Someone has mentioned his stay in Egypt here, so I'd also like to describe my experience from this country. I was in Egypt 2 months ago - I chose the colder months to survive the heat of the South and to enjoy the sights I've had wanted to visit.
I was staying 2 weeks in hotel Festival Riviera, near from a touristic city El Gouna to the north of Hurghada. It's a bit outside of the city itself, but I had everything I wanted in the hotel so there was no need for me to visit the city.
My experience with the hotel staff was rather good, the guys tried to do their best, they were friendly and the service in the restaurant excellent! I was just a little disappointed from the beach, as one could enter the water only by stairs.
I'd been thinking where to go, what to see etc. As I was in Egypt, it would have been really a pity not to see the pyramids, the ancient temples of Ramses and the Nile. But because the situation in Cairo wasn't so stable at that time, I decided to go south: my friend recommended me a local company Red Sea Reisen, organizing trips within Egypt. When I compared their prices, they were obviously lower than the prices at my travel agency. So I decided to contact them and ask them for the reason. The reason, why they offered their trips at favorable prices is the fact that they work online - so no need to include the cost of a tour leader visiting the hotels. I booked a day trip to Luxor - just by 60,- Euros! (our tour leader offered the same trip by 85,- Euro). In the end it is the same program, the same sights... I visited the Temple of Hatshepsut, Karnak temple, Colossi Memnon and the Valley of Kings (it is forbidden to take pictures there). During the trip there was an option to visit a Banana island - I gave it a try. Everything was green there, as I walked through the banana trees growing there.
I felt peace there in Luxor, especially in the majestic temples, standing among the huge columns and looking to the sky.
Another place I've visited was Petra. The travel agencies normally don't organize this trip from Hurghada, but with this company it was possible. I flew to Taba and from there I traveled to Jordan by bus. The journey was a bit tiring but it was worth it! Petra is an amazing city where you can really breathe the history! The stone "houses" carved inside the rock, a temple, a Roman theater.. one can just imagine how people used to lived there. I got to know that the place was home for Bedouins after the Nabatean people left it, but due to tourism nobody lives there anymore. Of course, they sell souvenirs everywhere, the only thing you have to do is to negotiate the price
My overall impression from Egypt was good. Well, it's still a 3rd world country and you can see it as soon as you go out of the hotel. Inside the hotel area everything is clean and well-kept. If you want to visit the city Hughada, I'd recommend you to go with somebody native, as I heard from other tourists that they got bothered quite much by the bazaar sellers.
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