Reflections, regrets. Fortunately not too many.
I loved the agency Freelancers. They accommodated my every request. Got us some upgrades at the hotels. Because I had done so much research there weren't many unexpected problems.
I was glad to see that the reviews I had read on Trip Advisor Egypt forum did not disappoint on the hotels and restaurants that we chose. I had used Trip Advisor on other prior trips and my experience this time was just as positive as it had been for our other trips.
The itinerary I put together gave us a good taste of Egypt I think. I wish we could have done a 5 night Nile cruise but that wasn't offered. You do a lot of sightseeing while on the cruise! If anything I would have added another night to Aswan as I loved it there and we only had the 1 night. I would have liked more time at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. I really am glad that I had those 5 nights in Sharm el Sheikh. My husband enjoyed being able to scuba dive and I liked relaxing, doing nothing by the hotel pool or on our hotel's stretch of beach.
I'm super happy that we decided to proceed with this trip despite the political crisis in Egypt. We never felt afraid or threatened. Just the opposite. One tiny negative to what was happening not only in Egypt but some other countries like Libya was that we weren't able to run the A/C in the car all the time. It seems that Egypt gets gasoline from Libya and there was a revolution of sorts happening there. Our driver Adel did not have an easy time getting gas for the car so to conserve he would only put on the A/C when we requested him to do so. And of course we didn't ask him to do that as often as we would have liked. One thing I learned is that visiting Egypt in May/June it is very, very hot!
It was truly magical sleeping under the stars in the White Desert. Loved every minute and our guide Humvee (I wonder if that's his real name?) was fabulous.
Loved the food but I wish I could have been a bit more adventurous in my eating habits. The only disappointment we had was that one dinner in Bahariya where we ate outside and were attacked by bugs to the point where we couldn't finish our dinner. Wish I had brought an insect repellant candle with us on this trip! It would have come in handy I think!
I should have tried sheesha but I had stopped smoking cigarettes several years before this trip and didn't want to tempt fate.
All our guides were super nice and excellent with explaining the history of the sites we were seeing. Of course most of it I don't remember now! Adel was our main driver and even though he didn't speak much English and we spoke no Arabic the few times it was just him and us we somehow managed to communicate just fine.
Staff at hotels were awesome bending over backwards to make your experience pleasant. Other travelers we met were also super nice. We really lucked out with our group on the Nile cruise. I wish I had exchanged e-mail addresses with most of them.
I had done research on the tipping culture of Egypt but I was not prepared for the reality. Baksheesh. It's expected by everybody and I do mean everybody. I did get some rolls of 1 LE coins but I should have got more! The other negative that really made my husband and I uncomfortable was the situation in Luxor. Because of the political crisis happening in Egypt tourism was hit hard. The taxis and caleche drivers in Luxor were so aggressive. I know they were just trying to make a living but it was so bad that we didn't want to leave the grounds of our hotel! Because of the reduced tourism the positive for us was no crowds at the temples. Loved that aspect. I did try to keep a record of the amount I was spending on tips. Per information that is probably fairly accurate I spent 3075 LE or around $520.00 USD on tipping. And that's just the figures I remembered to write down. Be prepared for baksheesh!
Souvenirs. I think I did ok. I got things for family like hats, shirts, jewelry. I loved everything I bought for myself. I wish I had gotten a sheesha pipe for my one nephew. It would have been a cool gift. I wish I had bought spices and could kick myself for not doing that. And I was right there at the souk in Aswan!! I regret not buying perfume at the bazaar in Cairo. I regret not buying a CD of Bedouin music. Maybe I need another trip?
I wish my camera had taken better pictures or maybe it was the photographer-me?? Now I have an I Phone and the quality of the pictures it takes is amazing. I'm glad that I do try to buy postcards of the places we visit like all the temples. I really was happy to be able to buy all the soft cover books-Giza Pyramids, Valley of the Kings, etc. When I look at them now so much of this trip comes back to me. Worth every penny and they were very inexpensive and light so my luggage wasn't overweight!
I'm glad I did so much research because it helped me appreciate the ancient sites so much more. Some think I go overboard with my planning and research but it works for me.
This trip to Egypt was a dream come true and not only did it meet my expectations but it exceeded them. My one piece of advice. Go to Egypt!
✈️ 🇪🇬
I loved the agency Freelancers. They accommodated my every request. Got us some upgrades at the hotels. Because I had done so much research there weren't many unexpected problems.
I was glad to see that the reviews I had read on Trip Advisor Egypt forum did not disappoint on the hotels and restaurants that we chose. I had used Trip Advisor on other prior trips and my experience this time was just as positive as it had been for our other trips.
The itinerary I put together gave us a good taste of Egypt I think. I wish we could have done a 5 night Nile cruise but that wasn't offered. You do a lot of sightseeing while on the cruise! If anything I would have added another night to Aswan as I loved it there and we only had the 1 night. I would have liked more time at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. I really am glad that I had those 5 nights in Sharm el Sheikh. My husband enjoyed being able to scuba dive and I liked relaxing, doing nothing by the hotel pool or on our hotel's stretch of beach.
I'm super happy that we decided to proceed with this trip despite the political crisis in Egypt. We never felt afraid or threatened. Just the opposite. One tiny negative to what was happening not only in Egypt but some other countries like Libya was that we weren't able to run the A/C in the car all the time. It seems that Egypt gets gasoline from Libya and there was a revolution of sorts happening there. Our driver Adel did not have an easy time getting gas for the car so to conserve he would only put on the A/C when we requested him to do so. And of course we didn't ask him to do that as often as we would have liked. One thing I learned is that visiting Egypt in May/June it is very, very hot!
It was truly magical sleeping under the stars in the White Desert. Loved every minute and our guide Humvee (I wonder if that's his real name?) was fabulous.
Loved the food but I wish I could have been a bit more adventurous in my eating habits. The only disappointment we had was that one dinner in Bahariya where we ate outside and were attacked by bugs to the point where we couldn't finish our dinner. Wish I had brought an insect repellant candle with us on this trip! It would have come in handy I think!
I should have tried sheesha but I had stopped smoking cigarettes several years before this trip and didn't want to tempt fate.
All our guides were super nice and excellent with explaining the history of the sites we were seeing. Of course most of it I don't remember now! Adel was our main driver and even though he didn't speak much English and we spoke no Arabic the few times it was just him and us we somehow managed to communicate just fine.
Staff at hotels were awesome bending over backwards to make your experience pleasant. Other travelers we met were also super nice. We really lucked out with our group on the Nile cruise. I wish I had exchanged e-mail addresses with most of them.
I had done research on the tipping culture of Egypt but I was not prepared for the reality. Baksheesh. It's expected by everybody and I do mean everybody. I did get some rolls of 1 LE coins but I should have got more! The other negative that really made my husband and I uncomfortable was the situation in Luxor. Because of the political crisis happening in Egypt tourism was hit hard. The taxis and caleche drivers in Luxor were so aggressive. I know they were just trying to make a living but it was so bad that we didn't want to leave the grounds of our hotel! Because of the reduced tourism the positive for us was no crowds at the temples. Loved that aspect. I did try to keep a record of the amount I was spending on tips. Per information that is probably fairly accurate I spent 3075 LE or around $520.00 USD on tipping. And that's just the figures I remembered to write down. Be prepared for baksheesh!
Souvenirs. I think I did ok. I got things for family like hats, shirts, jewelry. I loved everything I bought for myself. I wish I had gotten a sheesha pipe for my one nephew. It would have been a cool gift. I wish I had bought spices and could kick myself for not doing that. And I was right there at the souk in Aswan!! I regret not buying perfume at the bazaar in Cairo. I regret not buying a CD of Bedouin music. Maybe I need another trip?
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Coffee mug |
I wish my camera had taken better pictures or maybe it was the photographer-me?? Now I have an I Phone and the quality of the pictures it takes is amazing. I'm glad that I do try to buy postcards of the places we visit like all the temples. I really was happy to be able to buy all the soft cover books-Giza Pyramids, Valley of the Kings, etc. When I look at them now so much of this trip comes back to me. Worth every penny and they were very inexpensive and light so my luggage wasn't overweight!
I'm glad I did so much research because it helped me appreciate the ancient sites so much more. Some think I go overboard with my planning and research but it works for me.
This trip to Egypt was a dream come true and not only did it meet my expectations but it exceeded them. My one piece of advice. Go to Egypt!
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✈️ 🇪🇬
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