Nile Cruises at Glance

By Seif Kamel

The history of Nile Cruises in Egypt

During the 19th century, with a long grand tour of Europe, an Egypt tour was offered to the travelers of that time. Travelers used to arrive by boat to Alexandria and then the wealthy European and American people were then transferred to Cairo by boat and then in later times, by train.

After spending two or three days visiting the highlights of Cairo including the Pyramids of Giza and Saqqara, the travelers used to go on board of a “Dahabeya”, the Nile cruise boat that the royal family of Egypt used to ride while cruising the Nile and it was offered for some wealthy tourists as well.

By the way, the Dahabeya style of cruising the Nile has appeared again in the 21st century with many new boats being built in this classical style of boats to take the tourists in a cruise in the Nile in the old royal pattern between Luxor and Aswan.

In the past, the Dahabeya, or a streamer boat used to take the trip from Cairo to Aswan in three weeks and the sailing boats used to take up to six weeks to reach Aswan.

The passengers used to spend very long periods of time traveling by boat from Cairo to Southern Egypt. On their way, they used to go on horse or even sometimes camel rides to explore the new discoveries of ancient Egypt that were unearthed around the Nile Valley.

These trips were actually led by local guides and many servants used to accompany the travelers to hold their food and drinks.

Thomas Cook, the founder of modern tourism all around the world, has played a major role in developingNile Cruise trips in Egypt. In some point in time, all streamer boats going from Cairo to Luxor and Aswan were actually owned by him. He also even developed the program of tourists in Egypt adding more cities and more historical sites at the time.

This was how the Nile Cruises in Egypt all started. Nowadays, Nile Cruising has become quite a blast and it is recommended for all tourists visiting Egypt vacations.

Nile Cruises in Egypt nowadays

With hundreds of luxurious Nile Cruise ships offering all sorts of facilities and services for the tourists and a wonderful program to enable the guests to visit all the highlights of Luxor and Aswan during their trip, Nile Cruises have become quite popular among tourists and Egyptians all the same.

The Sonesta St George is one of the most recommended Nile Cruise ships in Egypt nowadays. With all sorts of class a services and facilities, this boat has become quite favorable for many guests visiting Egypt.

Egypt Nile Cruises offers one of the best ways to experience the lush countryside of the Nile Valley in Egypt and in the same time visit many of the historical monuments of Southern Egypt.

The Nile hosts more than 250 Nile Cruise ships, a larger number of Feluccas, the traditional Egyptian sailing boats, and the most recent Dahabeya boats. Numerous travel companies offer a Nile Cruise as a part of their Egypt packages.

A traveler can book his Nile Cruise before arrival or even when he arrives in Egypt through several tour operators in Egypt. A good choice for a tourist while opting his package in Egypt is to spend three or four days in Sonesta St. George Nile Cruise as it is one of the best Nile Cruises in Egypt nowadays.

The Nile Cruises have been popular among tourists since the 19th century when it was an exciting part of the grand Egypt Tour. These cruises have developed nowadays with around 240 Nile Cruise ships in the Nile to become a large profitable industry but still the Nile Curies is very popular among tourists visiting Egypt. There are many wonderful Nile Cruise ships in Egypt like the Royal Lotus Nile Cruise and the Sonesta St. George Nile Cruise Ship.

A traveler can book his Nile Cruise and the travel package overall while he is still in his homeland in Europe or the United States. This will include the flight from home to Cairo or any other international airports in Egypt and then he would join one of the many Nile Cruises in Egypt.

The classical Nile Cruises would usually consist of 3, 4, or 7 days. It would start in Luxor and then end in Aswan, vise versa, or a traveler can take the trip from Luxor to Aswan and then come back in the same Nile Cruise Ship.

The trip would include stopping in Aswan, Luxor, Kom Ombo, Edfu, and Esna. The monuments to be visited would include the Karnak Temple, the Luxor Temple, the Valley of the Kings, the Temple of Hatshepsut, and the Colossi of Memnon in Luxor. In Aswan the guest will visit the Unfinished Obelisk, the Temple of Philae, and the High Dam.

The guest will have a marvelous chance to visit the Temple of Sobek in Kom Ombo, the Temple of Horus in Edfu, and the Nile Lock in Esna.

Other Nile Cruises include another marvelous rout that consists of embarking the Nile Cruise boat in Aswan and then travel southwards to reach the marvelous temple of Abu Simble at the end.

The guest will have the chance to explore some of the Paranoiac temples that can never be visited expect by boat like the Temple of Kalabsha, the Temple of Amada, the Temple of Beit Al Wali, the fortress of Qasr Ibrim, and then the breathtaking temple of Abu Simble at the end.

The guest will go from his Nile Cruise to the historical sites immediately spending the mornings to explore the magic of the Paranoiac sites, the afternoons in chilling out on the deck of the ship enjoying the warm sun, swimming in the pools of the Nile Cruise, and watching the traditional Egyptian peasants in their daily lives.

At night, many Nile Cruise ships offer amazing entertainment programs that include a belly dancer, some Tanoora shows, and a costume part as well.  Among the Nile Cruises that offer one of the best programs is the Royal Lily Nile Cruise Ship and the Oberoi Philae Nile Cruise.

A perfect travel package for a Nile Cruise would include accommodation in a deluxe cabin, the three meals; breakfast, lunch, and dinner, in a tasty open buffet, and the transportation and guiding to the historical sites.

If the guest is planning to enjoy his holiday in Cairo, Alexandria, or the Sinai Peninsula, and he still wishes to go on a Nile Cruise to explore the wonders of ancient Egypt in southern Egypt, a Nile Cruise would be his finest choice. Many ships are amazing to spend a holiday like the Oberoi Philae or the Sonesta St George Nile Cruise ships.

A Nile Cruise would be highly recommended for families as the children will enjoy riding a wonderful boat in the Nile and the all the family members would enjoy visiting the historical monuments.

Some travelers, who love to have more exciting vacations would actually like to cruise the Nile in the traditional Egyptian boats, the Felucca. Some travel agencies have started organizing trips for the tourists to sail down the Nile in a Felucca.

This trip offers the travelers with a chance to mingle with the Egyptian life, sleep in a Felucca like the ancient Egyptian used to do, and have traditional meals that will be offered in the Feluccas.

The best Times for Nile Cruises

Many people believe that the best season to go on a Nile Cruise would be from December to February as the weather would be marvelous in Luxor and Aswan. However, the time from March till the end of April and from October till the end of November is still great to go on a Egypt Nile Cruise.

Keywords: Egypt tour, Nile cruise, Egypt Nile Cruise, Nile Cruises, Egypt packages, Egypt travel, Oberoi Zahra