jessaz

On 5/6/2019 at 5:41 AM, amusea said:

I have been researching the options from my cruise ship Regent Explorer from Safaga to Luxor in November 2020.  There is a 2017 vlog from a round the world cruiser which covers the Middle East.  On days 126 and 127 of May there is a full narrative of his experience of a two day tour from cruise ship Oceania Insignia to Luxor using Ramasside.  The review is extremely positive and the tour was booked privately, not with the cruise ship.  Other parts of the Middle East are also covered including Petra and Jerusalem with many photos.  I strongly suggest you use this vlog as a major reference:           http://2totravelrtw180.blogspot.com/2017/05/

The reviews on Trip Advisor for Ramasside are also overwhelmingly excellent.

Thank you for sharing your vlog.

On 6/17/2019 at 12:03 AM, decafnights said:

Our cruise ship had an overnight in Safaga. We contacted Haitham Masoud, the Tour Operator for Ramasside Tours.  He proposed a two day itinerary with the option to be flexible.  All the admissions and the hotel were included. We opted for a 5 star hotel and it was still very reasonable. We were very glad we decided to stay overnight. We avoided 6 hours on a bus two days in a row, and we were able to start very early in the morning before it got oppressively hot.

Ibrahim, or guide, was excellent. He was very knowledgeable and explained everything in great detail. He also answered our questions about life in Egypt today.  On the first day, we went to the Karnack Temple, had lunch, and went to the Luxor Temple. That evening we went to the Sound and Light show at the Karnack Temple (offered as an optional extra). The next morning we went to the Valley of the Kings and the Hatshepsut Temple. We opted to skip lunch and head back to the ship.

Others have given detailed descriptions of the sights and posted beautiful pictures. I highly recommend Ramasside Tours. We appreciated the opportunity to be flexible and go at our own pace.  We were there in mid May and it was oppressively hot. In the afternoon, it "felt like 112".  The restaurant we went to the first day was not air conditioned where we were initially seated, and on the second day, the air conditioning was not working in the restaurant. They offered to try someplace else but we opted to return early. I mention this because it would be helpful to check in advance.  I also suggest checking in advance about whether the hotel has USB ports or adapters, or being sure you bring the correct one with you if you want to charge devices. Despite the heat, this was an amzing once in a lifetime experience for us.

Thank you for sharing this detailed review.

Hello

It is not permitted.

For Egypt, there are other local highly recommended travel agents like http://www.Egyptprivateexcursions.com , Nile Blue Tours, http://www.ramassidetours.com they are the top local companies which are highly recommended for shore excursions and tours in Egypt.

We were picked up by Ramasside Tours team in Safaga for the long drive (3-4 hours) out to the Valley of the Kings in an air-conditioned van with WiFi.

Our tour guide from Ramasside told us that whenever there was a good quality Western toilet facility he would inform us. When we stopped it was by 5 star hotels, also in Cairo the area near the pyramids has new toilets because some of the other ones were old and derelict but the one by the entrance was new and it was ok.

You should discuss this with your tour guide especially if it is more than normally important so that they can plan the time around toilet stops if needed or at least tell you when you are near a decent toilet.

We were picked up by our guide and driver in Safaga at the end our cruise for the long drive (3-4 hours) out to the Valley of the Kings in an air-conditioned van with WiFi. After our day of touring the tombs and temples, we had lunch, and then our guide helped arrange for a reasonably-priced day room at the Lotus Hotel on the Nile River so we could grab a couple of drinks and freshen up for a few hours after our tour ended and before our overnight train to Giza. Our driver (sorry, I can’t remember his name!) picked us up at the hotel later that night to bring us to the train station, and even waited with us in the station to make sure we got on the right train, which was very comforting.

In Giza and Cairo, we were taken care of by Etch (our guide) and Samah (our driver). Etch has an unbelievable wealth of knowledge, and pointed out everything along the way. The Egyptian Museum was amazing; I wish we could have spent more time here looking at the art and King Tut’s treasures. At Giza, Etch took tons of pictures of us climbing up the Great Pyramid and knew exactly how to position us for the “fun photos” (holding the pyramids, kissing the Sphinx, etc.). He also negotiated a price for us to take a 40-minute camel ride along the edge of the desert from the pyramids to the Sphinx. We rounded out the day with lunch (overlooking the spectacular pyramids and Sphinx) and a little shopping, before finally making our way to our pre-arranged hotel in Cairo before our early morning flight home.

Both lunches were in very nice authentic Egyptian restaurants and were a delicious variety of meats and vegetable dishes. Beverages are not included in the tour price, and a small tip is also expected.

It may also be helpful to specifically note some “extras” that are not included in the entrance fees to certain attractions. For example, the entrance fee to explore the Valley of the Kings includes five tombs, but not our “wish list” tombs of King Tut and Sety, which were extra. Similarly, entrance to the grounds of the Giza pyramids was included, but to actually go inside the Great Pyramid was an additional cost. US Dollars and Euros are accepted, and, of course, our guides helped us, but had I known about this, I feel like it would have been less of a hassle if we had Egyptian Pounds on hand.

Traffic in the cities, especially Cairo, is crazy! Be sure to consider delays due to traffic (and perhaps even a fender-bender) if your time for a tour is limited.

Thanks to our guides and tour company for arranging our two unforgettable days in Luxor/Valley of the Kings and Cairo/Giza! Not only did they show us the things we wanted to see, like tombs and pyramids, but they also taught us much about the Egyptian people and their culture.

Enjoy Ancient Egypt !

We were picked up by Deda and Ramasside Tours team in Safaga at the end our cruise for the long drive (3-4 hours) out to the Valley of the Kings in an air-conditioned van with WiFi. After our day of touring the tombs and temples, we had lunch, and then Deda helped arrange for a reasonably-priced day room at the Lotus Hotel on the Nile River so we could grab a couple of drinks and freshen up for a few hours after our tour ended and before our overnight train to Giza. Our driver (sorry, I can’t remember his name!) picked us up at the hotel later that night to bring us to the train station, and even waited with us in the station to make sure we got on the right train, which was very comforting.

In Giza and Cairo, we were taken care of by Etch (our guide) and Samah (our driver). Etch has an unbelievable wealth of knowledge, and pointed out everything along the way. The Egyptian Museum was amazing; I wish we could have spent more time here looking at the art and King Tut’s treasures. At Giza, Etch took tons of pictures of us climbing up the Great Pyramid and knew exactly how to position us for the “fun photos” (holding the pyramids, kissing the Sphinx, etc.). He also negotiated a price for us to take a 40-minute camel ride along the edge of the desert from the pyramids to the Sphinx. We rounded out the day with lunch (overlooking the spectacular pyramids and Sphinx) and a little shopping, before finally making our way to our pre-arranged hotel in Cairo before our early morning flight home.

Both lunches were in very nice authentic Egyptian restaurants and were a delicious variety of meats and vegetable dishes. Beverages are not included in the tour price, and a small tip is also expected.

It may also be helpful to specifically note some “extras” that are not included in the entrance fees to certain attractions. For example, the entrance fee to explore the Valley of the Kings includes five tombs, but not our “wish list” tombs of King Tut and Sety, which were extra. Similarly, entrance to the grounds of the Giza pyramids was included, but to actually go inside the Great Pyramid was an additional cost. US Dollars and Euros are accepted, and, of course, our guides helped us, but had I known about this, I feel like it would have been less of a hassle if we had Egyptian Pounds on hand.

Traffic in the cities, especially Cairo, is crazy! Be sure to consider delays due to traffic (and perhaps even a fender-bender) if your time for a tour is limited.

Overall, I highly recommend Ramasside Tours!

Thank you so much for your review of Ramses Tours.

what is the payment policy for them?

This is the updated email address I found in their website :

info@nilebluetours.com

Thanks for a wonderful review.