Why Our Nile Cruise Was The Best We Have Ever Taken
The Nile Cruise – An Indispensable Part of Your Trip To Egypt
We have just returned from the most magical cruise we’ve ever taken: a Nile Cruise on the Sonesta St. George. We want to share the story with you in detail because this amazing experience just jumped up from nowhere in our imagination to among our top 5 trips – EVER. You need to put it on your bucket list!
We found when planning our Egypt trip that there is very little specific information about Nile cruises available on TripAdvisor or from the cruise companies themselves. For example, most reviews focus on cruise organizers rather than the ships. So in this post, we’ll describe what happens on a specific Nile cruise so you’ll have a good idea of what to expect. When you know how the whole thing works, you’ll be in a good position to decide how to go about your planning. In the process, we’ll provide a review of our ship, the Sonesta St. George, because it’s the benchmark we have, and we can’t recommend it highly enough. What made it so magical? The best way for us to answer that is to describe our trip story, and to convey in video the feeling of the whole thing. So to jump right in, and watch the video now by clicking the image below.
We hope the video gives you a good feel for the trip, but the only way to really get what we’re talking about is to just go do it. It’s not difficult: Egypt is safe and cheap. The world is going to wake up to this fact, and the currency is going to bounce back, so the sooner you get there, the better. In this article, we’ll share key tips on what to look for as you pick your Nile cruise.
To be sure, there are other ways to see the sights along the Nile: by car, by train, by tour bus. But in our opinion, if you do that, you’ll be missing a very big part of the main event: the Nile itself. No river in history has been as influential in shaping our world civilization, and it’s simply awe-inspiring to travel on it.
Choose Your Ship Carefully
Not everyone who cruises the Nile comes away as deliriously happy as we were. While the river is the same, not all ships are equal. Not by a long shot. The 2011 Arab Spring caused Egyptian tourism to plummet by 70%. The number of ships cruising the Nile dropped from 300 to 30. Even though the situation has normalized, tourists have not yet returned in large numbers.
Naturally, with cash flow dried up and not many tourists on the horizon, many boat owners were reluctant to put any money into their riverboats. So it’s important to pick a cruise on a ship that has been recently refurbished. We were lucky with the Sonesta St. George. The ship/riverboat was refurbished completely a little over a year ago because Sonesta took advantage of the slowdown to restore it to its original glory (or better). We couldn’t have been happier with the cabins, amenities, decor and food. We’ll cover that in this post to give you an idea of what to look for. (Incidentally, a big part of the reason we chose Sonesta is that we could book both our Sonesta Cairo hotel and Nile cruise seamlessly – click here for our story on how to pick a hotel in Cairo.) Other travelers we spoke to, or whose reviews we’ve read on TripAdvisor, reported much less happy experiences, with really tired and worn out boats. So do your homework!
The Sights You’ll See On Your Nile Cruise
Luxor to Aswan Direction
Day 1: Luxor East Bank: Temple of Karnak, Luxor Temple
Day 2: Luxor West Bank: Valley of the Kings, Valley of the Queens, Hatshepsut’s Temple
Day 3: Kom Ombo Temple, Temple of Edfu
Day 4: Aswan: Aswan High Dam, Temple of Philae, Kitchener Island
Day 5: Half day trip to Abu Simbel option (highly recommended)
Most Nile cruises follow a similar itinerary, sailing the 250km from Luxor to Aswan in 4 nights (or the reverse in 3). There are some longer cruises to Dendera (further North), or just more leisurely 7 day cruises on the Luxor/Aswan route. Whichever way you go, you’ll make the same stops.
In Luxor, you’ll visit the Temple of Karnak, Hatshepsut’s Temple, the Valley of the Kings and Queens, and Luxor Temple. These are some of the most amazing antiquities sites in the world, including King Tut’s tomb, and we absolutely loved them, as you can see below. You’ll also have time to visit the Souk (market), which is huge fun.
Elaine being statuesque at Queen Hatshepsut’s temple
Doing the King Tut strut. Sorry, couldn’t get the song out of our heads.
The Temple of Horus at Edfu
Mummified Crocodiles at Kom Ombo. (We recommend you visit this museum before the temple).
You’ll visit the amazing Temple of Horus in Edfu, then stop at the Temple to Sobek, Crocodile God, at Kom Ombo. Finally, you’l stop in Aswan (a town we really liked.) From there, you’ll visit the Aswan High Dam, the Temple of Philae, and have the opportunity to take the optional half day tour to Abu Simbel.
Our Cruise Story
Because of a tight schedule, Elaine and I flew into Aswan, and took a tour to Abu Simbel before we boarded the Sonesta St. George. We sailed from Aswan to Luxor on the 3 night cruise. (In retrospect, it would have been lovely to do the 4 night from Luxor to Aswan itinerary, treating ourselves to one more night on the ship.)
On your first day, Sonesta will arrange to pick you up and get you to the ship, wherever you happen to be. Boarding is anytime on the first morning until about 12.30. You’ll have a chance to settle in to your cabin and relax on the rooftop deck or swim in the pool before lunch.
Let’s Talk About The Staterooms (Cabins They Ain’t).
Our “cabin” on the Sonesta St. George was huge (we had one of their 9 suites). Our suite/stateroom had a king size bed, reading lamps, desk, sofa, large screen TV, big closets, refrigerator etc. It was easily the biggest and most comfortable room we’ve ever had on any ship, and it was also beautifully decorated with hand painted ceilings and exquisite linens. Of course, the great view of the Nile outside didn’t hurt either.
The standard cabins are also very roomy. Because this is a large riverboat, think of the cabins more as luxurious large hotel rooms rather than the cramped cabins you may be used to on ocean liners.
This is the regular deluxe cabin. Window opens to the Nile
It was a simple but great pleasure to sit on our comfy sofa drinking a pineapple beer (Farhouz alcohol free- a really refreshing drink, weird though it sounds), and watch the ever-changing scenery of the Nile glide by. The air conditioning is great, by the way.
The size of the rooms is explained by the relatively small number – there are only 67 cabins. The maximum number of guests is only a little over 100 people. There were about 55 guests on board when we sailed, which makes for a collegiate atmosphere and enables a very high level of service. The bathroom was also spacious, like a hotel. It even has a unique, shower cubicle/jacuzzi/bathtub, complete with telephone, that feels very luxurious.
Food On Board
Most meals are served in the elegant dining room on the lower deck, and the food is terrific. There’s a very wide array of salads, soups, breads, meats, etc: healthy and really tasty. From the first meal on, we loved the food, which we found to be superior to other ocean or river cruises we’ve taken.
The Egyptian food night is a buffet served under the stars with various stations preparing fresh falafel, kebabs etc.
We loved the great variety of unusual, healthy dishes. Every meal was great.
The service is extremely friendly and efficient, and the staff make you feel they’re delighted that you’re there (as do people all over Egypt). Although the tables are private, we soon got to know and befriend most of our fellow travelers: a lively, sophisticated bunch of smart, inquisitive folks from just about everywhere (except the US) who took as much delight in the trip as we did. There was a smattering of well-behaved kids. They were well catered to, from dietary requests to trips to the bridge to see the ship being conned.
We had very specific questions about food safety (answered in our video about both Sonesta hotel in Cairo and the Sonesta St. George here) because we are especially careful about eating uncooked vegetables and salads. We ended up having absolutely no concerns about eating anything aboard ship. We love Middle Eastern food anyway, and it was well represented with plenty of other cuisines to choose from. We especially enjoyed the Egyptian night buffet dinner on the top deck.
By the way, there’s a good international wine list with reasonable prices. Bottles run about $25, and they’ll save them for you for the next night if you like.
Other Amenities
There’s a fully equipped gym, sauna and, of course, a spa. They offer a wide range of massages, and even a Cleopatra Mud Mask. Massages run about $60 an hour (one instance where shipboard prices got a bit closer to the US equivalent.)
There’s a piano bar, and a library in the panorama bar, which has a beautiful view of the Nile and is quiet and restful.
The Panorama Bar
Another secluded lounge where you can get away from it all
Elaine recommended the well-stocked store on-board which had surprisingly competitive prices for Galabiyas and jewelry.
And, of course, there’s the pool.
On Board Entertainment
There was a Nubian night the first night of our cruise (appropriate because we were in Aswan, which is a heavily Nubian-influenced town). A band and dancers gyrated around; it was fun, but a typical tourist show, which got a lot more fun when we started dancing too. The second night was the Egyptian Night, with various guests throwing themselves into the spirit of dressing up in Galabiyas, dancing etc (and we were counted among that crowd). There was a buffet party on the deck. Not sure you can beat the romance and spectacle of sailing the Nile under the stars with great food and great people.
The Nubian show was dancing fun
We happily jumped into Egyptian dress for the Egyptian night.
Our Egyptologist, Ahmed, is a full time archaeologist when he is not conducting tours for Sonesta St George. Funny and really knowledgeable.
The Tours On Shore
The highly educated tour guides are known as Egyptologists, and they are the folks who conduct the detailed tours of the unforgettable sights along the Nile.
Even if you think you’re not into tombs and temples, you can’t help but be awestruck by the ancient civilization that created these great works, not to mention conducted heart surgery and other advanced technologies that heavily influenced the future. Guests on board are divided into small groups of 10 or so, and you have plenty of interaction with the guide, plus fun things like tours through the markets, carriage rides etc. The Egyptian people themselves are part of the adventure: surely the friendliest we’ve encountered in any country.
Just when you’ve been blown away by the sights and are baked and thirsty from touring in the heat, you’re whisked back to teatime on the air conditioned ship and maybe a nap by the pool. This is really the way to live.
The Nile Itself
As we mentioned, an unexpected but vital part of this review is the Nile itself. The river is unforgettable. Sailing along it is like watching an ancient picture unfold before you. It’s smooth sailing all the way. Even people who were worried about motion sickness were completely happy and unaffected.
5 Tips To Choose Your Nile Cruise
- Pick a ship that has been recently refurbished
- Consider the hotel/cruise line relationship for ease of booking.
- Book your cruise yourself if you can.
- This is a trip of a lifetime. Pay a bit more for the comfort of knowing the food is safe and the service is great.
- Go from Luxor to Aswan to get the extra night on the Nile.
This was a trip we’ll never forget. So, just go for it!
