Holiday Reviews
We invite every traveller who books a holiday via us to send in a review. Because we don't run the holidays they're completely independent and unedited... remember to read between the lines though, as two people on the same trip can have different views!
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Egypt holiday, desert explorer, independent reviews
 Reviewed 16 Aug 2006 by Jane Bolomey |  |
Thought I'd let you know we have just returned from one of our best holidays ever. (even the return journey to Heathrow 2 days after the restrictions started went smoothly and was virtually on time) Thanks to your company we booked the Desert Explorer trip to Egypt with this operator.(Aug 2 - 13th)
We cannot fault a thing. Impeccably organised with a knowledgeable, friendly, and flexible tour guide. (Sherif was the most patient and helpful of guides, who soon understood what we liked and did his utmost to give us all just the right amount of 'adventure')
Everything was a highlight, especially the three nights in the desert where we slept under the stars and joined in with the bedouin music and songs. A bit of a let down was the 'Butlins Holiday Camp' atmosphere in our Hurghada hotel (is that really the smallest hotel that can be found? We would all willingly have exchanged the luxurious hotel for something more authentic - even with the Egyptian standard of sanitary conditions), but our day snorkeling in the Red Sea definitely made up for that.
Do advise people to take a loo roll - sanitary arrangements in the oasis hotels, where we were supposed to shower, were often basic to say the very least. (their plumbing - and sometimes cleanliness - leaves a lot to be desired) We were really surprised to see how wasteful they are with water considering it's the desert!
Food was always delicious and plentiful (the guide never failed to make sure it was correctly prepared to accommodate our delicate western stomachs) and the people were so friendly.
At all times the local culture was respected and explained, we got a taste of most means of local transport and with the temperature around 45° our air conditioned minibus on the long distances was a godsend. We would have liked to visit the orphanage in Luxor, but apparently there was no time as we spent more time on the donkeys in the Valley of the Kings. (there and back instead of just one way)
I wanted to visit the Commonwealth War Graves Cemetary in Cairo as my uncle is buried there - Sherif included it in our tour of the city. (It was opened especially for us) Even the city guide, who had never been there, was astonished at the beauty and upkeep of the place. The whole group considered this impromtu visit a real highlight, and it gave my elderly mum such pleasure to see pictures of her brother's grave for the first time 64 years after his death. Such flexibility to please each and every one of us can only be highly recommended.
We shall definitely be travelling with this operator again, and thank you for recommending them.
We cannot fault a thing. Impeccably organised with a knowledgeable, friendly, and flexible tour guide. (Sherif was the most patient and helpful of guides, who soon understood what we liked and did his utmost to give us all just the right amount of 'adventure')
Everything was a highlight, especially the three nights in the desert where we slept under the stars and joined in with the bedouin music and songs. A bit of a let down was the 'Butlins Holiday Camp' atmosphere in our Hurghada hotel (is that really the smallest hotel that can be found? We would all willingly have exchanged the luxurious hotel for something more authentic - even with the Egyptian standard of sanitary conditions), but our day snorkeling in the Red Sea definitely made up for that.
Do advise people to take a loo roll - sanitary arrangements in the oasis hotels, where we were supposed to shower, were often basic to say the very least. (their plumbing - and sometimes cleanliness - leaves a lot to be desired) We were really surprised to see how wasteful they are with water considering it's the desert!
Food was always delicious and plentiful (the guide never failed to make sure it was correctly prepared to accommodate our delicate western stomachs) and the people were so friendly.
At all times the local culture was respected and explained, we got a taste of most means of local transport and with the temperature around 45° our air conditioned minibus on the long distances was a godsend. We would have liked to visit the orphanage in Luxor, but apparently there was no time as we spent more time on the donkeys in the Valley of the Kings. (there and back instead of just one way)
I wanted to visit the Commonwealth War Graves Cemetary in Cairo as my uncle is buried there - Sherif included it in our tour of the city. (It was opened especially for us) Even the city guide, who had never been there, was astonished at the beauty and upkeep of the place. The whole group considered this impromtu visit a real highlight, and it gave my elderly mum such pleasure to see pictures of her brother's grave for the first time 64 years after his death. Such flexibility to please each and every one of us can only be highly recommended.
We shall definitely be travelling with this operator again, and thank you for recommending them.
| Reviewed 31 Aug 2008 by Chris Timmis | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Hard to pick! Probably Luxor and the Valley of the Kings. The experience of the desert was also memorable.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Take an inflatable pillow for those nights on the sand in the desert. We didn't use our water bottles - all the water is supplied bottled, and Sherif seemed to have an inexhaustible supply. Take some playing cards - they provided hours of entertainment for our teenagers on the long drives. We didn't think of packing any, and were very glad that others in our group had done so.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
I think we benefited the local people and the Egyptian economy. Not too sure about minimizing environmental impact - we flew to Egypt, spent many hours driving about and relied heavily on air conditioning. I am not complaining about any of this and am aware that we couldn't have managed the holiday without these, and I also vaguely recall that you have a carbon offsetting scheme which should help!
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
One of the best. Our guide, Sharif, was excellent - very attentive and always accessible and helpful. The organization of the trip was also first rate. Our travelling companions were delightful, and the Egyptians always most friendly and welcoming. Our guides to the monuments were knowledgeable, and the gentleman who took us around the sights of Cairo was particularly good at educating us - even having a little quiz at the end of the visit which I thought was a great idea.
Some initial brief tuition about snorkelling would have been useful for those who wanted it at the Red Sea. My wife, who has never used mask, fins or snorkel before, took some time to get the technique. I would also actively encourage people to wear a T-shirt while snorkelling to try to reduce sunburn.
Read the operator's response here:
Pleased to hear what a great trip you had, Egypt is one of our most popular destinations and such an exciting place to visit. Thanks for the tips, I would agree that a pillow is really useful and the cards sound as if they went down well. It is good to hear what a fantastic contribution your Group Leader, Sharif, made to the trip, a good leader can make such a difference. With regards to the snorkelling, I have passed your feedback to our Operations Manager who will ensure some basic tuition is included in future. Thank you for taking the time to submit your comments.| Reviewed 14 Apr 2008 by Anastasia O'Donoghue | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Abu Simbel blew me away. I found the whole experience very emotional. Egypt on the whole was amazing, but the group I shared the experience with were fantastic, making it a holiday to treasure.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Go to the loo before you reach Cairo trains station!! They leave a lot to be desired!
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
Local guides and tour leaders definitely benefited the local people and added to our experience.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
as one of the best ways to experience Egypt.
| Reviewed 12 Jan 2008 by John Cater | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
The most memorable part of our holiday was an early morning hot-air balloon ride over the Western bank of the Nile at Luxor.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Take lots & lots of small denomination Egyptian money (Egyptian 1 pound notes); every person you run into wants their Baksheesh!
You can pay for most tours & activities in Sterling (it works out cheaper).
Take several rolls of your own soft loo paper.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
We certainly distributed some cash into the local economy. In terms of the environment, the felucca trip was low on carbon footprint, but high on pollution of the banks of the Nile.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Some extreme contrasts, good to visit, but no need to return.
| Reviewed 27 Sep 2006 by Joanne Hay | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Too many memorable parts of the holiday to even begin to cover, but some of the highlights included the white desert - simply breathtaking - didn't think a desert could be quite so incredibly beautiful. Sunsets/sunrises. Donkey trekking. Karnak temple, Hargada hotel, surroundings and snorkelling.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Make sure to read the instructions at the back of the dossier so you remember to take things like a torch, mosquito spray etc!
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
Yes.
4. Any other comments?
4.5 *'s. I can't quite say it was the best holiday I've ever had, but it was up there with them! Superbly organised. Responsible travel and the operator gave a treat of a service. I was most impressed, especially since I booked late in the day.
| Reviewed 19 Apr 2006 by Jenny Skivington | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
It's so hard to pick one, there were so many highlights, camping in the desert surrounded by camels has to be one of the best.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Don't bother taking travellers cheques we got all of our money from an ATM, it was much easier. The adventure company organised our flights any gave us a 50 minute connection time which meant our baggage didn't arrive for 5 days! I thought it was too short a connection time when it was booked and wished I'd questioned it at the time rather than assuming they knew it would be OK.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
Yes, it was used local guides all the time as well as local drivers, camel and donkey companies and we almost always ate at local restaurants as well. A couple of the hotels were owned by foreign chains and it would have been nice to have stayed in locally owned ones, but I appreciate that may not always be possible.
Read the operator's response here:
We book our flights via Amadeus, which has minimum connecting times built into it. These minimum connecting times are set by the airlines and airports and reflected in the availability given by the airlines. The flights the passengers were on allowed as the customer pointed out 50 minutes. This is the minimum connecting time for this type of connection in AMS with KLM and these are the flights given by the airline as the best connection for this journey. It is obviously then the airline's responsibility to ensure that all baggage is transported in line with the passengers.In addition if we were to have booked them on an earlier flight from NWI to AMS the timings would have been a 6hr and 10 minute wait in AMS. Our default flights for this trip are on Egypt air direct from LHR, so for someone to depart from Norwich and travel via AMS is very rare.
| Reviewed 12 Oct 2005 by Christopher Wilson | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Sunrise in the extraordinary landscape of the White Desert (Egypt). But the whole holiday was excellently planned and led, giving variety and unexpected surprises, and there was a progression of highlights.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Be prepared for lengthy journeys and, in the desert, little privacy. Learn a few words of Arabic beforehand, and try using them. Go with the grain of the culture and the group, and keep your eyes open - there's so much local colour to see.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
Some of the benefits for local people meant occasionally using facilities which fell below Western standards, but on the whole it worked out well. A workable solution to the need for bottled water needs to be found.
| Reviewed 21 Feb 2005 by Tim Prentice | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
It has to be the pyramids, followed by the character of the local population.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
We went in winter and Cairo was very cold, and we were not warm enough on the train journey. I do realise this was our fault. My main tip would be to go on all the optional excursions; they are well worth the money.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
There can be no doubt about the benefit to the local population. The Nubian meal is a perfect example of this.
The holiday was superb, and I would not hesitate to recommend it to many of my friends, although some would not appreciate it.
| Reviewed 16 Jun 2008 by Amanda Beesley | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
The Atlas Mountains are beautiful & well worth a visit, Marrakesh isn't so great. The locals have certainly sold their souls to the God of tourism. All they see is walking pound signs.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Get as fit as you can, the walks are optional so if you're tired you can have a rest but it would be a shame to miss out.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
I think so, the tour leader was Moroccan as were all the back up staff. I'm not sure how well they are paid but we tipped them well so hopefully this gives them a good wage. I much prefer having a native tour leader & Khalid was really good at his job & great fun to be around.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Very, very good, made better by a super tour leader & good fun group. The only reason I haven't given it 4 stars is my friends would all hate this sort of holiday so I certainly wouldn't recommend it to any of them!!
| Reviewed 7 Oct 2007 by Shameka Perry | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
I enjoyed visiting the pyramids and temples.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
For the Red Sea bring your own snorkelling equipment. You do not need a mosquito net for the felucca.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
I believe the holiday did benefit the local people because we shopped at their stores, ate in their restaurants, etc. However, I am not sure about minimizing the impact on the environment. For instance, we spent most of our time in air conditioned vans and there were times we could have walked but we took taxis instead.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Overall, I give a 7. I would have preferred more information to be provided regarding itinerary, customs, etc.
| Reviewed 13 Apr 2005 by Lucy Harrington | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
The most memorable part was riding a donkey down a bustling, market street in Luxor, followed by a hair-raising trek up a winding mountain track (still on 'ferarri' my racing donkey) overlooking the valley of the kings. Utterly breathtaking.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Egypt is not as cheap as it appears, remember the expense of the local payment + tips + very expensive sleeping bag.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
I believe that Egypt is well set up for tourism with strict regulations eg only Egyptians can be tour guides are allowed to operate so no more or less than other companies I presume. Thank you to Jennifer who rescued me from my own stupidity and assisted me in getting in contact with all the people I met on the tour after I lost their email addresses. She personally (and legally) telephoned each of them to inform them of the situation. This type of dedication and helpfulness from your staff should be recognised and rewarded. She was as helpful as anyone could possibly be from the moment I phoned to express interest in the tour through to the follow-up emails. Thank you.