Middle East River Cruises Reviews

On March 6,2024 we arrived in Cairo and were met immediately by a Viking guide who quickly moved us through immigration and out to a waiting van. The airport was very hectic and it would have been most difficult to negotiate it without the help of Gerkis, our Viking guide. After a harrowing drive through the chaotic streets of Cairo, we arrived at the Fairmont Nile City Hotel. It was definitely ...

The Viking Osiris is a great Nile River ship, intimate, new, and designed for this service. Take advantage of all optional trips, especially the hot air balloon at dawn over the Valley of the Kings and the trip to Abu Simbel. The days are long, with little down time, but you cover a lot of history. The boat is relatively informal, no need to dress for dinner, etc., as you may be just coming ...

We were pleased with the visits and activities, ship’s airy feeling and staff . Activities were well organized and tour directors very knowledgeable . It’s a very well designed ship . Food taste was so so . Be warned that Egyptian food is very large in quantity, we were given to choose 1/2 or whole of the main dish. We feel very comfortable in the public places. Our biggest complaint -There ...

we just got back from sailing on the Viking Ra which leaves/ returns from/ to Luxor, Egypt and has additional days in Cairo for touring. This was our first Viking cruise and we were very favorably impressed with the ship, food and tour guides. I highly recommend this cruise for Americans who want to see the famous temples and pyramids in Egypt!! our tours included entering into a Pyramid tomb, ...

This is a journal of our November 1-16, 2023, “Pyramids & Pharaohs” land/cruise package with Jordan extension on the Viking Osiris. We booked this trip in 2021 with the thought that the COVID-19 pandemic would be over by two years later. It turned out that we were the first Viking sailing that would not require passengers to provide proof of COVID vaccination (although we had received the fall ...

Guides are amazing. Chef Adel provides the best food. Egypt is very safe! Egypt has had a past with terrorists and they don't play around with security. Two to three security checks at the airport. Heavily armed police at all the tourist spots. Check points along every route. People that are happy to share their country with you. You start early to avoid the heat and the crowds. There ...

To visit Egypt was a dream of mine for a long time but waited until I retired and there was relative peace in the country. From our time in Cairo to the actual cruise down the Nile I was totally enthralled with the itinerary that Viking provided. The guides were Egyptologist and thus knew all the hieroglyphics and gods that the pharaohs worshiped and thus built their burial ...

We traveled aboard the Philae with Tauck and were onboard Sept. 9-13. The ship is wonderful. It is intimate and very well appointed. The cabins are spacious, the crew was incredible and very service oriented. The food on board was delicious and fresh. There were always several delicious options to choose from at each meal. The pool water looked a little murky- but otherwise, our experience was ...

We decided that we wanted to experience Egypt in terms of seeing the sites around Cairo, including the Giza plateau, and then see the temples along the Nile. We selected Viking due to the itinerary offered and the quality of the ship’s accommodations. We were not disappointed. The hotels we stayed at in Cairo , the Sheraton and the Intercontinental, were superb accommodations. The tours of the ...

We chose the cruise because we were interested in the history of Egypt and especially the times of the Pharaohs. The entire package was 11 days with 7 of the days aboard the Viking Ra; a small river craft with an excellent crew. We enjoyed the briefings from the two Egyptologists on board as well as their daily guiding experiences. The chef on board the Ra was excellent as was the dining ...