okay! there was a group of us (friends) and they actually planned the majority of the trip. we went in september, and what happened was that they had been planning this trip since the previous november. they asked me if i wanted to go then, but i couldn't commit because of work. then one of them had her husband be unable to go because he is a private pilot and some celeb threw a tantrum about a schedule (eyeroll) so i basically took his spot two days before they left. so, i wasn't heavily involved with the planning but i will tell you what we did and how much it cost them (i only paid for my airfare, food, and admission to things because they had already prepaid everything else).
we had a tour guide in cairo, which i would highly recommend. they had a private air conditioned vehicle, were very knowledgeable and friendly, and helped keep us safe. you do not want to try to drive there, omg. trust me. i would also highly recommend who we used, which i can send to you if you would like.
the tour guide we used runs his own small company. he also owns a stable of horses and camels, which he let us ride for free (including a sunrise gallop through the desert to a bedouin campsite behind the giza pyramids and had tea, which was one of the most amazing things i've ever experienced). he owns a few small apartments with wifi and full kitchens/laundry that we stayed in. they are not luxury by american standards, but they were very upscale for cairo standards, and were perfectly fine. they also have balconies that look directly at the sphinx and giza pyramids. this was our view by day/night:
the email i have from the friend who organized it all says it was $42/night per couple. this would obviously be more if it was just you or you and your H or whatever but still very reasonable.
we did 4 days in cairo (including day of arrival. i flew overnight from toronto to vienna, then connected to cairo so i was there by about 12pm). the first day we got groceries, walked around the neighborhood with our guide, and just sort of relaxed because we were exhausted. we were all on separate flights anyway so we were waiting for people to trickle in (6 of us total). the second day, we did dahshur, saqqara, and the giza pyramids - i believe these were all between $10-20/person. i would recommend them all because honestly it's all amazing and you should see as much as you can. we also did a tour of an essential oil maker (siwa perfumes) and went to a papyrus museum where they show you how to make it and you can buy things hand painted by artists on papyrus. i bought a small piece with our last name painted on it on a cartouche in hieroglyphics. the third day, we did the egyptian museum (all of king tut's stuff is here in a climate controlled room). the museum is huge and awesome and right off of tahrir square. i think this was $12/person. we also did the citadel which is a huge fortress thing and mosque which was gorgeous and has amazing views of the city. you do have to dress modestly or bring something to cover your shoulders. if you forget they have robes you can wear inside the mosque (barefoot of course) for a small fee (like $2). on the fourth day, we did coptic cairo, the pharoah boat tour (cheesy but fun), and then sort of messed around until it was time to leave for luxor. so, to answer your question, we took the night train (it's about an 8 hour trip, so the night one is best and they have sleeper cars). we bought first class tickets, which was $60/person but they are double occupancy rooms. if you do this do not buy anything other than first class tickets. the food was fine, we had a sink in the room and the beds were about what you would expect. the ride is sort of bumpy and unglamorous but i took a sleeping pill and woke up in luxor at 7am (shrug). the bathrooms are 2 in each car (so maybe 10 people share?) and they weren't superb but i've seen scarier. about like a clean porta potty i guess. you can fly as well between cairo and luxor but this is sort of inconsistent because sometimes they strike and i dunno, i liked the experience of the train.
we did 3 full days in luxor, which was absolutely amazing. i loved luxor. it's gorgeous and small town relaxed and clean, and the people are so kind. we did not have a guide in luxor hired (you wouldn't need one), and we rented another apartment. this one was owned by a british expat though, and it was actually very nice and upscale. according to the list from my friend, it was $20/couple per night which seems insane for how much nicer it was but most things in egypt are cheap. again, i can send you info/pics if you are interested.
although we did not have a guide, the first day we went in this gift shop and ended up making friends with the owner and he was so nice to us. he also was friends with the guy who owned the boat service that goes from one bank of the nile to the other, and so the first day he took us over and introduced us and they did not charge us to go back and forth the entire time we were there (or to a private island, etc.) because we were the guy's friend. they were charging other tourists about $10 each way so this added up. he also gave us free drinks all the time (bottled water, sodas, etc.), invited us to his house for dinner, took us on a camel drawn carriage ride (lolol), made us deals on souvenirs, etc. he was a great guy.
the first day, we did luxor west, which includes valley of the kings, hatshupsuit, habu, memon's, etc. valley of the kings was so amazing. you have to pay extra if you want to go into king tut's tomb, which i did. it was worth it. i believe entrance to the valley was $12 which includes a limited number of tombs (based on what is open that day) and then there are a couple you can pay extra to see. the second day, we did luxor east, which includes karnak temple, luxor temple, etc. there is a night time light show/walking tour at karnak i believe, which is reallllllly cool and worth it. there is also one at giza which was sort of cheesy and we could see it from the balcony anyway. our friend took us on a boat to a place called banana island, where there are banana crops and you can have free amazing (seriously, so much better than bananas you get here) food and see farm animals and such. it was gorgeous and a cool experience. the third day, we were planning to take a train to aswan for the day ($14 i think?) but a couple of us felt sick and one of us had some heat exhaustion/dehydration issues going, so we took it easy. there is a museum in luxor with a lot of cool stuff in it. it's much smaller than the one in cairo and we sort of meandered around that in the AC. we took the night train back to cairo that night.
on our last day in cairo, we asked the guide (same one from the beginning of the trip) to take us to the open air market downtown, which was so cool. all kinds of artisans and neat stuff and all very reasonable prices. we had some delicious food. we also took a boat up and down the nile sort of having a dance party with our guides, which was hilarious. i flew to germany that afternoon, and everyone else went on to kenya for a safari, which i was jealous of but did not have time for the necessary vaccines and i had to go on a work trip anyway.
as far as food, it's mostly mediterannean style food. meats, babagahnoush, etc. we had pizza one night which was actually very good, haha. we also cooked a lot of our own meals because we had kitchens in both cities. if you have any other questions let me know!
Post by fuckyourcouch on Apr 4, 2013 9:38:04 GMT -5
no problem!
oh and one other thing, i was totally worried about the food because i'm picky and weird and assumed i would die. just bring immodium and pepto with you and you'll be fine. and the general wisdom is not to eat anything from street vendors unless you see it prepared fresh - anything that's been sitting is obviously risky because you don't know how long.
and you do have to be careful with water - showering is fine, but we were told not to brush our teeth with the tap water or drink it. they had electric kettles to boil it in the apartments, and we just bought a couple cases of bottled water to drink obviously, and to use for toothbrushing.