Just returned from Egypt Oct 11 departure. Ask me anything!

[AddictedtoTravel]

We are booked on the Egypt trip leaving in April of next year. I just received these itinerary changes. Any feedback? Are these good changes? I am a little annoyed about the trip ending in Sharm el-Sheikh and needing to add airfare from there to Cairo on our own, but am hoping the other changes are good ones?

Itinerary Adjustments:

• Cairo on Day 3
  • This day is now dedicated to further exploration into Ancient Egypt and now includes an unforgettable after-hours visit to Giza - home of the Great Pyramid and a VIP up-close experience at the Sphinx.
• Dinner on Day 8
  • Dinner this evening will now be at your leisure at one of the four available resort restaurants.
• Sharm el-Sheikh on Day 9
  • Our trip will now end in Sharm el-Sheikh, giving you more time to enjoy the amazing Coral Sea Sensatori Resort and beautiful Sharm el-Sheikh.
  • In the morning and early afternoon, you will have time on your own to explore the hotel.
  • In the late afternoon, our group will have the opportunity to enjoy an optional walking tour of Sharm el-Sheikh's old city and market. Even though it is only a few decades old, the area has an old-world feel. This market is a wonderful place to experience local culture in the City of Peace. Everything from saffron to cinnamon, hand-woven rugs, leather goods, jewelry, clothing, it's all available here. You may wander through the stalls or soak up the atmosphere in one of the many cafes or bars.
  • In the evening, you will be invited with your fellow Adventurers to join a colorful, private Bedouin-themed beachside dinner and bid each other farewell.
• Sharm el-Sheikh on Day 10
  • Your return flights at the end of the trip will need to be booked out of the Sharm el-Sheikh International Airport (SSH) and not the Cairo International Airport (CAI).
  • Post-night resort stays will be available at the Coral Sea Sensatori Resort.

 

[mathgeek]

What was the weather like in July? Unbearably hot? Did businesses, hotels, etc tend to be well air conditioned? (We want to go to Egypt in 2024 but because of kids' schedules, really summer is the only time of year that works. And I'll be with my oldest in Switzerland & Italy in July anyway, so we could just go directly to Egypt without coming all the way back to the states.)

It was definitely hot, but the guides were great about keeping us in the shade, treating us to drinks after touring before getting back on the bus, and the bus and hotels were well air conditioned. The tombs, pyramid & Sphinx, and outdoors during the day at Abu Simbel and Karnak were the hottest, but they did provide us with umbrellas for shade if we wanted. It probably ranged between 99-102. But I travel regularly to WDW in July, so I was fine. It's an awesome trip, and it was worth traveling in the summer for the super low crowds we had.

 

[mathgeek]

We are booked on the Egypt trip leaving in April of next year. I just received these itinerary changes. Any feedback? Are these good changes? I am a little annoyed about the trip ending in Sharm el-Sheikh and needing to add airfare from there to Cairo on our own, but am hoping the other changes are good ones?

Itinerary Adjustments:

• Cairo on Day 3
  • This day is now dedicated to further exploration into Ancient Egypt and now includes an unforgettable after-hours visit to Giza - home of the Great Pyramid and a VIP up-close experience at the Sphinx.
• Dinner on Day 8
  • Dinner this evening will now be at your leisure at one of the four available resort restaurants.
• Sharm el-Sheikh on Day 9
  • Our trip will now end in Sharm el-Sheikh, giving you more time to enjoy the amazing Coral Sea Sensatori Resort and beautiful Sharm el-Sheikh.
  • In the morning and early afternoon, you will have time on your own to explore the hotel.
  • In the late afternoon, our group will have the opportunity to enjoy an optional walking tour of Sharm el-Sheikh's old city and market. Even though it is only a few decades old, the area has an old-world feel. This market is a wonderful place to experience local culture in the City of Peace. Everything from saffron to cinnamon, hand-woven rugs, leather goods, jewelry, clothing, it's all available here. You may wander through the stalls or soak up the atmosphere in one of the many cafes or bars.
  • In the evening, you will be invited with your fellow Adventurers to join a colorful, private Bedouin-themed beachside dinner and bid each other farewell.
• Sharm el-Sheikh on Day 10
  • Your return flights at the end of the trip will need to be booked out of the Sharm el-Sheikh International Airport (SSH) and not the Cairo International Airport (CAI).
  • Post-night resort stays will be available at the Coral Sea Sensatori Resort.

Day 3 - we had the VIP access to the Sphinx, but the after hours to Giza would be neat.

Sharm el-Sheikh - unpopular opinion...
We flew through Cairo on the way from Luxor to Sharm. I personally would've been fine ending the trip there. The trip to Sharm seemed like a lot of work for really one excursion to snorkel the Red Sea. We got to the resort late b/c of the long layover in Cairo, and really only had a day and a half there before heading back to Cairo. The resort was beautiful, and I walked around a bit, and it was nice to have a relaxing morning to sleep in and reorganize my suitcase for the trip home. But I really enjoyed the excursions we did to the ancient sites, and this just felt a bit out of context after basically 5 and a half days of touring such wonderful historical locations.

I'd be annoyed about ending the trip in Sharm. But I had something similar with my Australia trip - we started in Cairns and ended in Hobart, Tasmania, and my flights took me through bigger cities to get to these more out of the way locations. I think this has been changed a bit since they now at least end in Sydney (and don't even do Tasmania anymore).

 

[AquaDame]

The trip to Sharm seemed like a lot of work for really one excursion to snorkel the Red Sea.

To be honest this is why we wouldn't personally choose this itinerary. The rest of the trip sounds fantastic, and I'd want more of that vs. the resort stay. I'm certain there are just as many folks who would be gutted if the relaxing part of the trip were cut out though!

 

[Raya]

To be honest this is why we wouldn't personally choose this itinerary. The rest of the trip sounds fantastic, and I'd want more of that vs. the resort stay. I'm certain there are just as many folks who would be gutted if the relaxing part of the trip were cut out though!

This is the main reason we're considering other options. I trust Disney. I want to see the pyramids with them but I'm not interested in wasting 2 days of travel for snorkeling.

 

[Terapin]

I would agree. The Sharm part of the trip was the least exciting. I would have preferred another site like Alexandria or more time in Luxor. Sensatorial was ok and nice, but not amazing. It felt like our trip was over when we got there. It did not feel like we ended on a highlight. It could have been Cancun or any other beach resort. The snorkeling, even off the resort pier I'm told, was amazing. Truly stunning snorkeling.

 

[Terapin]

We are booked on the Egypt trip leaving in April of next year. I just received these itinerary changes. Any feedback? Are these good changes? I am a little annoyed about the trip ending in Sharm el-Sheikh and needing to add airfare from there to Cairo on our own, but am hoping the other changes are good ones?

Itinerary Adjustments:

• Cairo on Day 3
  • This day is now dedicated to further exploration into Ancient Egypt and now includes an unforgettable after-hours visit to Giza - home of the Great Pyramid and a VIP up-close experience at the Sphinx.
• Dinner on Day 8
  • Dinner this evening will now be at your leisure at one of the four available resort restaurants.
• Sharm el-Sheikh on Day 9
  • Our trip will now end in Sharm el-Sheikh, giving you more time to enjoy the amazing Coral Sea Sensatori Resort and beautiful Sharm el-Sheikh.
  • In the morning and early afternoon, you will have time on your own to explore the hotel.
  • In the late afternoon, our group will have the opportunity to enjoy an optional walking tour of Sharm el-Sheikh's old city and market. Even though it is only a few decades old, the area has an old-world feel. This market is a wonderful place to experience local culture in the City of Peace. Everything from saffron to cinnamon, hand-woven rugs, leather goods, jewelry, clothing, it's all available here. You may wander through the stalls or soak up the atmosphere in one of the many cafes or bars.
  • In the evening, you will be invited with your fellow Adventurers to join a colorful, private Bedouin-themed beachside dinner and bid each other farewell.
• Sharm el-Sheikh on Day 10
  • Your return flights at the end of the trip will need to be booked out of the Sharm el-Sheikh International Airport (SSH) and not the Cairo International Airport (CAI).
  • Post-night resort stays will be available at the Coral Sea Sensatori Resort.

Our dinner day 8 was a special prix fixe that was nothing special. And then the show outside. Show was fun and the beach party was really nice. Cairo day 3 sounds like the day we had. Loved the after hours Giza visit and the Sphinx VIP. While I can appreciate that getting back to Cairo for home is a hassle, the way we did it was we left Sharm in the afternoon and got to the hotel in Cairo around 530. We had an hour to settle into our room, then had a farewell dinner that night at the restaurant at the top of the hotel. Some people left very early that morning (like 1am!) and most of us were gone by 7am. So that day was basically a few hours in Sharm, then flight, then dinner and a few hours of sleep. However, I have no idea how folks will get from Sharm to Cairo and onward home the next morning as it seemed like many international flights were in the early morning from Cairo. So it may add a day for people in Cairo at the end. Interesting to see how that plays out. Maybe they will offer a Cairo post-stay...?

 

[MarionStuntDouble]

My family and I are doing the ABD Egypt tour in February, and I have a question about the itinerary on Day 2. The "Old Cairo Tour" says that it covers the Saladin Citadel of Cairo and the Great Mosque of Muhammad Ali amongst other "iconic and historic monuments in the city." Does anyone have a list of what those other "iconic and historic monuments in the city" includes? My family and I are particularly interested in the Coptic section of Cairo and intend to take a tour of it the day before the ABD tour actually begins, and I want to ensure that the tour has as little overlap as possible with what we will see in the "Old Cairo Tour."

 

[Terapin]

My family and I are doing the ABD Egypt tour in February, and I have a question about the itinerary on Day 2. The "Old Cairo Tour" says that it covers the Saladin Citadel of Cairo and the Great Mosque of Muhammad Ali amongst other "iconic and historic monuments in the city." Does anyone have a list of what those other "iconic and historic monuments in the city" includes? My family and I are particularly interested in the Coptic section of Cairo and intend to take a tour of it the day before the ABD tour actually begins, and I want to ensure that the tour has as little overlap as possible with what we will see in the "Old Cairo Tour."

Hello!
We didn't go into the Coptic area at all on our tour.

Our Day 2:
Perfect buffet breakfast at the hotel
Cairo Museum
Al-Azhar Park for a superb lunch
Saladin Citadel
Great Mosque of Muhammed Ali
Dinner at hotel in a nice bar area with entertainment (was private)

 

[MarionStuntDouble]

Hello!
We didn't go into the Coptic area at all on our tour.

Our Day 2:
Perfect buffet breakfast at the hotel
Cairo Museum
Al-Azhar Park for a superb lunch
Saladin Citadel
Great Mosque of Muhammed Ali
Dinner at hotel in a nice bar area with entertainment (was private)

Thank you so much! This is exactly what I needed to know.