Simple stays with essential amenities. Typically guesthouses, hostels or hotels rated below 3 stars — clean, no-frills, and great for value-conscious travelers.
Comfortable and reliable 3-star stays. Expect private rooms, en-suite bathrooms, and solid amenities — a great balance between comfort and cost.
Upscale 4-5 star hotels and lodges. Enjoy high-end service, refined comfort, and premium locations — ideal for travelers seeking extra indulgence.
Seeing all the ancient wonders, eating amazing food and exploring great cities with an awesome group of people just makes the best memories. Everything was so easy and well organised. Highly recommend
Great guides and well thought out itineraries
Tourist class hotels. Fine with us. This was travel. Not a vacation lol. Tino was super I. Getting is set up at last minute. And all hands were I. Deck when we had a little medical scare. Would definitely book with them again
The Top Deck Delve Deep Egypt Tour was a trip of a lifetime. The price for what was included was remarkable, and the sensationally knowledgeable tour guide we received for the trip really took the trip to the next level. The hotels were all clean and safe, the hotel staff were lovely, and the hotel food was divine. The local cuisine was incredible and i miss it dearly!
The locations and attractions we visited were truly breathtaking, the fact that Top Deck was able to organise for us to see and do so much in such a short amount of time is truly amazing. The entire trip ran smoothly and according to plan.
Our sensational tour guide Mohammed Ali was fluent in English, Arabic and also Italian. His knowledge of not only the sites we visited but also Egypt as a whole was astounding. Mohammed was friendly, respectful, caring and had great communication skills.
If I were to return to Egypt I would request Mohammed as my tour guide and I would complete another Top Deck Tour again.
As I say goodbye to this remarkable country, I just want to take a moment to appreciate how magnificent it is.
A country so culturally rich and diverse, where you can experience the city/desert/ocean/greenery all within 1 short holiday. A country full of hidden treasures and incredible food everywhere you go. A country who despite its economic struggles, continues to grow and develop. A country full of the most beautiful and kind people, who value and appreciate tourists, and who for the most part just want to hear about our country and hear us speak.
I cannot recommend Egypt more highly to anyone wanting to delve in to a country so beautiful as it is diverse.
It is truly a wonderful experience, but at the same time a truly "educational one"! Our tour director, was exceptional not wasting a moment of any day, pointing out the very significant points of interests, at the same time, taking every part of this significant history in a chronological order.
The accomodations and service, both on the boat and in the hotel were five start plus, since we live in the Palm Beaches and use to up-scale adventure, made the "Breakers", look like an outhouse.....need I say more!
The value vs the price were evenly matched.
As for shopping, once again, significant shops were selected to include, spice, perfumes, and of course jewelry. At the same time educationing you on their wares and how they are used.
Like INSIGHT always does, is taking you inside the home of a residemt and demonstrates their current life style and habits, only in this example, demonstrated how bread was made not only for their family, but the entire neighborhood.
This trip will certainly standout from most, due to education we received from the extraordinary adventure. Thanks again,
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The “second day” the flight is SUPER early and you have to leave the hotel at 4 am.
That was not communicated anywhere and we didn’t arrive at the hotel u til after 11 pm the night before. It made the morning very difficult!
Also, it would be helpful if there was a place by the day noting if women needed to cover shoulders/knees or men knees. When I was packing and googling, it said that at Kom Ombo (and most of the temples) it was recommended to have shoulder and knees covered, but when we got there I was told we didn’t need it. I had a lot more pants packed then I needed and that would have been helpful to know when I actually needed to wear more conservative clothing or having my hair covered.
Overall the itinerary was good. We saw a lot and had a great guide!
We were on the Steinberger cruise ship - I would not recommend that one again. Very limited. We were on Thai ship with another group from Trafalgar that paid less for the tour and we had no extras. We allowed one drink at dinner and one bottle of water.. anything more we had to pay for. They didn’t have coffee/tea available throughout the day for free. It seemed like they were nickel and diming the guests. I have been on other River cruises and unlimited water, beverages at dinner, and feee coffee/tea throughout the day in the lounge was accessible.
What can I say...this tour was amazing. Never thought I'd see the sights I saw on this trip, never thought any of this would be possible in my lifetime. Egypt seemed too far, too exotic, too expensive. As soon as I saw the listing for this tour, it suddenly seemed like it might be possible.
We had reservations about going for sure. We have kids, 10 and 13. There's a war in Israel. It's summer in a very hot part of the world. Do we need Yellow Fever vaccines? Will the food make us sick? Americans kept telling us it would be too dangerous to go.
None of that turned out to be a problem. Egypt was very very safe. There are police and military personnel on the streets and at cultural sites. I saw no crime, no people sleeping on the streets. No people panhandling. Going to ATMs to get cash was very safe and easy. We went everywhere from big tourist sites to small neighborhoods. Food was great and we never got sick. We didn't drink the tap water, but bottled water and soft drinks are everywhere. It was hot, but air conditioning, pools, and headscarves manage this.
I'll say this again, because I have heard a lot about this:
Egypt is safe.
It's kind.
It's welcoming.
People are excited that you're visiting from America.
The food is great, and safe.
The hotels were amazing:
Steigenberger in Giza is clean, beautiful, has a nice restaurant with free breakfast, and has a view of the pyramids, which is pretty wild.
Movenpick in Aswan is spectacular, taking up a large portion of an island in the middle of the Nile, with pools and sustainable farms on-site.
The Jaz cruise up the Nile was really nice, with good food and comfortable quarters.
The Continental hotel in Hurghada was seriously ridiculously lavish, with a private beach on the Red Sea, giant pool, a dozen restaurants, and a shopping corridor.
And the Ramses Hilton in Cairo is clean, elegant, and right in the middle of the action of downtown Cairo.
We saw a million places from ancient Egypt I never thought we'd see. I can't overstate how incredible it is to stand in front of the Sphinx, the pyramids of Giza, Luxor temple, Kom Ombo, and especially the incredible monuments at Abu Simbel...this is an optional extra tour, and a bit expensive, as it's a whole day trip, but my goodness, it's worth the long drive. Incredible.
Overall, this trip had probably the most OMG moments I've had on a trip. And I've been to some pretty spectacular places, including India, Australia, New Zealand, Hawaii, Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, Peru (Machu Picchu), the UK, and more.
Please trust me and take the trip. Ignore the warnings. It's so worth it.
This tour was Iconic as It is, I would like to tell you the whole experience.
The transportation was so comfortable and cozy. Everything was so organized and flexible, this package was enough to cover all the wonderful spots and more.
All the tours was more than I imagined.
I am so grateful that I choose your company to have an Iconic trip.
The only thing I would change is that the first day - coming right after most people had taken trans-oceanic flights and still had jet lag - was too demanding (flying to Luxor, touring Karnak before checking into ship). It would have been better to have a lighter Day One to allow for rest and time zone adjustment, and do Karnak on the way back.
The all-women's tour group and the Tour Director were outstanding and hugely enhanced the experience.
Tipping became a constant irritant and would be better if Tour Director handled tips and Insight appropriately raised the package cost, to alleviate that daily chore (ensuring correct currency & denominations, ATM visits, etc.). PS - bring American dollars in small bills.
Overall, a fascinating country, knowledgeable and constantly helpful Tour Director, and a good balance of historic and current experiences. Aswan (and the Cataract Hotel) was a definite highlight, and don't pass on Abu Simbel. It is worth the cost; as is the Aswan boat tour of the Nile (two options worth doing).
I almost didn’t book this trip, thinking I’d be “too old for a cruise tour” or that it would be rushed, crowded, or filled with too much sightseeing and not enough space to breathe. But let me tell you, this tour completely changed my mind. It wasn’t just doable it was deeply enjoyable. Everything was thoughtfully organized, accessible, and paced just right for someone like me in my early 60s who still loves to explore but isn’t looking to be on the go from dawn to dusk without a pause.
We traveled as a group yes but it never felt like we were being shuffled from one place to the next. There was enough structure to feel secure and taken care of but also these little pockets of stillness that I didn’t expect... a quiet cup of coffee on the cruise deck while the Nile slowly moved past even a moment of meditation I did on my own by the river. Those little moments made all the difference.
The temples were something else. Edfu and Philae in particular struck me, not just because of their size or detail, but their presence. There’s a certain quiet power in these places that you only feel by standing there in person. And then of course the Grand Pyramids. I thought I’d seen them already in books and documentaries, but being there… it gave me chills. There’s something about seeing them up close that stirs something ancient and humbling in you.
I came home with more than just photos...I came back with a sense of connection to something much bigger than myself. This tour wasn’t just a vacation. It was an experience that touched me deeply, at just the right pace, and reminded me that it’s never too late to feel wonder again.
