Bathroom Ops!

[JP86]

Hello all,

Thinking about an Eastern Mediterranean cruise with Norwegian Cruise Lines this March.

One of the ports is Alexandria, Egypt which I would absolutely love to do. I would just like some more information about the tours of the pyramids/sphinx. I'm a person with a stomach condition and I don't like to be in the middle of nowhere without a bathroom for 8+ hours.

Can you tell me what the actual area is like? I know the tour is at least 8/9 hours long through the desert. Are there bathroom breaks? What about the 3 hr busride to and from Cairo? Last year we had a 2hr bus ride to the Mayan Ruins and our bus was a very good quality - comfy and equipped with a restroom.

Please answer if you can! We are going to go regardless, but it stresses me out less knowing this info.

[EV2008]

Hello all,

Thinking about an Eastern Mediterranean cruise with Norwegian Cruise Lines this March.

One of the ports is Alexandria, Egypt which I would absolutely love to do. I would just like some more information about the tours of the pyramids/sphinx. I'm a person with a stomach condition and I don't like to be in the middle of nowhere without a bathroom for 8+ hours.

Can you tell me what the actual area is like? I know the tour is at least 8/9 hours long through the desert. Are there bathroom breaks? What about the 3 hr busride to and from Cairo? Last year we had a 2hr bus ride to the Mayan Ruins and our bus was a very good quality - comfy and equipped with a restroom.

Please answer if you can! We are going to go regardless, but it stresses me out less knowing this info.
The Bus will have a bathroom, not the best but it is useable, also at the lunch break you will be able to use the bathroom at the Hotel where lunch is served.

[Kerry's Girls]

I was concerned about this on a tour as well, but the bus on the ship excursion has a potty. We ended up booking a private tour with Moustafa to save money and go at our own pace, and we'll be able to stop at a clean rest stop on the way (he has pictures of the rest stop on his website and looks nice). There have been other posts like this here, with those who have been there offering up where the best restrooms are - I remember one is the Solar Boat Museum, but if you do a search you can find more.

Best,
Mia

[Berwin]

Just came back from the Oceania Regatta where we did port stops at both Port Said and Alexandria. Since we had more time in Port in Port Said we did a day trip to the pyramids using Ramses tours. By the way, Ramses was excellent and so was our guide, Marwan.

When you leave from Port Said ALL vehicles travel in a convoy. It is not possible to depart from the convoy. After about 1 1/2 hrs -2 hrs we were able to depart from the convoy and stopped at a clean gas station for a restroom. Restroom was clean as were the restrooms at the pyramids and the restrooms at Sakara.

I'm not sure if all the buses had a toilet.

We also had an excellent day doing a private tour in Alexandria.

[MercedMike]

When you leave from Port Said ALL vehicles travel in a convoy. It is not possible to depart from the convoy. After about 1 1/2 hrs -2 hrs we were able to depart from the convoy and stopped at a clean gas station for a restroom. Restroom was clean as were the restrooms at the pyramids and the restrooms at Sakara.



UMMM, that sort of contradicts itself, doesn't it?

Nobody really cared whether we were in the convoy or not except for the departure at the port. In fact about halfway through the drive to Alexandria, our private van stopped at a police station for us to use the restrooms. The police got quite a kick out of it!

There are usable restrooms at most of the sites and if (when!) you go to a major shopping spot there will be good restrooms. We ran into no problems. The restrooms are not up to US standards, but are not disgusting.

HOWEVER -- do be aware that at almost all the public restrooms there will be some enterprising Egyptian who has stolen all the toilet paper and torn the wires out of the electric hair dryer, and is standing there passing out sheets of TP for baksheesh! You can just hand him a dollar but better yet, you can go to the grocery store before you leave and get one of those little travel rolls of Charmin! Also be sure you are carrying hand sanitizer.

Have a GREAT cruise!

[strobellayjam]

Our bus had a bathroom on board but it goes without saying, it's probably best not to use if possible. I found it tough enough to endure the bumpy ride while seated, let alone in the bathroom! The restaurants are always a good option, too. The poster who said the washrooms at the pyramids were clean must have gone on a good day. All I saw was a filthy outhouse type set-up in the middle of the desert! Mind you, when you gotta go...you gotta go!

[MercedMike]

The poster who said the washrooms at the pyramids were clean must have gone on a good day. All I saw was a filthy outhouse type set-up in the middle of the desert! Mind you, when you gotta go...you gotta go!

In front of the sphinx is a reasonably nice restroom with flush toilets.

[cruisin'tex]

Good, helpful info...thanks

[cruisemom42]

Good info on restrooms. I just wanted to set you at ease about the actual drive and locations you're visiting. You won't be driving through the desert for hours. You'll be on a highly trafficked route to and from your cruise ship. Some of the area is rural, some is built up. If you are in real need of a restroom, there are probably places your guide knows that can serve as a stop.

Also, the pyramids and sphinx are not located in the middle of the desert. They are just steps away from the busy town of Giza, where there are numerous luxury hotels, huge shopping "emporiums" specifically for tourists, and Westernized restaurants (including Hard Rock Cafe), all of which could offer you use of a restroom if needed.

I don't know where your tour will take you, but at almost every stop there was a restroom available. None were the cleanest (but then, public restrooms often aren't), but none were the hole-in-the-floor type either. As Mike says, bring your own toilet paper and definitely hand sanitizer.