I want to share my experience from my trip to Egypt with you. My wife and I decided to visit the “land of pharaohs” last year. At first we had planned to travel during Christmas and New Year but in the end we decided to celebrate at home and postpone our trip till January.
We’ve learned that in this time of the year the temperatures there are bearable (although the water is still cold a little) and that we don’t have to think much before booking any sightseeing trip, worrying about the clothes, water etc.
I have to say that we’re not the typical “7-day hotel tourists”. We like to travel, explore new places, getting to know the locals... not to lay on the sun bed all day.
While browsing and googling I’ve found a company who organized our entire trip. Their name is Red Sea Reisen and their main office is in Hurghada. Anyways, they have their people all over Egypt so no problem to go to any corner of Egypt with them. Our plan was as follows: first 3 days in Cairo, 1 day in Alexandria and after that 7 days in Hurghada, from where we organized some excursions to Luxor, Aswan and Abu Simbel. Honestly, I wish I had spent in Egypt more time. There’s a lot more to see! Personally I feel sorry I didn’t visit places like Kom Ombo, Edfu, Abydos and Dandara… but for the first time I think we covered all the main attractions
About the country:
Moving from the North to the South, Egypt was changing in front of our eyes. The countryside, people, manners… Our first days in Cairo were quite hectic – trying to see as much as possible. Our guide picked us up from the airport in the early morning hours and we started our day naturally with the main attractions – The Egyptian museum following with pyramids including the entry into the Great pyramid of Khufu. On this day that was quite enough for us as we were still tired from the flight and we spent the rest of the day in our hotel.
The following day we explored the Islamic Cairo with the mosques, citadel, Al Azhar and some more. In the afternoon we sailed on the Nile with felucca – extremely romantic although not comparable with a felucca ride in Aswan! In the evening we booked the Sound and Light show at the pyramids and it was really worth seeing!
On the third day our guide showed us the Coptic Cairo with the churches among whose was the Hanging church and museum and in the afternoon we visited the famous Khan El Khalili Bazaar. One just can’t describe the atmosphere of the place! Narrow streets, small shops with lamps, carpets... We stopped at a café and drank tea with mint, bought Zalabia (oriental sweets) and some other souvenirs. It was great that the guide was with us as he helped us to get the best possible prices. I really don’t know how we’d have managed without him!
In the evening we headed to Alexandria. We arrived in the evening and the next day we visited the classical sights: The Qaitbay citadel (standing on the place of the former Lighthouse), the Montazah palace with its beautiful gardens, Abu Al Abbas mosque and, of course, the Bibliotheca Alexandrina. In the end we crowned our time in northern part of Egypt with the visit of the Kom El Shoqafa catacombs. Little bit creepy but fascinating! After that we flew directly to Hurghada.
First two days in Hurghada were relaxing. We were accommodated in the Grand Resort Hotel in the touristic part of Hurghada located in the south on a promenade. The hotel is built in the 1001 night style and is indeed very inviting. There we met with the Red Sea Reisen company female representative and discussed further details for our next days. I have to say that she was very attentive and keen to know if everything was alright during our past days.
On the third day of our stay in Hurghada we drove to Luxor. It was the classical Luxor tour with the Temple of Karnak, Hatshepsut temple, Colossi Memnon and the Valley of Kings. In the evening we booked another Sound and Light Show but this time at the Temple of Karnak. We just loved both of the shows! We spent the night in Luxor and the next day we headed towards Aswan. There we spent a magical time! We saw the Philae Island with the Temple of Isis, Unfinished obelisk and in the afternoon we made another felucca ride.. as I mentioned before, no compare to the one in Cairo
it was just.. different.
The next day we took a convoy to Abu Simbel where we saw the monumental temple of Ramzes II. In the afternoon we visited the Nubian museum which was really informative and interesting. That was our final sight and in the evening we were driving back to Hurghada. As we were quite tired from all our trips, the rest of our holiday we were just relaxing on the beach
Overall impressions: North vs. South = stress vs. relax, grey vs. green and dry vs. humid.
We were very satisfied with the above mentioned company, their prices and services. Our trip to Egypt was very informative, emotional, inspirational and unforgettable
We came home full with experiences and impressions. The Egyptian people are friendly and hospitable. Staff in the hotel was polite and professional and our guide did his utmost to meet our demands and fulfill our wishes during the trips. He gave us many useful advices about everything we needed. A good job!
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