Review: Luxury Solo Trip to Egypt, Aswan, Cairo, Luxor, Pyramid Tours, Camel Ride, Local Food & Culture

Overall, if you're in a hurry or don't like managing planning and logistics, this travel agency is is a great option for booking your trip to Egypt.  You will be paying a premium for the convenience and piece of mind of having someone else arrange everything for you, but you'll be well-taken care of.  You will have a trip of a lifetime!

Pros: 

• The owner of the company is an experienced tour operator and used to guide tours in Egypt.  He knows a lot about what is worth your time and what might not be based on your preferences.
• They company will handle all the details ranging from airport transfers to local tour guides and drivers to hotels.
• You will feel completely safe the entire time you're on your trip!  As a single woman, traveling alone in Egypt, this was an important consideration for me and led me to book through this company rather than with a local guide directly.
• Since it's a private tour (it can be for one person like I did it or a group), you get to dictate your itinerary both before you go, and as you visit each landmark--stay as long as you like and take it in or decide you could really use a break and move on.
• You will get the option to go into the great pyramid and tombs that haven't been open to the general public in years, and the owner will be able to arrange all of this for you ahead of time to ensure it happens.  Do the add-ons! Seriously, they are worth it.

Cons:

• As you can imagine, there's a mark up when you're booking through a tour operator in the US.  I was willing to pay for the convenience and piece of mind because I was doing a very last minute booking.  That said, if I did it again and had the time to seek out references to local tour guides from people who have been to Egypt, I would book direct and skip the mark up.  Since tourism is such a major industry in Egypt, people can go to Uni to become licensed tour guides and Egyptologists.  There are lots of reputable guides available locally.
• The hotels included in my package, especially the initial hotels recommended were clearly preferred by this company for their lower room rates and high mark up opportunity.  Due to the state of tourism in Egypt right now, hotels are super cheap and the Egyptian pound is extremely weak relative to the dollar.  
  • Insider tip: Push for the hotel upgrade in Cairo when you're not going to the Great Pyramids.  The Four Seasons is far away from the pyramids, so one night in a mediocre hotel to avoid hours in traffic is worth it in my opinion.
• Food/restaurants: I felt like I ended up going to touristy places with my guides for my included meals (the other tour groups were a dead give away).  I was a little disappointed given I had said I like food and local places. I never had bad food, but being taken to the tourist joints wasn't really what I wanted. I ended up going to a great place with a friend one evening in Cairo, and the food quality and ambiance were notably higher quality.  
  • Note: I recognize I'm an exceptionally adventurous traveler and have a higher threshold for going off the beaten path when it comes to eating etc than most people.  If you're even a bit less adventurous than me, I suspect you won't have this particular problem.

Travel Company Comments:

Hello Sara,

It was such a pleasure working with you. I’m glad to hear that you had a great time with us and that you felt completely safe. Your safety was our top priority, and I’m so happy that you were able to experience our beautiful country. We have a great team of professional tour guides, drivers, and staff to ensure your safety and happiness for the entire trip.

I don’t believe that you would have had the same experience if you contacted a local guide directly to arrange your tour. As a full service tour company, we take care of all logistics, arrange all your transportation, hotels, domestic flights, your entry visa, airport pick up/drop off, and all tours. With all respect to Egyptologist guides, (I worked as an Egyptologist guide myself) a successful trip takes much more than just a guide. In Egypt, tour guides are only licensed to work inside museums and temples but are not allowed to handle the rest of the logistics. It is actually illegal for tour guides in Egypt to do the tour company’s work. Egypt is a country that relies on tourism and there are strict rules that dictate the whole process to ensure safety for all tourists.

We included the best possible hotels in our initial proposal according to your budget. However, after you told us that you were unhappy with the hotels in Luxor and Cairo, we offered you upgrades, which you accepted at no extra cost to you.

I’m glad that you never had bad food as per your review. We do our best to choose the safest restaurants that are convenient and closest to the sites you will be visiting.

I remember calling you during your tour to check on you and to ask if there was anything we could do to make your trip more special, and you have confirmed that everything is great.

Thank you very much for your feedback, it is greatly appreciated.