Reviewed 28 Jun 2007 by Michelle Earle
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Visiting Abu Simbel, it was amazing! Definitely worth the extra add-on charge! Also simply interacting with the Egyptian locals who I found to be some of the most genuine and friendly people I’ve ever met.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
I would say to the women be prepared to be stared at and called at a lot by the men but that if you just ignore them they generally wont hassle you. And don’t walk around town in shorts or anything else that would draw attention.
Also for everyone, remember that you should generally tip porters, drivers, waiters or anyone else who helps you out. About 3-5pounds for average or 5-25pounds for excellent service, depending on how much of a budget you are on. You are not obligated to tip but it is expected and appreciated.
3. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?I loved it! The tour guides where awesome, great knowledge and especially on my last day the girl (I forgot her name I’m sorry) who took us to the museum in Cairo was especially my favourite as she was so nice and funny and had so much knowledge of the Egyptian history it made the long day very much worth it! One of the best experiences I’ve had so far and I was really sad to leave after only 8 days, I wish I could have stayed for a month. The tour itself was really well organised, I never felt on my own and someone was always only a phone call away which was a nice reassurance for a girl travelling on her own. Thanks to everyone!
Reviewed 28 Sep 2007 by Suzanne McMullen
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
The most memorable part of our trip was going to Abu Simbel. It was an extra add-on our tour guide made us aware of once we reached Aswan, and as he described, it was definitely a 'must see'. It is a good three hours away from Aswan so you have to leave early and join the busses of tourists to go by convoy. A spectacular sight to see and be amazed by! Wonderful!
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Be aware that your guide in Egypt will take you to gift, perfume and papyrus shop, all of which are interesting to learn about. Unfortunately once the shop owner/ rep welcome you, they deliver a hard sell, which on our first day we were not prepared for. Remember Egyptian welcome often comes with a price and don't be afraid to stand your ground. If they offer you this excursion and are not interested in buying anything then I advise to say no to your guide.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
During our time in Egypt it is hard not to see the impact of tourism on its people and their environment. Tourists are very much looked after by their government with tourist police guarding every hotel entrance and under cover agents making sure you travel safely. These measures have been put in after the troubles from years ago and they work.
Looking back on our experience with responsible travel, we stayed in hotels which were owned by Egyptians (who were warm and welcoming) and on our felucca trip we had dinner with a Nubian family, which I highly doubt you'd get an experience like that with any other tour operator.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Overall our holiday was a fantastic experience. Responsibletravel used a tour operator in Egypt who made sure we were looked after at every step of our journey. Thank you!
Reviewed 12 Jul 2007 by Tina Vitug
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
It has to be our time on the felucca. It was so relaxing just sailing and being drifted by the current. We also took a refreshing dip in the Nile.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Tips seem to be expected always. So, I'd suggest they budget for this and keep change handy.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
Yes. I'm almost certain everyone we used services on this trip were by locals.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
It was exhausting but a good educational and physical adventure for me and my son.
Reviewed 01 Jun 2007 by Elena Windsor
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1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Every day was great, the trip was extremely well organised, everything was taken care of, and all the hassle taken away from us. Perhaps the highlight was an unexpected stop at the camel market of Darow during our felucca trip. We got an insight into the real Egypt, no tourists were there, and it was fascinating.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
It is not worth paying an extra US $45 to go to Abu Simbel. You have plenty of time in Aswan to go to the tourist office and book it yourself if you wish to go. The overcrowded minibus used only costs 45LE and the guide about 25LE each. That's a total of US $10. The entrance fees are extra anyway. And it isn't worth paying an extra US $100 per person for the sleeper train either.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
Definitely. All the money went to the local people, everything was booked locally, nothing went to the rich multinationals. And by using feluccas instead of the big cruise ships, we didn't pollute the Nile either!
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Excellent. Above expectations. Would recommend this operator to anyone going to Egypt. We were expecting 3* hotels throughout, but in Aswan and Luxor stayed in 4 and 5* hotels! Everything ran smoothly, we got taken and picked up from airport and stations, we didn't have to worry about anything. Will certainly go back to Egypt and go through this operator again.
Read the operator's response here:
On behalf of us as an operator, I'd like to thank Ms. Elena for her kind feedback, while I hope they have enjoyed their trip with us as least as much as we enjoyed having them as our guests. It was indeed a great pleasure to provide them with our services, and I hope to have them again on our tours someday soon.
I only have a little comment on Ms. Elena's tips concerning the trip to Abu Simble and the sleeper train upgrade.
First about the train upgrade, it was offered at a very reasonable price ($100.00 USD, per person, covering both rides Cairo/Aswan - 13.5 hour and Luxor/Cairo - 9-hour, in private twin-bed cabins, including dinner and breakfast meals), after a detailed description and explanation of the differences between the sitting trains included in the basic tour and the sleeper trains available to upgrade to and of course the upgrade of trains was offered with no pressure at all.
Regarding the trip to Abu Simbel, it's certainly worth the offered price considering the costs of the trip and the quality of the services provided which is definitely higher than the service of the local tourist office.
I hope that this satisfactorily covers Ms. Elena's comments, while I'd like to thank her again for choosing to travel with us.
With all my best regards and wishes,
Shadi Saad Sales & Operation Manager
Reviewed 02 Nov 2006 by Vinayan Puthukkudy
Although there were minor hiccups, it was a fabulous tour. This could have organised in a much much better way. The felucca trip from Aswan was the most exciting part as well as the most irritating part. We had no idea it was only a few hours travel and they extended it to two days. It was like half hour ride and take 2 hours rest.
But every part of ancient world was exciting. The Luxor temple and Karnak temples, Valley of kings and queens, the great pyramids sphinx, one can only wonder how they might have built it some 4000-5000years back. Tips to other travellers, do ask clearly the itinerary what time each day tour is finished , otherwise you will end up checked out in hotel lobbies for more than 8 hours.
Although the tour was badly organised I had a fabulous time with some good friends from other parts of the world. *rating, the tour operation was bit disappointing but the company that I met made it a memorable one. A fabulous tour.
Read the operator's response here:
I absolutely agree with the fact that the monuments and the treasures of the ancient world were the most exciting about the trip. I don’t expect the hotels, the guides or means of transport to be more impressive than the great sites included in tour program, however, we have to disagree about the way the guest described our organization by being disappointing, since we have definitely offered way more than promised (for example, the hotel in Aswan was a four-star hotel, the hotel in Luxor was a 5-star hotel, while the tour includes 3-star hotel accommodation), not to mention the on-time pick-ups and transfers between the airport, hotels, train stations, and the day-tours. Also, all the necessary bookings (trains and hotels) were made in advance, prior to the guest's arrival. So, I can't really see what was disappointing.
May be the felucca ride wasn't as expected but that's definitely beyond any one's control, as it goes by the wind and takes so many permits and clearances from several authorities. As about the scheduled times of the day-tours, they were clearly explained to the guest, during his upon-arrival briefing, including the pick-up times, the opening and closing times of the sites, the hotels check-out time…etc.
We are so happy that the guest described the tour by being fabulous and memorable, but it would have never turned to be that way without a not only good but great organization of our company. I hope that this satisfactorily covers all comments of Mr. Vinayan. I sincerely apologize if our services couldn’t meet his expectations, although that I believe that the quality and the value of our services are definitely beyond any expectations.
I hope that this satisfactorily covers all comments of Mr. Vinayan. I sincerely apologize if our services couldn’t meet his expectations, although that I believe that the quality and the value of our services are definitely beyond any expectations.
