Toward the south of Egypt, close to the Sudanese border, the Nile becomes more and more spectacular; the desert closes in and palm-studded islands and elephantine granite rocks lend a natural splendour and sense of occasion to Egypt's southernmost city. Since time immemorial, Aswan's location at the crossroads of significant caravan routes gave its markets a thriving trade in gold, slaves, and ivory. The marketplace still brims with spices, perfumes, and produce; it is Egypt's most reminiscent and colourful market after Cairo's.

Aswan has long been a favoured winter destination for strangers, a relaxing yet thrilling town, where laziness and tourism mingle easily. Sail into ancient times aboard a conventional felucca in the late afternoon, or organize a 5-day float downstream to Luxor. Or reserve into Aswan's Old Cataract Hotel, on a striking bend in the Nile. Agatha Christie was so passionate by this eternal scenario that she staged and wrote down much of Death on the Nile here.

When the movie version was filmed, the Old Cataract Hotel was given an impressive part. Everything about it suggests a marriage of Edwardian and Oriental sophistication, a magical atmosphere that lured Aga Khan III to honeymoon here and revisit frequently. He even chose to be buried in Aswan, and his plain mausoleum, one of the town's most-visited places, can be seen from some of the visitor rooms.