Trip to Egypt/Safari in Serengti

[Dismagic1]

Anyone ever done either one of these types of trips?

 

[shortbun]

I'm very lucky to have done both. I was a leisure travel agent for umpteen years. These two destinations are among the best of my wonderful travels. You have to do them right because it's rare that you get a second chance. Examine yourself and the possibilities for travel. I did both with a very high end company and feel it was the right thing. The luxury Nile Cruise was amazing; I needed the pampering while hiking through the desert. The views from the ship's deck as we turned every bend in the river....breathtaking and memorable 12-20 years later. Try Abercrombie and Kent or similar; it's worth the extra money to have world class guides and accomodations.

 

[Dismagic1]

I'm very lucky to have done both. I was a leisure travel agent for umpteen years. These two destinations are among the best of my wonderful travels. You have to do them right because it's rare that you get a second chance. Examine yourself and the possibilities for travel. I did both with a very high end company and feel it was the right thing. The luxury Nile Cruise was amazing; I needed the pampering while hiking through the desert. The views from the ship's deck as we turned every bend in the river....breathtaking and memorable 12-20 years later. Try Abercrombie and Kent or similar; it's worth the extra money to have world class guides and accomodations.

It looks like a lot of the best Egypt tours last about 2 weeks. And a lot of them offer a week add on to do a safari in the Serengeti. Do you think its a good idea to combine them or just do them separately?

 

[shortbun]

I would want more than a week in the Serengeti but if you think this is your one shot, go for it. Climates will be very different so different clothing might be necessary. When are you thinking about going? Ideally, safari should be done during a low rain time so the animals will naturally be looking for water and easier to be found due to lower grasses and fewer waterholes. It would be nice to do Egypt when the temps were lower. I'm not sure when both exist together. Check it out.

 

[bicker]

We visited Egypt in April 2001. It was the trip of a lifetime.

LINK

You can use the "Configure Notes" link at the bottom of the page to access our Journal entries for the trip in different ways (i.e., on the same page as the photos or as pop-ups).

 

[Dismagic1]

We visited Egypt in April 2001. It was the trip of a lifetime.

LINK

You can use the "Configure Notes" link at the bottom of the page to access our Journal entries for the trip in different ways (i.e., on the same page as the photos or as pop-ups).

Hey that's a nice trip report. When you went to the pyramids in Cairo, did you get to go inside? I read that the first 150 people there in the morning get an "inside pass."

 

[bicker]

We didn't go inside. What we learned by our advance research is that if you want to see something very special, you want to go inside more of the tombs in the Valley of the Kings (et. al.); the inside of the pyramids aren't as impressive.

 

[loonieroonie]

I've been to Egypt several times, have family there. It's a great trip, but try to go when the weather is cooler (any time after October). Try not to go in the early spring because of sandstorms.

You can go into the pyramids, but if you don't like enclosed spaces then don't do it. You will climb a ladder, stooped over, in a very narrow space, with poor lighting. There is also a small museum behind the Pyramids, the Sun Boat, that is a don't miss. The Cairo museum is wonderful, a lot of walking and very little information available at the exhibits themselves. I've heard they've updated the museum, but last time I went in 2002 there was little explanation as to what I was looking at in the displays.

Go on the Nile cruise if you can. See the Valley of the Kings, again if you can go in the winter time, it would be better. But, don't cut Cairo short. It's noisy, crowded, and dirty, but so alive and full of things to see that most tourists miss because they don't know about them. Don't go with a cheap tour company though, there are hotels in all of Egypt (not just Cairo) that are very scary.

I wish to go back to Disney, but I really dream and desire to go back to Egypt.

 

[Dismagic1]

is the Nile cruise okay for people who get sea sick?

 

[shortbun]

is the Nile cruise okay for people who get sea sick?

Yes, almost no motion as it's a river rather than an ocean. I don't remember even realizing we were moving except when I was sitting on deck.

 

[AnnaS]

My son and I were just talking about Egypt yesterday. He loves to watch the History Channel and he asked me about Egypt. I think it would be the trip of a lifetime!

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Anyone see the piece about Egypt and the trash situation? I wonder if that is still going on?

They were saying garbage bags are piled high everywhere because of the change in government over the trash. Even by the pyramids.

I don't know if it is resolved or how old the piece was I saw on TV. Just throwing that out there for you.

Good luck with your decision.