Uniworld's River Tosca?

[Rosie01]

jperkin1

 

Have a fantastic trip. I know you will and I wish I could go back. I will be interested to see your comments about the Meriam. The guides and the culture make this trip and Uniworld does a great job with the guides. I hope you get Walid as he was fantastic. About luggage, we as a rule like to carry over and check on the way home. That way you are sure to have your luggage with you when you arrive. The only time we had any trouble was in Australia on domestic flights and the combined weight was too much so had to check one bag. Hope this helps. I would check with the airline from Heathrow to Cairo.

 

Bon Voyage.

[geddyupgo]

jperkin1 ~ Have a wonderful trip! We are lined up right behind you on the 2/13/2010 tour. Hard to believe the time is really upon us (and I'm still buying incidentals). I don't do much international travel these days but I agree with the idea of trying to take as much as you can carryone just so it will arrive when you do; this is particularly true when you have stop overs and flight changes. We will be taking a non stop from NYC to Cairo on 2/11 but I have still seen luggage put on the wrong plane.

 

We'll check in with everyone when we get back on 2/25 and compare notes. Good travel and blessings to you -

Geddyupgo:)

[next trip?]

Have a wonderful time jperkins1. I will be looking forward to reading your review. We went through Heathrow last Spring and I had a carry on plus a large purse and my husband had a carryon and a backpack. No problems at all. Hopefully it will work out for you since, I agree, carry on as much as possible so you have it when you arrive.

The weather sounds perfect for your trip. ENJOY!

Everyone else that will be leaving within the next few weeks--have a wonderful time.

We will be on our Caribbean cruise so will read your reviews when we get to Fl. in March

next trip?

[opal21]

Has anyone gotten recommendations from their doctor to take Tetanus or Hepatitis C vaccines to travel in Egypt? We're down to a little over two weeks before we leave and my sil said one of her doctors recommended taking it.Any input on the subject would be helpful.:confused:

Carol

[shoshona2]

First of all, there is NO vaccine for Hep C. There are vaccines for Hep A and Hep B. If I were you, I would definitely get the Hep A since even in the USA there are outbreaks. You get it from food and food handlers. You still have time to get that one. Tetanus shots should be given every TEN years. When was your last one???? I just had a shot before I left for Egypt in November. Do NOT brush your teeth with any water from the faucet. We were in a five Star hotel and used bottled water. Do NOT eat any food from any vendors off the street. I chewed a pepto bismol tablet with every meal and we ate at lots of places. I had NO tummy problems at all.

 

Sheila

[opal21]

Sheila, Thanks for the input. You're right it was Hep A. We had our last shots before we moved to Indonesia and that was back in 1991. We've been lucky with all this travelling. I guess we better get updated.

Thanks again,

Carol

[geddyupgo]

Hi Carol ~

We are taking the same tour (2/13/10) but will have to shovel our way to the airport! I agree with Shoshona2. There are no required vaccinations for Egypt if you are coming from the US but Hep A is recommended for both here and travel considering the way it can be accquired. Tetanus should be renewed every 10 years. You can get information on the recommended vacs by browsing the CDC site. Depending on the state you live in, your state dept of health may have a link to the CDC or to a private sector travel center. One word of caution.... some of the travel centers try to "push" a lot of shots that may not be needed so check with your doctor (if he is up to date on travel but many are not) or the CDC first.

[shoshona2]

Hi Geddyupgo,

 

Have a wonderful trip -- we thought Egypt was awesome!!! We took hundreds of wonderful photos. Take about 30 or 40 singles with you to buy postcards from the hawkers. Take some toilet paper and wipes -- when you use the toilets, they give you ONE square and, of course, you have to pay them BEFORE you enter. Our tour guide gave us Egyptian coins in advance which was great! By the way, I lived in Hamilton Square and went to Hamilton High School many, many years ago.

 

Happy cruising!

 

Sheila

[geddyupgo]

Hi Sheila ~

I would love to think you are kidding about ONE sheet but I have a feeling you aren't. I'm putting a second roll of toilet paper in the luggage. Were you on the Tosca or the Merriam? I heard we are only supplied with one bottle of drinking water per day and have to buy the rest. I'm hoping they will let us take it off ship when we visit sites. Let me know if your photos are posted online so I can sneak a peek. Thanks for the good wishes we'll be in touch when we get back.

[shoshona2]

Hi geddyupgo,

 

Yes, at the toilets off the ship, you will get one square when you enter the room after paying a coin or two. I collected my Charmin ends of rolls and folded them in half and put them in a ziplock bag for easy traveling. We were on Tauck's tour/cruise and an A&K ship. We were supplied with bottles of water every day whenever we wanted. Hopefully your ship will do the same. I'm sorry but our wonderful photos are not on line -- I printed them all and they are in a huge photo album. I'm still in the 20th century though I used a diogital camera. Have a wonderful time - the sights are awesome.

 

Sheila

[Rosie01]

Hi Geddyupgo:

 

With regards to water, the guided trips supplied one bottle of water per person on daily trips. We would take one between the two of us when getting off the bus and then take the other as needed or when leaving the bus to get back on the ship or to the hotel. This was plenty for the two of us even using the water for tooth brushing and in room drinking.

 

With regards to shots, Hepatitis A & B and typhoid were recommended by CDC as well as tetanus being up to date. There is a wonderful product that our guide had with him (I forget name, but it is further up in these posts) that I used one day when my tummy was upset. This cured it within 6 hours. I did however only ask for chicken boullion and crackers or bread for lunch that day. Did not miss any sights or tours due to this.

 

Hope this helps.

Rosie01

[Jete]

I have both euros and dollars, but would like to get EGPs also. Does the Cairo Marriott have ATM machines? Is it better to get money at the airport? Thanks for help--

[Rosie01]

Jete:

 

We used ATM at Airport for immediate cash that lasted us quite awhile and then there is a bank in the Marriott that you can convert $ into Egyptian pounds. I think we converted about $100 immediately at the airport and then later used the bank as we ran out at the end of the trip. I took $100 - $1 bills with me (was able to loan to other tour members)and used quite a few of these at the various vendors. I think $50 probably would have worked out about right for my spending. American money is pretty widely accepted, although we like to have some of the local currency available like for the local deli shops, etc.

 

Let me know if you have any more questions.

Rosie01

[Ozjohnno]

There are two ATM machines and two banks in the Marriott. Everything in Egypt revolves around "baksheeh" and carrying Egyptian pounds is the smart thing to do. You will inevitably give away 1 Egyptian pound for every little service from going to the toilet to having your picture taken with a member of the tourist police. At the present rate of about 5-6 Egyptian pounds to your dollar it is a small price to pay to get people out of your hair. The banks at the Marriott can exchange currency for roles of 1 Egyptian pound coins or notes. They will prove to be invaluable.

 

I loved Egypt and it's people and I'm sure you will be astounded by all you will see and do. Have a great time and try to count all the times you say Wow! You'll give up on day one.

[Jete]

Thanks for the helpful info on currency. And WE WILL count the Wows!

[49er]

Anyone back from their cruise on the Feb 1 sailing of the Miriam? Would be interested in any comments.

 

49er

[opal21]

Hi 49er, we're also anxious to hear how the trips have been on the Miriam. I do know the weather seems to be getting extremely hot and the forecast is for the 90s during the day and the 60s in the evenings over the next 10 days. We've had the most most unusual cold and record snowstorm here in North Texas. I don't think we'll need warm jackets for the evenings. It's hard to think about what to pack for that kind of heat, but I can't wait to get on that plane.

Carol

[49er]

Hi 49er, we're also anxious to hear how the trips have been on the Miriam. I do know the weather seems to be getting extremely hot and the forecast is for the 90s during the day and the 60s in the evenings over the next 10 days. We've had the most most unusual cold and record snowstorm here in North Texas. I don't think we'll need warm jackets for the evenings. It's hard to think about what to pack for that kind of heat, but I can't wait to get on that plane.

Carol

 

Hello Carol,

I have been watching the weather in the US and it has really been a winter for the record books. We even had 7" of snow here last December which was a record for us. In the 70s today and the sun really feels good. The Temps in Egypt really have warmed up particularly Luxor and to the south. Looks like it might even hit 100 there by the weekend. We have begun to organize our things and are trying to keep it to a bare minimum. No formal attire for this cruise:-)

Hope jperkin1 and others will have time to give a quick review of the Miriam before we leave. I have heard Trafalgar uses the same boat so I will be interested to see how that works out.

See you next week. Wow! We can actually say that now:-)

49er

[opal21]

Hi 49er,

You're right it really is next week (10 days). Last week I asked how many were on the boat and the agent said 104. I don't know if that's for our tour or a combination. I believe Uniworld is part of Trafalgar, so maybe it's both. I wish we knew what our cabin assignment is. We've been trying to decide on suitcases and carry ons. Unfortunately my husband's carry on will be his camera bag. I know you're on Lufthansa. How do you get to Cairo?

Carol

[49er]

Hi 49er,

You're right it really is next week (10 days). Last week I asked how many were on the boat and the agent said 104. I don't know if that's for our tour or a combination. I believe Uniworld is part of Trafalgar, so maybe it's both. I wish we knew what our cabin assignment is. We've been trying to decide on suitcases and carry ons. Unfortunately my husband's carry on will be his camera bag. I know you're on Lufthansa. How do you get to Cairo?

Carol

 

I believe the Tosca's maximum passengers load was 82 so I suspect we will be "sharing" with some Trafalgar folks. I remember reading that UniWorld was bringing over some of their staff including the Chef from the Tosca. I wonder how that will all work out? Split the dining room in half? We had an upgraded Cabin on the Tosca and like you, wish we knew where we are going to be located. Since there are four of you traveling (if memory serves me right) I am sure you will get two together

We are flying out of Frankfurt the afternoon of the 26th on a Lufthansa Flight arriving in Cairo at 6:40pm. We have to make a connection at O'Hare and with the weather being what it has been lately, I will be glad when our United flight to Frankfurt gets airborne. Fog is always a problem this time of year in the Sacramento valley so that is another worry for that leg of trip.

My carryon is also a camera bag which usually gets loaded up with three cameras, batteries, chargers, cell phone, sun glasses etc. Our trips are well documented:-)

See you soon,

49er

[evanston]

Based on the comments, getting the Egypt entry visa at the airport upon arrival seems easy. I understand it is $15 at the booth. Do you have to fill out an application and/or do they require a 2x2 picture as does the Egypt consulate, how long is the line, and I would be interested to know if anyone been denied the visa and/or entry?

[shoshona2]

We were there in late October -- arrived at midnight and it took five minutes to get the visa -- no photo needed.

 

Sheila

[opal21]

Shoshana, did you happen to notice if they take credit cards for the visa or is that cash only?

49er, I worry about the weather here also. See you in Frankfurt! Hopefully we'll be hearing from the folks that sailed.

Carol

[Ozjohnno]

When we were there it was cash only. They even have a money exchange booth as well. It all goes very smoothly and quickly. You pay your money and they stick you visa in your passport. Have a great time in Egypt.

[Jete]

Which currency is accepted for the visa? US dollars? EGPs?