A challenging cruise from Luxor to Aswan!
The cruise was a bit disappointing; the boat served as a floating hotel docked for one night in Luxor and two nights in Aswan. Once, we checked in, we noticed the flushing button for the toilet was not working smoothly. The main desk manager was informed immediately and he jokingly said it takes big muscles to push the flushing button. He said that he will have someone to "look" at it. No one came to fix it for the next TWo days. We complained to our guide and he went to the desk manager to see what the issue was. He said that "it takes time". Again, for the third day, no one came. Finally, someone came to fix it on the 4th day; 1/2 day before the end of the "5 day cruise". The boat moved for 2.5 days.
The top bed sheets were removed after the second night and were not replaced for the next two nighs.
Also, we were charged 64 Egyptian pounds for water or tea for lunch or dinner; no outside water allowed.
The crew catered mainly to the large German tour group onboard and individual pairs were made to feel like step children.
The white towels were dingy; not white but a bit of a yellow color. The floor mat had stains on it.
The boat was not the promised boat we were supposed to be on. We got "the Song of Egypt"; it was not quite a happy song.
Avoid the second (main) floor. It can be noisy since it's close to the engines.
sfguesthouse1 · apr. 2019 · prin Tripadvisor
Beautiful Cruise on the Nile with a great guide - Hady
I have been dreaming about the Nile since we learned about Egypt in grade school here in Canada. My husband & I finally took a cruise with Imperial Egypt with our guide Hady who was exceptional. From the moment he picked us up at our hotel to the moment we left the boat we were in his hands completely. Hady really knows his stuff - he gave us more information than I could ever remember. We were with him for the 5 days on the cruise - he always kept us informed of what we were doing the next day - what time dinner was - options to pick from as far as sites, etc. We had him to ourselves which was wonderful - you learn so much more and the tour can be tailored to what you like with a small group. The last night on the boat we asked Hady if he would walk with us in Aswan to look around - he was more than happy to oblige - he seems to know people everywhere! He even went back to a vendor on my husbands behalf to pick up more salted nuts. We would highly recommend Hady as a tour guide and we consider him a friend. Debi & Duane
CanadaCruizer · apr. 2019 · prin Tripadvisor
Great tour with Excellent Guide
My wife and I are on our honeymoon and wanted a nice relaxed tour to see the sites of southern Egypt. We were very pleased.
We saw amazing temples and statues and in between relaxed on a clean comfortable boat with a great view of the Nile.
The thing that made the tour excellent was our guide Motaz. He gave us lots of great information and stories about the places we saw. He also organized everything and made sure the tour really smoothly. His presentation and friendly approach insured we had the best trip. See if you can get him when you go.
No complaints overall, although the food on the boat was a bit boring. Noting bad, just nothing exciting.
Great tour and a good value.
O197NSandrewb · mar. 2019 · prin Tripadvisor
Hady was a fantastic tour guide, and the boat was excellent, too
Hady was a fantastic tour guide, and particularly adept with kids/ teenagers. He does an excellent job telling the stories of Egyptian history in a way that engaged everyone in the group, and kept their interest and attention. His English is excellent, as is his knowledge of history. He balanced good content with excellent excursion opportunities, including a camel ride around the Nubian village (and mint tea), swimming in the Nile, lunch at the Solaih restaurant overlooking Philae Temple (a real highlight and a great way to end our trip before heading to the airport). Hady was very responsive to our needs and wants, and flexible in meeting our requests and interests on the go.
We booked through Imperial Egypt (a very well run, responsive tour agency) for a group of ten and arranged in advance to have Hady and a vehicle exclusively devoted to our group, and this was an excellent arrangement. We could say with a bit more flexibility when we wanted to go (sometimes we all wanted to sleep in a bit), how long we wanted to stay, whether we wanted to linger at the "papyrus museum", etc. When we needed something from the pharmacy, he helped with that, too. We really can't say enough great things about Hady (whom we specifically requested from Imperial Egypt tours because of his great reviews on TripAdvisor, which we can confirm). He made our trip excellent and truly memorable for adults and kids alike.
The boat we were on was Concerto, and it was clean and well run.
bedinger · ian. 2019 · prin Tripadvisor
Movenpick Darakum
As an Egyptian this was a fantastic opportunity to explore history, culture and a very rich and serene part of the country. This was one of the best trips I ever took. Fresh air, rich history and fantastic food. Darakum was a perfect Nile boat for the 5 day cruise
Shamseldin · dec. 2018 · prin Tripadvisor
Great and fantastic tour!
So we went to Egypt has honeymoon and we did all by our self so no tour agency to help us. We looked for a Nile cruise and from all that we saw Imperial Egypt Tours had the best option in terms of what you pay for what you get. Mr Hany very helpful in the conversation to check out all the possibilities for the tour. I've chosen the 5days 4nights from Luxor to Asuan at the Concerto boat.
Simply amazing, we arrived at 6am and Hamada was there waiting for us, what a tour guide, speaks very good English, helps you a lot with the "cultural" things, bargain, quality of stuff, and since his a egyptologist we knows everything about Egypt history, culture and the life of it! We recommend him!!! Because it was out honeymoon he prepared a final surprise at our last day!
But be aware, it's not easy to do this we have a lot activities in the morning between 7am or even sooner. If you go to see Abu Simble you need to wake up at 3.45am then take 2h30 to 3h road trip to get there. It's hard but it's really worth it Abu Simble it beautiful! But the site seeing and Luxor air balloon it's extra.
Over all very good we recommend this tour company for Egypt very mush trust worthy, friendly and patience, yes we asked a lot from a lot!
Fred D · oct. 2018 · prin Tripadvisor
The best thing I have done in Egypt this year
I have been coming to Egypt for 15 years and now living here for a year. This was the best thing I've ever done here. I was on the boat Minerva and the staff were amazing. My tour guide, Hady, was very professional, enthusiastic to meet our needs and interests, and very knowledgeable about everything that we saw. It was amazing how he knew so much.
Catherine O · nov. 2017 · prin Tripadvisor
Sensational. We had one of the...
<p>Sensational. We had one of the finest guides in Egypt in Ahmed Mounir. He was extremely knowledgable and made the tour a real pleasure. The boat, M/S Farah was excellent! The staff, food, facilities etc were all up to expectation. Our only recommendations would be for drinks, coffees, etc to be included in the price, and for more activities to be arranged onboard. We would not hesitate in recommending this cruise.</p>
Mark P · oct. 2017 · prin Viator
Thoroughly enjoyed this tour. Rooms...
<p>Thoroughly enjoyed this tour. Rooms were much like a King Size hotel room. Food was good and staff were excellent.<br/>
Just a pity that most nights you are docked at either Luxor or Aswan and only really on the move for 1 day.<br/>
We opted for a private guide, Ahmed was excellent.</p>
Dyanne_C · mai 2017 · prin Viator
