Holiday to Egypt / Jordan ?

sev112

Mrs sev112 has an idea of going to Egypt next year to see the big sites.  Not interested in a sun lounger holiday.
anyone any experience of the pyramids, Abu simbel, Luxor etc, and any warning stories or good companies to look at ?

stickyfiddle

Yes! Egypt and Jordan are both great. 

We did Cairo (breakfast with a view of the pyramids) then flew to Luxor and got a dahabiya down to Aswan over a few nights. Tourism is well down so we were actually the only tourists on an 8-berth boat, which was rather lovely. I'd do it again in a heartbeat. 

Jordan is similarly great but in a fairly different way. Just as much history, but much less touristy. Petra and Wadi Rum are both completely essential and better than almost everything in Egypt. 

Happy to answer more specific questions - I'm aware both are fairly huge topics, but I could talk all day about either.

Roland

A Nile cruise between Luxor and Aswan (or vice versa) is a nice way to do it. A few hours sightseeing in the morning. Then, when the day gets hot, sit on a boat while it cruises along the river, and the airflow keeps you cool. Choosing a more expensive tour agent, eg Kuoni, will get you a better boat and guide.

The pyramids need booking if you want to go inside. Cairo Museum is interesting, and illustrates how poorly funded the upkeep of irreplaceable items is. For example, glass cases which can’t be opened because the contents have decayed and would fall apart.

sev112

Thanks, photos are fab ! Boat sounds good

stickyfiddle

The Cairo museum is actually in the process of a move to a new site near the pyramids. It would be worth planning for after that's open, as it should be *really* spectacular, and a lot of the good stuff has already been moved from the existing museum in preparation.

https://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/grand-egyptian-museum-pushes-full-opening-to-2020

https://edition.cnn.com/style/article/grand-egyptian-museum/index.html

Also, when you go to the Valley of the Kings, it's also 100% worth buying the expensive tickets for the rare tombs (it's about 50 quid, but used to be well over 1k, so it's a bargain!). You can spend a long time in there and it's completely silent as hardly anyone else pays. Seti 1 ("KV17") has to be seen to be believed - it's genuinely astonishing.

thumpingrug

We did a fully escorted tour in 2007 with Thomas Cook.  Guide met us at Heathrow and stayed throughout until we got back to Heathrow 12 days later.  3 days in Cairo (Pyramids, including the step pyramid at Seqqara which was well worth the trip, and the Museum)  Flew to Luxor then sailed to Aswan and back over 7 days.   Esna and Edfu, Kom Ombo, Abu Simble all stood out. Then 3 further days in Luxor which after a full day at the vally of Kings and Queens was a welcome rest.  The history is incredible and would go again in a heartbeat.    We went January - it was still regularly 30+ degrees.  The boat we were on was small for Nile cruises with max capacity of 50.  however there were just 12 of us.  As wife and I are veggies the chef basically prepared a special meal for us every day.  It was good.  very good.

BeyondSanctorum

100% worth it. It will be amazing I promise you that. I went when I was 14 about 9 years ago. Started off in Cairo with hotel with a view of the pyramids. Went to the pyramids, the main museum (forgot what it is called) and step pyramid at Saqqara. Then we flew to Luxor and did Valley of Kings, visited the Collosi of Memnon, Karnak Temple, Luxor Temple, Mummification Museum, went on a cruise on the Nile. 

I have been on a fair few trips since then and Egypt is still the best country I have visited. 

LuttiS

My mum is somewhat obsessed with Egypt.. she got so obsessed she starred a tour company for 'off the beaten track' tours...  She sold it last year as she retired..

Never took me though

WiresDreamDisasters

I hate to be *that* guy, but be careful:
https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/egypt

boogieman

WiresDreamDisasters said:

I hate to be *that* guy, but be careful:
https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/egypt

I was going to say the same thing. We’d planned to go this year (and I got some great advice from Sticky too) but two terror attacks on tourists in the last six months have put us off. 

SouthpawMark

I wouldn’t take Jordan on holiday. 

Dominic

Luxor to Aswan is superb......and takes in The Valley of the Kings, Karnak, Hapshetsut ,Colossi of Memnon etc ........Abu Simbel too but Cairo is pretty awful and the Pyramids/Sphynx are a great disappointment .......one imagines them in the desert rising from the sand like an old Turkish Delight advert when ,in fact, they are in a dirty run-down suburb of Cairo surrounded by the equivalent of Council Estates and Tacky Tourist Shops.

thumpingrug

WiresDreamDisasters said:

I hate to be *that* guy, but be careful:
https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/egypt

Even in 2007 I think I was grateful we had an Egyptian guide.  he lived just outside of Ciaro and was very familiar with the places that were safe and unsafe.   We largely didn't notice any problems except fo early one morning at a rather out of the way place Esna, where we were mobbed in a market.  he was very helpful there and shouted something arabic at them and they scattered.   That said, stick to the main tourist spots and you should be fine.

Emp_Fab

WiresDreamDisasters said:

I hate to be *that* guy, but be careful:
https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/egypt

Oh shush !  You love being 'that guy' ! 

 @stickyfiddle Amazing shots there.  You are a skilled operator.

stickyfiddle

thumpingrug said:

WiresDreamDisasters said:

I hate to be *that* guy, but be careful:
https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/egypt

Even in 2007 I think I was grateful we had an Egyptian guide.  he lived just outside of Ciaro and was very familiar with the places that were safe and unsafe.   We largely didn't notice any problems except fo early one morning at a rather out of the way place Esna, where we were mobbed in a market.  he was very helpful there and shouted something arabic at them and they scattered.   That said, stick to the main tourist spots and you should be fine.

Yeah this. You need a good guide who can tell the traders to piss off. We used “Real Egypt” and they were fantastic throughout. 

We’re somewhat more used to the Arabic style of “hassling you until you repent and buy something” than your average British holidaymaker, so maybe we shrug it off more easily than some but we genuinely had zero trouble in our 10 days. 

sev112

WiresDreamDisasters said:

I hate to be *that* guy, but be careful:
https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/egypt

Yes, it was the first thing I googled as soon as Mrs sev112 raised the idea.  I’m a bit paranoid and risk averse with this kind of thing, because I do like to go off and wander when we go away (abroad and uk) 

Neil

WiresDreamDisasters said:

I hate to be *that* guy, but be careful:
https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/egypt

It's a terrible shame.

A Nile cruise and visit to all the antiquities of Egypt is something I would really like to do but I just can't disregard the dangers, so I doubt I will ever go now. 

Dominic

I think the security issue is very prominent but in reality you are at similar levels of risk in many of the Western Capital cities;
Terrorist strikes in London ,Paris and certainly areas where you aren't even aware that there are very strong fundamentalist issues such as The Philippines ,Thailand etc 
 Egypt isn't going to be as "safe" as a week on the Costa Del Sol but they are actually pretty well-informed and Security Service active ;same with Morocco . By the same token ,the Police in the UK seized 2 lunatics yesterday who were planning a terror assault on a Midlands Shopping Centre .

stickyfiddle

I don’t believe in worrying about this sort of thing. I worry about muggers and violent crime but not about minor terrorism stuff, because that's stuff you can actively guard against. 

It’s a good idea not to spend too long in Cairo (and Cairo's kinda shitty anyway, so no issue), and not to go to to Sharm or any of Sinai, but the odds are seriously in your favour for the rest of Egypt.  No one is going to blow you up on a boat on the Nile.

boogieman

stickyfiddle said:

I don’t believe in worrying about this sort of thing. I worry about muggers and violent crime but not about minor terrorism stuff, because that's stuff you can actively guard against. 

It’s a good idea not to spend too long in Cairo (and Cairo's kinda shitty anyway, so no issue), and not to go to to Sharm or any of Sinai, but the odds are seriously in your favour for the rest of Egypt.  No one is going to blow you up on a boat on the Nile.

I don’t get overly concerned either, I lived in London for most of my life and went through the IRA bombings in the 70’s as well as the more recent Islamist ones. The last two attacks in Egypt have been specifically aimed at tourists though and that’s enough to put us off going, certainly at the moment anyway. Each to their own though. It’s a fascinating country with an amazing heritage, the terrorism threat must be seriously affecting their economy. 

WiresDreamDisasters

Emp_Fab said:

WiresDreamDisasters said:

I hate to be *that* guy, but be careful:
https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/egypt

Oh shush !  You love being 'that guy' ! 

 @stickyfiddle Amazing shots there.  You are a skilled operator.

If you'd have asked advice about going to Egypt, I would've posted you loads of cool pics and said "enjoy yourself" !