EGYPTOLOGY

14 days from GBP1,299 to GBP1,499 including flights
Tripcode: AEE

Countries Visited: Egypt

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Our Clients’ Reviews

Average Review Rating: from 24 reviews.

Harvey Allen

EGYPTOLOGY

Written November 2011
This was our fourth visit to Egypt. We had done a similar tour twenty years ago and it was good to update our experiences with such a knowledgable guide. The train journeys were necessary I suppose but not a delight.In summary was a thoroughly enjoyable trip with good company and good hotels.
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
The balloon flight over the West Bank at Luxor gave us a fresh insight into the archaeological excavations that have been done, that are being done, and that have as yet to be done. We could see the mounds of contours still to be excavated. We were also impressed by the workmen's tombs that have been opened up there in recent years.
Aswan is always a joy and it was good to explore the islands by felucca.
What did you think of your group leader?
Sayed Mansour was extremely well informed, sympathetic to the group's needs and kept us fully up to date with the political situation in the country.
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
Go now while there are fewer tourists and the country needs our tourism. The ethical tourism practised by Exodus is particularly relevant in such a situation.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
However the excursion to Fayyoum was unnecessary and a disappointing end to the tour, even though it was good to see the Maydom pyramids on the way.
Joseph Bulat

EGYPTOLOGY

Written November 2011
So much to see, so little time to see it all!
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
Where do you start! If you love ancient temples of any description then for me Karnak, Luxor and Abu Simbel stand out, but so do the great Pyramids of Giza, the Sphinx, Saqqara and the Bent Pyramid. Ultimately, Egypt is the gift of the Nile and I found my inspirational moment approaching Luxor in the late afternoon on our river boat. The lush green of the the islands and banks of the Nile contrasted beautifully with the rose tinted western hills and clear blue sky. A unique magical landscape indeed.
What did you think of your group leader?
Sayeed was always helpful, efficient and very informative without flooding us with facts and figures.
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
With all the much publicised political instability there are only one third of the usual number tourists. However, as a tourist the only problem I encountered was traffic chaos in Cairo. So go and enjoy the sites without the crowds! Be prepared to be pestered for tips. I found the sleeper train a bit of a misnomer. It's comfortable enough but I found it difficult to sleep with the constant vibration, a sleeping pill might be an idea.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Do it!
rachel nockels

EGYPTOLOGY

Written October 2011
This is a great trip, which visits sites that not many tourists usually see. The train to Aswan and back to Cairo was a little uncomfortable, with hard beds but the sites visited more than made up for this
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
Visiting Abu Simbel and going inside a pyramid
What did you think of your group leader?
Khaled was so passionate about everything to do with Egypt, from the sites to the recent troubles. He gave clear explainations and made everything interesting.
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
Take small coins for the bathrooms. Go to the Luxor and Mummification museums, these may be small but have some amazing things to see.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Egypt is a great country but be aware of the people always trying to sell you things, everywhere you go
Victor Pucknell

EGYPTOLOGY

Written June 2011
Exceptional!!   As a result of the recent problems in Egypt our group was very small (5) and most of the tourist sites were empty. The Great Pyramid to ourselfs!! No crowds in the Valley of the Kings. The cruise boat had only 11 tourists in total - way outnumbered by crew. Similarly at the hotels so we probably got much better rooms than normally. So all in all very good for us but of course but you cannot but feel for the locals. Hope business picks up again soon.   Our guide Fouad was very good indeed.    To anyone undecided go as soon as possible before the crowds return - you will not regret it.
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?

   Tombs at the Valley of the Kings also temple at Dendara. I went to Egypt around 1988 but do not recall the colours on the walls and ceilings being so vivid after 4000 years.
   The journeys by train were an experience. Actually for sleeping a lot more comfortable than at first glance.
   Because of lack of tourists there was no queue for the adventure into the Great Pyramid (and others which were open). Not much to see at the end of the climb but certainly an experience.
Wandering around the sites with only a handful of other tourists was clearly something which doesn't happen often. The Sound and Light show at Philae Island was a private showing - noone else turned up.
What did you think of your group leader?

   As I have mentioned Fauad was exceptional. Having such a small group who all got on well helped. He was able to arrange a lot of additional activities. Also took us out in the evenings when possible to local restaurants (lamb was fantastic) and walking tours around the markets.

Had a very good knowledge of his subject and explained to us the main points of interest and significance of each site. He very quickly got the split between talking and allowing us to explore on our own just right.
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
As I have mentioned. If thinking about Egypt go as soon as possible before the crowds return.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

I have not uploaded photographs to the Exodus site since there are 800 and total size would be around 7GB. However all can be seen at http://npg.dl.ac.uk/nf/Gallery-Egypt_May11/index.htm
Adeline Cantais

EGYPTOLOGY

Written May 2011
Two weeks taking in in the best Egypt has to offer makes this a good choice to see most ancient monuments and temples.
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
Seeing the pyramids of Giza for the first time but also admiring the beautiful colour decorations at Abydos. But then, Abbu Simbel and Edfu are beautiful and spectalur too and so are teh Valley of teh Kings tombs or the temple at Philae. The whole trip was a never ending 'Wow!'.
What did you think of your group leader?
Sayeed was pleasant and knowledgeable. The visits were always divided between a tour by Sayeed and personal time to look at the sights more in details. He was happy to organise things in the evening or leave us be if that's what we wanted.
He gave us lots of background about life in modern Egypt and also intervene on our behalf once when we were clearly getting ripped off by a stamps reseller.
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
This is a visit-heavy tour but with plenty of time to relax too. Sometimes I felt that I was a bit rushed at certain sites but then others in our small groups thought they had plenty of time. It's a matter of balance. Do take the excursion to Dendara and Abydos temples, they are superb and both quite different from others we've seen.
Also this is called Egyptology, you will not see everything mentioned in the guide books for a particular site (Sakkara for instance does not include visiting the Mastaba of Ti or the visit to the Great Mosque only includes that and no other buildings on that site) due to lack of time so you have to be happy with that.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
The last day was a bit of a let down. The pyramids at Dashour & Fayoum are worth seeing but the trip to the lake and Fayoum town is a total waste of time.
Take the hassling in your stride, it is annoying in Aswan & Luxor in particular but you just have to keep walking and give a firm 'no'.
Kira Alston

EGYPTOLOGY

Written April 2011
Not happy about some of the major hassaling in Cairo and Luxor, but the ruins and Aswan were really fantastic.
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
Nubian village and some of the Temples outside luxor were very much worth the whole trip.
What did you think of your group leader?
Group leader was fantastic and knowledgable of history!
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
Watch out for the people in luxor they can be very demanding and hassaling, enjoy all that you see and dont feel obligated to buy!
Ronald Powell

EGYPTOLOGY

Written March 2011
Although not a walking holiday, we decided to go with Exodus because our previous experience of the firm had been so positive. We were not disappointed. And, although not without minor blemishes, this was a five star experience, delivering everything promised in the literature.
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
Pretty much everyhthing. All the monuments and sites are magical in their own way, from the treasures of the Cairo Museum and the various pyramid sites around Cairo, to those around Aswan, such as Philae, and all points in between, such as Edfu, Karnak, Luxor Temple and the tombs and temples on the West Bank at Luxor. The optional visits to Abu Simbel, Abydos and Dendara and many of the additional sites on the West Bank were all, in our opinion, well worth the effort and additional expense. It has to be said though, that we visited at an exceptional time, 6 weeks after the January 25th 'revolution', when visitor numbers were extremely low. I have no idea how crowds would affect the experience, because we never had to face any, even at the most popular sites. A great time to visit.
What did you think of your group leader?
Our Egyptologist guide, Sayed Mansour, could not have been bettered. From our perspective, his organization of every aspect was flawless. He provided excellent explanations, not only, as you would expect, of the history and archaeology of the monuments we were visiting, but also of the nuances of modern Egyptian culture and politics, even as it was unfolding. He also laid on optional visits not in the programme at times when he could, I guess, have escaped from us for a few hours. Finally, he was unfailingly patient and good humoured. I wish him and his country all the best for the future.
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
Don't take travellers' cheques. If you don't want to be overly-pestered by souvenir sellers and other requests for tips, listen to your guide's advice and be hard-nosed. Simply ignore them or say a firm no thank you. Any chink will be exploited, and it can be wearing. Some people, however, seemed to enjoy the attention, and the shopping. We don't like extreme heat and the temperature in March was fine.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
As the literature makes plain, this trip really is for those interested in the sites, but it is not intellectually daunting, merely extremely.., well, interesting. We did not enjoy the night train, not because it was dirty or anything like that, but because it was cramped and uncomfortable, although others seemed to sleep soundly enough. Still, given a blank sheet of paper, I would write out the second train journey, spending an extra day in Cairo at the start, and flying out of Luxor at the end.