Anyone Recently Used Ramses Tours?

[Jade13]

My wife and I were on a Ramses overnight excursion last month. I am not posting a review as of yet other than on our roll call site since I am attempting to work through some issues we had with Ramses. I only feel it is fair to allow them to reply to my quirey.

 

However, and this is something very important for any and all who are considering using Ramsies Tours (and possibly others in Egypt as well), even though they represent themselves as a TOUR COMPANY, they are NOT. They are a clearing house for other independent tour guides & companies. Keep that in mind if you are looking to book an excursion at what very well may be an item quite high up on your 'bucket list'.

Until I post my review, if anyone has any specific questions or concerns, please feel free to send me an e-mail: mwc1229@hotmail.com

 

This post is from 2010, but is this still the case that they work with all independant tour guides.

[shepsm001]

Looking forward to seeing them. They emailed us about the upcoming trip which is is a nice touch.

[Jade13]

We used Ramses for a tour from Port Said to Cairo in 2011 on the Dawn Princess World Cruise. Our guide was a lovely enthusiastic young gentleman named Memo (I think that is how it was spelled.) He was wonderful in making sure that our group was all comfortable and was very knowledgeable about his country and shared lots of information with us as we travelled - he was very willing to answer all our questions. We had lots of fun with him - even dancing to Egyptian music on our felucca ride down the Nile. It is a long drive in each direction and was very hot, so he even stopped at a roadside service station and bought ice creams and cakes for everyone!! I have never been on another bus tour where this has happened.

I have now booked three tours - Luxor and Valley of the kings, Alexandria and Sharm el Sheikh through Ramses for our upcoming cruise in August/September.

Cheers

:)

 

He is our scheduled guide.

[Cruiser Craig]

Have any of you had a French-speaking guide you would recommend? Thanks!

[lindyloo17]

We will be cruising in Feb 2014, just me and my DD aged 11.

 

What happens if the car breaks down or something, and we miss the Thomson ship ? The TA is scaring me into bookeing their trips, but these sound better.

 

Any advice please?

[Mexfolkart]

We have never had a car break down but to head that scenario off, we look to see when we are sailing..if we are sailing at 6pm we tell the guide

we MUST be back at the ship no later than 4pm..that way, IF there is a traffic problem, or IF a tire went flat, there is time for the guide to call the company to come get you and get you back! With someone like Ramses they will have several tours going on at once and IF your car had a problem, they could always squeeze you into one of their other cars just to make sure you got back on time. We usually do a mix of private tours and

ships tours depending on what is offered. We love having a small group to travel with and no lines etc!

Sherry

[Cruiser Craig]

We were on a Port Said-Cairo overnight-Alexandria tour with Ramses two weeks ago. The two of us, the driver and the guide toured around in a comfortable, clean, air-conditioned minivan which could seat up to six. Our guide's name is Karim Serry and he was great, knowledgeable, articulate, flexible and ensured we got back to the ship in Alexandria with plenty of time to spare. We even got some extra unplanned photo stops in Alexandria. If there had been a breakdown, I'm sure Ramses would have gotten us back to the ship with another vehicle. I highly recommend them. Great service, great guide, less expensive than the ship's shore excursions and we didn't have to troop around with a big flock of others.

[lindyloo17]

Thank you for your feedback. I have read/researched on Trip Advisor too, and they seem very reliable and good too ! :)

Hoping some other cruisers in feb 2014 might join us, will ask on the roll call thread.

 

We had an amazing city tour in Dubai... just me and my dd. She thought she was a VIP and she learnt sooooo much it was fab. So hoping Ramese can do the same for us in Luxor Cairo and Jordan!!!

[Jade13]

Which tour guide do you recommend?

 

Mimmo. Ramses recommended him as one of the best guides in Egypt, and he was one of the best guides we have ever had. He knew people wherever we went. We were stopped at multiple locations including in the Museum of Antiquities.

 

His name is Mohammad, but he speaks Italian so took on the name, "Mimmo".

Edited May 23, 2013 by Jade13

[Cruiser Craig]

I am in the process of booking a private tour with Ramses for May. The website says that Ramses is the only tour company that lets you pick your guide. Does anyone who has used Ramses before have a specific tour guide (Egyptologist) that you recommend?

 

I recommend Karim Sperry. He's also tri-lingual (Arabic, English, French) and seems to know everyone everywhere (I think this is normal for the tight-knit group of tour guides who visit the same major attractions on a regular basis). He's really a fantastic guide and made this tour one of the best we've ever experienced.

[slidergirl]

Mimmo. Ramses recommended him as one of the best guides in Egypt, and he was one of the best guides we have ever had. He knew people wherever we went. We were stopped at multiple locations including in the Museum of Antiquities.

 

His name is Mohammad, but he speaks Italian so took on the name, "Mimmo".

 

Jade13 - I wanted to know what you thought of your A&K trip? Took a trip with them on their Nile Adventurer back in 2009. I know you were having some questions about your pre-boat hotel and such.

[Jade13]

Jade13 - I wanted to know what you thought of your A&K trip? Took a trip with them on their Nile Adventurer back in 2009. I know you were having some questions about your pre-boat hotel and such.

 

Hi, it was great! Thank you for asking. We used A&K US for Africa, and then met up with A&K Egypt. As it turned out A&K US did not have anyone booked on our Nile cruise on Sunboat IV. In fact, there were only 13 passengers (two were children). We paid under $1,000 each booked directly through A&K Egypt, but only did so when the US group would not sell us a cruise/tour that coordinated with our Africa trip.

 

A couple of weeks before we left they sold us an additional night on Sunboat IV at 50% off (3 meals but no excursions since we were doing them the next day). When we arrived we were surprised to find they also upgraded us two decks so we had a cabin with Juliet type balcony. The service was outstanding.

 

As far as the extra night on Sunboat IV it worked out to be a good decision. Ethiopian Airlines lost all of our luggage (two duffel's) that never arrived in Cairo. Their service was good at the airport since we went to Ethiopian Airlines offices at 1:30am where they gave us soft drinks and bottled water and let us use their computers where we emailed A&K (they were not meeting us until Abu Simbel). We had an 8:00am flight to Abu Simbul/Aswan, and left with only the clothes we were wearing, but Ethiopian & A&K arranged for Egypt Air to fly our luggage to Aswan when they found it the next day and A&K picked it up at the airport, washed our clothes for no charge and gave us the monies (cash refund) we had paid for one private excursion we no longer wanted. For Abu Simbel we had a private tour with A&K (they do the group excursion every day but we were the only ones who showed up), plus a private tour of the Aswan Museum and private tour of the Luxor Museum.

 

Apparently our luggage also got stuck in customs in Cairo and A&K said they had contacts and got our luggage released. They also took us to a cotton store after our Aswan Museum visit (Our insurance is now paying for the emergency items).

Edited May 23, 2013 by Jade13

[Florida Cruisin' Couple]

Wondering if anyone has recently used Ramses Tours for an overnight tour while in Egypt? Will be using them in a few months and was wondering if someone could give a review of how their recent tour was with them. I have read many posts from people who are booked with them for upcoming excursions, but not from anyone who has actually used them recently. Did you visit everything as planned? Any info will be most appreciated.[/quote

 

We just used Ramses for an overnight tour for 31 people,

it was perfect in every aspect. I recommend them and will use them again. The guide we had was exceptional, his name was " Mimo"

[slidergirl]

Hi, it was great! Thank you for asking. We used A&K US for Africa, and then met up with A&K Egypt. As it turned out A&K US did not have anyone booked on our Nile cruise on Sunboat IV. In fact, there were only 13 passengers (two were children). We paid under $1,000 each booked directly through A&K Egypt, but only did so when the US group would not sell us a cruise/tour that coordinated with our Africa trip.

 

A couple of weeks before we left they sold us an additional night on Sunboat IV at 50% off (3 meals but no excursions since we were doing them the next day). When we arrived we were surprised to find they also upgraded us two decks so we had a cabin with Juliet type balcony. The service was outstanding.

 

As far as the extra night on Sunboat IV it worked out to be a good decision. Ethiopian Airlines lost all of our luggage (two duffel's) that never arrived in Cairo. Their service was good at the airport since we went to Ethiopian Airlines offices at 1:30am where they gave us soft drinks and bottled water and let us use their computers where we emailed A&K (they were not meeting us until Abu Simbel). We had an 8:00am flight to Abu Simbul/Aswan, and left with only the clothes we were wearing, but Ethiopian & A&K arranged for Egypt Air to fly our luggage to Aswan when they found it the next day and A&K picked it up at the airport, washed our clothes for no charge and gave us the monies (cash refund) we had paid for one private excursion we no longer wanted. For Abu Simbel we had a private tour with A&K (they do the group excursion every day but we were the only ones who showed up), plus a private tour of the Aswan Museum and private tour of the Luxor Museum.

 

Apparently our luggage also got stuck in customs in Cairo and A&K said they had contacts and got our luggage released. They also took us to a cotton store after our Aswan Museum visit (Our insurance is now paying for the emergency items).

 

Wow, you must have been pampered beyond belief on the Sunboat!!! I think there were maybe 30 people on our cruise and we were treated like Nile kings and queens. Sorry about the luggage :( But, it sounds ike A&K stepped up and helped on that. And, you got some local clothes, so you probably fit right in. Did Sunboat have laundry service available to wash your clothes after Tanzania?

[Jade13]

Wow, you must have been pampered beyond belief on the Sunboat!!! I think there were maybe 30 people on our cruise and we were treated like Nile kings and queens. Sorry about the luggage :( But, it sounds ike A&K stepped up and helped on that. And, you got some local clothes, so you probably fit right in. Did Sunboat have laundry service available to wash your clothes after Tanzania?

 

Yes, they had laundry service. We ended up paying to have more clothes done before we left. In Kenya, Tanzania, and Egypt, laundry was back the same day without having to pay for rush service.

[slidergirl]

Yes, they had laundry service. We ended up paying to have more clothes done before we left. In Kenya, Tanzania, and Egypt, laundry was back the same day without having to pay for rush service.

 

I had the same thing with laundry at the camps in Kenya. It was nice to have same day service! I hope you got some great photos!!! Did you get to photo-bag the Big 5???

[Jade13]

I had the same thing with laundry at the camps in Kenya. It was nice to have same day service! I hope you got some great photos!!! Did you get to photo-bag the Big 5???

 

Yes! All 5 and more.

 

What about you?

Edited May 27, 2013 by Jade13

[slidergirl]

Yes! All 5 and more.

 

What about you?

 

Yep, I was lucky enough to bag all 5. That leopard was a tough one - we saw two of them in different parks - both nestled up in a tree so they were hard to see. We went to 4 different camps in different parts of Kenya, so much diversity of wildlife. Saw 3 types of giraffe, both types of zebra, both rhino types, crocs, hippos, more bocks and bucks, baboons, elephants, you name it!

 

Our guide also had fun with us, trying to bag the "Little 5": "buffalo" weaver, "rhino" beetle, "leopard" tortoise, "lion" ant, and "elephant" shrew. We got to see the first 3.

[energizer bunny 7]

We used Ramasside (ramsestours.com) for our tours in Egypt in April. The price for a private Van was quite reasonable. There were 4 of us and I use a seated walker to get around. Mohammad Shaarawy was our guide from Safaga to Luxor and the Valley of the Kings. He was very knowledgeable and had many stories to tell. Some areas were hard for me to get to but I could wait in the shade while the others took in everything. In Cairo and the next day in Alexandria our guide was Mohamed Doma. He was exceptionaly understanding of my handicap. He talked to the authorities so he could get me right up to the Pyramid. He was very knowledgeable and made Egyptian history come to life.

[Jade13]

Yep, I was lucky enough to bag all 5. That leopard was a tough one - we saw two of them in different parks - both nestled up in a tree so they were hard to see. We went to 4 different camps in different parts of Kenya, so much diversity of wildlife. Saw 3 types of giraffe, both types of zebra, both rhino types, crocs, hippos, more bocks and bucks, baboons, elephants, you name it!

 

Our guide also had fun with us, trying to bag the "Little 5": "buffalo" weaver, "rhino" beetle, "leopard" tortoise, "lion" ant, and "elephant" shrew. We got to see the first 3.

 

 

We saw 5 leopards, one very close as it was walking near our vehicle. We saw the Samburu, Kenya special 5 - the Beisa oryx, gerenuk, Reticulated giraffe, Grevy’s zebra and Somali ostrich. And definitely saw more than one leopard tortoise in Tanzania. We were the only ones excited but we used to have one as a pet. We now have 2 other Tortoise pets.

Edited June 4, 2013 by Jade13

[crazzyd77]

I need to give it a try..:cool:

[Casey2]

We used Ramses for an overnight tour this past October. We had about 35 people from the roll call that decided to do this. We had a full size bus with bathroom. We also had an armed securitiy guard travelling with us at all times. We stayed at the Le Meridian- a five star hotel which was magnificent. We saw everything that we wanted to see. Traffic in Cairo is horrendous. Coming from NYC we are used to traffic, but have never seen anything like that. To accommodate the traffic, our guide juggled the order of the things we did so we could get everything in. The only down side was that because of the traffic, we were late getting back to the ship. They only thing that saved us was that the ship's sponsored tour busses got back even later. I highly reccomend Ramses.

[Beepsmom]

We have never had a car break down but to head that scenario off, we look to see when we are sailing..if we are sailing at 6pm we tell the guide

we MUST be back at the ship no later than 4pm..that way, IF there is a traffic problem, or IF a tire went flat, there is time for the guide to call the company to come get you and get you back! With someone like Ramses they will have several tours going on at once and IF your car had a problem, they could always squeeze you into one of their other cars just to make sure you got back on time. We usually do a mix of private tours and

ships tours depending on what is offered. We love having a small group to travel with and no lines etc!

Sherry

definitely good ideas about returning to the ship early. Just to add some information for anybody planning a trip with Ramses....we DID have some car problems in Cairo...and it was immediately taken care of....our guide, Hussein, arranged for another Ramses driver to take us to our next scheduled stop and when we were done there, we had another van with our original driver. We were very pleased with the way they handled it!

[luv2cruise391]

I keep getting conflicting stories on whether the ship will provide or we need to obtain one prior to our cruise on the Rotterdam Oct. 28, 2013. Holland tells me only IF we use THEIR excursions and Ramses tours tells me the ship WILL provide a stamp on our passport as long as we have a "vacant" page in our passport book.

What did YOU have to have for just DAY excursions - we are NOT overnighting. We will be in Cairo and Port Said.

Debbie in MS

[Beepsmom]

I keep getting conflicting stories on whether the ship will provide or we need to obtain one prior to our cruise on the Rotterdam Oct. 28, 2013. Holland tells me only IF we use THEIR excursions and Ramses tours tells me the ship WILL provide a stamp on our passport as long as we have a "vacant" page in our passport book.

What did YOU have to have for just DAY excursions - we are NOT overnighting. We will be in Cairo and Port Said.

Debbie in MS

 

I was on a cruise on the Noordam in April (we were in Egypt May 9 and 10)... for both Egypt and Turkey, Holland America collected our passports and an official from those countries came on board and stamped our passports with visas. They were $20 each per person and the cost was added to your shipboard account. It was very easy.

 

As for using their tours, not everyone takes a tour at all.....and they offered this service to everyone on the ship regardless of their plans. Also, keep in mind the travel advisories issued by the US State Department....the ship might not go to Egypt at all depending on the political situation....yesterday, an advisory was issued for Americans that only ESSENTIAL travel in Egypt is advised.

Edited June 29, 2013 by Beepsmom