Travel Update: Sudan Tours are currently suspended due to the on-going conflict.
Young Pioneer Tours are pleased to announce our 2024 and 2025 Sudan Tours and travel packages. Formerly the biggest country in Africa and home to more pyramids than Egypt, not only is this a country of wonder, but now is the time to visit Sudan.
Sudan Group Tours – Group Tours to Sudan in 2024 and 2025
YPT were one of the first international tour companies to start regular tours to Sudan and therefore have excellent local contacts, and thus the ability to take you truly off the beaten track, as well as offering real interactions with the wonderful people of Sudan.
All of our Sudan Tours are capped at 16 people, as we like to say group tours for people who hate group tours.
We are hoping that the security situation in Sudan will improve in the upcoming year, so we have tentatively scheduled these upcoming tours:
Sudan Nubian Legends November 10th-17th 2024 $1595
Bir Taqil Incursion Tour November 15th-22nd 2024 $1195
BIR TAWIL TOURS
Young Pioneer Tours are the only company to offer group and independent tours to Bir Tawil. We currently run one tour per year every November. Independent tours to Bir Tawil can be arranged, but these are done with security in mind and cannot be done at all points in the year.
Bir Tawil Tours all originate in Sudan and follow the same regime as our Sudan travel packages.
INDEPENDENT SUDAN TOURS
We recognise that our group tour dates may not fit your busy schedule, or you would like to travel alone, or you would like a personalised bespoke Sudan tour. Prices genuinely depend on the number of people and what level of accommodation you require, but YPT can arrange everything you need for a perfect independent tour to Sudan.
Independent Sudan tours can be done directly in country, or combined with tours to Egypt, or South Sudan where there are direct flights. Here at YPT we are always continuing on working on new itinerary to give the best travel experience and price making us stand out from other travel companies!
INDEPENDENT SUDAN TOUR ITINERARY;
Below is our sample Sudanese tour itinerary, which we use for our main Sudan group tour. This can be done in its entirety, in parts, or just used for inspiration.
Day 1 – Khartoum
- Arrive at your own convenience, YPT will arrange for you to be collected at the airport.
- Pre tour meeting to overlook your personal itinerary and answer any questions.
- Dinner at our favourite Syrian restaurant next to Plaza Hotel in downtown Khartoum
Day 2 – Khartoum – Omdurman
- Visit the national museum, which contains various objects dedicated to Nubian history. This Nubian area of the southern Nile was home of Africa’s earliest ancient civilization.
- We’ll also take you to the beautiful temples saved by UNESCO from Lake Nassir and rebuilt entirely inside the museum.
- Cross the White Nile for a trip to technically Sudan’s second largest city – Omdurman. We’ll have a short stop at the Mahdi tomb and tour around the Khalifa house museum. The house served as the HQ of the Mahdist state. This was a short-lived religious and political movement that ruled Sudan until the British reconquered in 1898.
Day 3 – Khartoum – Old Dongola – Kerma
- We’ll travel 500km north of Khartoum. On the way we’ll stop at Old Dongola, the capital of the Christian kingdom of Makuria. Today it’s a deserted city with the population having moved downstream in the 19th century.
- We move onto the cemetery of the Sofi holy men and stopping for lunch on the way.
- Take the ferry across the Nile and drive for a further 40km arriving at Kerma, a 3800 B.C archaeological site.
Day 4 November – Tombus – Soleb
- Early rise to visit the site of Tombus – here there are many Egyptian inscriptions and a huge granite statue dedicated the famous black Pharaoh – Taharqa.
- Continue 50km to the north where we stop to take in the amazing panoramic view of the rock art from the prehistoric period at Wadi Sebu.
- Cross the Nile to the west bank and drive two hours up to Soleb – an ancient Nubian town home to a vast necropolis of which we can visit the tombs which haven’t been destroyed by colonial “archaeologists”
Day 5 – Soleb – Karima
- We visit the holy mountain of Jebel Barkal (Together with Napata, a UNESCO heritage site) and the numerous temples at the foot of Jebel Barkal and lunch on the way.
- We then visit the impressive Kurru, the royal necropolis of Napata. Here we go deep underneath the pyramid to see the amazing painted tomb of the black Pharaoh Tanutamani. You won’t find such vivid painting anywhere else – bar Egypt, but literally without any other tourists.
Day 6 – Nuri – Meroe
- Early morning visit to the nearby Nuri pyramids. While very different to the ones in Egypt, they truly show you how the culture started here, with there being over 60 to view. Plenty of time to enjoy the atmosphere.
- We literally camp right next to the Pyramids of Meroe, in complete safety and offering some of the best views of the sky you will ever see in your life!
- There may even be a night time stroll around said Pyramid.
Day 7 – Meroe – Khartoum
- Sun rise around the Pyramids, again a true wonder for you to see!
- Set off on an off-road/on-road adventure to visit Mussawart. This is a complex of temples dedicated the local god Apedamak – the lion god. This was the biggest construction in the history of Nubia.
- Visit the Roman kiosk, which represents the intersection of various cultures both European and African.
- Head back to Khartoum, stopping a various sites on the way. End of tour, or overnight in the capital
INDEPENDENT SUDAN TOURS – EXAMPLE TOUR PROGRAMS
We do not list all of our bespoke Sudan itineraries, but can offer some examples, such as the following;
Historical Sudan Tours – Learn about the ancient Kushite kingdoms, visiting ancient the UNESCO Heritage sites including The Naqa, Pyramids of Meroë, Jebel Barkal and Sudan National Museum.
War and Conflict Tours in Sudan – the impact of the Sudan civil war has unfortunately taken the lives of 2 million, mostly civilian and displacing over 4 million people. We at YPT understand the value of the voices of the people and fully support academic studies. YPT can arrange local tours and meet people who experienced the recent tragedies.
Tribal and Indigenous Peoples Studies in Sudan– are you currently studying or researching on the life of tribal and indigenous people, YPT can help arrange a bespoke tour of Sudan to fit your study needs. You can check our sister film location country here.
Photography or Filming Tours in Sudan – Sudan has more pyramids than Egypt and a number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. YPT can arrange special tour tailored to your needs and requirements.
Football Tours in Sudan – Football is the main sport in Sudan and they are very strong internationally. Lee Clark was also briefly a manger here. We can arrange packages for sports teams visiting Sudan, or fans traveling for matches.
School Trips to Sudan – Young Pioneer Tours can arrange school trips to Sudan that are not only safe, but can be fixed to work around a set syllabus, or study program.
University Trips to Sudan – Much like our school trips to Sudan our university trips to the country can be tailored to fix whatever you are studying.
SUDAN TOUR GUIDES
All our guides are carefully selected and trained closely to ensure YPT can provide the best tours experiences something that makes us stands out from the rest. We work closely with our local partners continuing to improve, providing the best service for our customers, hence why so many return!
As Sudan is still off the radar, we get high demands for tours from all over the world, however not all of our guides can speak every language. If you require a private tour to Sudan with a language other than English, please get in touch so we can see what we can do.
HOW TO GET A SUDAN VISA
Visas can be applied for at your nearest Sudan Embassy; they have varying requirements. Embassies in Africa, such as Cairo, Addis Ababa and Nairobi tend to be more relaxed than European embassies (with the exception of Vienna). YPT can assist you in getting a letter of Invitation (LOI).
The processing fee of visas for Sudan varies from one embassy to another, with prices going from $20 to $100 (USD) You will need your LOI, two recent visa-type photos of you, a copy of your passport photo page and your original passport to the embassy along with small denominations of USD (preferably clean crisp bills from the most recent run).
If you would rather avoid having to visit the embassy, YPT can arrange a per-clearance document which will allow you to get a visa on arrival at Khartoum airport
SUDAN TOURS FAQ
Below we have compiled the most frequently asked questions regarding travelling to Sudan. We feel that we answered pretty much everything you might need to know before you go to Sudan, but please feel free to get in touch for any additional questions regarding your Sudan tour.
Our local guides have plenty of experience and YPT values the utmost safety of our customers, in case of an unexpected protest we strongly recommend you taking instructions from our guides who make the best decision.
The Only ATM for your Sudan Tour!
While YPT is an inclusive company and welcomes people from all genders, sexual orientation and identity, we must sadly warn you that homosexuality is illegal in Sudan. Behaviour judged to be homosexual can lead to imprisonment. As such, we would kindly ask all our group members to refrain from acting in a way that could lead them to be branded homosexual for the duration of our trip. This is for the safety of the group and no judgment is implied or intended.
Sudan is a conservative Islamic country which follows Sharia law. While local people are very friendly and female travellers are welcomed in the country, it would be preferable for both men and women to prefer wearing loose clothes that cover arms and legs in order to avoid negative reactions. For women a headscarf, while not compulsory, is very much appreciated.
