|
Egypt Nile Cruise Tips and
Nile Cruise Booking
If you choose to go on a Nile cruise,
make sure that the cruise is taken as “all
inclusive”, i.e. accommodation,
sightseeing tours and
transportation! This option is the best way
for you to see all the possible Temples en
route.
We would therefore recommend, for health
and safety reasons, to choose only the
five star or 5 star + Nile
cruises!
The cost for one night
accommodation, ranges
between $90 and $150, per person, per night
in a twin room.
Today there are more than 220 Nile cruisers on the
Nile between Luxor and Aswan,
including 4 star, standard 5 star, deluxe
and imperial Ultra deluxe.
Your
cabin location 
Prices of
accommodation depends largely on which deck
you have
chosen to stay, staying in the lower decks
is generally cheaper than staying on the upper deck. Try and
obtain a plan of the boat before you book.
Your cabin will be fitted with
air-conditioning and a TV set. Any good cruise boat will keep the cabins
that are closer to the engine, for the
staff! The guests staying away from engine
noise.
There are 3 types of
itineraries for Nile
cruises:
1-
Three nights
cruise ==>
Usually departs from
Aswan to
Luxor.
The
cruise includes the following visits:
*This is a short
cruise, good for those who want to get just the
cruise experience in glance and still
enjoy the temples in between.
Please Note:
It is very
important to have your own tourist guide onboard
during your cruise visits.
2-
Four
nights cruise
==>
Usually
departs from Luxor to Aswan.
The
cruise includes the following visits:
*This is a
Medium range type cruise, good for
those who want more of the
cruise experience. while adding one
extra night for more leisure time
Good for those who would like to extend
their stay to see Abu Simbel
3- Seven
nights cruise -
==>
either Luxor to Aswan or Aswan to Luxor.
This scheme basically includes all
the visits mentioned above,
but divided over 7 nights, which gives you
in total more
free nights to relax. It is very good choice
for those who seek full relaxation.
Please
Note:
when leaving ship for sightseeing
you will be given a boarding pass. This
is to
help you identify your
boat later on in case you got lost, as well it helps the boat to know if
they have all passenger onboard, so that they can
continue sailing to the next stop of the
cruise. While on tour Don’t lose it! Keep it in a
safe place and hand it over to reception each
time you come back from a tour.
The following chart will explain to you what
you should visit during the various cruise
schemes
Click on
picture below to enlarge
What
You Should Know While being On a Nile Cruise
Food
on board :
Accommodation aboard the
Nile cruise is entirely
based on
full board basis. (All meals are included )
mostly in an open buffet manner with many varieties, depending of type
and quality of the cruise boat you have
selected; these meals
are served with a fixed timetable each
day.
Tea and
coffee are available on board,
served every day
around 5:00 pm to 5:30. Other drinks are
offered in the bar area are with additional
cost.
Nightlife:
Every day
there is an entertainment programme,
which differs from one boat to the other. On
most cruise ships the
first day is usually a cocktail party,
presented and run
by the boat manager, where they offer free drinks
and introduce the senior staff on board. This party
is also known as “The manager’s party”, where
the manager introduces his crew to the
passengers onboard. It is Advised to wear
smart causal cloths during this cocktail.
 2-Another
night there is a “Galabia party”, where you
will be encouraged to get Egyptian outfits
and wear the local Galabia. To buy a Galabia,
it will cost you
around 50-70 LE, but if you do not wish to buy
one, you can hire one from the bazaar shop
located onboard.
If you choose to buy
your Galabia from outside the boat
There are
many bazaars outside the Temples that you
will be visit during your cruise. Don’t
forget to haggle hard!
-Another
night will have a Nubian show, where you
will see Nubian dancers and singers in their
local outfit.
-The last
evening’s entertainment is usually has: a
belly dancing show, a juggler’s show
(whirling dervishes) with
local singers and bands.
Your dress onboard:
During the
daytime, while during tours, you can
wear whatever you really like,(Shorts
are ok) though due to the
extreme heat it is recommended you wear
lightweight clothes.
While relaxing on board,
and in doors
you may wear shorts and swimming costumes,
if you wish. Breakfast and lunch can be
taken dressed like this, but for dinner,
please wear smarter clothes!
But beware of too much exposure to the
sun! Apply plenty of high factor sun block!
How to pay your
Extras:
All extras
such as consumed beverages, laundry, and telephones
bills, should be settled and paid at the last day of
your cruise when you check out. Payment can
be made with credit cards, traveller’s
cheque, or cash. Make sure you have enough
cash, just in case your card
transaction didn't go through.
Please note:
Many Nile cruise
boats do not accept personal cheques or
money orders ! many other
don't
accept travellers checks as well
Tipping:
Don’t
forget to leave tips for the cruise staff,
not less than $ 5-8 USD PER PERSON PER DAY!
-
For 3
nights cruise it should be 15-25 USD per person
( in total)
-
For 4
nights cruise it should be 20-35 USD per person
( in total)
-
For 7
nights cruise it should be 35-55 USD per person
( in total)
This tipping
should be given to the boat reception,
simply put your tip in
an envelope and hand it over to boat
reception. This money later will be distributed
evenly among the crew onboard. This way each person will
get his fair share.
Please Note:
this does not include tipping to your Tourist
Guide, this should be separate, and it is entirely
up to you to decide the amount of tip that you
will give to him/her.Know that these are only guidelines,
gratuities are personal matter and tipping
is entirely at the discretion of the
individuals.
Health and Safety
onboard Egypt Nile cruises:
All Nile
cruises are equipped with safety
features and life jackets are normally
placed under your cabin bed.
-
You
should avoid drinking large amounts of
alcohol especially if you have
equilibrium problems. You are not just
putting yourself at risk but also the
other guests and staff too.
-
People with
equilibrium problems should not spend
too much time on deck at night, on a
fast moving ship; it is dangerous in
case you fall over.
-
Smoking
in bed is dangerous; the mattresses are
very flammable!
-
People
who tend to sleep walk should never take
a cabin with a balcony, an inside
cabin with a window would be far safer.
-
Make
sure that you know where the muster
stations are, in case you have to
abandon ship.
-
If you
get sick whilst on board, some cruise
boats have a resident doctor on board.
If not, they have doctors assigned in
each town that can be called on in case
of emergency.
-
If you
need some more heath and safety tips,
please read our
Egypt health page to know more
about health and safety on board a Nile
cruise.
Nile Cruise useful tips:
-
Firstly
after checking-in at a cruise, it
is advisable to leave your valuables in
your rooms' safety deposit box.
As all cabins have a
private safe
-
If you
wish to buy any items from the shops on
board, the opportunity for shopping is
generally limited due to the small size
of these shops. But on the other hand
you will get plenty of time to check
what you are buying, and haggle over the
price!
-
To call
home, most of the cruise boats offer
telephone facilities onboard, but the
sound quality is not as good as onshore.
-
We would
recommend visiting a bank, to change
your money, before cruising, as most of
the boats do not offer exchanging money
facilities and you will not get access to
onshore banks while you are cruising.
Here is
a list of of the best cruise boats
We experienced on the Nile:
|
if
you Wish to book any of the above cruises or
another have anther Nile cruise in mind,
