Just back from the Pyramids...

[petesweet]

Since the local economy dictates much of what you decide concerning tips, can someone give me an idea of the Egyptian economy? For instance, is a $20 tip the equivalent of a day's pay for someone? I tip differently when I visit the Philippines than when I visit Canada.

Thanks.

Kathy

[smeyer418]

We will be on a bus tour from our ship to see the pyramids etc. If we go to the papyrus factory, what would we do with our cameras ? I wouldn't think they would be safe left on the bus, and we will want pictures of the pyramids of course.....

Thanks!

Take the camera with you. BTW Egyptians are extremely honest, its more likely that a fellow traveler would take it from the bus than a local.

 

As for the recovery time after "walking" down the pyramid its called not surprisingly "the Mummy walk"- you sort of look like you are walking like Walter Brennan- for three days. You use muscles you haven't seen in 20 years.

 

I did the red pyramid in Saquarra much less crowded.

[WeBeGone]

Since the local economy dictates much of what you decide concerning tips, can someone give me an idea of the Egyptian economy? For instance, is a $20 tip the equivalent of a day's pay for someone? I tip differently when I visit the Philippines than when I visit Canada.

 

Thanks.

 

Kathy

 

Yes you're just about right. We only needed to tip our tour guide and we tipped him 10% of the cost of the tour. We tipped with US dollars.

[chebella82]

Will be happy to answer your questions about our excursion to the Pryamids from Alexandria. Overall it was an amazing trip and not to be missed.

 

Hello, thankyou for your offer to help out with information. I've been emailing a few tour companies in cairo but it takes them a full day or so to respond and then they dont always answer my questions.

I noticed someone said the museum takes about an hour to see. We are putting together an itinerary for an overnight tour and were wondering, to those who have been to these sites, how long did it take you to see each of these: the Giza pyramids and sphinx, the step pyramid at sakkara, the red pyramid and bent pyramid at dahshur, and st. sergius in old cairo? do you think we would have time for all these sights (including the museum) in 2 days if we also made a stop by that store to get a cartouche? thanks in advance.

[slidergirl]

On my recent trip to Egypt, our Egyptologist, Manal, was with us for 6 days. We (there were 17 of us) tipped Manal at least $60 each. We tipped our bus drivers (we didn't always have the same one on tours from the boat) $2 each when we left the bus. This was the tip suggested by our trip organizer.

 

As for clothing, I feel you should dress for the culture you are visiting. If I go to Tahiti or the Caribbean, it's total casual. If it's a Moslem country, I'll dress modestly. No need to totally cover up, but please, if you want to wear a tank top at the tourist site, also take along a shirt that you can put over it when you go into a restaurant or store. Our group of women all dressed in shirts with sleeves we could roll up (some with tank tops underneath), and knee-length shorts or pants. We were even complimented by our Egyptologist on our dress, saying it was so nice to see well-dressed women on tour.

If you're just doing a tour off of a cruise ship, you can use your "casual casual" clothes on the ship around the pool. Just be respectful of where you are. It's not that big a deal to bring along a long-sleeve shirt and a modest pair of shorts or pants. They actually pack well, are lightweight, and actually handwash and dry overnight.

[twopats]

Hello, thankyou for your offer to help out with information. I've been emailing a few tour companies in cairo but it takes them a full day or so to respond and then they dont always answer my questions.

I noticed someone said the museum takes about an hour to see. We are putting together an itinerary for an overnight tour and were wondering, to those who have been to these sites, how long did it take you to see each of these: the Giza pyramids and sphinx, the step pyramid at sakkara, the red pyramid and bent pyramid at dahshur, and st. sergius in old cairo? do you think we would have time for all these sights (including the museum) in 2 days if we also made a stop by that store to get a cartouche? thanks in advance.

 

We just returned from a two day tour of Cairo off the Grand Princess and highly recommend Mohamed from his web site comecegyptdotcom. The first day when you are fresh and excited, he took us to the Great Pyramid in the Ginza area of Cairo where you should do the camel ride as it is an experience of a lifetime, the step pyramid, and the goernment store where we ordered our cartouches. He told us to bargain and was available for help if we needed it. His tour was totally complete with two lunches, entrances to all sites, hotel room (our Le Meredian/Pyramids had a view of the pyramids), a falucca ride (sailboat on the Nile), and he provided tips for all the rest rooms as well. The Meredian is about 10-20 minutes away from the sound & light show and with the horrendous Cairo traffic, that was an important hotel choice. The cost for that was $20 pp but absolutely do not miss this show! Just fabulous. The second day included the Egyptian Museum, Old Cairo, the bazaar and the sailboat ride. We left Cairo for Alexandria about 3:00 and were at the ship about an hour before sailing. Hope this helps. Trish :cool:

[chebella82]

thanks for the info. our tour is currently set up as:

Day 1- Pyramids and Sphinx at Giza (and we plan to do a camel ride to the Sphinx and maybe see the Solar boats), the archeological museum (we probably won't do the mummy room, it sounds overpriced to me), and St. Sergius in Old Cairo. We also have the sound and lights show and a nile dinner cruise as optional evening activities.

We are staying also at le meridien, although i heard great things about the mena house oberi, so he is going to give us pricing on upgrading to that hotel.

Day 2- we have sakkara step pyramid, and dahshur red and bent pyramids. We will probably stop by the store on the 2nd day as well.

I know this is alot of stuff packed into 2 days and i was just curious if it sounds feasible to those who have already been and done these things.

[jill1349]

Chebella82, I also am interested in hearing comments on your tour. We will be there on RCCL in May and debating on whether to do the overnight in Cairo with Ramses Tours or Mohamed or just doing two day trips - one in Cairo and one in Alexandria. Any feedback and recommendations would be most appreciated.

 

Jill

[twopats]

Chebella82, I also am interested in hearing comments on your tour. We will be there on RCCL in May and debating on whether to do the overnight in Cairo with Ramses Tours or Mohamed or just doing two day trips - one in Cairo and one in Alexandria. Any feedback and recommendations would be most appreciated.

 

Jill

 

I would suggest going to Mohamed's web site comecegypt and look at what he is offering. You might also start to email him and discuss what he recommends and whether you can work together for a wonderful tour as we had with him. His email address is komaty_m at hotmail.com and you might mention "Trish" who was part of 3 couples he toured with the end of October. His English is excellent and he has a great sense of humor. We saw so much more with him than our fellow passengers who were with larger groups, none of whom had a felluca ride on the Nile, which was a highlight for all of us. Good luck! Trish

[laydeerider]

thanks for this insight into egypt trip, we're heading there in May, cant wait :D

[chebella82]

Chebella82, I also am interested in hearing comments on your tour. We will be there on RCCL in May and debating on whether to do the overnight in Cairo with Ramses Tours or Mohamed or just doing two day trips - one in Cairo and one in Alexandria. Any feedback and recommendations would be most appreciated.

 

Jill[/quote

 

sorry for the late response, we had a great time, Egypt was the highlight of our cruise. I think overnight is definitely the way to go- it is a very long drive to cairo and we loved having a nice hotel to crash in that nite after a very long day of sightseeing. i would not have liked to drive all the way back to the ship, it wouldve cut out alot of time. le meridien was wonderful, it was better than we expected- very clean and comfortable with a great view of the pyramid. Nile Blue surpassed our expectations, i would definitely use them again in the future. they changed around the order of our itinerary to maximize our time and we got to see pretty much everything we wanted. our tour guide was so knowledgeable. on day 1 we saw sakkara (went inside titi pyramid), dahshur (our driver actually took a wrong turn on the way to dahshur, and got a bit lost, however this enabled us to drive through some very interesting neighborhoods for a glimpse of everyday life in cairo, and we were actually commenting that we were glad we got lost :), and the museum, having our guide with all her interesting facts really made us appreciate what we saw. then we took the nile dinner cruise which i loved, the food was great everywhere we ate in egypt in fact, and the bellydancer on the nile cruise was really enjoyable. then we did the sound and lights show that evening, a really great experience as well. on day 2 we saw coptic cairo, wow the hanging church was gorgeous, im so glad we got to see that, and st. sergius, then of course we saw the giza plateau and took a camel ride ;). it was alot to cram into 2 days but i wouldn't have wanted to miss any of it. the only thing we didnt really have time to do was the solar boat museum. actually they did take us to the papyrus institute on the way back, which we did not ask to go to but didn't protest either. i think they get a commission for taking us here. anyway it was just a big store and they had a little brief presentation on how to make it. in hindsight i'd rather have stayed longer at the giza plateau and seen the solar boats and told them to skip the papyrus store. which we probably couldve done but didnt ask. Overall We were very impressed with Nile Blue. the van we used was clean and comfortable with plenty of bottled water. we also ordered some beautiful cartouche necklaces which i noticed were cheaper than the ones RCCL offered onboard. some others on our cruise used Ramses and also seemed very pleased. so probably either one would work out great. who did you guys end up booking with if anyone?

 

one comment about the camel ride-although it was alot of fun, the guy who was leading my camel was pretty rude. when the ride was over my boyfriend was taking my picture while i sat on the camel and the guy suddenly hit the camel with his stick to make it lay down on the ground so i could get off. he gave me no warning at all and i was turned the other direction, and nearly fell off the camel and hurt my back jerking myself up into place. then he demanded a tip from us, which i refused because i felt he didn't deserve one. he chased after us for a minute demanding a dollar but i said no, it was the principle of the thing!

also as far as tipping, we did tip our nile blue tour guide, i think about ten bucks for each of us, it was just the cash we had left over after the tour. i think most people tipped them about that same amount, a couple of people only tipped them 5 bucks each.

[lynned2899]

You are correct ... there is always someone who feels the need to "rain on someone else's parade." I believe that your guide, who is a local and does this tour every day, has a better handle on local customs than some on this board.

 

Thanks for the great review. We'll be visiting the Pyramids next July and I'm debating whether to the take the ship's tour or book a private tour. There are four of us so it always helps make the private tour a bit more economical.

 

Can you give me a sense of the price range of the cartouches. I'm guessing they range from "not too expensive" all the way up to solid gold??

 

We are doing a private tour w/ Ramses Tours and the cost is $300. per person including overnight in a 5 star hotel. Lunch is included on both days. The reviews I've read about this co. have been excellent. We are on the Celebrity Equinox in O)ct 2010.

[lynned2899]

Jars,

 

I thought your review was straightforward enough, but would like to add my 2 cents worth since we did an overnite with a private tour operator.

 

We used Memphis Tours:

 

http://memphistours.com/

 

and were very happy with the service that we received. Our egyptologist was named Rehab and she was amazing. We were a family of 6 adults and our cost for the 2 days was about $350pp. It included 3 meals, bottled water, the Egyptian museum, the sound light show (I hated this), a felucca ride on the Nile and our upgraded hotel. Pick up and delivery from Alexandria.

 

We opted out of the le Meridian hotel and paid $60pp extra to stay at the Mena House Oberoi. It was well worth the extra money and included a huge breakfast buffet.

 

http://www.oberoimenahouse.com/Hotel/Hotel-Overview.aspx

 

We all wore shorts as well and never encountered any problems.

 

We bought our cartouches at Topaz Bazar in Giza and they are worth about what we paid for them $25. They are not the highest quality, but they aren't bad for the price.

 

Every restroom has its cost. We were taken (by our choice) to one of the Rug making schools and even though I was about to make an $800 purchase, the restroom clerk wanted money for a paper towel.

 

We did enjoy the papyrus place. It was an interesting demostration and there was no high sales pressure. We bought what we wanted if we wanted.

 

We thouroughly enjoyed our time at the museum which was about 1 hr 15 mins. That was enough-longer would have been too much for us. Don't take your camera in-they don't allow cameras in period.

 

We had a great time in Cairo at the pyramids-going down inside them. We also enjoyed the $20 camel ride at Giza. REally--we were going to pass on it, but it was fun.

 

You can email me directly if you have any questions. We were on the Celebrity Equinox with ports at Naples, Athens, Rhoades, Kudasi, Haifi, Ashdod, and Alexandria.

 

onlyparrotlets@hotmail.com

 

So glad to read your review. I was debating between the Le Meridien and Mena House. Why did you choose Mena. Money is not the factor just wondering why you selected Mena.

On a different topic did you use a private tour co. in Naples. We were there last year and I just want to do amalfi drive w/ stop at Positano etc. where no big busses can go. Did Pompeii already. The private tours I've seen so far run at least 225 euros for a half day. Ridiculous for a 1/2 day. We did the cruise ship tour last year and I really want to see Positano.

 

Thanks.

[texancruzer]

You know there always has to be someone on these boards that gets offended and has to add their two cents. More people than not had shorts on and it was perfectly fine. Like I said I don't think anyone was offended. If you want to wear long sleeves and pants then do so. geez quit being so uptight! and yes i meant every word i said in my review.

 

Whoa...... gotta chime in here.

 

For any of us who have been around Cruisecritic for any amount of time, we know that all (yes all ) the information and advice that Cruisermom has dispensed in the over 7000 posts she has made is well informed. She has traveled ALOT (not even sure she knows exactly how much etc ;)) and is very aware of the customs and other etiquette of anywhere she goes - due to an unusual amount of research on her part. It is her passion to travel and research such things.

 

As for proper dress....... shorts in a mosque = NO NO !

[smeyer418]

I also stayed at the Mena house and loved it....

 

here is a short movie....

 

http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=smeyer418#p/u/52/DV8001zjMmA

 

riding a camel

 

http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=smeyer418#p/u/57/grlo26dY5Oo

 

and the camel drinks...

 

http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=smeyer418#p/u/59/EFaTlBYwvOk

 

BTW I do believe you should follow the custom and wear long pants but in Egypt with tourists they are pretty relaxed about it and I have seen people dressed worse in NY at church too....but I am also a person who doesn't care what someone wears to dinner on a ship...so at least be consistent about it.

 

ps that is Debbie from Casual Cairo giving the drink to the camel...

[Mzhelen]

Whoa...... gotta chime in here.

 

For any of us who have been around Cruisecritic for any amount of time, we know that all (yes all ) the information and advice that Cruisermom has dispensed in the over 7000 posts she has made is well informed. She has traveled ALOT (not even sure she knows exactly how much etc ;)) and is very aware of the customs and other etiquette of anywhere she goes - due to an unusual amount of research on her part. It is her passion to travel and research such things.

 

As for proper dress....... shorts in a mosque = NO NO !

 

I have to agree with Texan here. Yes, you can wear whatever you want. But personally I think it matters to be respectful to host-country's culture. A mosque is house of worship, NOT a tourist building. As such, the religious customs should be recognized. I wore lightweight long pants and a short sleeved shirt, and then covered my head and arms with a scarf. In one of the mosques they actually provided a green coverup for the women. Dave wore those really light weight pants with legs that zip off - they were so lightweight he said he was more comfortable in them than in his khaki shorts! Plus they protected his "pasty white" legs from the sun LOL.

[Lilli40]

I do agree with you,we should respect everyone traditions and religious customs, while reading the awesome reviews I found myself thinking back to another day. Two years ago when i visited Cairo for the first time, it was short quick overnight trip. Congested streets teem with life, challenging the senses with its unique blend of sights, sounds and smells, and vivid glimpses of the past.

my first visit was in winter so maybe i didn't feel such a problem of what to wear when visiting a mosque, i think it was the most comfortable time.(RECOMMENDED). It was well organized to avoid the crowd of the large group and the expensive tours. (should discuss everything with agency operator) " how bog is the tour bus" we didn't feel bad during the longer bus rides. our guide provided more information such details make a long bus ride more entertaining. There was no way for those in the middle or back of the bus to ask questions. The tour bus was wonderfully comfortable for our size of group and the driver and security guide were competent and reliable Of course the accommodations and breakfast were excellent.

on a punishing schedule overnight is just enough to see the bare highlights of this magnificent city. (overnight is recommended involved in only two sightseeing everyday) spent the first day at the Egyptian Museum marvelling over some of the more than 100,000 antiquities, our guide was great knowledgeable, informative and helpful. she helped us to see more than the others could. The job she had to do was extremely difficult, and she did it well---she faced many obstacles, such as noise from other tour guides, the large crowds, the heat and the need to show as many as possible of the marvelous treasures. Her planning of the tour allowed ample time to explore the King Tutankhman collection as well as the mummy collection, and somehow she managed to reach everyone in our group with her voice. then we explored the twisting alleyways and splendid mosques of the medieval quarters of Islamic Cairo (Alabaster Mosque).

Our second day was more interesting at Saqqara, where you can cast an eye over the huge collection of monuments, then at the Pyramids of Giza.( visit early morning better than afternoon hot first day)

our guide was well known and could get the Great Pyramid tickets early and saved our time.(very long queue starts at 7:30 am, only 150 tickets every morning).

Camel ride was also controlled and organized to reduce hassle.

It was memorable trip to the most extraordinary place, nowhere are there so many marvellous things which give courage to the second visit.:p

Lilli.:)

 

. I hope my comments will be viewed as helpful

[cruisemom42]

Whoa...... gotta chime in here.

 

For any of us who have been around Cruisecritic for any amount of time, we know that all (yes all ) the information and advice that Cruisermom has dispensed in the over 7000 posts she has made is well informed. She has traveled ALOT (not even sure she knows exactly how much etc ;)) and is very aware of the customs and other etiquette of anywhere she goes - due to an unusual amount of research on her part. It is her passion to travel and research such things.

 

As for proper dress....... shorts in a mosque = NO NO !

 

 

hey tex -- thanks for the support; it's appreciated!

 

Looks like from reading recent threads that you've booked that trip. Congrats! Hopefully you still have my email -- feel free to ask any specific questions. I can probably dig up my more detailed notes too, if you'd like.

[texancruzer]

hey tex -- thanks for the support; it's appreciated!

 

Looks like from reading recent threads that you've booked that trip. Congrats! Hopefully you still have my email -- feel free to ask any specific questions. I can probably dig up my more detailed notes too, if you'd like.

 

Cynthia, You're welcome and yes I still have your email...... filed neatly in my 3 ring binder :D Right now just figuring out flights (we have to get to NY and back from Corpus) and excursions and what upgrades etc etc etc..... lots of details. And this is a new animal for me....never done a "tour". But I am very excited and so is Mike. This is his "always wanted to go there" trip. Don't worry - I will find you when questions start ! TEX