Uniworld's River Tosca?

Has anyone booked a Nile Cruise on Uniworld's River Tosca? It was supposed to start sailing this April but when I called Uniworld they stated that it was not complete, but would be completed this July. Since this is the low season it will not begin sailing until Sept. We have booked the Nile Cruise for November and wonder if anyone else is sailing on this ship? Would love to hear some reviews if anyone sails before we do in Nov.

I booked with Uniworld because the River Tosca is an all suites ship with 313 sq. ft. in each cabin. We have sailed with them before and loved it but I am hoping this is not just PR and that the ship will truly be completed by summer!

Thansk for any comments you may have.

next trip ?

According to my friend at Uniworld, River Tosca will be sailing this fall.

The building was behind schedule.

It sounds like it will be the nicest ship there and I'm sure that you'll have a fabulous cruise.

Thanks Tiggypoo for the information. That is what the rep. from Uniworld told me on the phone so I guess it is true. He said that the ship will be completed this July, but since that was low season they wouldn't start sailing it until Sept. Our cruise is not until Nov. 2009 so hopefully all of the kinks will be worked out by then.

Thank you for responding.

next trip?

Hello Next Trip

We just booked Uniworld's "Splendors of Egypt" for next February on the River Tosca. Will be looking forward to your comments when you get home from your trip in November.

49er

Hi 49er,

We are considering this same trip in February 2010. Wondered how you chose Uniworld over other Nile River trips, if you don't mind my asking!! I get frequent emails from Uniworld, which is why I was pursuing them. I started to look around though, and that always leads to so many more questions.... Thanks for any info you might send my way:)

Hi 49er,

We are considering this same trip in February 2010. Wondered how you chose Uniworld over other Nile River trips, if you don't mind my asking!! I get frequent emails from Uniworld, which is why I was pursuing them. I started to look around though, and that always leads to so many more questions.... Thanks for any info you might send my way:)

Hello jperkin1

We chose Uniworld's "Splendor of the Nile" in February for several reasons. The River Tosca is a brand new ship, and the itinerary with all "options", including Abu Simbel are included in the price. Price was a factor being that they, Uniworld, are offering a $1500 reduction for bookings per couple made before July 31 and we also received a 10% reduction on the total cost from our TA (a large warehouse chain based in Kirkland, WA:-)

This our 1st river cruise and we are really looking forward to it.

49er

Thanks for your input... I did go ahead and put down a deposit for our trip in February, for the Splendors of Egypt, Feb. 5th sailing!!!!!!!!! This will also be our first river cruise also.. don't really want to wish the time away, but we sure are looking forward to it:)

Thanks for your input... I did go ahead and put down a deposit for our trip in February, for the Splendors of Egypt, Feb. 5th sailing!!!!!!!!! This will also be our first river cruise also.. don't really want to wish the time away, but we sure are looking forward to it:)

We are on the 26th of Feb sailing so we will be right behind you. I hope others will be able to report on this ship prior to our sailings. My DW did contact Uniworld and confirmed there is no elevator on the River Tosca (contrary to many travel websites descriptions). We are also awaiting word whether or not the cabins have fridges. Should be a great trip regardless. Now comes the fun part...booking airfare:-(

49er

I know what you mean.... Right now it's somewhere around $900'ish/pp out of Houston (not great departure or arrival times, or connections...), but guess you can't have everything. Am trying to decide if I should jump on that price, or wait to see how things go. So hard to know. Probably should just go ahead and do it, chances of it getting much cheaper are probably pretty slim. A crystal ball would be handy right about now. Good luck with the rest of your travel plans!!

49er, as an FYI: you had stated "The River Tosca is a brand new ship, and the itinerary with all "options", including Abu Simbel are included in the price."

What I understand from Uniworld's brochure, they say:

"Irresistible Optional Tour: Temples of Abu Simbel (Day8)

These optional excursions will be available for purchase

when you are onboard the ship."

This gives me the impression that it is not included, but an optional tour that can be purchased. I got this from the Cruise Companion information from the website. Wonder what the optional cost is??

Hi jperkin1,

$900 sounds pretty good to me. We are looking at $1500 PP RT out of Sacramento:-( We are on the fence right now and might wait a few weeks.

The Abu Simbel excursion was included with our booking ($269 PP value). This might have been exclusive to our TA (like I said, a large warehouse chain based in Kirkland WA, C****o).

49er

When we cruised with Unoworld to Egypt, My fondest wish was to see AbuSimbel. This was a few yeards ago, so the trip was about $225. I asked for a ticket for Christmas--got 2 so I took the giver, DH. It is a remarkable trip and a remarkable feat of engineering. Don't pass it up. Also, this was one trip that we used their air. Didn't want to have to get back anf forht to the Cairo airport on our own. We stayed at the Cairo Marriott. It is like an oasis in the meddle of the city--great pool area and wonderful restaurants. The small bakery candy shop has the best sandwiches--freshly made to order. It is a wonderful trip. Drink only bottled water even in the Marriott. Pat

The Abu Simbel excursion is only included in the price in the "Ancient Wonders of Egypt and the Nile" or "Jewels of Egypt, Nile and Lake Nasser".

The Ancient Wonders also includes Alexandria.

Opinions that I have heard, is that the 4 nights on the river is plenty and the addition of Abu Simbel and Alexandria, makes the Ancient Wonders tour the preferable one.

(Only opinions here.....)

Are the prices on The Tosca comparable to the other Uniworld ships?

I have sailed with them before and they said that beginning in 2010 for prior guests...they will do laundry one time a week!!

Tina

The Abu Simbel excursion is only included in the price in the "Ancient Wonders of Egypt and the Nile" or "Jewels of Egypt, Nile and Lake Nasser".

The Ancient Wonders also includes Alexandria.

Opinions that I have heard, is that the 4 nights on the river is plenty and the addition of Abu Simbel and Alexandria, makes the Ancient Wonders tour the preferable one.

(Only opinions here.....)

Too late to change our booking now and we didn't want to change ships in midst stream, so to speak. And Abu Simbel was included N/C with our booking. We love C****o. They have great travel deals:-)

49er

I think that they are comparable. The product is a little different in Egypt, as it includes hotel stays and extensive touring and internal flights.

The cruise in Egypt, is only a portion of the tour.

The one thing that won't change is the Uniworld quality that goes along with all their products.

They do have a special now for 2010 if you book and pay in full before July 31st you will save $300. pp.

I did do a bit of a debate between "Splendors" and "Jewels". Went with Splendors because thought it seemed less moving from one ship to another, etc. etc. We will still certainly opt to do the Abu Simbel. Why not? At this point, the extra expense will not be that detrimental. I am completely amazed that we will be traveling to Egypt, so it is all a wonder to me!!

I am completely amazed that we will be traveling to Egypt, so it is all a wonder to me!!

We feel exactly the same way:-)

49er

I started this thread a while back and then went on vacation. I am going to jump in here and say that after months of research I chose Uniworld because they included many things that other cruises did not and we have cruised with them 3 other time and loved the quality of the trips, tour guides, food etc. Also, one big drawing card is the new ship with 330 sq. ft. of space.

We are leaving on Nov 9th and flying to Cairo on our own. I wanted to stay at the Mena House to experience another grand Egyptian hotel, so we are flying in 3 days before the tour begins. One day I hope to get over jet lag by not doing too much and then the next 2 days I have hired a private guide using trip advisor recommendations. We will then transfer to the Marriott hotel and pick up the tour group to complete the rest of our trip.

I booked this trip almost a year ago and it seemed so far away then. Now the time is getting within sight!! I have done lots and lots of research and read the trip advisor forums for weeks so hopefully we are well prepared.

I will post a review when we return so that future travelers on River Tosca can get some idea of what it will be like.

If anyone is going before Nov. I would love to hear your review. We are so looking forward to this trip. It is something I have wanted to do for years!

Here's to happy travelling!

next trip?

next trip?,

So glad to hear your trip is still on. We future River Tosca cruisers will be looking forward to your comments when you return.

We are planning a trip over to San Francisco in late August to see the King Tutankhamen exhibit on loan from the Cairo museum. That should really get us in the mood. Hard to believe that it has been 30 years since we last went to a similar exhibit down in LA.

We are off to Seattle this weekend for a RT Alaskan cruise and it will be a delight to get away from the heat that we have been having here in the foothills of central California.

regards,

49er

I will be very happy to post a review when we return and let the future River Tosca travellers know all of the "details". I have learned so much from these forums and from trip advisor that maybe I can pay back someone--play it forward!

If the Uniworld Cruise is as nice as other ones we have been on it will be a delight!

Have fun on your Alaskan cruise. We enjoyed ours a lot several years ago.

next trip ?

Booked our flights today! Always nice to have that done. Had been watching prices and there was a good drop today so we decided to go for it. Will be flying into Cairo a day early. Will have to make connections in ORD and FRA on the way over and FRA and IAD on the way home. Hate to fly in winter but can't help it this time. Keeping our fingers crossed there won't be too many weather delays.

49er

I will agree 49er. Once you secure those plane tickets you realize you are REALLY going on this trip!

We watched the airfares for several months and then around Oct. they dropped and we purchased ours. We fly NY to Cairo ( non-stop) and also arrive a few days early! It will take one day to get over jet lag after that long flight. I have hired a guide, through the recommendations on Trip Advisor, for the next 3 days and then we meet our Uniworld tour group.

I am so excited about this trip and have been reading all of the tour guide books. Preparing is half the fun, I think!

Congrats on getting your tickets!!!! Now you are really going!

next trip?

Our flight schedule didn't even last 24hrs before our departure time from CAI to FRA changed. Was a Lufthansa 5:30 am departure, now 4:30am! I am sure the schedules will change many more times over the next few months. Ah, the joys of air travel.

49er

I agree! Our last trip ( just returned this Monday) was a driving trip to the East coast and DC. It was so much more relaxing than sitting in an airport for several hours or more. We could come and go as we wished.

I keep checking our flights to Egypt since we made them months ago. So far everything has stayed the same, but that could change overnight. I will be continually checking until we depart.

I also booked the Mena House many months ago and last night, as I was checking their rates on the Internet, I noticed a significant change in rates--lower than what I had booked. I have e-mailed them to ask for the change in rates, but naturally I haven't heard a thing. There is a difference of 50 Euros a night and we are staying 3 nights so hopefully they will honor this new rate. Sometimes that is the problem with booking too early.

Good luck in all of your planning.

next trip?