Disappointed in Cairo
Hotels used in Cairo are not 5 star hotels.Nile cruise ships used are not 5 star either.Ramses Hilton was really disappointing.It’s labeled as a 5 star hotel but the room that was given to us was a at the most was a 2star hotel. The carpet was stained, the furnitures were old, the bath tub drains slow , there’s mold in the bathroom. The rooms that were given to us on the cruise lines were the same furnitures were old , bathroom drains were slow, tiles were moldy and beds were uncomfortable.
ragba3247 · فبراير 2023 · عبر Tripadvisor
Best way to experience Egypt for the first time
We had an amazing time in Egypt. The service provided by this tour is impeccable. Upon booking, Muhammad was very helpful in accommodating our flight time and booked one extra night hotel stay for us. Upon arrival, our trip has been seamlessly connected from Airport pickup to private drivers and guides. Our guides - Radwa in Cairo, and Ahmed in Aswan-Luxor - are both very knowledgeable and helpful. Hasan the representative in Cairo, and Ahmed the representative in Aswan made sure that our trip from and to the airports are smooth. The services and food provided by the cruise Medea were also excellent. We had a wonderful experience and made great memories for the rest of our lives. It is truly the best way to experience Egypt for the firs time.
Qiang_L · يناير 2023 · عبر Viator
Highly Recommend Egypt Unlimited Tours
Mohammed the organizer is incredibly personable and really took care of every detail. The guides were excellent especially Dahlia in Cairo, but everyone and everything was great. The details that were especially helpful were the private guides who escorted us in and out of the airports saving us time with confusing rules and regulations. Hossain did a marvelous job of making sure we were treated well during the transition in and out of the airport.
We loved EVERYTHING about our tour and are sure we didn't miss anything.
We did the extra trip to Abu Simbel (def worth it), and the balloon ride was absolutely magical!
The Nile cruise which was accompanied by our private tour guide Mustafa was definitely a highlight as all the famous temples are along this route, plus the boat was luxurious, with amazing food and service.
Abigail L · يناير 2023 · عبر Tripadvisor
An Incredible Experience
My wife and I spent the first week of our three weeks in Egypt on several excursions.
Day 1 (Saturday):
Our first day we were transferred to the Sheraton around 1 pm, checked in, and upgraded to a corner suite, which is very nice and comfortable, including a heated swimming pool (great for a January swim!). The rest of the afternoon was free time for us, so my wife got a massage (about 60 USD, so somewhat equal to US pricing there) and we then went to the tent makers' market (google "Al Khyiamia (Tent Makers Bazaar)" to find it on the map). We went by ourselves with no guide and neither one of us speaking any arabic, using Uber (very inexpensive and no taxi-fare haggling required).
The market stalls are a unique experience for Westerners who have not traveled much (live animals for sale, fruit stalls, various household necessities) but the neat thing about Al Khyiamia is the selection of tapestries, clothing, and fabrics/textiles. My wife got a beautiful tapestry for our home and a hot pink scarf she could tie around her head, shoulders, waist, etc.
We returned to the hotel and ate at the italian restaurant there, myself getting rack of lamb, her sea bass.
Day 2 (Sunday):
The "egg chef" made my wife her favorite dish - Eggs Benedict - every day we stayed there, and the rest of the breakfast buffet had a large variety to make me happy.
Around 8 am, our guide Magdy arrived and we loaded up in a nice, clean, newish van for our driver to take the three of us to The Egyptian Museum. Cairo can be very foggy/hazy in the morning, meaning any pyramids photos you take could be hazy as well until the fog burns off later in the afternoon.
We spent close to three hours touring the museum with our guide providing an overarching narrative to the history in this place. It was a great start!
Next we were off to Giza for the pyramids, the Sphinx and lunch afterwards. Our guide was very honest about having us tell him if we were interested in any of the souveniers being touted by the vendors, but a firm, deep "no…shukran" with a slight handwave was extremely effective at shutting down the vast majority of the vendors, but also I don't make eye contact with them since whenever I did they'd take it as an invitation to strike up small talk/pitching me. Keep walking, sidestep any vendors, give a polite, firm "no" then a second later "shukran" and you should have a completely enjoyable time. Overall at the pyramids, we were approached maybe just 4-5 times for shirts and booklets they wanted to sell us. More on vendors later…
After the pyramids we went to a papyrus shop where they showed us how they make it, then a bunch of papyrus art for sale. Rule 1 for Egyptian haggling: ALWAYS BE PRECISE. The signs for pricing may say "100" but they will try to tell you it's 100 USD instead of Egyptian pounds. Confirm pricing always and ensure they input that price into the credit card machine correctly.
We went to an Egyptian cotton factory as well and were quoted 125 usd for a GORGEOUS belly dancers outfit, which I said was too much, and the manager said sorry and so we walked. The fact he let us walk tells us that it actually IS that valuable (or he may have been bluffing…)
Regardless, next we did some jewelry shopping to get my niece a silver pendant/cartouche and my wife an 18k gold one. This shop was legit, but you can get better deals at less populated cities, so wait until Luxor for jewelry. You may be able to find similar stuff for nearly half the Cairo prices.
After all the shopping and a VERY late lunch (Egyptians eat lunch very late), we were trekking back to the hotel in the van and we said farewell to Magdy and the driver, and off to bed since a 3 AM airport pickup the next day was on the docket.
Day 3 (Monday):
We were picked up by Hossein and whisked off to the airport for the 5:45 AM EgyptAir flight to Aswan (about 90 min flight time). Hossein went inside the airport with us and made sure we got our bags checked and our boarding passes, then we bid him farewell as we went through security. No issues overall and there's a coffee kiosk near the gate to fuel up as you wait for the boarding to begin.
Upon arriving at the baggage terminal, the Aswan rep from this tour travel agency met us and escorted us directly to the parking lot after we retrieved our bags.
We met our guide, Mohamed (a different Mohamed than the one who runs the travel agency) and were driven to the High Dam built in the 1960s for electrical and agricultural reasons. The dam is neat to see from an engineering perspective, but from a political perspective there's been many facets of Modern Egypt that have been affected by it, some good, some bad.
Next we visited The Temple of Philae via a short 5 minute motor boat trip, where we really began the "meat" of this wonderful crash course in Egyptology.
You see, every guide in Egypt must be formally educated (4 year degree) plus formally trained, then examined by professors from the Ministry of Tourism. Our guide Mohamed was a practicing archaeologist in the 1990s and worked with very well known American archaeologist, Bob Brier (look up Brier on YouTube). In the 2000s, Mohamed switched careers and has been giving tours ever since. He has been around these sites THOUSANDS of times and still has AMAZING passion and reverence for it all!
At the Temple of Philae, Mohamed sat us down for about 15 minutes to explain why this temple was important, but also drew an infographic of the main Egyptian deities from their Creation account. He then took us into the temple, explaining the layout and the reasons the builders built it this way, and pointed out several details non-Egyptologists wouldn't pick up on.
Also, he took photos for us, pointing out the best photo op locations as we went, which was nice!
Next we stopped by The Unfinished Obelisk to learn the history/method of creating these massive artifacts.
After Philae and the Unfinished Obelisk, we checked in on the cruise ship, and napped/relaxed until Dinner.
Day 4 (Tuesday):
Another early morning, this time off to Abu Simbel, which requires a three hour drive each way from Aswan.
After returning from Abu Simbel, we had lunch then we set sail heading north down the Nile, toward our first port, Ko Mombo.
We arrived at sunset, and the place was illuminated to make the photos spectacular!
Much like Philae, our guide explained the why's and the who's and the reasons behind the temple, then showed us around in a very professional yet fun manner.
After that, we visited the Crocodile museum then back to the boat for dinner, and we set sail for Edfu.
Day 5 (Wednesday):
Not as early today, but still dark out in January, so we wore layers (hoodies over t-shirts and pants) We left the ship and were amazed to see dozens of horse-drawn carriages lined up, with each carriages' respective owner rushing to haggle with the unguided tourists. Fortunately, our guide bypassed all that crowded mess and got us a good driver who cares for his horse.
The carriage driver took us to the Temple of Horus, where we learned even more about this fascinating ancient culture.
Back to the ship, and we set sail for our final port, Luxor!
We docked around 3 pm in Luxor and headed out for Karnak Temple, followed by Luxor Temple AT NIGHT! Again, great photos, great education, and a great excursion.
Back to the ship for dinner, then sleep.
Day 6 (Thursday):
We woke up and were on tge road at 6 am go beat the crowds in The Valley of Kings, then to Queen Hatshepsut's Temple. Both are amazing in thrir own right!
Next we saw alabaster being made and bought some gorgeous statues/figurines from that place (haggle aggressively!).
Finally, we got some pics with The Collosi of Memmon then off to another jewelry store for my wife to get some gifts for her sister and mom.
We had a final lunch in town then we were driven to a hotel right on yhe nile for some much needed R&R while we waited for our 7 pm pickup to the Luxor Airport for our 9:45 flight back to Cairo. We were taken back yo Sheraton, which we were happy with!
Day 7 (Friday):
The same guide we had (Magdy) and the same driver showed us around Islamic Cairo and Coptic Cairo. This too, was a great experience! Afterwards Magdy took us to eat at a local hotspot called Al Ahga since I told him I would like to eat shwarma! It was soooo good and close to the Sheraton, where we said farewell to Magdy and waited until the evening for the driver to take us to The Sound And Light Show.
Day 8 (Saturday):
We are staying in Egypt so we just extended our stay at Sheraton instead of having a driver take us to the airport.
Overall:
10/10 scored. Would do again. Magdy was great, but Mohamed for Aswan, Ko Mombo, Edfu, and Luxor blew me away with his expertise in the field of Egyptology!
He also has incredible street smarts and will help you haggle.
He is a family man as well with a wife and three daughters.
Truly an experience we will never forget!
If you read this far and have any questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to me! I would love to help! luke dot james dot eaton (at) gmail
Luke E · يناير 2023 · عبر Tripadvisor
Unforgettable!
My family are seasoned travellers. There were 5 of us in this trip. From the first day till the last, we travelled with comfort (transport, accommodation & food) and the tour guides (all of them Egyptologists) showered us with fascinating stories on the history & culture of Egypt. One of the most memorable trips from our family’s 25 years of travel.
Mohammad Khatib M · ديسمبر 2022 · عبر Tripadvisor
Highly recommended
I travelled with my family of 5. I am a seasoned traveller. I am very satisfied with this tour. From the time we landed till the end of of the tour, we were treated like vips. Excellent accomodation on the nile cruise and hotels. Excellent guides and ecryptologists, thank you muhammad, the team leader and his team; hussein, nagga, dalia and amr, also the drivers, mohammad and ahmed for the wonderful experience of egypt. We were taken care really well and enjoyed this trip of a lifetime. This is a five star tour. Highly recommended
Ria I · ديسمبر 2022 · عبر Tripadvisor
Amazing Experience with the best travel operator - Mohammed is a star
Egypt by itself is already an amazing experience, but buying this package was the best deal we made!! We arrived in Cairo and were placed at Le Meridian hotel by the airport, since at the next (very early morning) we had a flight to Aswan. All the reception, transfers, were done with the assistance of Mohammed´s team. The cruise was great (the boat was a bit old, but we had absolutely no issues, it was a great river trip with great sights and all the temples are amazing). Syed was our tour guide during the 4-days boat trip and he is really knowledgeable and attentive. When arriving back to Cairo for 2 more days, we went to Hyatt Regency hotel - an amazing and brand new 5-star hotel - and our guide in Cairo was Dalia - such a great guide and lovely lady, it really made our experience here even better!!
Mohammed, we want to thank you for providing us one of the best trips ever!
817lisianeh · ديسمبر 2022 · عبر Tripadvisor
Egypt Unlimited Tours Delivered 100%
My wife and I took a 9-day (8-night) tour with Egypt Unlimited Tours. It was the 8-day tour plus one day. I started communicating with Mohamed (the owner) early on via email and text. He was very responsive to my ever changing dates and questions. After communicating with a few other tour operators/agencies and reading lots of reviews, we went with Egypt Unlimited and are very happy we did. They delivered 100% on what they said they would. We stayed at the Steigenberger hotel in Cairo for 2 nights, then flew to Aswan and did a 3 night cruise on the Amwaj, went to Abu Simbel for a long morning, did the hot air balloon ride in Luxor, flew back to Cairo and stayed in the Sheraton hotel & casino for 3 nights. In the Cairo area we visited the pyramids, Sakkara, two museums, and the old town/Coptic area. In the south we visited Abu Simbel, Karnak, Luxor, and a few other temples/ruins. We skipped the afternoon feluca sailboat ride to get a breath. Note: lots of hotels and cruise boats in Cairo bill themselves as 5-star, but might not be called that elsewhere. We liked the Sheraton much better than the Steinberger, but both were acceptable. This was my first cruise of any kind, but the Amwaj seemed very good to us. Room was nice and decent size, food was good (Egyptian night was best), and staff were friendly. We had two stellar guides for this trip: Mustafa between Abu Simbel and Luxor, and Ramadan in and around Cairo. Both were extremely knowledgeable about Ancient Egypt, friendly and engaging. Ramadan's excitement about ancient Egyptian civilization was contagious. For all of the land tours, you will also have a driver, which varied from tour to tour, but were all excellent. In addition, Egypt Unlimited provides you with facilitators to assist you in the airports upon arrival and departure. In summary, while we have traveled quite a bit, we are not usually "tour" people. However, we thought in the case of Egypt and limited time, a tour would be the best way to see the sights in a pre-arranged low-stress way - and that is what Egypt Unlimited provided. Based on our experience, we recommend them highly!
bostondave11 · ديسمبر 2022 · عبر Tripadvisor
8 days 7 nights of unforgettable moments
This trip was amazing! From start to finish we were treated first class. Mr Mohammed Mustafa’s team of professionals were impressive. Mr Hussein managed our flights including luggage check ins very well. Mr Khalid our Cairo tour-guide took us to the museum where the Pharaoh Tutankhamen’s sarcophagus was displayed. He answered all our questions and was on point about any subject and explained very well about the variances and interpretations of the three major religions. The Pyramids were mind blowing, hour long camel ride and the best photo ops. Afterwards, Mr Mustafa booked us first class flight to Aswan where Mr Amr met us. He was very enthusiastic about the history of his ancestors and the stories he told us were all written in hieroglyphics. He was very knowledgeable, very kind and polite, very receptive to our needs. They always looked after our safety and the best part we covered all of what’s in the itinerary and more to include the Nubian village coffee time and school visit. The Crocodile Museum was incredible. The hot air balloon’s experience definitely a MUST DO- awesome sunrise. The Karnak Temple was the exclamation point. This experience will in my opinion was perfectly planned and executed by Mohammed’s Team. Thank you for the wonderful time and memories to last me and my wife a lifetime. We wish to go back soon for the King Tut’s New Museum- Inshallah.
John B · ديسمبر 2022 · عبر Tripadvisor
Disappointed in Egypt
we did 8 day PRIVATE tour Cairo,Aswan,Luxor and Nile cruise but on the day of the tour we ended up with another person. we did not complain then because our vacation might be ruined.we paid for a private tour but ended with a semi private tour.we should be charged for semi private instead of private tour.Another complain are hotel and cruise lines we stayed. Ramses Hilton in Cairo is not a 5star hotel instead a 2 or 3 star at best. The cruise line we took is not 5 star either 3 star at best.Viator should not advertise something thats not true.
542dagba · ديسمبر 2022 · عبر Tripadvisor
