Private Tour Companies in Alexandria, Egypt

[cruisin-wannabe]

We will be going to Alexandria, Egypt on the NCL Jade in late March 2011.

 

I would like to hear what private tour companies people have actually completed tours with and what they thought of them. Also any tips about the companies to make the tour better would be appreciated.

 

Please respond even if someone else has already responded about the company. Getting 10 responses about a company will tell me more than getting 1.

 

Thanks very much.

[MercedMike]

UMMMMM --- well frankly, that is pretty much what this board is all about.

 

Instead of expecting people to do it all over again for your specific list, perhaps you should spend a few hours reading the board and you will see many tour companies mentioned, some of them multiple times, often with long and extensive reviews. Within the ten posts directly below yours there are three posts on specific companies and one on guides in Egypt in general.

 

I am now climbing in my foxhole and pulling the cover over it, because I know there will be incoming accusing me of being mean or snotty. I'm not trying to be mean or snotty, just comment on the best way to get information from this board.

[MissPaulaS]

I am going on the same Norwegian Jade cruise, departing March 27, 2011. i cant wait. There is a company called Ramses that I see on this board repeatedly. You should contact them. The email is ramsestours@hotmail.com and the website is http://www.ramsestours.com Are you trying to arrange tours in Rome or Athens?

[BigGuy25]

UMMMMM --- well frankly, that is pretty much what this board is all about.

 

Instead of expecting people to do it all over again for your specific list, perhaps you should spend a few hours reading the board and you will see many tour companies mentioned, some of them multiple times, often with long and extensive reviews. Within the ten posts directly below yours there are three posts on specific companies and one on guides in Egypt in general.

 

I am now climbing in my foxhole and pulling the cover over it, because I know there will be incoming accusing me of being mean or snotty. I'm not trying to be mean or snotty, just comment on the best way to get information from this board.

 

Mike is correct (and he should come out of his foxhole) ... you'll find lots in info here and recommendations about a lot of opportunities. Once you've browsed around a bit you may find you have some more specific questions to ask that will be happily answered.. But, just to get you started, we used Ramses Tours and were very pleased.

[cruisin-wannabe]

Thanks for your suggestions! My husband wrote the original post...I shouldn't let him post on the boards until he reads the other posts!

 

We are going to book with Ramses, but have not heard anything about their prices. When I looked at their website, I found three tours which looked similar. Probably we just need to send them an email and they will send us prices?

 

Counting down now--almost to the six months mark! I am SO excited!

[celyvabeach]

Thanks for your suggestions! My husband wrote the original post...I shouldn't let him post on the boards until he reads the other posts!

 

We are going to book with Ramses, but have not heard anything about their prices. When I looked at their website, I found three tours which looked similar. Probably we just need to send them an email and they will send us prices?

 

Counting down now--almost to the six months mark! I am SO excited!

 

 

Hi cruisin, we are booked with Ramses for our Nov 2011 Holy Land cruise.Go to their website and study their offerings which are plenty. Decide where your tour originates whether Port Said or Alexandria. Then email them to get a quote.They have prices based on how many in the group ie;2-3 persons,4-6 persons and 7-10 persons.I got a response within a few hours after my email. Hope this helps.

[Jeff&Jerri]

Here is an email I wrote to George at Ramses Tours....

 

Hi George,

 

 

Jeff and I just returned from our trip and wanted to thank you for the tour which we thought was fabulous. Of the countries we visited, Greece, Turkey, Israel and Egypt, we enjoyed our tour in Egypt the most. Much of this is because of Gouda. He is an excellent tour guide and we enjoyed a very well put together tour and enjoyed Gouda as a tour guide and as a person. Your company is fortunate to have him on your list to choose from, and if it was us doing the choosing, we would choose him first every time!

 

 

Here's a picture of our happy group....

 

 

Jeff and Jerri Myers

 

I hope this helps. George's email is: Ramsestours@gmail.com

[tandy7]

We have just returned from a fabulous 13 night cruise on Celebrity Equinox which stopped over in Alexandria. We used Ramses Tours. I would highly recommend. We had an air conditioned van, guide and driver. They were excellent. The first day we toured Aleandria and the second day we toured to Cario. Its about a 2.5 hour drive from the ship to Pyramids. Our guide with Ramses was Hosny Abu Klila. He was extremely knowledgable and patient with us and nothing was ever a problem.

 

At the pyramids we wanted a photo with the camels. The vendors were looking $10 per person. Hosny went in behind the front vendors and negotiated photos for nothing. We offer the guy $10 for us all as a token gesture and he would not take it!

 

I could not recommend Ramses highly enough. Email me on mcherry@email.com if you want further advice in Jerusalem, Ephesus, Athens.

[Ctillman2211]

We are going on a cruise on October 11th and are using Ramses as our guide while we are in Alexandria on October 18th and 19th. Our experience with them so far has been absolutely fantastic. They have been responding to my emails very quickly and are even accomodating our wishes to have lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe in Cairo. (something we do when we travel anywhere with a Hard Rock). We are really looking forward to our tour with Ramses and will post a full review upon our return. :)

[CroosQueen]

Hi Tandy:

 

I have an upcoming Holy land cruise that will be in Israel and I noticed you had further info on Jerusalem. Let me know if it's okay to email you for those details. I would be curious to find out what sights you settled on since it seems like there's more to do than time allows!

[Marie-Claude]

We used Ramses a year ago for our tour in Egypt and really enjoyed it. It was our 2nd time in Cairo, so we wanted to customize our tour to see different things than the basics you want to see on a first visit. After a couple of emails to George we had arranged for a custom itinerary that suited our needs perfectly.

 

We were on a private tour, so just my Mom and I with our guide and driver. We felt very safe at all times, had a fabulous time for less than it would have cost us on a ship tour on a bus of 40 people! You simply cannot beat that!

 

We were booked on the Pacific Princess on a Holy Land cruise for this November, and without hesitation, I had rebooked something new with Ramses, but we had to cancel our cruise. I'm hoping will be able to do it next year!

 

Their new email address ramsestours@gmail.com is easier to get a hold of them!

 

Good luck, and I hope you enjoy Egypt as much as we did!!

 

MC

[cruisemom42]

To give you another option to consider, I just returned from a cruise that visited Alexandria and spent a great day using Egypt Private Excursions: http://www.egyptprivateexcursions.com

 

I have been to Cairo twice already, so I opted to tour Alexandria on this day. I wanted a personalized itinerary, and they worked with me to put together exactly the tour I wanted. Their responses were always prompt and I found them a pleasure to work with. The guide I had, Dalia, was a treasure-trove of information and a charming guide for the day. We had lunch at a great restaurant that overlooked the water with a beautiful view from Qait Bey to the Alexandria Museum and beyond.

 

I would certainly recommend them to anyone going to Egypt, and when I go back in November to Cairo, I plan to use them again if my schedule allows the time.

[CRUISERTN]

We used Ramses last year and had a fabulous time and would definitely use them again!! Highly recommended!! Send them an email and tell them what you want to do and they will customize your tour to do exactly what you want. Correct email address is ramsestours@gmail.com

 

They are pretty prompt and usually respond within 24-36 hours.

 

If you Google "Ramses Tours" you will find two of them....the one everyone uses on this board is the one that has the site www.ramsestours.com

 

When you contact them, use the gmail address mentioned above.

 

We hope to get back to Egypt again, and when we do, we will definitely be using Ramses again. They promised a tour of a lifetime and lived up to their promise!!:p

 

For all of those going to Egypt, you are in for a special treat!! You will love it!!

[2009trip]

We also used Ramses tours back in 2/2009 for a half day tour in Alexandria, we loved it, so much nicer than the tour we took with the cruise to Cairothe day before. My daughter and I and another friend are returning in Feb of 2011, and we have booked a private tour for Cairo for the 3 of us, yes we are going to take a camel ride thru the desert and day tour for the next day in Alex...we are so looking forward tour. they have been great working with us to do the trip just as we want. their e-mail is ramsestours@gmail.com, have a good trip

[Welshcruiser20]

To give you another option to consider, I just returned from a cruise that visited Alexandria and spent a great day using Egypt Private Excursions: http://www.egyptprivateexcursions.com

 

I have been to Cairo twice already, so I opted to tour Alexandria on this day. I wanted a personalized itinerary, and they worked with me to put together exactly the tour I wanted. Their responses were always prompt and I found them a pleasure to work with. The guide I had, Dalia, was a treasure-trove of information and a charming guide for the day. We had lunch at a great restaurant that overlooked the water with a beautiful view from Qait Bey to the Alexandria Museum and beyond.

 

I would certainly recommend them to anyone going to Egypt, and when I go back in November to Cairo, I plan to use them again if my schedule allows the time.

 

 

I am in contact with this company as a friend has used them and spoke very highly of them. My contact name is H_David.

 

I am travelling on jade on 17 April and looking to put a group together using this co. Their prices are much better than ship's excursions!!

[okie_traveler]

I just returned off a cruise with a stop in Alexandra. We hired Ramses for a private 2 day tour into Cairo. I would highly recommend this company. There were 4 of us and they picked us up in a van that would have accomodated 9. Plenty of leg room. Our van consisted of an english speaking guide from Egypt and a seperate driver. Once you have been in Cairo you will find out why a seperate driver is necessary. The drivers are insane. Our guide was waiting for us outside the ship terminal and away we went. There is a set place each day for lunch (which is included in the overall price) A little touristy for me but I would not want to eat on the street in Cairo. Our group of 4 decided we wanted to go to the light show (not that impressive!) but there was not enough time to check into the hotel or eat dinner first so we went directly to the show neighborhood about 50 minutes early. Our guide set us up in a cafe a block from the show and we sat at tables on the sidewalk drinking egyptian coffee and snacking on crackers we bought next door at a shop watching as all the buses packed with tourists passed us. How nice it was to be sitting, relaxing after a long day, enjoying the atmosphere of the neighborhood instead of waiting in line a block away. If you do stay overnight, no need to really upgrade to an expensive hotel as all the hotels Ramses uses are above par, include breakfast and if you go to the light show you don't get to your hotel until almost 10 anyway. I requested an opportunity to visit the bazaar which was not on the set schedule of tour 10. No problem, we just left our hotel earlier so we could get it in. The Egyptian security police placed an armed guard with our van for the second day(they usually do this for large buses but I think we were one of the first groups leaving the hotel that morning and they had extra police available so we got one. At first I was a little put out due to loosing our spacious leg room but this guard stuck with us like glue. My wife took pictures and in every picture of me, my shadow was right behind with his arms crossed. I felt very secure at the bazaar.

A couple of final comments. The drive to Cairo is 3 hours each way. Makes for a very long day so if you are thinking about making 2 days of Cairo, spend the night. I personally felt that 1 long day in Cairo would have been plenty. We did go to Memphis and Sakar the second day but for us, seeing the Giza pyramids with all the other ruins we saw along the cruise was plenty. (We are Cliff Notes type of travellers). The guides are instruted to stop at a perfume "workshop", cotton outlet, and paper "workshop" and a rug "school" the second day. These are nothing but stops to sell you something. I found the paper shop ok but the rest were just a waste of our time. Ask to go to the bazaar, more interesting, less structured but go in the afternoon/evening not early in morning. We got back to the ship at least 2 hours before sailing time. Although I would not return to Cairo again, our guide was very good and I would recommend Ramses.

[Flowrider]

One aditional comment about ramses tours besides all the positive comments posted, they are very flexible with theirmtour offerings, if you want to organize a tour for a certain groupmand you want to add a visit to an aditional place like sakkarah for example, they will work with you to make it happen, if you dont want to spend time in rug factories or that type of places, they will acomodate it that way also

[WeBeGone]

Our favorite company is Nile Blue. We've used them twice. There are many posts on this site about them as they are Ramses main competitor.

[MuffinW]

We hired Ramses Tours for our overnight excursion to Cairo during our September 17 cruise on the Navigator of the Seas. We had four people in our tour group, all family. I have been in love with ancient Egypt since reading Crocodile on the Sandbank when I was twelve years old and picked this cruise because it had an overnight stay in Alexandria.

 

Mohammed, our tour guide, was waiting for us at 8 am holding a sign with my name on it when we got off the ship at Alexandria. After a stop to take pictures outside of the new library at Alexandria and along the port, we headed to Cairo. Once in Cairo we visited the pyramids and the Cheops boat. We then had unscheduled stops at papyrus and perfume factories and went to the Egyptian Museum. Due to the papyrus and perfume stops, we did not have as much time at the museum as I wanted, so we changed our schedule on the fly to include an additional visit to the museum the following day. We had planned to do the Nile river cruise for dinner, but one member of our party had a bad cold so we cancelled the cruise and went to our hotel instead. Mohammed adapted to our changed plans by incorporating a felucca ride on the Nile (at sunset) into the evening's activities. After the delightful felucca ride, we checked in at Mena House. (For those who are debating whether to stay at Mena House, we felt it was well worth the additional $30 pp we paid to stay there. The original part of the hotel is gorgeous and historic, and the newer wing, where we stayed, is clean and luxurious.) We had a wonderful dinner at the Moghul Room at Mena House that evening and went to bed.

 

The next day, we went to the open-air museum at Memphis and then visited the pyramids at Sakkara. While there, we also admired the beautiful painted reliefs in two nobles' tombs. We then returned to the Egyptian Museum, where we saw some additional exhibits that I was interested in but had not had time to see the previous day. Before heading back to Alexandria, we had a wonderful lunch of kushari in Cairo. We were returned to the cruise ship at least two hours before the deadline.

 

In summary, we were extremely pleased with Mohammed, with our driver, Hussein, and with Ramses Tours, in particular with their ability to adapt to our needs throughout the excursion and their desire to make sure that we enjoyed our stay in Egypt.

[szq]

We will be going to Alexandria, Egypt on the NCL Jade in late March 2011.

 

I would like to hear what private tour companies people have actually completed tours with and what they thought of them. Also any tips about the companies to make the tour better would be appreciated.

 

Please respond even if someone else has already responded about the company. Getting 10 responses about a company will tell me more than getting 1.

 

Thanks very much.

I just returned from a fabulous trip to Egypt and the HolyLand. We used Ramses Tours in Alexandria for 2 days. Our guide was Amira and she was fabulous. The van was new and the driver was excellent. We had the same people for both days. Amira was able to interpret, explain (She really knew her history) take pictures and even bargain for us. I highly reccommend Ramses Tours. We saw everything for less money than the ships tours and no waiting for the crowds

In Israel we used Guided Tours Israel and they were just as professional and wonderful.

[lcumpire]

I just returned from a fabulous trip to Egypt and the HolyLand. We used Ramses Tours in Alexandria for 2 days. Our guide was Amira and she was fabulous. The van was new and the driver was excellent. We had the same people for both days. Amira was able to interpret, explain (She really knew her history) take pictures and even bargain for us. I highly reccommend Ramses Tours. We saw everything for less money than the ships tours and no waiting for the crowds

In Israel we used Guided Tours Israel and they were just as professional and wonderful.

 

That review is very good news to my ears. We are using both companies for our October cruise and have heard nothing but good reviews.

[bbbradk]

Sorry to be the one voice of dissent here, We booked Ramses for our September trip and had a very bad tour.

In the end we wished we had taken a cab to the pyramids.

 

The company owner tried to make things right by offering a free Alexandria tour the following day (that was very good, but also not what the website advertises) but really how do you make up for ruining a trip to a place you will probably never return.

 

Ensure if you are booking with them that you get an experienced guide, and if the tour starts off bad, don't stick it out, it wont get better.

[eaglewingks]

When we docked in Alexandria, we used Blue Nile tours and had one of the best tours I've ever had at a port. They are a husband and wife and did a great job at a resonable price. If we ever go back to that area, we will definitely use them again!

[halbfl2]

To give you another option to consider, I just returned from a cruise that visited Alexandria and spent a great day using Egypt Private Excursions: http://www.egyptprivateexcursions.com

 

I have been to Cairo twice already, so I opted to tour Alexandria on this day. I wanted a personalized itinerary, and they worked with me to put together exactly the tour I wanted. Their responses were always prompt and I found them a pleasure to work with. The guide I had, Dalia, was a treasure-trove of information and a charming guide for the day. We had lunch at a great restaurant that overlooked the water with a beautiful view from Qait Bey to the Alexandria Museum and beyond.

 

I would certainly recommend them to anyone going to Egypt, and when I go back in November to Cairo, I plan to use them again if my schedule allows the time.

 

We are looking at a cruise with a 2-day stop in Alexandria in Oct. 2011. I have had correspondence w/Egypt Private Ex. but don't see many recommendations on these boards for them. I was hoping to do a 2-day tour possibly spending the night in the Cairo area since there is probably more to see there than in Alex. where we would finish up on second day before returning to ship. I would be interested in learning of your recommendations for the tour co. and itinerary. If you would prefer to reply to my email than on this board, feel free. lovetravelcmh@gmail.com

[cruisemom42]

We are looking at a cruise with a 2-day stop in Alexandria in Oct. 2011. I have had correspondence w/Egypt Private Ex. but don't see many recommendations on these boards for them. I was hoping to do a 2-day tour possibly spending the night in the Cairo area since there is probably more to see there than in Alex. where we would finish up on second day before returning to ship. I would be interested in learning of your recommendations for the tour co. and itinerary. If you would prefer to reply to my email than on this board, feel free. lovetravelcmh@gmail.com

 

I think one reason why they have fewer recommendations is that they have not been around as long as some other established agencies. (Also, they may be a little less aggressive in asking posters to go on CC to recommend them, which I found a little off-putting with some other agencies.....:rolleyes:). However, according to the owner, who I met during lunch in Alexandria, they have been around for about a year now and some of the management comes from the highly-regarded Abercrombie & Kent operations in Egypt.

 

As to itinerary, I would absolutely recommend for a first visit that you spend most of your time in Cairo and overnight there. Cairo is much closer to the iconic things that most first-time visitors want to see -- the pyramids, Sphinx, Cairo Museum, etc. Alexandria is a great city in its own right with a lot of history, but I didn't see it until my third visit to Egypt.

 

If you want more detailed info, just post again and I will be happy to email you.