deleted double post,mad computer !!!!

Hi all
Has anyone done the camel ride on the monday morning I thought they only did the balloon on the last day if so,
how long were you on the camel for because I was going to do this from my hotel as they have a camel in there
little zoo.
Eilean

Eilean,

Did you manage to find out what First Choice ship you will be on. If you are trying to arrange something for the last Monday morning, then it is crucial to find out.

If you are on the Orchid then you will not have a problem as they operate their schedule according to what is advertised on their website and the last Monday leaves time for that.

HOWEVER, if you are on the Tulip or Jasmine it is a completely different ball game. You will have no time to anything extra on the last Monday. I think I have mentioned that before. I won't go into it all again for fear of a 'heart attack'!

Pedrogroomer
I have just phoned fc up again to ask what boat we're on and they said not the orchid because they don't do AI , So it is going to be the Jasmin or the Tulip. They said I will find out which boat it will be in 5 weeks time when they've put everything together. This will leave us just 8 weeks to go not long now.
Eilean

It appears as the people that answer the questions on First Choice don't actually know what they are talking about. I had the same problems before we went.

The M/S Orchid is their AI boat and is totally dedicated to First Choice customers. The other boat either the Tulip or the Jasmine are for First Choice and OTHER odds and s*ds from all over the globe. You will find that the majority of First Choice customers will also be on AI but all the others from around the globe will be on a FB basis. The problem with the scheduling of the cruise comes from having to wait for these other passengers. Also some are only doing the Luxor to Aswan bit and get off in Aswan. The Tulip or Jasmine is then stuck in Aswan waiting for more passengers to come on board for the Aswan to Luxor bit.

When I queried this with First Choice about the scheduling they said that on their web site it does state that changes in scheduling can occur. OK, fair enough, but that is only if it is due to unforseen circumstances. In this case it has become a regular occurance and should be pointed on in their brochures and on their web site.

The 'last morning' ,Monday, is advertised as being relaxing with the opportunity to do the balloon trip if you want to. On the Orchid that definitely is true BUT on the Tulip and Jasmine it is NOT. The last morning is gruelling. I have written about on this forum before.

As regards the standard of the boats the Orchid and Tulip-- I would say the Tulip definitely is better but that does not mean the Orchid is not good because it is a good boat. I would also say that food is more or less the same and, of course, the staff(except FC reps etc) will be fabulous on both.

As I have mentioned before. If you want to do things on that last day then it is vitally and crucially important that you find out exactly what boat you are on.

Hi all
I have seen older reports about this boat but wondered if anyone has been on it recently. We are leaving on 21st July and are taking our 13 year old son, we are staying in the same cabin so wondered how big the standard cabins actually are. Also are there tea making facilities in the cabin as my wife won't get out of bed until shes had her cup of coffee!!
Any other tips for this boat would be really appreciated.
Thanks.

HI ALL
Its a brilliant forum and i cant wait for my trip after reading of all your experiences.I just wondered if anyone has done the Thomas Cook Golden Nile cruise, which is the one ive booked for april 2009.Has anyone any knowledge of the boats etc?? Its our first visit to Egypt, having promised ourselves that we would see the pyramids on our 25th anniversary,possibly from year one of marriage!!!!! well it happens in 2009.

Hi All,

I am lucky enough to be going on a Nile cruise on the MS Sherry with Kuoni. Can anyone give me some feedback and more specifically information on the addtional excursions you can do. What they are and the sort of cost, I am particularly interested in Abu Simbal.

Many thanks

Hi all we are doing all inclusive with first choice in October we booked it last Nov we received a letter today from them saying that the junior cabin that we booked will no longer have a panoramic view we payed extra for this cabin for our 30th Anniversary so we could have the best room. So I phoned them straight up and they said that we can change our room free of charge or cancel our holiday we can't get any compensation the woman didn't even apologise. I would not book a holiday with first choice again we only paid the remainder of our holiday last week. Eilean

Hi Travellad1976
We came back from a cruise on the MS Sherry with Kuoni last week and had a fabulous time, anything you want to know just give me a shout.
There are a number of extra trips, the Abu Simbel trip costs £120 by air, not sure if they do it by road as that option was not given. If you don't do that trip there is an optional trip to a Nubian village and botanical gardens which I think was about £15. There is also a trip to Philae Temple sound & Light show which I think was around £20 and they can also arrange feluca trips, horse & carriage trips around Luxor for £10 (we all refused this one due to the way they treat the horses) and visits to Papyrus, perfume, gold and alabaster factories if you are interested in buying them. There is also a balloon ride in Luxor which I believe was about £65.
We also booked a day trip by air to Cairo for £175 which was a private tour for 5 people in an air conditioned minibus with egyptologist. We visited the pyramids, sphinx, Cairo museum and the souk with lunch included.
Hope this helps.
Steve

Hi JOHNBOY313
As you've promised yourselves to see the pyramids are you stopping in Cairo after the cruise?

Hi All

My Fiancé and me have just booked our wedding and are now looking into Honeymoon ideas. We have been to Egypt twice, Sharm in 2006 and Makadi Bay 2007 (where he proposed). We have always wanted to do a weeks Nile cruise and a week in the sun and thought this would be a perfect opportunity.

Trouble is we don't know when is the best time to go on the cruise (we are getting married in August) and where would be the best place to look/book as there are so many offers out there. As you can imagine with it being our honeymoon we would like something special so would appreciate any advice you could give us.

Thanks in advance

Lou

Why not try a twin centre with Luxor and Aswan if you can get it and combine the cruise within the holiday?

Do Luxor first then relax in Aswan. Although it's hotter than Luxor by a few degrees, you usually find a nice breeze in the late afternoon and that's the perfect time to take a sail on one of the fellucca's around Elephantine Island or visit the botanical gardens.

The river moves much more around Aswan too because of the cateracts. For real atmosphere book into the original Agatha Christie hotel in Death on the Nile and stay at the Old Cateract, situated immediately above the river.

Other than that, a weeks cruise and stay in one of the deluxe Luxor hotels.

Highly recommended. In my book - you haven't been to "Egypt" until you've been to Luxor and had the experience of just "being there".

It's always been our 2nd holiday Top Spot with Cyprus being our first (mainly because of Cyprus's similarities to UK). But, now we live in Cyprus - Egypt is at the top of our list and may just possibly be where we could move to on a permanent basis once we no longer need to work and hit the pension! The beauty of it is, we are now less than an hours flight from Cairo and a 40 minute flight from there to either Luxor or Aswan so we hope to get in plenty more visits over the coming years...

You will have a brilliant time. Enjoy

CwB

Personally I think a week on a Nile cruise then a week in El Gouna on the red sea would be the perfect combination. Most tour operators do this and offer several options.

steveb 298
Yes we are stopping for 3 nights in Cairo, i believe in the Semaramiss

Hi everyone
Although after reading many of the posts I realise this forum is mainly meant for people to have a go at First Choise so I hope you'll forgive me for not doing that.
I'm not actually booked with them so wandered if any one had cruised on the El Fostate (booked through Orbital) and could give me any idea what it's like.
I guess its gonna have to be pretty bad to be worse than the First Choise cruises( there thats had a bit of a go)so anybodt any experience of Orbital or the El Fostate.

Although after reading many of the posts I realise this forum is mainly meant for people to have a go at First Choise so I hope you'll forgive me for not doing that.

it is a pleasant change for somebody to come on here and use the topic correctly and not have a go at first choice.

Hi we've been offered choice of either the Ti Yi Nile cruise or on the Presidential Nile Cruise. Has anyone been on either and can recommend which one we should opt for?
Thanks for your help,

i'm off next week to Egypt for a cruise and really excited.

However, just one question - been looking at the itinerary (we are fully inclusive) and it says that 'Lunch and dinner are taken in one sitting often buffet style with a wide selection of starters including salads and delicious soups with fresh rolls and breads'

Sounds lovely, but - I'm probably being really thick but I don't understand what that means. Is it simply that lunch and dinner is one meal? Or does one sitting refer more to groups of people?

Such a trivial thing but its driving me mad!