Egypt Travel Forum

Does anyone have knowledge of or can provide a testimonial for Milano Travel - Egypt. I was made aware of the company via the internet. It seems very competitively priced when you compare other bus tours. In fact 1/2 price. I'm still paranoid and unsure of arranging travel through the internet. HELP
Cheers

Look, I just came from Egypt. Maybe this is not good solution 4 U but it's cheap (4 U). Fly 2 Belgrade and than catch Kon-tiki tour.
www.kontiki.co.yu
I paid 530 Euro for 10 nights (3 in Cairo, Inter-Continental hotel, and 7 in Hurghada, ex-Holiday Inn, all inclusive). You have some airport taxes and visa for Egypt but U don't need anything else.

Thank you for your reply. I will look them up. Did your tour incluse a Nile cruise (?No. of nights) and did you visit Abu Simbel? I will be travelling from Australia is Belgrade the cheapest option?
Cheers

No, I didn't. We just travel from Hurghada 2 Luxor but there is an option to do that. See the page of that travel agency.

Go to the Egypt Travel guide at the top of the page. Scroll down for the best five member sites on Egypt.I am sure there is something useful for you there.It might take a day or two though.Perhaps those members could you.!

Being a new member, I'm still finding out what VT is all about. Thanks for your advice.
Cheers
Melody

In Febr./March of this year we made a sixteen day trip to Egypt: 2 days Cairo, with excursions to Memphis, Sakkarah, Gizeh, The Egyptian Museum and the Citadel, Than we went by nighttrain to Luxor where we started our 8-days cruise from Luxor to Aswan and back with the usual stops in Esna, Edfu and Kom Ombo. In Luxor we visited Valley of Kings and Queens, Hatshepsut's Temple in Deir el Bahari, Temples of Luxor and Karnak, the Sound and Light show in Karnak Temple. In Aswan we visited the Aswan High Dam, the souk, a Nubian village, took a felluca tour to the Botanical Island and had drinks and shisha at the terrace of the Old Cattaract Hotel at sunset. Back in Luxor again we took a daytrip to Denderra and Abydos. Then we went back to Cairo for two days free at leisure. Followed by 3 days Alexandria with visits to Pompeys Pillar, the Catacombs and the Great Library, we ended the day with a lovely picknick on the Meditereanian Beach.
When back in Cairo we had another day to do whatever we liked.

This whole trip including all transportation, entrance fees, our own guide who showed us all and more, 5 stars! B & B in the hotels and full board on the ship, costed us 435 Euro a person. A real bargain I thought!

We travelled with Dreamers Travel from Egypt: http://www.dreamerstravel.com
and we were more than satisfied!!

They organize a taylor made trip for you. Just send them your itinirery and they will give you an offer!

Love, Dora.

Hey,

Me and a friend leave on a tour of egypt with www.imaginative-traveller.com tomorrow.
We paid $US431 each.
Our 14 day tour includes: Cairo, Alexandria, Aswan, Luxor, Abu Simbel, Hurghada, Sharm El Sheik, Mt Sinai/St Catherines etc.
I'll let you know if this tour is ok, when I get back.

Bec :-)

Have a ball. I look forward to hearing from you .
Cheers
Melody

Thanks Dora, (from one nurse to another) Did you have any bad experiences while there.
Melody

You are a nurse???? WOW!!! I love to meet colleagues from all over the world!

No, I never had one bad experience!! On the contrary!! I got more than I bargained for!! I originally asked 4 stars and got 5 for the same price!! But during that time Egypt was in a hard time considering tourism with the threat of an upcoming war in Iraq. Many people canceled their trips to any country in the Middle East.
For instance: When we traveled back on our 5 star cruise ship from Aswan to Luxor there were only 13!!!! guests aboard! That on a hugue ship equiped to handle 130! guests was so sad!! But they did everything they could to make us feel special!! We even got a personal fare well serenade by the waiters of the restaurant!! So special!!

I must admit we had a great guide!! He went with us during our whole trip and organized just about everything for us! He took us to places where no tourist will ever come! To see where the average Egyptian women will do their shopping. That will surprise you!

He took us beyond the travelled paths and opened doors that were otherwised closed for tourists. We visited the Temple of Ramessess II in Abydos, that was closed, due to restoration works. He organized a policeman to protect us and the one man that was in charge of the keys. We were the only ones to be there!!! So very special!!

He took me to coffee shops to taste the local coffee, to smoke the shisha, to made me taste Lupine seeds, Koshari, the filthy smelling fish ( what tastes really good, BTW), stuffed pigeons (his mum made us some to share among us during our train drive to Luxor) and so much more! He teached our kids Egyptian card games and Egyptian style dominoes!

What more can I say?? It was just great!!! From the first minute we arrived in Cairo, up until the last minute when we left!

We will be in Egypt again in three weeks!! Once there, this country will never leave you!!

E-mail me if you want to know more about this!

Love, Dora.

Melody,

I think you must keep in mind that the price I have mentioned was without air fair and taxes!!
And I think our friend from Ryjaad can travel to Egypt much more cheaper than coming from Australia!

I am from Holland and am able to get really cheap and challenging prices for a plain ticket to Egypt. For instance: Our plain tickets for our next trip to Egypt wil cost us: 348 Euro's all in! (a Euro is about $ 1,10)

From the US or Australia will be a bit more!!
Maybe it is profitable to check for cheap flight to destinations in Europe and book additional tickets from there (the European spot). I know there are very challenging offers from Canada, the US or Australalia to European destinations! Like Holland! A lot of Dutch people emigrated to those countries and still have family over here and there! Flight organisations sometimes stunt with prices between imigration/emigration countries!
From Europe tickets to destinations like Egypt will often be more cheap than you will imagine!

Just worth a try!!!

Love, Dora!

Dear Dora,

I'm worried about Jim....

Dear Dora,
Thank you Very much for your indepth reply. The information was most valuable. I have contacted Dreamers Travel they certainly offer a comprehensive tour at reasonable prices. Being Australian we are not used to tipping, how did that go?
I will let you know how I get on.
Sorry about the previous message I thought I deleted it. I am definately a better nurse than a computer user.
Regards
Melody

Just to confirm for you, Egypt was a highlight of my life and you will have a great time! The sites are out of this world and if you have a good guide, the experience will never leave you. The prices quoted in the other posts are fantastic, I wish I had time to return while the prices are so low. We did spend more to stay at the Mena House Hotel in Giza and fly down to Aswan, etc, but the train sounds like an adventure in itself and most 5 star places will be somewhat alike except for location. Don't forget to check out the Khan el Khalili (sp) and the old markets. We got a fantastic deal on 22 or 23 karat gold jewelry-very nice and very cheap. Words of advice, the roads can be dangerous, particularly in the countryside and at night. For some reason Egyptians drivers tend to not use headlights. Also, the Egytians are born salesmen and will try to sell anything to everyone walking by their shop. Even saying 'no thank you' will be seen as a sign of interest, as if you are beginning negotiations. If you don't want to be stopped every 10 feet by hucksters, say nothing!

Hi, Melody,

Tipping can be confusing when you are not used to it!! In Egypt it is a custom and expected, specially from tourists!! But don't overdo it! 10 % tip in a restaurant is normal!

Keep in mind that the average Egyptian income a month is about 300 to 400 LE (6 LE is 1$)! That is not much to our standards!! And that is when you have a regular income and a steady job!! Most of the people depend on their sales and other services they have to offer! So don't be surprised by the stubborn salesmen who want you to buy!! They want to earn themselves a decent living!

Just say: La'a Shukran! It means: No, thank you! in Arabic. I have learned it will be enough to hold them off and they will be surprised and respect you for knowing some Arabic.

Another thing you need to learn is haggling!! Have in mind what you want to pay for something you like to buy. Give the man an offer way below that and he will give you a price way beyond that! And haggle!! It is fun!! They like it, you get to know each other and often they serve tea with it! It is a social event.

Often they will offer you services for a "baksheesh". Services like showing you the way to something special to see or help you with your turban, what ever. Be carefull with this! Sometimes you will be picked up and brought to a shop where they sell souvenirs. When you buy something the guy will get a commision and will ask you again for a "baksheesh"! A few piasters would be enough!!!
Make sure that you have enough little currencies with you!!

Love, Dora.

And about the tipping and little currencies! Allow me to tell you what happened to us:

We were in Edfu and it is custom there to visit the Temple with caleches or coaches. Our guide told us to tip the driver when leaving.
I was looking for my purse, but I wasn't aware my son did as well! He only had a 20 LE bill. The driver said: "It doesn't matter. I can change!" and gave him back 1 LE! My son didn't know what to do and told us, in Dutch, so no one understood it but us. The driver had the guts to ask us for more but we went on our way as if we didn't hear.
19 LE is about 3$! Quite a good catch for a day! Our guide did not understand what was going on, so I told him! He was very annoyed with the driver and went back to get some of my sons money back! Since then he took care of the tipping and we paid him back at the end of the day!

He was so great! He did everything to please us!
He took us to the Khan el Khalili and I needed to go to the toilet. It was on a Friday, the Muslim Holy day. "Don't worry", he said and he took me to a place where several women were waiting outside. He talked to a woman in the house and she grabbed me by the arm and pulled me in. She took me to a place where dozens of women and children were washing themselves and their shoes!!???? I looked at the tableau in sheer confusion! The woman pulled my arm again and showed me a closet. When in there with the door closed I was in total confusion! There was nothing there but a hole in the floor and two spots where you had to place your feet! But I was desperate, so I turned around a few times in order to find the best position, and did my thingy!!
Now I knew why all these women were washing their shoes!!! I guess they needed to go to the mosque, but for me it was a bit to much asked to take off my shoes, because the floor wasn't that clean either!!!
I came out in a fit!! I said: "The next time I expect a written "How to do it!!!!"

Well I asked for the real Egypt!! And I got it!!!

Love, Dora.

A: Hi,

Good:

The guides are prompt, courteous, and responsible, everything was very safe and the selection of sites was good.

Bad:

1. The real price.

Once there, they will demand cash for the the tour with a higher Egyptian Pounds to Dollar rate. The conversion was 6.2 but they insisted on a rate of 7.25. This means on a package of $800 you are paying $800 * 7.25/6.2 = $935 or 16% more than quoted.

2. Quality of hotels.

We stayed in the Santana which is a 1 star. We expected the Cairotel or for $25 more a 5 star like Le Meridien. The Santana on our last night had no hot water and there was demolition on the 2nd floor with drills and hammers until 11pm when we checked out.

3. Quality of the cruise ship.

The Nile Cruise was fun and the people on the ship were great but the ship was a 1 star. The bathrooms were grim.

4. Upgrade to a sleeper car.

If you do an overnight train to Aswan from Cairo you should upgrade to a 1st class sleeper car. This cost an extra $35 per person - a lot of money - but worth it if you want to get any sleep.

5. Unannounced stops at tourist stores.

There will be unannounced stops at various shops that sell papyrus, perfume, and alabaster. One alabaster shop owner was quite aggressive when we left without buying.

6. You'll need cash because some places won't take Visa or the machines will be broken.

7. Promises to upgrade the final night's hotel were not kept. We were put back in the Santana.

To summarize:

Your trip will cost more than you expect and you won't be getting luxury accomodations. You'll get what you paid for.

Insist that you pay by Visa before you go so you can have some way to contest any charges. If not, bring enough cash so you can pay US$ for the trip so you won't be overcharged.

Establish where you are staying.

Get everything in writing and establish what will be done if the hotels and ship are not what you agreed on.

I forgot to add that this was with Milano Travel.

Cheers,

John

Just a quick note. Milano Travel did refund us $40 after we got home for the missed upgrade on our final night so that made us feel better.

I'm back from my 14-day Egypt tour through Imaginative Travellers.
We visited: Cairo, Alexandria, Aswan, Idfu, Kom Ombo, Luxor, Abu Simbel, Hurghada, Sharm El Sheik, Dahab, Mt Sinai/St Catherines etc.
We paid $US431 each for the tour. Flights were not included.
The tour dossier told us exactly how much we would have to pay on arrival for tipping etc. We each paid US100 towards this at the start of the tour.
No other tipping was done/expected.
The only other expenses were food and shopping. And the occasional camera fee at some tourist attractions.
Our tour leader was young and enthusiastic, and the tour guides at each stop spoke good english and had impressive knowledge of egyptology.
The group was made up of 12 of us. All kiwi, aussies and brits.
I would definitely recommend this tour to anyone looking at budget (but not backpacker) tours in Egypt.
Bec