non tour between louxor to Aswan , book on site?
Replies: 5 - Last Post: Oct 28, 2012 3:35 AM Last Post By: ourluxor
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non tour between louxor to Aswan , book on site?
I should be in Cairo for professional reasons, it looks that it is going to last more than expected (bureaucracy)question: if I fly to Luxor, will it be possible to find a boat going up to Aswan as I won't have booked anything ahead?
will they charge me more more than reasonable or should I bargain hard (though there aren't so much tourism in Egypt at the moment)
thanks for tips for solo travellers without tour organization.
1
Any travel agent's office in Luxor could book a cruise for you at very short notice, and at a competitive price. It's advisable to check out one or two, as they have contracts with different boat companies, and also to get them to actually show you the boat (in the flesh, so to speak, and not on a computer screen) before you part with any money.Cruise durations are from two nights up over. It takes two nights to sail between Luxor and Aswan or vice-versa, and then you are moored at either end for a couple of nights, to accomplish the various excursions, before returning to your starting point.
Return journey by road or rail takes about three and a half hours.
2
Thank you ourluxorany names of companies, i could check on their website? or many some without are even better?
Any ideas of prices range per nights for an middle to upper class night on a boat
I don't want a pack tourist tour boat, prefer to enjoy "more real travel" let say with not first timer in Egypt.
would you recommend to go up by boat and back by car, is it worthy by car?
if back by car= yes
to drive from luxor or Aswan through the white desert on its own (car rent) is it possible? or should I hire a cab (any idea of price more or less after bargaining)
any tips for good cheap places to eat and drink in luxor and avoid the tourists...though believe at the moment it shouldn't be to busy.
Aswan to Abu simbel , is it possible to hire a car and come back late in the evening to have the sunset there? any idea of prices.
Aswan average good/middle/upper hotel friendly style no "tourist package"?
Thanks if you can answer to all these small questions. are you from there?
3
Sorry, but I am unable to give definite answers to most of your questions. I am not really involved in travel, and neither do I do much travelling personally, so don't know the prices.I live in Luxor most of the time, but I am English.
Aswan to Abu Simbel; the journey must be done in the official convoy, either early in the morning (about 4.30) or at 11 o'clock. It takes about three and a half hours each way with a stop at Abu for a couple of hours. No independent tourist travel is allowed on that road.
Luxor is quiet, and has been since shortly after the revolution. Street food is the cheapest option for eating; falafel, liver sandwiches, fuul, hawawshi, koshary etc. Look for busy stalls or shops to guarantee quality and freshness.
I'm not sure what you mean by "more real travel", the alternative river transport is either a dahabiya or a felucca. Dahabiyas tend to be frighteningly expensive, and feluccas (which sail the other way around, i.e. from Aswan northwards) don't have cabins or sanitary provision.
Travelling between the two towns by car would allow you to maybe visit one or two other sites of interest, like El Kab, for instance. So, yes, I think it would be worth it. Hiring a self-drive car would be foolhardy in my opinion, and that's if you were able to find one!
There are hundreds of internet based travel companies offering services in Egypt. However, most of them are not government registered and are completely unregulated. Because they don't pay their way like the proper companies, they can offer cheaper prices, but always remember that you get what you pay for, and certainly nothing more!
I apologise again for not being able to offer you any more info, but I hope the above will be useful to you.
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Thank you for your answer ourluxor;dahabiyas: yes these boats are nice, but must admit prices reach the sky! do you thing on site, it possible to get a better offer? (i understand you aren't in tourist business, not archaeologist either?)
do you have many tourists at the moment in luxor? I am aware that Cairo hasn't any more charter flights due to lack of tourism.
"more real travel" I meant off the track places, I don't like to flock with tour to architectural places; the less the better to enjoy the places.
Convoy to Abu simbel: do you mean , impossible to go there with a local taxi? presume leaving at 11 is best option? as most buses leaves in the very early morning.
Thanks for your help.
5
Not having travelled on the 11 o'clock convoy, I couldn't really say how busy it is normally. I expect that you could book a local taxi to take you, but it would still have to go with one of the convoys.The tourist situation at the moment is such that it would be unlikely that you would come across any huge crowds at any of the sites.
There aren't a lot of tourists anywhere in the Nile Valley, but one or two of the Luxor hotels are busier than they have been for the last 18 months or so. Personally, I don't put this down to a sudden influx of tourists, rather that some of the less expensive hotels have lost out to the more mid-range ones because of the number of Egyptians staying in them, with the accompanying unruliness and noise which they seem to always bring with them!

