Egypt on Uniworld, October 2015

[Oakman58]

Thanks for sharing your experience in Egypt. I was there in 2009 and your thread made me go back and look at the many photos I took. It still ranks as the best trip I've ever taken.

[Cannot Decide]

Wendy, thanks for sharing your experiences. Could you share information about the security aspects of your trip? We are booked to do the same cruise in December and are quite concerned due to the recent news about Egypt.

Thanks!

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Wendy, thanks for sharing your experiences. Could you share information about the security aspects of your trip? We are booked to do the same cruise in December and are quite concerned due to the recent news about Egypt.

Thanks!

 

We never felt unsafe. There is security everywhere. Perhaps the best was at the Four Seasons--sniffer dog at the entrance sniffing out all vehicles. Metal detector at the entrance.

 

Security at airports seemed good, although probably not as good as Europe or North America. If this was a bomb, it was probably a baggage handler who placed it, so I can't comment on that type of security. I really hope it wasn't.

 

There were checkpoints on the roads, with cops or soldiers with guns. All the historic sites also had security, although sometimes it was a fairly lax. We often had an armed guard on the bus with us, and once we had a vehicle escort as well.

[lahlah57]

Your tour was a tiny group. We went a few years ago with Trafalgar which had a nile cruise included with it. The ship was nothing to write home about but the tour was beyond fabulous! Egypt is a mystical and magical destination with its deep history, unique people and lovely food fare!

If you can swing Egypt.....do it.....a true wanderers destination!!!

[lahlah57]

We went to Egypt shortly after Obama entered office. There was a high level of security going on then but we went, "said a prayer" and never looked back. Never "felt" unsafe

[Cannot Decide]

Thanks for the info. I hope to have as wonderful experience as you did!

[cormike1]

Thanks for that great review. We had a 2-week tour plus a week in Sharm booked when the uprising started in 2011 and had to cancel. I was so disappointed as it is my top place on my bucket list. I am going to keep the Fall of 2017 open in hopes it will be safe to go. What a wonderful place and your posts sounded so great. Thanks a lot.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Here's a link to my CC review, which I thought I should do for posterity:

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/v-1/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=517949&et_cid=2531924&et_rid=24277646&et_referrer=Contest_PaulGauguin_May2013

[Oakman58]

My wife and I cruised the Nile two years before the revolution and it certainly provided plenty of cultural shock for me. I’m so glad I had the opportunity to visit such a beautiful and fascinating country.

 

The first shock on the cruise was the Egyptian Navy manning a machine gun on the back of our ship. We don’t see things like that on boats that cruise the Mississippi River.

 

 

I don’t think I was shocked, but I was certainly surprised to see so many satellite dishes on the roofs of buildings in the small villages we passed.

 

Considering the modern satellite dishes, I was shocked to see women doing their laundry in the Nile River.

 

 

Donkeys and a cart on a boat crossing the Nile. Nope I wasn’t expecting to see that either.

 

 

 

On our last day on the cruise ship our tour guide took us on a behind the scenes tour of the ship. When we visited the bridge/wheelhouse, I was expecting to see the captain of our ship wearing some type of nautical uniform. Nope, our captain was barefoot and wearing a galabeya and turban. I’m not criticizing or making fun of anyone, just pointing out culture shock for me.

[mimmy52]

Great pictures, Oakman.

[Hydrokitty]

My DH has let Uniworld know we are interested for January 2017, having read marvelous reviews on CC, and received the following reply from the director of guest relations: "We are very pleased with how things are going in Egypt. It is great to finally be back in such an amazing destination. We do have 2017 dates for Egypt open for booking now. We have January through May open. The 2017 Fall dates will open in September 2016."

 

If there's any way you can swing it, pick a date in January or February. The weather is very comfortable for touring both morning and afternoon.

[jklc123]

If there's any way you can swing it, pick a date in January or February. The weather is very comfortable for touring both morning and afternoon.

 

DH went ahead and paid a small deposit for January 14, 2017. Still hesitant about adding Jordan. Will just have to see how conditions are in a few months. (We don't have high hopes for that).

[Hydrokitty]

DH went ahead and paid a small deposit for January 14, 2017. Still hesitant about adding Jordan. Will just have to see how conditions are in a few months. (We don't have high hopes for that).

 

We did post trip to Jordan and it was wonderful. Petra is not to be missed. It was 2009 and we had an armed guard with us everywhere in Egypt. In Jordan there were soldiers on the sidewalks at the entrance to our hotel every time we left and again when we returned and there was airline type security every time we entered the hotels, which were beautiful. If you do decide to do Jordan, I would recommend that you do not ride camels in Egypt....when you get to Petra if you're in good physical condition and like to walk, walk through the Siq, if walking is an issue (it is for me) take the horse drawn cart through the Siq...it's round trip and our guide arranged for it but I think it was around $20 round trip for the two of us....worth every dime....and then after you've walked through Petra take the camel back to the treasury. In Egypt camel ride was like at the zoo...You're led around a set pattern....at Petra you rode the camel past the tombs and it was spectacular. Our turn around point was the Holiday Inn Petra (who would have thought) and we had lunch there....if you do too, make sure you have the bread pudding....best I have ever tasted. Of course, if you're not doing Jordan...ride the camels in Egypt....but I hope you do Jordan...it's a beautiful country and I felt very comfortable and welcome there.

[jpalbny]

Another vote for Jordan. The history was incredible and Petra is beautiful.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

DH went ahead and paid a small deposit for January 14, 2017. Still hesitant about adding Jordan. Will just have to see how conditions are in a few months. (We don't have high hopes for that).

 

You know, we thought about doing Jordan as well. It's really a separate trip. So we decided it was too much for us. Given the heat we experienced, we were probably right, but two of our fellow pax had done Jordan before our cruise, and they said it was great--they wished they'd spent more time there. So as long as you're up for the extra travel, go for it!

[lahlah57]

Another vote for Jordan. The history was incredible and Petra is beautiful.

 

............but not the camels! They are a pretty stinky bunch of creatures:(

[jklc123]

Thanks for the encouragement regarding Jordan. if we go, we will take your advice, Hydrokitty. We were in Paris not long ago, and just heard the news about the attack there today. Can happen anywhere these days. We did ride a camel in Cappadocia so will probably skip that photo op. in Egypt.

[Hydrokitty]

You know, we thought about doing Jordan as well. It's really a separate trip. So we decided it was too much for us. Given the heat we experienced, we were probably right, but two of our fellow pax had done Jordan before our cruise, and they said it was great--they wished they'd spent more time there. So as long as you're up for the extra travel, go for it!

 

I think key is when you go. DH works with an Egyptian who didn't suggest, he TOLD us to go in January or February when the weather is perfect...it's not too hot and the sandstorms don't hit till March or April. We left in late Jan. and it was perfect touring weather....warm to hot but never beastly during the day and wonderfully pleasant in the evenings. Our post trip was 3 days in Amman and 3 in Petra. It was longer away than we usually go, but it was and remains one of my most exciting trips.

[jklc123]

A question for Wendy the Wanderer, or anyone else who has stayed at the Four Seasons in Cairo: just how expensive are the hotel restaurants? I saw a comment on Tripadvisor that the breakfast is $100 and the evening buffet is something like $120. This seems incredible. I know our breakfast will be included but will have a few other meals there I'm sure. How about room service prices? We're working out our budget for our Uniworld Egypt trip in January 2017.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

A question for Wendy the Wanderer, or anyone else who has stayed at the Four Seasons in Cairo: just how expensive are the hotel restaurants? I saw a comment on Tripadvisor that the breakfast is $100 and the evening buffet is something like $120. This seems incredible. I know our breakfast will be included but will have a few other meals there I'm sure. How about room service prices? We're working out our budget for our Uniworld Egypt trip in January 2017.

 

Sorry, but I've lost the invoice and can't remember the details. I seem to remember the breakfast may have been $60 pp--it was included for us as for you. We had lunch out on our balcony, room service, and again I can't remember, but it might have been $30 or $40 per person, I had a shawarma I think. Not cheap. Expensive, but not outrageous. Sorry I can't enumerate this better.

 

What I do remember is that it was worth it, since getting out of the hotel seemed difficult. Friends who went later took a cab up to the big bazaar area and had a great time, but we were more timid than that.

Edited January 21, 2016 by Wendy The Wanderer

[jpalbny]

My recollection matches Wendy's. It is the Four Seasons, but it wasn't New York prices.

[Hydrokitty]

And whatever it was, it's probably less now because tourism has tanked since the Arab spring.

[DavidTheWonderer]

And whatever it was, it's probably less now because tourism has tanked since the Arab spring.

 

Wendy's recollections about Four Seasons on the Nile prices, which match mine, are based on our trip last October. So these were the "tanked" prices.

 

One of the demographics of the guests in the hotel was Arab guys, presumably sheikhs of some sort, in white "gowns" ("jalabaya"?) but surrounded by burly looking guys in business suits. I assume the suits were on the bodyguards. The suits certainly had lumps where the guns were. The sheikhs can afford Four Seasons prices as a matter of course. For us, it was a rare and lovely treat.

[jklc123]

Thanks for your replies about the Four Seasons. Looking forward to it and saving up!

[Hydrokitty]

Wendy's recollections about Four Seasons on the Nile prices, which match mine, are based on our trip last October. So these were the "tanked" prices.

 

Yikes!!!

 

One of the demographics of the guests in the hotel was Arab guys, presumably sheikhs of some sort, in white "gowns" ("jalabaya"?) but surrounded by burly looking guys in business suits. I assume the suits were on the bodyguards. The suits certainly had lumps where the guns were. The sheikhs can afford Four Seasons prices as a matter of course. For us, it was a rare and lovely treat.

 

We had an armed guard with us in 2009.. He accompanied us everywhere and I later found out he was ex-Egyptian military. ..at one point his suit jacket was open and we could see the AK47 strapped to his back....frightening but reassuring at the same time!

Edited January 22, 2016 by Hydrokitty