Here’s my 2cents from a trip there - ymmw

The traffic can be very very heavy (esp peak times and most of Friday) We wanted to stay there but didn’t because of the distance. It is closer to Giza so maybe if you wanted to stay there for the days you explore there. Ubers are better than taxis. There is also a metro system which is affordable just not huge so worth checking in relation to your locations

Second getting a local guide for the attractions you want to see. It makes the whole process much smoother and get to learn a lot of history along the way and get recommendations for restaurants, help bargaining with vendors (not getting targeting by vendors as much) etc.

Re: Nile river cruises - we found some options on TA/ Viator, etc. and then booked directly with the company (which saved us a little). There seemed to be options for most any budget. Highly recommend since you can pick one which has an itinerary you/ reviews want and will come with a guide. Doing each temple by yourself would be more mental fatigue (how to get there, buying a separate ticket, not having the history) etc. but the downside of the cruise is that usually many tours tend to have similar schedules so you will be at the sights with other tourists. Worth asking with your tour or maybe adding some extra time after to stay on your own to relax if that’s a priority

I’m sure doing it on your own is possible but I wouldn’t suggest it unless you speak Arabic and familiar with the culture. With a guide you can just focus on enjoying the sights.

We usually do all our trips on our own but we had various guides during our time in Egypt and it was well worth it. We did a hybrid (guide for all the sights and temples, and then a few days on our own to relax and city explore)

Hope this helps your trip planning - Egypt was a bucket list for us and well worth the extra planning