Egypt & Jordan Discovered By Nile Cruise

19 Reviews

Excellent

67%

Good

33%

Average

0%

Rather Poor

0%

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0%

• S

  Sarah
  Written on July 9, 2017

  4.0 - Good

  Hi to all those who read this, I wanted to write a detailed review of this tour and for company so that when looking at trips to Egypt and Jordan you can book with a understanding of what this will actually look like. Firstly, I booked this tour because when I compared it to others it covered similar ancient sites to those run by the major companies like intrepid and g adventures, the price however was on sale 47% off which is really appealing to me being on a budget. The itinerary read well but it was almost impossible to get all the information you can easily find with other companies.  The money you save booking this tour, they get it back in the end, through local taxes, tipping and some other payments they weren't quite clear on which aren't included in the price. On the first day of the tour I ended up paying an additional $US500.  Even having paid this money in the tour meeting on the first night, all activities listed as included in the tour you have to pay for out of pocket. This could have been made clearer in the itinerary and I believe is deliberately deceptive on travel talks behalf. I have never come across this before where activities listed as included you have to pay for during the tour.  So be prepared to have your wallet on hand several times a day to pay for things you thought you had paid for already. The first night of accommodation was changed and noone on the tour was told. For most this wasn't an issue as they had an airport transfer on the first day and it took them to the correct hotel. For me however I went there early to spend some time in Alexandria beforehand and became nervous when I had printed their itinerary with one hotel yet my transfer driver was saying another. Turns out it wasn't the one in the itinerary. They have been flexible and responsive to queries which is good because I have had many. They booked me a nights accommodation two days before the tour and included the airport transfer. The guy who picked me up was friendly and helpful getting me through the airport. Travel talk combine all versions of their Egypt tour into one by; Nile cruise, road and felucca. You can change which option you want to go on on the first night. This is helpful to give you an idea of who you will be spending time with in the middle of the trip. I went with the Nile cruise and was happy with this option. I travelled during June in their summer and wanted the air con and pool. Those who chose the felucca were also happy with their choice. This meant the group divided into two. There were 4 total on the Nile cruise which was great because we got to know each other well, we also got a new guide Michael  who took the time to have a conversation with us and communicated everything we needed to know upfront. Sam our main guide, on the other hand, left us all with questions constantly. I never knew quite what was going on, or if he even knew my name. His Egypt knowledge is great but communication could improve, maybe this is something that stems from the travel talk team as things aren't entirely clear from the beginning. Be prepared for 20 hour days and lots of bus travel. The second day of the tour we were up at 6 and didn't arrive at the hotel until 1am after travelling on the bus for 9hrs to get to Luxor only to have to wake up again at 6 or 7. It was like this 3 times during the trip. The Nile cruise was a good respite from this, before going back to the long days. As Sam put it, it is a mission not a holiday. The group was about 26 people mix of males and females ranging from mid twenties to mid thirties and a mum travelling with her children. Most are from Australia and new Zealand and some Americans and an Irish. Optional activities are really good, I did the hot air ballooning and Abu simbel. Both are really good options and definitely budget for these if you can. To confuse people further travel talk like to list prices in UK pound, however you can only pay in US $ or Egyptian pound. It's just another small example of the simple things that travel Talk could improve on. Last night for the majority of the tour was upon our return to Cairo. Only 6 continued on from there. Unfortunately there was nothing organised for the final night so most of us organised it ourselves to go out. Six of us who continued onto dahab on the red sea. We had a new tour guide for dahab, Ramy. Ramy is really cool and relaxed but took the time to sit us all down and explain everything that was going to happen over the next few days. Surprisingly for dahab travel talks included activities were included in the price. Dahab is amazing and definitely an extension of the tour you should include if you can. Especially if you love diving, snorkelling and fish!  The water is amazingly clear and there are so many fish. In 1.5 days I did 3 dives and loved it. Ramy was great at helping organising all of this. It was sad to leave dahab and go to Jordan. For the Jordan part of the tour only 3 of us continued and we had another person join us. We met or 4th tour guide (in a 15 day tour) Faysal. Faysal is a character and a genuinely nice guy. The driver, Ramadan, was nice too, but made us all a little uneasy with his pulsing of the accelerator. The Jordan part off the tour was well paced with not crazy start and finish times. For Petra, be prepared for a lot of walking, and remember what goes up most come down. Again for the Jordan tour travel talks included activities are actually included in the cost. All in all, it was a good tour. Simple things could have made it great. The group was good, I have made many friends. I saw sights I had always wanted to see. Dahab was definitely a highlight for me, along with Abu simbel. You will never regret going, you might just be frustrated with your expectations around communications and costs not being met. Note - those of us on the tour of Jordan and Egypt are asked to add to a tipping kitty on the first day that covered Egypt and Jordan tips, of which they have never communicated to their guide.  Also if going to Jordan, the Jordan pass is the way to go. It includes your visa costs but also all site entry fees

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• DD

  Dan
  Written on January 15, 2017

  4.5 - Excellent

  I had an absolutely unforgettable experience on the Egypt & Jordan Discovered by Nile Cruise tour. Our guide in Egypt was Shady and he went above and beyond what was expected to give everyone in our group the time of their lives and the ability to experience everything Egypt has to offer. The same can be said about our guide in Jordan. There are some long days travelling on this trip, but it is all worth it to see the amazing monuments of both of these countries. I have written about my entire experience day by day on my website here: http://loxp.co/2iKjwPK for anyone who is interested in taking this tour.

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• JM

  Jessica
  Written on October 26, 2016

  4.5 - Excellent

  We went on the Egypt tour with Sam and thought it was amazing. Highly recommend. Very good value for money. Sam was a very knowledgeable guide. The places we visited were mind blowing. A++

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• TW

  The
  Written on December 28, 2015

  4.5 - Excellent

  Talking about having the greatest tour guilde, Sam absolutely is the one you want to have your experience with, very knowledgeable, fun, helpful, friendly....you name it, Sam makes you feel like you are travelling with a good, caring friend who knows the history, the people, the locals....

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  Hayden
  Written on December 28, 2015

  4.0 - Good

  Sameh is the man!!

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  Liz
  Written on December 26, 2015

  4.5 - Excellent

  Sam was a great guide, he had a great knowledge of the history of Egypt and could answer any of our questions. He took us to great shops for whatever we wanted to buy and went out of his way to help people with any issues they had. He was flexible with the itinerary If we wanted to see other sites. Great guide! Would highly recommend!!!

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  Luke
  Written on December 26, 2015

  5.0 - Excellent

  Very good tour guide. Makes anything possible. Made the tour and long bus rides fun! One of the best iv had!!

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  Karina
  Written on November 15, 2015

  4.5 - Excellent

  The tour was great. I was more than impressed with Sams knowledge of Egypt, and would say he was the best tour guide I've had! Great trip all round!

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  Emma
  Written on September 14, 2015

  4.5 - Excellent

  Sam was by far the best tour guide I've ever had. Knowledgable as a qualified egyptologist, Sam could answer any questions we threw at him, as well as keep us laughing, positive and always feeling safe and at ease. Sam is actually what makes that tour so good. I feel really lucky for having gone on the tour with travel talk just so he could be my guide

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• J

  Jenni
  Written on August 12, 2015

  5.0 - Excellent

  I have done a few tours and Sam's by far was the best I have been on! Sam is an amazing tour leader and I learnt so much about Egypt from him, absolutely fantastic guy! This was a trip of a lifetime

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