both size and scope, PetraPetras architecture is astonishing, yet her colors deep rust, banded with grays, yellows, and every hue in between are sure to captivate as well.

Day 13 Dead Sea, Jordan
Drive through rolling countryside along the Desert Highway to Madaba, where you´ll marvel at the town’s Byzantine mosaics, including a sixth-century map of the Christian holy lands made from 2 million pieces.

Continue to the Jordan Valley Marriott Resort & Spa, located directly on the Dead Sea’s eastern shore. You´ll have the afternoon and evening to relax and, perhaps, take a swim or enjoy the resort’s extensive spa services.

Day 14 Dead Sea (for Jerash, Jordan)
Today, tour ancient Jerash, a vast Greco-Roman city that flourished in the time around the Christian era. See its well-preserved walls, colonnaded streets, temples, public baths, plazas, and theaters decorated with ornate sculptures and fountains.

Enjoy the rest of the afternoon at your Dead Sea resort. This evening, join us for a festive farewell dinner.

Day 15 Return to U.S.A.
Hyatt Regency Dubai • 3 Hotel Nights
Enhance your travels with a fascinating journey of discovery that focuses on the lifestyles, traditions, and culture of Dubai, the second largest member-state of the United Arab Emirates. Although thoroughly modern, cosmopolitan Dubai is one of the world’s fastest growing tourist destinations and still exudes old-Arabian mystique in its tiny souks and splendid mosques.

This package is by International Expeditions and prices are based on availability and can change without notice. Contact one of our specialist and find the right Mediterranean Egypt package for you.

Brazil Tour Packages

Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires and The Falls Foz de Iquacu
are the highlights of this South American tour package.

While Rio de Janeiro is famous for its gorgeous landscapes and exotic culture, and Buenos Aires for being the chic “Paris of the Americas,” Foz de Iguaçu is famous for being one of the world’s largest waterfalls and a splendid example of the power and majestic beauty of nature on the South American Continent.

Day 1

Depart for South America!

Day 2
Welcome to Buenos Aires Argentina! Enjoy the balance of the day to rest and relax!
Overnight in Buenos Aires

Day 3
After a hearty breakfast, enjoy a complete City tour! Afternoon free to relax.
Overnight in Buenos Aires

Day 4
After an enjoyable breakfast, transfer to the International airport for a short flight to the impressive waterfalls of Foz de Iguaçu! Enjoy an afternoon tour of the Brazilian side of the falls. Overnight in Foz de Iguaçu

Day 4
After a delicious tropical style buffet breakfast, we will have a full day visit of the Argentinean side of the Waterfalls & Itaipu Dam highlighted by a visit of the deep gorge called “The Devil’s Throat!” Overnight in Foz de Iguaçu.

Day 6
After a fantastic breakfast, transfer to Rio de Janeiro by air. In Rio, the rest of the day is at your complete leisure. Overnight in Rio de Janeiro

Day 7
After a tasty tropical buffet breakfast, you will embark on a complete fantastic city tour! Overnight in Rio de Janeiro!

Day 8

After your last delicious tropical breakfast, you will have the day free in the “marvelous city” before transferring to the airport for you flight home…

Itinerary Includes:

• 6 night’s accommodation in well located 4 star accommodations
  in Rio, Buenos Aires and Iguassu Falls.
• Meals as per Itinerary.
• Sightseeing Tour of Rio, Buenos Aires, and Iguassu Falls.
• Transfers as per itinerary, Hotel Taxes, and Entrance Fees.
• Services of English Speaking Local Guide.

This just one of the Brazil’s New Years’ Party packages. Contact one of our Brazil specialist and find the right New Years package for you.