Published on Nov, 2024
We did this trip on a Saturday as apparently traffic is a quieter in Cairo on a Saturday. Ahmed was our excellent driver and Shrouk was our lovely & knowledgeable tour guide once in Cairo.
Ahmed gave us snacks, fresh orange juice, ice cream, and drinks through the day. There was WiFi, option to charge pmypur phone with a USB charging cable (which was a godsend). Ahmed also had a TV screen and showed us info on the way and we watched films on the way back. On the way there, he stopped pff at points with clean toilets and pointed out good photo opportunities. He was super friendly and we had a lovely day!
We were picked up at 01:00am from our hotel in Makadi Bay (extra charge for this, but this was made clear to us before the trip). We paid the extra charge on the bus in cash. The bus was really comfortable, plenty of leg room, air con and Ahmed looked after us really well with drinks, snacks and even an ice cream! Shrouk was a great tour guide. She was full of interesting information, was friendly, and she asked us what we wanted to do at ea h site, as a group, so it was tailored to us.
We did the optional boat trip to begin (€10 extra each, but again, it is clear it's an extra charge). We felt the boat trip on the Nile was worth it before going to the museum.
The next stop was the museum. This was hectic and busy, and you didn't get time to marvel over the exhibits, but I'm glad we went as we got to see some main points. We were given the choice of more time with our tour guide telling us things, or our own free time. We chose to stay with Shrouk, but others in the group went off on their own.
Next was the papyrus factory. Don't buy anything. The selling tactics are not clear, and we felt it was overpriced.
Lunch was a nice bbq meal and buffet to select your own food. Food included, drinks in the restaurant extra (again, made clear to you).
Then was the pyramids and Sphinx. We spent some time with Shrouk being given information, and she took photos. We were given the option of what we wanted to do, only enter the area, or go inside different pyramids or do a camel ride/horse carriage. We did not do anything involving animals as it is not clear if they are well looked after or not. We went into the smallest pyramid (extra charge of 280 Egyptian pounds per person). Whilst it wasn't decorated, it was great to go inside. We thought it was worth it. Sphinx was great, too.
Then we headed to a perfume factory, I did not go in, and that wasn't a problem.
Ahmed got us to and from Cairo quickly. There's no avoiding it being a long day, but it was well worth it. Would recommend!