Oberoi Philae Nile Cruise

murphysmum · November 20, 2006

Hello....

Although I've traveled and cruised extensively, I've never posted a review on Cruise Critic...plenty on TripAdvisor. I generally research and book my own vacations, filling in with guide/car services when necessary.

I've just returned from Egypt and would like to share information on the loveliest cruise I've ever taken. Having researched group tours and available cruises I decided on the Oberoi Philae and booked directly through the Oberoi website. The ship is in a class unto itself and I would rate it a 5-6 star experience based on atmosphere, decor, staff and service, quality of tours provided at each port, food and food service and overall ambiance.

The entire ship has a British Colonial flavor. All cabins have balconies with period iron work rails and rattan seating. Beds and bedding are to die for. Although cabins are rather small (suites are available), the open feeling/balcony and the very large public areas gave a feeling of spaciousness. The upper deck combined both sun and shade lounging areas around a beautiful pool. Parlour, tea room/lounge and dining room were "British country home"...dark wood, brass and tasteful decor.

The age of those aboard appeared to be 45-65 or 70. This is not a "party ship". It's upscale and sophisticated. Tour groups are broken into groups of 8-10 and you avoid the large buses belching smoke at temple sites. Guides provided by Oberoi were well versed in Egyptology and multilingual. We met groups from Spain, Germany, South Africa and the UK. Most had booked through tour groups except the young couple from England.

We sailed from Aswan to Luxor on the four day cruise. When we do it again, we'll spend six days on the ship...We didn't want to get off.

I would also recommend starting a trip with a stay at the Mena Oberoi, Palace Wing, Pyramid View with Balcony. Great experience all around and perfect for touring Pyramids and Sakkara.

We flew to Aswan and stayed at Old Cataract, Nile View with Balcony. Both of these older hotels are well worth the money; the reports of them being run down are simply not true.

After debarking in Luxor we flew immediately back to Cairo. I wish I would have spent extra time in Luxor. It would take four days just to begin to see the sights. We had only two.

We ended the trip at the Four Seasons First Residence. In this case, your choice is either a Nile view or a view of the Cairo Zoo. We chose a corner room with direct view of the zoo, corner view of Nile. Waking up to thousands of ibis circling the zoo trees and hippos lounging in their pond was quite an experience. The hotel is in a much quieter location than the other Four Seasons...away from the traffic and feels like a wonderful respite after the traffic chaos of Cairo traffic and a long trip.

If you are on a budget, it may help to price booking a trip individually as we did. We stayed in first class accommodations, yet paid no more than a moderately priced Egypt Tour. If you're after charm, elegance and a little "Agatha Christie", this is the trip for you.

I have deliberately omitted attempting to describe the wonders we saw in Egypt; they will be wonderful no matter how you decide to travel. Just because we heard a lot of concerns for our safety when we left for Egypt, I will add that we felt completely safe at all times. We walked the streets at night to shop and never felt a moment of risk. I hope this is helpful to someone!

Mrs007 · November 20, 2006

Thanks for the post. When were you in Egypt?? We are planning on going next Nov. and was wondering what the weather was like. We are arranging a trip with 3 nights Cairo at the Grand Hyatt doing the normal excursions, 4 nights Nile cruise on Sonesta Moon Goddess from Luxor to Aswan, then 4 nights Lake Nasser cruise on Kasr Ibrim from Aswan (High Dam to Abu Simbel). We are pretty excited about going.

One question - how much money did you allow for bakshish (tipping)? From all the posts I read here and on Virtual Tourist and Trip Advisor, it sounds like you are handing out dollar bills right and left. What was your experience?

Thanks. And any other handy tips you want to pass along, I would love to hear.

Hlitner · November 20, 2006

The OP really makes me smile, because we just returned (10 days ago) from a 2 week trip to Egypt where we were also on a 4 day cruise on the Oberoi Philae. I agree with the prior review that this is a darn good river boat. There are over 300 boats doing cruises between Aswan and Luxor, and the Oberoi Philae is certainly one of the best. Is it 6 star? No. But, its probably about as good as it gets in Egypt. As to Luxor, we spent a couple of extra days at the Old Winter Palace Hotel and I highly recommend this hotel...particularly the rooms in the older wing (not the New Winter Palace). The Queen of Norway was also staying at the hotel during our stay. The weather in late Oct early Nov is perfect in Cairo and South to Luxor where daytime highs ranged from low 70s in Cairo to mid 80s in Luxor and Abu Simbal. However, we did encounter winter-like weather (50s) when spending a couple of days in the northern city of Alexandria. Regarding the Grand Hyatt, we spent 4 nights at this perfectly located hotel where all the rooms offer Nile views with small balconies. We were also impressed by the Marriott Hotel, which is on an island in the middle of the Nile where everything was a bit more upscale (many of the embassy personnel live in this area). I would also caution about the Oberoi Mena House Hotel which is very popular because of its location within a stones throw of the Great Pyramids at Giza. This hotel has a small wing in its old "palace" building where there are some excellent rooms. However, most rooms are located in newer buildings across the pool area from the main building, and these buildings and rooms are similar to well-worn Holiday Inn rooms. If you are planning to stay at this famous hotel, pay the extra dollars and insist on a Pyramid View in the Palace building.

Hank

murphysmum · November 21, 2006

Hi!

Regarding your questions about temperature in Egypt and tipping....We were just there...late October leaving on 15th November. The weather was actually quite pleasant...low 80's during the daytime and usually 60's at night except for one chilly night in Cairo.

I had taken a jacket, sweater and pashmina. I never wore the jacket, wore the lightweight cashmere one night and never wore the shawl...even when sitting on the upper deck of the ship late in the evening. Linen clothing came in very handy during the day in the dry heat. A lot of wraps are sold in the kiosks..some good quality, some not..but it's a nice thing to bring home. My husband had taken a navy blazer and we found that even in finer restaurants most people were more casual. I think he wore his sweater only once. In retrospect, I would take one comfortable sweater or jacket that would "pass" in an upscale restaurant and my husband would take only the blue blazer. It was probably colder on the plane than it ever was in Egypt.

As far as tipping, an Egyptian friend gave me advice before leaving home. He suggested changing our dollars to Egyptian pounds in the airport and tipping 10-20 per cent depending on service. I DID find a lot of outstretched hands, but most of it was done with good grace and it's pretty clear that many of the employees really need the money so I didn't find it particularly annoying.

I tipped the approximately the equivilant of $2 per bag, $10 per day for daily room cleaning (as the same person tended to the room morning and evening), 20 per cent of the cost of a private day tour to both the driver an the guide and found that most tips were included in room service so I simply added a very small amount to that.

While on the ship, we were told that tipping at the end would be at our option and were asked that money be put in one large envelope to be distributed evenly amoung the entire crew. We individually tipped our room attendant ($10 per day) and tour guide (same guide each day for approx 4 hours) the same amount. The assistant manager had been particularly helpful in giving me the room I requested, confirming airline, etc and we gave him $75. I think we put $20 per day in the large envelope to be distributed amoung the crew....We had so many people waiting on us at dinner that it was impossible to distinguish who to tip.

Do get some 1 pound notes at the airport for use in bathrooms (WC in Egypt). You can't get in and out of a bathroom without paying for your paper.

DO be careful when negotiating (probably in Aswan or Luxor) for donkey carriage rides. They're a lot of fun, but we negotiated fairly in Egyptian pounds and after the ride the driver demanded British pounds....quite a difference...and we're from the US. Since he happened to have dropped us next to the guard gate at the Old Cataract, the guard settled it pretty quickly. In this case, I did NOT tip...and would have been quite generous as we enjoyed the experience.

I hope that you enjoy your trip as much as we did and that this information is helpful.

Enjoy!

murphysmum · November 21, 2006

Thanks for the post. When were you in Egypt?? We are planning on going next Nov. and was wondering what the weather was like. We are arranging a trip with 3 nights Cairo at the Grand Hyatt doing the normal excursions, 4 nights Nile cruise on Sonesta Moon Goddess from Luxor to Aswan, then 4 nights Lake Nasser cruise on Kasr Ibrim from Aswan (High Dam to Abu Simbel). We are pretty excited about going.

One question - how much money did you allow for bakshish (tipping)? From all the posts I read here and on Virtual Tourist and Trip Advisor, it sounds like you are handing out dollar bills right and left. What was your experience?

Thanks. And any other handy tips you want to pass along, I would love to hear.