Cairo

Travel Advice for Seniors: Cairo

We had long anticipated a trip to Egypt and were extremely excited to get a cruise on the Nile lined up. We used Viking to book our cruise with flights taking us between major areas. We had used Viking previously and had not been disappointed. However, for several reasons this trip was not as stellar as we had hoped.

Part of the reason was that we were visiting about ten months after Arab Spring, which had its beginnings in Cairo. As such, security was extremely high, our vehicles were inspected at every location and we had to go through security and have our bag searched at every destination, sometimes we would have to go through this process six times a day.

A second reason was that the vendors in Egypt were EXTREMELY aggressive. There was an instance where a vendor threw a blouse at someone, which they of course caught, and then demanded payment. Vendors were literally in your face even when in the parking lot trying to get on the bus. And while I understand that everyone needs to make a living and during the Arab Spring there were no tourists, it was still a major turn-off.

Finally, WIFI on the boat was non-existent unless we were docked and then it was very, very slow and unfortunately, I had work going on stateside. None of this was the fault of Viking, who put together a great cruise package and who always had outstanding accommodation and meals on their boats.

After all of the obstacles though, we still managed to have a good time and take in some of the most incredible sights in the world.

We started with drive out to the Saqqara Necropolis, it is a step pyramid and is a short drive south of the city. The largest archeological site in the country, Saqqara was the vast necropolis of the Ancient Egyptian capital, Memphis. The Step pyramid of Djoser is one of the oldest in the country.  

Next up was a trip to the Giza Plateau and Great Pyramids of Khufu and Menkaure. Interestingly, the Great Pyramids are nearly in the city limits of Cairo. The Giza pyramid is also the oldest and largest of the nine at the Giza Necropolis and is the final resting place of king Khufu. Also in this development is the enigmatic Sphinx, interestingly, it is sort of buried in the ground so you have to walk down to get close to it. This stop also included a short camel ride.

The second day we toured Cairo’s Museum of Egyptian Antiquities. At the time, the Egyptian Grand Museum was still several million dollars in renovation fundraising away. The museum was dusty and didn’t appear well maintained, but the sights were awesome. The Museum has the largest collection of Pharaonic antiquities in the world. We saw several pieces from King Tutankhamun’s tomb, which was the highlight of our tour. Tons of monuments and artifacts, statues and sarcophagi. There were many top sights on this trip and this was definitely one of them.

 We also took a guided walk to Citadel of Saladin, a medieval Islamic-era fortification and Mosque of Muhammad Ali. The mosque was constructed to commemorate the memory of Muhammad Ali and his role in Egypt’s independence from Ottoman influence. He is also buried there.

We stayed at the Sofitel Cairo El Gezirah. The rooms were comfortable, and the location centrally located. though we didn’t venture out of the hotel except as part of a tour.

Following our two days stay in Cairo, we were on our way on our river cruise down the Nile!

Where we stayed: Sofitel Cairo El Gezirah. Breakfast included. Nice accommodation.

How we got there: Flight from US to Amsterdam then to Cairo and private transfer to hotel.This was part of a twelve-day cruise on the Nile.

General Accessibility Information: Egypt is generally not considered very handicapped accessible, with limited wheelchair accessibility in most places. Some tour operators offer accessible tours, and some high-end hotels are accessible. Some landmarks that are accessible include the Luxor Temples, Egyptian Museum, Aswan Dam, and the first floor of the Egyptian Museum of Antiquities. Call in advance to verify and make specialty arrangements.See our sections on specialty apps and accessible travel for more on accessibility assistance.