I was awake early this morning, I just can’t seem to sleep past 5:00 at the moment. The bed was really comfortable but I still found myself not being able to sleep on.
The room had to be vacated by noon and because this deadline could potentially happen while we were out everything was repacked and stored in the luggage room.
Our guide Eslam, arrived dead on time complete with driver and we were soon on our way to Karnak Temple. The site itself is vast and there are many impressive areas that we were shown round. Because there was just the two of us we were able to cover ground much quicker and our visit lasted for just over 1½ hours. I am again going to resort to selecting several photos rather than waffle on about things.
A 10 minute drive south brought us to our second stop, the Temple of Luxor which although not as big had plenty of things to keep us occupied for another 1½ hours. On the way in, we passed one end of the 3km Avenue of Sphinx’s which links up with Karnak and when full restored and open will be amazing.
Notably there are artefacts there not only of ancient Egyptian origin but Greek, Roman, Coptic Christian and even a mosque built on top of some of the ruins which is in use.
There is even an Alabaster statue of Tutankhamun and his wife, the first I have seen outside any of the museums.
On the way in there is currently one of the large statue’s in the process of being restored. It looks impressive now and will look even more so when completed.
We made it back in time to go and get changed into our swimming attire using the room then with the exception of a lunch break spent the last few hours out by the pool. Our transfer to the airport arrived at 4:10 with the journey taking around 20 minutes. Another 30 minutes to get through security and then a one hour wait for our flight back to Cairo which turned into 1 hour and 20 minutes. Our flight managed to claw back 10 minutes which was then wiped out with another 10 minute taxi to the terminal. The same Discover Egypt rep was there waiting to guide us to the hotel where check in was swiftly dealt with.
Our third bedroom in 3 nights at Le Meridian, Cairo Airport before we start our journey home tomorrow morning. It’s been a great trip that has inspired us to come back and see more. Luxor to Aswan & Lake Nasser along with the Grand Egyptian Museum when it eventually gets finished.
Thank you, I am sure I will think of lots of things!
Here is a link to my Flickr album where there are loads of photos of the trip.
Please click on the photo to take you to the album.
https://flic.kr/s/aHsmBduP46
They might be useful to you.
I like the idea of sailing to Abu Simbel across Lake Nasser. Lots to think about!
Please don’t hesitate to ask if you want to know anything else. I will try to help if I can.
Thank you for replying and putting my mind at rest re food and dress code. Covering up is not a problem, at my age the more that is covered up the better! Yes, we are considering the same boat, in fact that was how I found you. I typed boat name into search engine and there you were. I liked the idea that you can sail from Cairo after a couple of days there rather than flying to Luxor and starting from there.
We too liked the idea of setting off from Cairo, but decided we would save Luxor to Aswan for another day so opted to disembark at Luxor.
We also like the idea of sailing to Abu Simbel across Lake Nasser which we might combine with Luxor to Aswan another day.
Overall it was a wonderful itinerary and the river days sailing the Nile are an incredible experience.
I have really enjoyed reading your blog. We liked the look of this cruise and have been debating for years whether we should “do” a Nile cruise (if we don’t do it soon we’ll be too old) Your photos and reviews have allayed many of my worries – was wondering though if the dress code on board is very smart? Also I note Mrs Wansbrough is vegan, we are both vegetarian, would there be much choice for us? Have bookmarked this and intend to read again and look at all the amazing photos Many thanks
Hello Susan, thank you for your kind words. This cruise was certainly something we had always wanted to do and are so glad we made the effort. With regards to dress code I think it fair to say it wasn’t strict or was anything enforced, in fact it was a very relaxed affair which may have been down to the fact there were only 18 of us in total. When off the boat in certain areas we made sure we adhered to recommendations and covered the appropriate areas so as not to cause offence. Once the restaurant staff were aware of any dietary requirements they couldn’t do enough and Nicole had all of her meals specially prepared and served at the table while the rest of us had to go and get our own. There were always some really nice salads available and often the main dishes were adapted so that anyone could eat them. Are you considering the same boat?
It has been really interesting to read about your holiday on a day by day basis. A really good blog, and am so pleased that you both had an enjoyable time.
Thanks for your help with putting this together. It was a memorable experience for us both.