In planning our round-the-world trip we have most of the first year of our travels figured out, but the second year is a little fuzzy. We will begin our second year of round-the-world travel in Egypt, an ancient country with a wealth of history.
We have always wanted to travel to Egypt but trying to pinpoint what to see and where to stay is a bit of a challenge. Since we will be on a tight budget we will need to limit our stay to only a couple of areas, but which areas to stay in is the real question. From visiting the pyramids near Cairo, King Tut’s Tomb in the Valley of the Kings near Luxor, cruising along the Nile River, or enjoying the luxurious crystal clear water and sandy beaches of Sharm El Sheikh on the Red Sea, it’s a tough decision. For more information on Sharm El Sheikh, you can visit www.cheapholidays.com/sharm-el-sheikh/.
Our current plan is to fly into Cairo from Turkey after staying there for a 2-3 months. Once in Cairo we will see the pyramids and sphinx and our daughter is hoping to do the ultimate tourist activity in Egypt, ride a camel. We have heard that there is a little scam where they have you sit on the camel for a photo, but then won’t have the camel kneel back down until you pay them money. Nice! We will be sure to agree upon a fair price before ever sitting on a camel.
After the hustle and bustle of Cairo and the pyramids we would like to head to Luxor to visit the Valley of the Kings. There are two options to get to Luxor from Cairo. The fastest and cheapest way is to take a plane, which would get us there but we would not get a chance to see other parts of Egypt. The other option is take a 14-day Nile cruise from Cairo all the way to Luxor. Cruises between Cairo and Aswan have been banned for the last 15 years due to water levels, but the ban has been lifted just this year. It would probably cost a good chunk of money for the cruise, but having lodging, food, entertainment, and transportation for 14 days it could actually be the better alternative. Plus, cruising along the Nile for 2 weeks would be the trip of a lifetime!
So, we still have a bit of time to work out all the details. If anyone has any recommendations about what to see or what not to see in Egypt, we would love to hear it.
Your adventure sounds exciting and it will be I am sure. One suggestion….don’t get too involved in planning every detail. Just head in the direction you want to go and forget the details. They will all fall into place. Suggest you get a Lonely Planet also.