Foreign Office Travel Advice - Luxor

The FCO yesterday changed its travel warning for Luxor and no longer advises against all but essential travel to there.

This is great news for all involved in tourism to Luxor but it now remains to be seen how quickly things get back to normal. Some of the charter companies had already cancelled flights for the next fews weeks and with a number of the Nile Cruise boats operating based on the flights some cruises may not start for several weeks.

Anyhow we all hope that over the coming weeks tourists return to all of Egypt as they will certainly need the economic boost.

Egypt unrest

Ive resisted posting anything on the current unrest for the simple reason that there is so much media attention as well as the other internet traffic - blog, facebook and twitter, that it does not really need anything else said, apart from what a terribly sad situation is.

Good friends of mine whose office happens to be in Tahrir Square have not been able to get to work due to the unrest and have no idea of the state of the office. Tourism in Cairo has ceased and having watched a John Simpson report this morning the attitudes of some Egyptians has turned quite nasty and you wonder how quickly this will change http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12387034

As someone who has worked in the Egypt Tourism industry for many years, been there many times and now a number of what I would call good friends it is both distressing and shocking at how quick things can deteriorate and I pray that somehow this ends quickly and peacefully.

February Cruise Bargains

On Selected dates in February we can offer holidays on some of our 5* and 5* deluxe Nile Cruise boats from just £599.00 including flights, full board, sightseeing program and all transfers.

Currently these deals are available on flights from Gatwick and Bristol with prices from Manchester from an extra £60.00.

February is a great time to travel to Egypt and also to escape from the English winter so why not contact us to see what is the best deal we can offer on 0845 580 9261.

Reviews/Testimonials

There is no denying that holiday reviews on the various sites can have an effect on what is booked. Of course everyone expects to go on holiday and have a great time and in general more people will write something when they have had a bad experience than those who have had the holiday they expected to have.

At Atp Travel we spend alot of time with our business partners and suppliers to ensure that our clients have the best holiday they possibly can. Whether its making sure that guides and staff are attentive to the clients needs, all transfers run smoothly without any delays or making sure that the clients are not taken on any unauthorised shopping visits

It is therefore really rewarding for us all to get the sort of review we recently had from a client who returned from one of our 7 night Classic Egypt Tours

Happy New Year

Firstly a happy new year to one and all.

Hopefully the stories from the latter part of last year from Egypt that made the headlines will not be repeated and we can get on with selling great Egypt Nile Cruises and Classical Tours.

Already bookings on our new luxury boat the MS Farah are looking great and we will be starting a special promotion for the summer season with some really low prices for a luxury cruise.

We also plan to have a Dahabiya Cruise available either for this summer or next winter with what we believe will be some of the lowest rates for this type of cruise.

Thanks

What is a Nile Cruise boat like?

Having been asked on a number of occasions, "what is a Nile Cruise boat like?" I thought it would be good idea to explain it in some detail.

Firstly in general most Nile Cruise boats will have 5 decks some older boats are only 4 decks but all built in the last 15 or so years will be 5 decks.

The height, width and length of most boats is as follows:

Height - 11 metres

Width - 14 metres

Length - 70-75 metres

The boats cant be any higher due to some low bridges that the boats must pass under and they cant be any wider due to the locks at Esna that the boats must pass through. Though in general all boats are between 70-75 metres, several much longer boats have been built that are upto 120 meters.

DECK 1 (or lower deck) Where the main restaurant will be along with engine room, crew quarters and sometimes upto 6 guest cabins. One of the main complaints with older boats where there were more cabins on the deck 1 was from the smell of diesel and fumes from the engines. Most Nile Cruise boat meals are taken as open buffet with themed nights and main choices to suit most diets. A few of the more deluxe boats will serve dinner as a la carte and also several may have a separate smaller restaurant

DECK 2 (or reception deck) Lobby, guest cabins and sometimes the lounge bar. If the lounge bar is not on this deck then the guest cabins are either side of the lobby area. On many of the boats the lobby area is quite large and open plan with a mezzanine floor possibly over 3 decks giving the appearance of a hotel lobby.

DECK 3 Guest cabins and normally several shops which will generally be a bazaar type and also a jewellery shop.

DECK 4 Guest cabins and the lounge bar. The bar will be situated at the front of the boat possibly with a separate reading or quiet area with panoramic windows at the front. The lounge bar will have a small disco area which will be used for the nightly shows which will include, belly dance show, arabic show and galabayia party (this is basically just a disco where guests dress up in local arabic clothing which they have either hired or bought). Also on some boats there may be a small gym room or sauna or massage room.

DECK 5 (sun deck) Will have a swimming pool, area for sun loungers, separate covered area with tables and chairs and possibly a bar or serving area for afternoon tea. Although the sun loungers are tempting with temperatures of over 40 degrees for the summer months, the shaded area tends to be the most crowded. Sun towels are provided by each boat and are cleaned each night.

CABINS - Will be between 16-22 sq metres. Bathroom will have a shower and sometimes a bathtub. Cabin will have large double wardrobe, small vanity table, 1 or 2 chairs next to window sometimes with a small table, and the windows will normally be fully opening with balcony railing. There will be a TV which will show films during sailing time and local TV channels when docked, small mini fridge and all will have air-conditioning. Furnishings and style will be similar to the theme of the boat. Cabins will be cleaned daily.

So in general facilities and service will be similar to that of a hotel, hence the termed used by some for Nile Cruises as "floating hotel".

LUXOR NEWS

Luxor is a city in transition with the local government embarking on a huge plan of development to improve a number of features of the city not just from a tourists point of view but also for the local population.

Many buildings around the tourist sites have been destroyed to open up access and the view. Renovation of the avenue of Sphinx's from Luxor temple continues and a number of new international chain brand hotels are starting to be built in Luxor.

For tourists familiar with Luxor who have not visited in the last six months there have been two important developments.

Firstly part of the corniche road running along the Nile from Luxor to Karnak Temple has been closed and is being destroyed. This is part of a larger plan to make the whole of the corniche area pedestrian only and lowered to the level of the Nile.

The main effect now is that a number of Cruise boats that used to moor along this part of the corniche have had to move and are now docking further down in Luxor or at the new docking area some 7kms south of Luxor close to the bridge crossing to the West Bank. A short video is attached showing boats moored outside of Luxor at one of the new docks.

For boats that are still docking in Luxor, good sites are at a premium and at one point I viewed 10 boats lined up side by side which would make for a pretty long walk! For the boats moored outside of Luxor, the locations are obviously quieter but you have to take a transfer if you wish to come back in for the bazaars or tourist attractions.

I was told that the plan is for all boats to be mooring outside of Luxor within the year.

The second and far more attractive development is that the West Bank is now lit at night with an array of lights that really do showcase the whole site.

Although the photo does not do it justice at least it gives an idea of the view. Therefore those staying in a Nile facing hotel room or lucky enough to be on boat with views of the West Bank will be able to enjoy this new spectacle.