Dear Amanda,

I want to thank you for a fantastic dream trip that really fulfilled all my wishes. It's so hard to believe how well everything went, even with all the doubling back and forth to get me on and off the dahabiya (which in itself was a real fantasy come true). Emad deserves special kudos for his flexibility and good humor as well as his amazing knowledge (and letting me win at backgammon!).

I've attached two photos of a desert fox in its den that I would appreciate you forwarding to my desert guide Mohammed (sorry, didn't catch his last name). He said it was the first time he'd seen one in its den.

I'm looking into Jordan for a future trip and will certainly contact Lady Egypt again to help plan it.

Sincerely,

Maggie

We had the most amazing trip for 16 days in November 2011. Nothing was too much trouble for Lady Egypt and we felt like friends rather than customers. Mahmoud in Cairo and all the Agents in Aswan, Luxor and Hurghada were amazing, as were our guides Sobhy and Mahmoud. Thanks to you all we had the holiday of a lifetime.

Sorry it has taken so long to write and let you know that we had the time of our lives in Egypt!

We so much want to say thanks to you for all you did for us and that we will recommend you to all our friends.

not only did we love our guides and all who helped us in making sure of our comfort, but also the people of your county! And please let Paul know how much we enjoyed his help and caring for our behalf. We hope that you and yours and the new one in your family, live a prosperous, and enjoyable life. maybe you can travel to Utah someday, we would be so glad to have you for a visit! it is beautiful here! i hope that we can keep in touch, if not, we will be back to your country for another visit. thanks again,,,,

rick and kathy gowers

Hi Amanda,

We are all home safe and sound from our marvelous Egypt/Jordan trip and we want to thank you so much! We appreciate everything that you, in putting together our itinerary, and the guides, drivers and representatives in both countries, did for us . Everyone from your company did their best for us and as a result we had the trip of a lifetime. Egypt everywhere we went exceeded our expectations. And our time in Jordan, especially of course Petra, was wonderful. Bob and I were thrilled with our desert/oases leg, too. I know I speak for all of us in expressing our gratitude to all of you at Lady Egypt.
Sincerely,
Lorrine

Hi Boles and management of Lady Egypt,

Sorry I did not write any sooner. I was still travelling and just settle back home.

Just want to let you guys know what a wonderful and unforgettable trip you have planned for us in Egypt. We really appreciate it. Now we keep thinking of Egypt and look forward to going there again soon.

Firstly, Egyptians are such warm and friendly people. We have travelled to many countries but we have never met such beautiful people. Secondly, your country is full of historical and legendary treasures. Our whole trip was exciting all the way.

Lastly, Lady Egypt played a big part on our successful trip. Very organized and meticulous. We were so well taken care of.

A great big hug to you guys and all our tour guides. You made us very happy and will never forget all of you. Once again, thank you for everything!


Nearly forgot to mention the most important thing. We want to let you guys know what a good guide we had in Cairo – Ibrahim Mostafa. Two thumbs up for him. We highly praise and recommend him as one of our best guide ever. I am sure he will be able to take very good care of all your clients and he is very proud to represent Lady Egypt. We are very happy and proud of him too.

Warmest Regards,

Martin and Lynda.

Hey Sarah,

Whew! Finally I am clear headed enough - for me, that is - and have a few minutes to write and thank you and your team for the wonderful time we had in Egypt. Superlatives abound. We learned so much about the country and the people and felt so welcome. Everywhere we went, we talked to anyone who'd give us a minute about the political situation and their hopes for the future. We discovered Egyptians have a tremendous sense of humor and truly seemed to enjoy chatting about everyday things with annoyingly curious tourists.

You might want to know about our guides and reps. I didn't get last names, so I hope there's a record somewhere. Your representative in Cairo - Mohammed who picked us up at the airport - was fantastic. He was sophisticated and welcoming and professional - say hi to him for us please. We enjoyed talking to him and appreciated his input into our plans. The second Cairo representative, Mohammed II who took us to the airport for departure - seemed very harried so I suspect he had to fit us into his broader schedule. Thank him for us please. All the other reps were professional and welcoming. They put a good face on Lady Egypt.

All our guides were wonderful. I have to confess, I'm not a fan of guides. I haven't had many good experiences with them as they have an agenda to get me into someone's shop and I figure a good guide book suites me better. If I like a guide it's because they talk about more than the sights. I like to get an insight into people's beliefs and hopes and fears - you know what I mean. Thank you, and I know Mohammed told everyone, for making sure the guides knew we didn't want to wast any time in papyrus "museums" . They all made suggestions but didn't push when we inevitably said thanks but no thanks.

Mahmoud in Cairo was very knowledgeable and his English was excellent. If I were to make a suggestion to him, I'd suggest he plan tea breaks (we had to insist ), or an interesting local restaurant for lunch and be more proactive in shooing away the touts. Islamic and Coptic Cairo is a long day and if he had taken us to an interesting restaurant, we would have appreciated that very much. One thing that I'm confused about is that he discouraged us from exploring on our own...of course we ignored that. He has a great sense of humor and our conversations veered off into a lot of different avenues. Since Mahmoud is a very devout Moslem, my husband (being from Iran and experiencing first hand what religion can do if it gets political power) got a kick out of discussing religion with him. Needless to say, we got into a lot of interesting discussions and I appreciated Mahmoud's good humor. I think Jennifer, Tom and Parviz liked him best.

Mostafa in Abu Simbel was jolly and interesting. I was thrilled he suggested lunch at Eskaleh Eco Lodge. That was a fantastic experience - great food, outstanding service, lovely location. The owner (big Nubian guy in native dress) and manager (Belgian white guy) took us on a tour of the lodge and discussed anything we wanted. I'm glad we didn't stay there because the rooms were too primitive for us. Mostafa respected our independence, encouraged us to explore and is very pleasant.

Mahmoud in Aswan and Luxor (he also got to sail on the ship) was extremely knowledgeable, a great source of information about local culture, and encouraged us to explore. His knowledge of the complex history of the sights in those areas was impressive and he is a genuinely decent person. He was my favorite guide because he was so interesting to talk to and anticipated our needs (except that he forgot to look for shade a couple of times). He was very pleasant and enjoyable to spend time with.

All our drivers were wonderfully skilled (we felt safe) and pleasant. Mr. Ashraf in Cairo was our favorite person in Egypt. When we return, we'll just ask you to assign him to us - no guides - and we'll be off. He's smart, an excellent driver and very professional.

Hotels: They were all fabulous.
The Seti could pay more attention to the rooms but the location and grounds are lovely.
Mena House - gorgeous, fantastic setting, the best service anywhere, wonderful restaurants - best for people who don't want to be in Cairo.
Cecil - lovely old hotel (best for people who like that - me), slam dunk location, delightful staff, good food - did I mention location?
Movenpick - very nice hotel - lovely location and rooms - ferry to mainland easy and quick - staff OK
Marriott - loved this hotel (my husband's favorite because he likes the business hotel feel)- location and ambience perfect
Restaurants: Eskaleh has fantastic food, service, ambience - a highlight of the trip.
Abu el Sid - we loved the food and ambience.
Sequoia - wonderful food, setting and service. Perfect for our last night.
Drinkies - duh!
Al Masry in Aswan - decent food, not much ambience, great service, cheap
Delices in Alexandria - great cafeteria with excellent food and service
Fish Market in Alexandria - our least favorite meal - fresh fish but bland

Sights: My favorite - The Pyramids and Sphinx, Abu Simbel, Philae, Valley of the Kings/Queens and Hapshepsut's Temple, anywhere in Cairo, Catacombs
and Corniche in Alexandria

Favorite experiences - sailing down the Nile, walking through Abu Simbel the town at night, wandering the streets, buying an oud in Cairo, the chaos in
Ramses station, wandering through the Egyptian Museum

The cruise ship, Sonesta Star Goddess, was lovely. It was a shame that only 8 out of 33 cabins were occupied. It broke my heart to see how many jobs have been lost. The ONLY problem the ship had was plumbing. We changed our cabin because the plumbing in the bathroom in our first cabin reeked. The second was much better, but we still had a slight odor. The Seigners experienced the same slight odor as well. Three people, one was Tom, got sick on the ship. The staff was very accommodating and pleasant. The cabins gorgeous - a wonderful experience.

What I'd change: I'd carve one more day into Aswan. I loved that city and didn't have time for the Nubian Museum. The Nubian Village (next to the Movenpick) we visited wasn't one I'd choose - it was more like a Nubian slum with a zoo feel. There are better Nubian villages.

I'm glad we: chose to fly internally and went to Alexandria on our own

Parviz took the opportunity to meet with two colleagues from the Cairo Univ School of Medicine while in Cairo. I know it's work, but pleasant work. He's an editor for Pediatric Research and is trying to introduce regional pediatric research from areas of the world that usually don't get to publish in western medical journals. The people he met with are enthusiastic, so we'll see what happens.

In closing, thank you Sarah for showing up at the Marriott to say hello. It took me a minute to figure out who Sarah was when Jennifer introduced you - I wasn't expecting you (I have a slow brain most of the time) and although you did tell me you wanted to meet us, I just wasn't thinking. I posted on Fodor's about how wonderful LE is and what a great time we had. I'll also be seeing Judi Strong (she visited Egypt last November - I think it was Nov - with LE) at a wedding this weekend. She read my report and wants to return - it's always best the second time around.

I have to tell you that being in Abu Simbel, I was tempted to slip over into Sudan...how interesting would that be? Tom and Jennifer had all the Africa inoculations but Parviz and I need yellow fever first...do you do Sudan and Ethiopia? Parviz and I are planning to get in as much adventure as we can before we're confined to cruise ships and our children's guest rooms. Next year is Tibet, Nepal, Darjeeling and Sikkim (we've been to Nepal and other parts of India so we know what we're getting into) and the "Stans" after that. Egypt-Sudan-Ethiopi a? Someday?

Say hey to Mohammed and Mr. Ashraf please. Keep up the good work and please contact us whenever you're in the area. I'll have you over for dinner and a swim - that would be lovely.

Take care,
Linda

Dear Mohamed,

Very many thanks for yet again organising a truly wonderful tour for us.

Everybody we met seemed remarkably up-beat about the Revolution, and we hope and pray that all now goes well for the wonderful Egyptian people.

I have to say that Mo, Saleeb, Mahmoud and Ashraf are simply marvellous!

I shall no doubt be in touch in the future!

With every good wish,

Peter

Hi Mohamed Kamel - thanks so much for assisting us in our trip. We had a lovely time with Lady Egypt. Everything went smoothly and it made our trip to Egypt a very memorable one.

Hi Sarah

I have been meaning to write for a while but since returning home to Australia have been flat out with work and getting my home and gardens back into shape after being away.

Firstly my daughter Thalia and I absolutely loved our time in Egypt = the people, the places, the history, the dance. Lady Egypt was there to greet us at the airport and Ahmed kindly took us to the hotel and gave us information along the way of the different sites of Cairo

We want to thank you very much for organing our trip to Dahab where Ahmed Enany looked after us very well – giving us enough space to do things we wanted as well as being available to organize whatever activities we wanted. We found him to be very friendly, polite, considerate and caring.

After Dahab we joined Margaret Cunningham’s group tour with Lady Egypt. I’m sorry I didn’t get a chance to talk to you more at the Zayed Hotel as we were all off on a tour and Thalia and I were late coming down. We felt like we were very well looked after at every stage of our tour. All the group leaders and drivers were always very friendly and helpful. We had the time of our lives and imagine our delight when we were upgraded to the dahabaya from the felucca. We loved our two days on the Nile – the crew were wonderful, the facilities fantastic and one of my fondest memories is anchored on the side of the Nile with a campfire and our Nubian crew playing instruments, singing and dancing with us under a nearly full moon – truly memorable. Back in Cairo Mohammed took good care of us again.

We have absolutely nothing but praise for Lady Egypt and indeed both my daughter and I have highly recommended your tour company to people who are considering traveling to Egypt. Thank you and all your wonderful staff for helping to make our trip a truly wonderful and memorable time.

I certainly intend to return to Egypt again in a few years and of course now I feel very happy to either join one of Margaret’s groups or to organize something through you.

Once again than you for your efforts and energy.



Mudita

Dear Mr. Kamel,

Thank you for arranging our sightseeing in Egypt last month. My mother and I had perfect tours in Upper Egypt and Sinai, and I had a perfect tour of Cairo. We will tell our family and friends that they should book their Egyptian tours through Lady Egypt and request our Upper Egypt guide, Mohamed Garib. I am writing this email to explain why my mother and I believe that Lady Egypt is so lucky to have Mohamed on staff.

Mohamed's excellent English, ability to captivating stories, and deep knowledge of Ancient Egyptian history brought Egypt's rich history to life. My mother and I quickly fell in love with Egypt, mostly because Mohamed's pride in his country is so genuine and contagious.

Mohamed's professionalism is incredible, especially considering his age. At each monument, he welcomed us, explained its importance and how it related to everything else we were seeing, guided us through the monument, and then left us some time to explore for ourselves. Even though Mohamed has probably seen each monument a hundred times, he seemed as enthusiastic as if it was his first trip. At the same time, he was not too eager: he asked us questions to find out how much we already knew, how much more we wanted to know, and then adjusted his presentations to fit our interests rather than telling us everything he knew about each monument.

In short, Mohamed is the perfect guide. He was such a great guide and such a responsible, trustworthy, and fun person while we were in Upper Egypt that I booked additional services through Lady Egypt in order to have him guide me around Cairo while my mother was teaching. Even though his specialty is Upper Egypt, he was able to tell me everything I wanted to know about the Citadel, Coptic Cairo, the antiquities at the Egyptian Museum, and the Pyramids at Giza. I do not know if he prepared extra for that tour or if he just knows Egypt so well, but it is clear that he is committed to being the best guide in Egypt.

Thank you again for arranging all of our sightseeing in Egypt. We will book our tours through Lady Egypt on our next trip. Also, we have been telling all of our friends and family that they should visit Egypt as soon as they can, and that they should book their tours through Lady Egypt with Mohamed Garib as their guide.

Best Wishes,
Beth Forsythe