Trying to find a honeymoon venue that would not prove too expensive over Christmas turned out to be harder than we ever imagined. Eventually whilst reading the Daily Mail Travel Section I discovered a fantastic week long cruise down the Nile going out in December and including 10 free excursions for £399! This was advertised with a company called DiscoverEgypt that I had never heard of. I thought that this was far too good to be true and that there must be a catch.
Talking it over with my partner we decided that maybe we should give them a call and get some more details. We were told that for the £399 we could have a 4* full board cruise on board the Viking 2, leaving from Luxor,
cruise to Aswan and back again, flying from Gatwick on Dec 18th and returning on Christmas Day, flying on scheduled flights with Monarch and did in fact include 10 excursions that were free of charge. Again I thought this far to good to be true so asked for the website to find out more - www.discoveregypt.co.uk
We then did alot of internet research, read loads of reviews and thought what the hell, lets book it. The flight was great. Monarch actually provide an inflight meal that is very edible and arrived at Luxor very tired as we had just had a hectic weekend getting married. We were immediately met by 3 extremely well presented, suited reps who had our visas waiting. There's no queuing for anything with this holiday company. After clearing customs we were escorted to our coach to be told straight away that we had all been upgraded to a 5* boat. Within half an hour we had boarded an we in the bar drinking ice cold beer. This level of service continued for the whole week. There were only 29 of us on board and we had a dedicated Egyptologist that was there to sort our every need. One night was party night and we were given a wedding cake which we felt was a really lovely touch. Each day the cabins were cleaned twice with fresh towel that were sculptured each time! The bar service was great. Waiters would tour the sun deck making sure that drinks were available at all times. Entertainment was provided every night in the form of Belly Dancers, competitions and participation was a must. The boat itself was aging slightly but the food and service were definately 5*. Each morning there was a buffet breakfast, lunch consisted of 4 courses served at the table, afternoon tea, and a 5 course servded dinner each night. The only down side that we encountered was the early morning starts - 5.30am on the first day so that we could get to the Valley of the Kings before the hoards arrive.
During the week the excursions included the Valley of the Kings, Valley of the Queens, Luxor Temple, Karnak Temple, Kom Ohm Temple, Philae Temple, The Aswan DAm, a visit to a Nubian Village, The Collosia of Memnon, a Papayras factory and we were also offered additional excursions if we wanted. All excursions were timed around meals so we would be able to get back for lunch/dinner. There was only one day when we were on board all day and this was no great hardship at all. We were also able to see the "real" Egypt as crusing gives you the chance to see people washing in the banks of the Nile, fishing in very tiny boats and makes yuou realise that there is more to Egypt than the Temples.
As this is a really action packed holiday, it was over in a flash and it was soon time to go home. Again there were reps at all times to meet our every need and we were very quickly through check in and on our way. The return flight with Monarch was just as good as the first, however this time I did spend most of it asleep.
I would recommend that anyone who wants to see Egypt should use this company as they provide the best customer service that I have ever experienced. They are also exceptional value for money. When we got home and did a bit of research and if we had booked the flights, boat and excursions independantly the same week would have worked out to be about £1000 each! You get to see everything that you imagine Egypt to be.
The only thing I would say, is prepare to be tired and dont forget the Mossie spray - they're huge!!
Also done this!! Fantastic isn't it! Nice review ;)
daylehall 18.03.2007 18:18
Im off to Sharm in Egypt in 7 weeks and really looking forward to it. Would love to do a cruise. xx
Bollinger28 17.02.2007 09:10
Nice insight. I've never really fancied doing a trip like this though, ever since I watched one of those TV holiday programmes which reported that stomach upsets/tummy bugs were rife on these trips. Is that still the case? Lexy
NH Hotels, the hotel chain leader in Europe, with more than 300 hotels in 20 countries in Europe, Latin America and Africa. Enter into our web site and find the best available tariff at all times
Record Rent a Car is present in the main spanish airports and has a very wide fleet. We offer: exceptional discounts, free additional drivers,
unlimited mileage... subscribe to our Club Record and take advantage of special offers.
Advantages: Breathtaking scenery, amazing relics, good food, knowledgeable Egyptologist and friendly crew Disadvantages: Hassling from traders and local guides
Want_to_travel 28.02.2007 (28.02.2007)
·
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful
Review of Nile cruises
Feb 16th, 2007
very helpful by (65%):
helpful by (29%):
somewhat helpful by (6%):
