Nile Cruise in Egypt. From Luxor to Aswan

Wonderful experience. From Luxor to Aswan. Along the route of the characters from Agatha Christie’s “Death on the Nile,” only in reverse. We’re not huge detective fans, but before going on this cruise we listened to the audiobook. It was interesting to see the same places as the famous Queen of Crime (her husband was an archaeologist, so Agatha Christie knew Egypt firsthand).

Electronic Visa to Egypt

If you need an electronic visa to visit Egypt, you can apply at www.visa2egypt.gov.eg/ – filling in who you are, where you’re from, why you’re going, for how long, where you’re staying, contact details, and so on. And after a short while (I’ll write how long exactly once I remember), you’ll receive an approved visa and congratulations. My advice – print it out on paper and show it that way when needed. And you’ll need to show it to many people, there are frequent checks, so paper is king.

Let’s fly!

Flight 1:

• Departure: 11:30 Larnaca, Cyprus – Larnaca 
• Arrival: 12:55 Cairo, Egypt – Cairo International, terminal 3 
• Airline Egyptair MS 744 
• Aircraft: Airbus A220-300

Layover in Cairo, flight 2:

• Departure: 13:55 Cairo, Egypt – Cairo International, terminal 3 
• Arrival: 14:55 Luxor, Egypt – International 
• Airline Egyptair MS 74 
• Aircraft: Airbus A220-300

Layover in Cairo

💨 We were flying to Luxor with a layover, and we had about an hour in the Egyptian capital to comfortably switch from one plane to another. But we arrived 40 minutes late, resulting in a crazy 20-minute sprint through the massive Cairo airport, passing through two security checks and one passport control. When we finally made it to the bus, they cheerfully told us there was no rush, as they were still waiting for three more people. 😂 In the end, those three never showed up, we took off, and arrived. But the luggage didn’t – like a true Cyprus resident, it decided not to rush and calmly arrived on the next flight from Cairo. We had to file a baggage claim, fill out some paperwork… And about three hours later, go back to the airport to pick it up. Quite the adventure 🙂

Luxor

Karnak Temple

Luxor Temple

The same here. If you’re in Luxor, be sure to check it out.

Beau Soleil Nile Cruise Ship

Interesting to wonder how many times smaller it is than the largest cruise ship in the world, Wonder Of The Seas, which we sailed on in the Mediterranean? I’d guess at least 100 times smaller.

My review of the Nile cruise in Egypt – definitely worth trying!

One of the main conclusions made during the trip: the cruise will be more comfortable if you remember that a five-star hotel in Egypt and a 5-star Egyptian river cruise steamboat on the Nile are NOT the same thing. Different food, rooms (cabins), entertainment, service, etc.

Once again. Don’t expect the same level of service, food, and comfort from a five-star river steamboat in Egypt as you would from a 5-star hotel in Egypt!

By the way, about five-star hotels:

Sofitel Winter Palace Luxor

The very same famous historic hotel. Feels like stepping into a museum. Photos coming later.

That’s the name of the Egyptologist who discovered Tutankhamun’s tomb in 1922 in the Valley of the Kings near Luxor.

Hotel Pavillon Winter Luxor

When you step outside, you can hear the beautiful singing of the muezzin. Like it?

There’s a special beauty to religious chants, and I say this AS A NON-RELIGIOUS person. Just listen for a few seconds to how beautifully the priest sings in a church in the Cypriot village of Omodos – here’s a short video: https://youtube.com/shorts/IfGhUzZbICg?feature=share

Hot Air Balloon Ride in Luxor

One of the most memorable events of this trip started even before the Nile cruise began.

The hot air balloon ride in Luxor includes views of the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut and other ancient landmarks.

It was one of the most vivid impressions of a lifetime.

After flying around plenty, on the same day we visited:

• Valley of the Kings
• Medinet Habu
• Colossi of Memnon

Details about these three places will come later.

Unusual Egypt

1. It’s unusual to look at Egypt through the eyes of an absolutely sober person. Not sober for a week or a month, but for almost 5 years. A completely different perception, a different world, and a different me living a completely different life. I’m not here to preach sobriety (just common sense), better I’ll talk about Egypt. This is my 7th time here.
2. It’s unusual to arrive in Egypt via Cairo. The capital city, even from a distance, before landing, is overwhelming in scale. A gigantic metropolis stretching to the horizon. Unusual. Not everyone understands what I mean? 😂 Well, if you live in a small town on a small island nation – you’ll get it 🤗
3. It’s unusual to run. (already mentioned above, referring to the layover in Cairo airport)
4. It’s unusual to see no masks (2021). At all. Almost no one wears one. No entry checks, code scanning, or anything else. Feels like it’s 2019 again, and it’s strange..🙂
5. It’s unusual driving. And it’s not about the right-hand traffic (got used to left-hand traffic in Cyprus), but the style. People drive here… let’s say… not boringly… I’d even say mysteriously, intriguingly. It’s like a movie you don’t want to star in – better to just watch, or even better – not watch. They speed, often drive chaotically, ruthlessly break traffic rules, jump into oncoming traffic, don’t wear seat belts, talk on the phone, and try not to hit the two-wheeled motorcycles carrying 4-5 passengers, half of them kids.

6) It’s unusual to walk into smoking establishments and be greeted by a thick cloud of tobacco and hookah smoke. Remember how it used to be in Russia? Whew…
🚬
7) It’s unusual to see the complete absence of drunk, rude tourists who love Egypt for cheap hotels with unlimited booze and food. You know the type – sunburned, red, drunk bodies, yelling “Tagil,” blasting one-day pop hits, sometimes behaving obnoxiously. I used to put them in a well-known category starting with a B, avoiding and despising them. Then I genuinely realized that if you want to change the world, start with yourself. It’s not just some dumb esoteric quote from a VK page – it’s 100% true. Didn’t believe it, tested it, and the number of those people really has decreased drastically. That’s how we live.
🖊️💎
8) It’s unusual to travel by river 🙂 The stereotype “Egypt = Red Sea hotels” is so ingrained from past visits that it’s hard to grasp — WHERE ARE YOU.
🤷‍♂️
9) It’s unusual to get a hello from the USSR in the form of the Aswan High Dam, built by Soviet specialists in the 1960s. Their descendants still come here, proudly talking about how their ancestors helped build this unique, grand structure. I was looking forward to seeing it even more than thousand-year-old historical monuments. Honestly, what I saw wasn’t that impressive, didn’t feel the scale or power, but checkmark achieved. Now I’m waiting to visit the “James Bond Dam” in Switzerland.
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10) It’s unusual to constantly be asked where we’re from. Our guide gets that question at every step — checkpoint, shop, village, boat, café, etc. We hear the word “Russi” more than any other. Maybe locals have different price lists for different countries — one for Norway-Switzerland-Canada, another for Russians, etc. There are no price tags anywhere 😂 Literally none!

Why You Should Travel

A bold attempt to reflect and say something smart against a beautiful background

During the next cruise – aboard Wonder of The Seas, the world’s largest cruise ship – I recorded a second video with reflections on this topic

What else is unusual in Egypt:
11) Stacks of cash. Russians are gradually forgetting what paper money looks like. But in Egypt it’s old-school – when exchanging currency to local money, free up a big pocket – you’ll get a lot of bills! In Europe, a cash stack is usually small. Here — a FAT WAD OF CASH 😉 By the way! Some people think that Europe, where I’ve lived for nearly 4 years, is ultra hi-tech: electronic money, digital documents, super medicine, top-level service, high tech, and all that IT jazz. And that Russia is trailing far behind. But… that’s not true, someone’s been lying to you, friends. In terms of e-commerce, digital documents, various tech, services, and even medicine — Russia beats MANY European countries. Try transferring money by phone number or paying with a QR code in Cyprus — nothing like that exists. Not to mention healthcare. But life here is better (apparently, true happiness doesn’t come from technology and medicine). I talk more about this in a separate video about life in Cyprus.

12) Artificial islands of greenery in the desert. They draw water from the Nile to irrigate small circular plots and sow them with greenery. I saw such things in Ptushkin’s video about Saudi Arabia (definitely on the must-visit list).

13) Numerous checkpoints, fences, barriers, high walls with barbed wire and spikes, bulletproof shields, military and police in various uniforms and camo with assault rifles at the ready. Even at historical sites, police carry Kalashnikovs. I had a similar surprise a couple of years ago when sailing from Cyprus to Lebanon. There too (in Beirut), armed security forces were on every block. 

14) Lake Nasser. A truly massive body of water, more like a sea. The largest artificial lake in the world. So clean you can drink straight from it. It was formed as a result of the construction of the Aswan High Dam (mentioned in the previous post). By the way, if you’ve heard of Nile crocodiles, know that they’re no longer in the river — they live in Lake Nasser now. 

15) Tuk-tuks. Ten years ago they weren’t here, now they’re popping up everywhere, zipping through the streets just like in India.

It was surprising to be in a country that follows almost no COVID measures. Almost no one wears masks, and hardly anyone knows about temperature checks or testing 🙂 This was in December 2021, by the way.

Pyramids from the Airplane Window

I’ve been to Egypt many times, but never before had I flown into Cairo or seen the pyramids of Giza from a plane window. Right on the edge of the desert and the city. But they weren’t the most memorable part. We had a connecting flight from Cairo to Luxor (where our Nile cruise to Aswan was to begin). Since the layover was short, we had to make a crazy dash across the entire airport, going through multiple security checks and document inspections. We made it. The luggage didn’t… ) I’ll tell you more about that another time.

to be continued

material under editing

Among other things, I recommend reading (or listening to) Agatha Christie’s “Death on the Nile” before going on a Nile cruise. You’ll be passing by places she described — for example, the Cataract Hotel (Sofitel Legend Old Cataract), and the cities of Luxor and Aswan… There’s something fun about that.

Sailing the Nile on a boat around Aswan, stopping by local villages — it’s a great adventure, highly recommended.

Aswan Botanical Garden

Next to this island is another, larger one. It’s home to the Mövenpick Aswan hotel, and some other things.

Nubian Village

Also worth visiting. More photos coming soon — for now, just one, with spices.

Aswan High Dam

The road to it is long, so nothing else is planned for the day.

Abu Simbel

Abu Simbel on the cover of Agatha Christie’s novel.

The book was first published in the UK on November 1, 1937.

Abu Simbel today.

Boats can no longer dock right at the temple — the Egyptians not only altered the natural landscape, but also moved the temple itself to another location!

There are two temples carved into the rock at Abu Simbel. I’ll publish more information about them later.

Nile Cruise – Complete.

Cairo

A long hour-long ride from the airport to Giza through Egypt’s capital. Scenic. I first visited this city long before the Nile cruise, and I was glad to greet an old friend again.

A huge number of new buildings. Reminds me of the construction boom in Moscow that began … years ago.

Kilometers of new neighborhoods, many thousands of square meters. I believe Cairo’s population will only continue to grow.

Well then, goodbye old friend. Take care! And take care of your people…

By the way, you can order a taxi in Egypt using the UBER or Careem apps. And in Thailand using BOLT.

Giza

Here it’s worth mentioning the Guardian Guest House hotel with a view of the Pyramids.

Is it worth booking a room with a view of the Pyramids? Yes. It’s beautiful, photogenic, Instagrammable — all that.

But keep in mind — to take a photo like that, you’ll have to manually move the bed toward the window.

A few facts:

• The name “Egypt” comes from the Ancient Greek Αἴγυπτος
• The pyramids here started being built around 2500 BCE
• The three largest cities in the country are Cairo, Alexandria, and El Giza