In my view, it would be hard to improve upon The Egyptian Odyssey tour. Our guide, Mohammed Ali, the itinerary, tour support staff, accommodations, meals and overall organization were fabulous! An added bonus was an exceptionally compatible and congenial group of tour participants, and a group size of only 12. Mohammed Ali is extremely knowledgeable about Egypt, its human history, natural history, culture and politics. He is also well skilled (with a strong sense of humor) in herding cats (the group) and responding to the needs and interests of each member of his tour. As an introduction to a country with such an extraordinary depth and breadth of history and culture, this tour would be hard to beat.

If you can book this tour, do it! It began with a wonderful day, and just got better every day. I lived and worked in the Mediterranean for 17 of 32 years overseas, so I’d visited Egypt several times, but on this, my first group and guided tour, I quickly realized that I’d never really seen Egypt before. Mohammed Ali, our guide, was amazing. I can’t say enough about his professionalism, his vast knowledge of ancient and modern Egypt, and his obvious love for his country. He makes one love Egypt as well. If you are lucky enough to find a tour guided by Mohammed Ali, take it! How can I pick a favorite moment? The spectacular sunsets, drinking tea with our Bedouin drivers in the desert? The strange White Desert, where wind-carved “icebergs” of white limestone float in the sand? Sunrise over the Nile at Luxor? The gorgeous old Winter Palace hotel? The staggering site of Karnak? There is no way to choose. Every day was a new delight. Never did we feel unwelcome or unsafe. The people were kind, and delighted to see us. Because so many are worried about safety, we felt almost as if we had the tombs, temples, and museums to ourselves. This is absolutely the best time to see Egypt if you want to see it without crowds and waiting lines. Road Scholar gets an A++ for this one!

Definitely a highlight of my entire life. Our guide, Mohammad Ali, is someone you want taking you on a trip throughout Egypt. His knowledge of ancient and current events in Egypt is seemingly endless, and his passion and interest in teaching others about it is contagious. We are so glad we chose this trip with the Western Desert; meeting the Bedouin people was definitely a highlight of the trip. The food was fabulous, the hotels were beautiful, and the people were friendly. We were lucky enough to, at times, be the only people at some of the sites, and even if we weren't the only ones there, Mohammed timed our tours so we were leaving as the hordes arrived. We always felt safe and secure, and the Egyptian people, to a person, were welcoming and happy to see us. This trip was all it promised and more than we even imagined.

How many times can a person say "WOW"? My adventure on Road Scholar's Egyptian Odyssey: Cairo, the Nile and the Western Desert was all that was advertised and more. Our trip was filled with excitement, learning, comaraderie, great food, wonderful accomodations, and fun every day. The program provided by Road Scholar was thoughtful and well-delivered. Tourism is sagging because the outside world is afraid to travel there. I experienced no fear on the trip. We were completely safe. I attribute the success of our tour of Egyptland mostly to our exceptional guide and Egyptologist, Mohammad Ali. He is a passionate, kind, and reliable individual. We were lucky to have met him. I recommend this trip highly.

It was marvelous! I touched the pyramids & the Sphinx. I walked thru temples & tombs that are 4000 years old! I dipped my hands in the warm waters of the Nile. And one morning before sunrise, I left my footprints in the soft sand. And another night, I gazed at a million stars over the desert, and felt the peace of the moment. We met Egyptian people who want us to tell the world that all they want is peace in their country and a future for their children and for their women. Yes, we saw poverty and unemployment and hard living conditions, but we also saw the friendly people, the strong family ties,and the smiles of the children. And the message that we heard everywhere in Egypt--please come to visit us. Do not believe all you see in the media. We want you to come to see and wonder at our antiquities, but also to know our people and our hope for the future. It was truly an amazing adventure. At many sites we were the only visitors.And I learned so much about a people who lived so many centuries ago and who left so much for us to wonder about. In the desert we went out to see the sunset each night and returned to our Bedouin drivers who served us tea on carpets laid on the sand. And I rode a camel who went wherever she wanted to.And loved it all. If you have concerns about safety, do not worry. We were safe and protected everywhere. If you want to look at a temple with 25 others instead of 2000 visitors, this is the time to go. We were alone in the beautiful white desert, marveling at the limestone formations, and then doing wheelies and riding the dunes! Our guide was Mohammad Ali. A wonderful, warm, kind man who is an expert on everything Egyptian and who knows every pharaoh and god by name. He will interpret all the hieroglyphics and tell you the stories and make you feel you were there when they were being written. Luxurious accommodations & delicious food. You will return with memories that will will warm your heart forever.

This was a trip of a lifetime. An enthusiastic, knowledgeable, and all round terrific guide Mohamed Ali and a great group of traveling companions. Do go to the western desert if you can-- it was thrilling to go on an hour long camel ride thru the desert--a highlight for me. And the sunsets out there are incredibly beautiful as is the star watching at night.

This trip exceeded my expectations and was due in great part because of Mohanmed Ali. He brought Ancient Egypt and modern Egypt alive for me. The Pyrimids, all the temples, tombs and felucca ride, Egyptian people and much more was an experience of a life time. I highly recommend this trip.

This is a great time to go to Egypt. We felt completely safe at all times, and because tourism is down, the sites are not crowded. Our group leader, Mohamed Ali was just outstanding, so look for a trip with him.

This was an outstanding trip. I really enjoyed the time in the western desert and the cruise up the Nile. Our guide was extremely well versed in the ancient history of Egypt and so friendly and helpful. All the accommodations were excellent except for the first night in the desert. It was ok, but probably only 3 star.