The Pyramids of Egypt

This was an excellent trip, full of extraordinary sights. We were able to see many of the most impressive sites in Cairo and the Upper Nile. Hotel accommodation was of a high standard and the cruise ship was good. We had an outstanding guide and a friendly and interesting group of people. When I had an accident in the temple at Edfu the response from our guide, from Exodus, and from the personnel on the cruise ship was incredibly supportive. The guide’s knowledge of first aid was much appreciated. We have a few reservations: we found the early starts made sight-seeing rather tiring after very little sleep. The 7am briefing on the first morning seemed unnecessary, for example, after a late arrival the night before and the two hour time difference. We didn’t think the trip should be described as ‘leisurely’: there was a lot of standing in queues at both airports and sites and this was especially exhausting in conjunction with the early starts. Also, while we realise that Exodus doesn’t control the entertainment on the cruise ship, we would have preferred informational talks and preparation for the following day’s events to the party games and belly dancer. We would also have liked to have had more Egyptian food.

Derekv Attridge Nile Cruise

I loved this trip overall. It was pretty full on from the start in Cairo and I wondered whether I would last the pace. It was more relaxed although still busy once on the cruise, and was great having some downtime on the deck between trips. The trips were really interesting and we learned a lot about ancient up to modern Egypt ….. still getting my head around all the Gods! It surprised me just how many tourists were around when we visited. Our group plus Rania our group leader got on really well which was lovely, although we had 19 which is higher than my previous Exodus trips.

Jane Watson Nile Cruise

I very much enjoyed the trip but the word “leisurely” is completely misleading. Fortunately I’d read the reviews first. A couple of things that could have been improved: (1) the Abu Simbel trip. We left the boat at 4am, drove 4.5 hrs (not 3.5), spent 2 hrs at the temples and then drove 4.5 hrs back for “lunch” at 3pm. We had no free time at the temples. It would have been much nicer to have time for a coffee, a walk by the lake or a look at the souvenir stalls, then got back for dinnertime. The breakfast boxes were enormous and would have lasted all day. (2) Day 7: we left the hotel at 7am, visited Philae Temple, Aswan Dam, the stone quarry and a perfume shop, again returning to the hotel for a very late lunch. It would have been much better to have lunch after the dam visit, either at the hotel or from boxes. We felt in a permanent state of hunger and exhaustion!

Alison Scott Nile Cruise