Category: Travel experiences

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Hotel Review – Citymax Hotel, Aswan, Egypt

Having decided to leave my Nile cruise on Day 4, I checked into the Citymax Hotel in Aswan for one night, before returning to Luxor by train.

The hotel is conveniently located on the Kornish Al Nile, which is the main riverside promenade. I chose the hotel principally for its proximity to the main railway station, around a five-minute walk away.

I booked a junior suite, mainly because it offered a balcony and was the only smoking room available. The suite was clean, sufficiently spacious for one person and comfortably furnished.

The attached balcony was sheltered, private and offered a rather engaging view of the Nile.

The hotel has a rooftop pool, which I didn’t try in the cooler winter temperatures.

The property also offers a very basic restaurant with takeaway style food, which was at least served hot. For the convenience of not having to venture back out and run the gauntlet of the persistent and ubiquitous street vendors, I was content with it.

At $141 or £112, this room was expensive by local standards. For one night, however, I considered it well worth the outlay for the convenience, comfort and ease of access.

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Tour Review – Nile Cruise, MS Zaina, Luxor to Aswan, Egypt. Day 3.

Following a more successful second day on the cruise tour, I awoke in the next destination of the tour, Edfu.

The first of day’s activities was a visit to the world famous Temple of Horus, completed in 57BCE.

The transfer to the temple was scheduled to be by carriage, drawn by horses and donkeys. However, I refused to participate in this on ethical grounds, due to the obvious maltreatment of the animals. Much to the chagrin of my tour guide, I opted instead to take a taxi to the temple.

Having rejoined the rest of my tour group, I spent around an hour viewing the impressive temple, dating from the Ptolemaic Kingdom.

After around an hour at the temple, I returned to the ship, again by taxi, for breakfast and the first full day of cruising towards Aswan.

I spent most of the day on the rooftop deck of the ship, as we passed the riverside villages and desert scenery.

Before the ship’s arrival in Aswan, there was a short stop for a sunset visit to the majestic Kom Ombo Temple, also dating from the Ptolemaic Dynasty.

Apart from the experience with the abused animals, this had been a relaxing and enjoyable day. However, it emerged over another mediocre dinner that things were about to take a turn for the worse, as the schedule for the remaining three days was announced.

It emerged that there would be no further cruising for the next 48 hours, and that the ship would again be moored in port.

It also emerged that Day 5 would involve a 4am pick up, for an eight-hour round trip to Abu Simbel in the same rickety and overloaded minibuses which had taken me to the hot air balloon site on Day 2.

It was at this point that I made the decision to leave the cruise in Aswan the following morning. My tour agency, Get Your Guide, agreed to a 50% refund for the unused nights. I considered this a reasonable resolution.

Having seen most of what I wanted to see in Egypt, I decided to return to Luxor by train for a three-day break at the Pyramisa Hotel.

In conclusion, the cruise tour included some excellent highlights. The hot air balloon flight on Day 2 was spectacular, and the cruising on Day 3 was pleasant.

Overall, I am glad that I had this experience. However, in my opinion, there were simply too many annoyances to justify recommending a cruise tour of this length.

If you really want to take a Nile cruise, my advice is to look for a one- or two-night cruise, operating one way between Aswan and Luxor.

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Tour Review – Nile Cruise, MS Zaina, Luxor to Aswan, Egypt. Day 2.

Following a disappointing first day on board MS Zaina, it was time for the highlight of the tour, a hot air balloon flight over the Valley of the Kings.

I woke around 3:15am for a 4:00am pick up. The first part of the journey was by chartered motorboat to the West Bank of the Nile, which was rather pleasant in the cool morning air.

I was then taken to the hot air balloon site by minibus, which was overloaded and somewhat uncomfortable, but manageable for the roughly 40 minute journey.

I arrived at the site around 6:00am, in time to watch the balloons being prepared.

It was then time for the breathtaking dawn take-off, along with dozens of other balloons, for the spectacular 45-minute flight over Thebes and the Valley of the Kings.

The balloon flight was a memorable experience and well worth the early start.

The second part of the day’s activities consisted of a tour of the Valley of the Kings, including visits to the Tomb of Tutankhamen and the Temple of Hatshepsut.

Late in the afternoon, I returned to the ship, which began to move towards the next stop of Edfu.

There was around three hours of early evening cruising, as the sun set over the riverside villages.

This had been a very full day of activities and it was with some relief that I heard the following day’s pick up would be a later start at 8am.

This had been a much better day, and I retired to bed in a much better mood than I had the previous evening.

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Tour Review – Nile Cruise, MS Zaina, Luxor to Aswan, Egypt. Day 1.

Following a short stay in Luxor, it was time to join my long awaited Nile cruise on board MS Zaina.

On the first day of my cruise, I was picked up from my city hotel at around 8am, for a pre-cruise tour of the sights of Luxor’s East Bank.

The first stop was the iconic Luxor Temple, known as “The Southern Sanctuary” and dating from around 1400 BCE.

The next stop was Karnak Temple, dating from the reign of Senusret I.

The temple is home to an open air museum and is one of the most visited historical sites in Egypt.

Having spent around an hour at each temple, I joined the ship at around 11am for the passage along the Nile to Aswan.

I had booked my cruise via Get Your Guide and was assigned to the MS Zaina.

Photo courtesy of Egypt Joy TravelPhotograph courtesy of Egypt Joy Travel.

On the face of it, the ship looked comfortable. The cabins were nicely furnished and well equipped, and there was also a rooftop pool available.

Unfortunately, this is where a series of annoyances began.

Firstly, I was informed that all cabins on the ship were non-smoking, despite my having been promised by Get Your Guide that I would be allocated to a smoking ship. I escalated this to Get Your Guide and was simply stonewalled, without even an apology for being misled.

Secondly, it emerged that there would be no actual cruising that day, the ship simply remaining in port, moored tightly between two other ships.

This was my view for the remainder of the day.

The cruise included meals, which were served in a buffet setting. The food was luke warm and rather uninspiring, but at least edible.

After a disappointing first day, I was looking forward to the following day’s hot air balloon flight over Luxor, which will be the subject of my next article.

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Hotel Review – Pyramisa Hotel, Luxor, Egypt

After a few days in the UK and an uneventful EasyJet flight, it was time to begin my long-awaited Nile Cruise.

I chose the reasonably centrally located Pyramisa Hotel as a base, both before and after the cruise.

On my first stay, I received a Nile View King room, which was comfortably furnished and reasonably spacious.

The air conditioning controls were rather rudimentary, but it worked perfectly.

On arrival, I found that a snack and, thoughtfully, an ashtray had been left in my room.

The river-facing balcony was a very agreeable place to enjoy the warm evening air.

The hotel is equipped with two swimming pools, but sadly I found the off-season temperatures were not quite high enough for me to venture into the water.

The poolside bar, on the other hand was much more my style.

Having checked out the buffet and decided that discretion was the greater part of valour, I contented myself with a visit to the on-site pizzeria and an Egyptian beer.

I was pleased enough with the Pyramisa Hotel to return after my Nile cruise for a second stay, for which I received a Nile View Twin room with terrace.

Overall, the Pyramisa provided good value for $73 (£56) per night and I considered it to be a decent choice for a short stay.

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Hotel review – Relais Hotel & Spa (now Clarion) Paris CDG

After my two comfortable flights with Eurowings and Lufthansa I had a two night layover in Paris before continuing to the UK and Egypt.

I chose the Relais Hotel & Spa near CDG airport (now reflagged as the Clarion Paris CDG), as I didn’t feel like dragging my luggage into the city.

I had stayed at this property some years before, when it was flagged as a Crowne Plaza, so I knew roughly what to expect.

The property, along with several others on the Allée du Verger, is an easy 10-minute shuttle ride from the airport.

I had booked a Studio Double, which was comfortable and well equipped with a small kitchenette, a refrigerator and a safe.

The bathroom was a good size, with a bathtub, a walk-in shower and separate lavatory.

The room was also equipped with a balcony, which although not exactly aesthetically pleasing, was very welcome for a committed smoker like myself, even in a cold and crisp Paris December.

The first of a couple of annoyances came when I found the promised pool and spa closed.

Having promised myself a relaxing swim, I decided to head out to the municipal pool in the nearby village of Roissy-en-France. This proved to be a somewhat surreal experience, as I had forgotten the unique rules at municipal swimming pools in France. My swimming shorts were immediately frowned upon and I was wordlessly issued a bright red swimming cap and Speedos, both of which were rather ill fitting.

I will spare readers any pictures of this particular spectacle, but suffice to say I have now made a mental note to check for any pool closures at hotels, particularly in France.

Since I was in the village and having been well fed on the flights, I decided to skip the hotel restaurant and pick up some snacks to eat in my room, before an excellent night’s sleep.

Breakfast was a very relaxed and civilised affair and I stayed in the restaurant for around two hours, enjoying the full hot and cold buffet and some excellent coffee.

The hotel is located conveniently enough that I could head into the city by train for the intervening day. I have been to Paris a number of times, so I just took a short stroll along the Seine to reacquaint myself with some of the iconic landmarks.

The next annoyance came that night. Having settled down early before a morning flight to the UK, I was abruptly awoken at 1:30am by a fire alarm. After around half an hour of being kept standing in the car park, I must admit that this produced some rather ripe French from the author, suggesting that I would not be best pleased if there was no fire.

Despite the annoyances, I can say that this is in fact a good hotel. The rooms are very comfortable, the breakfast was excellent, the pool and spa are now refurbished and fully open, and I am sure that the fire alarm was an isolated event. Along with the balcony and the convenient location, it ticks all my boxes.

I look forward to returning to this property to experience it under it’s new Clarion banner.

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Flight review – Lufthansa Business Class, Frankfurt – Paris, with Senator Lounge Frankfurt

Following a pleasant flight from Punta Cana back to Europe, I had a short connection to make from Frankfurt to Paris CDG.

After 9 hours on board that flight, my first port of call was the Camel smoking lounge, conveniently located airside.

With my nicotine craving satisfied, I headed off to the Lufthansa Senator Lounge, which can be accessed by American Express Platinum card holders travelling in Lufthansa Business Class.

The first thing I wanted was a shower. However, there was a waiting list and I had to pick up a pager to notify me when a shower was available.

In the meantime, I decided to grab a quick coffee.

After a few minutes, my pager bleeped and it was time to check out the shower suites, which were well appointed, spotlessly clean and very welcome after an overnight flight.

The lounge itself was quiet and pleasant with a reasonable breakfast selection and an impressive array of refreshments.

Having already eaten breakfast on my inbound flight and looking forward to lunch on my way to Paris, I contented myself with some rather overcooked sausages, Spanish tortilla and a cheeky Rum & Coke.

On arrival at the gate, I noticed that the flight had been delayed for 30 minutes and there wasn’t actually an aircraft at the gate.

This was soon rectified.

Once on board, I settled into seat 2C, which is a bulkhead aisle seat and probably the best seat in Lufthansa’s short-haul configuration. Although it is the usual intra-European business class standard of economy seating with a blocked middle, it offered extra legroom and was perfectly acceptable for this very short flight.

Shortly after take-off, I was served a light lunch of salmon and a glass of German Riesling.

The salmon was tasty and wonderfully fresh and the Riesling, although sweeter than my usual choice of whites, paired well with it.

Very soon after I finished lunch, we were on final descent to CDG and the flight was over in the blink of an eye, a pleasant way to round off a 6-week trip.

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Flight review – Eurowings Discover Business Class, Punta Cana – Frankfurt

Following a delightful trip to the Dominican Republic and the USA it was time to return briefly to Europe.

This was done using Eurowings Discover’s long-haul business class, purchased as the return half of a round trip from Paris, which included a superb outbound flight on Air Canada.

My flight was scheduled from Punta Cana at 19:10, landing at 09:30 in Frankfurt. I found this to be more or less an optimal timing for an eastbound overnighter, as it allowed me a couple of hours after take-off to enjoy dinner and a few drinks before settling down for a decent few hours of sleep.

My evening started at the VIP Lounge Terminal A, which is a basic, catch-all contract lounge used by a number of airlines as well as Priority Pass. Although the lounge was nothing special, it was a perfectly decent place to wait and enjoy a couple of pre-flight beers.

Once on board, I took my seat in the centre pair of the 2-2-2 configured business class cabin. In this configuration, I always prefer the centre pair of seats, as it offers direct aisle access to both passengers and avoids the annoying “climbover factor”. As it happened, I was pleasantly surprised not to have a seat neighbour, which proved advantageous later.

Nuts and aperitifs were served shortly after take-off. I opted for a glass of the New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, which was served nicely chilled.

Dinner followed soon after with a choice of courses and a reasonable wine and cocktail list.

I chose the serrano ham to start, which was decently presented and fresh, served with another glass of the Sauvignon Blanc.

The beef tenderloin was my choice for the main, accompanied by the Argentinian Malbec. Beef is often not a good choice on flights, as it is nearly always overcooked. Whilst this was no exception, it was still tender and tasty.

I rounded off the meal with the cheese platter and some more of the Malbec.

After a few cognacs, I reclined the seat into flatbed mode and settled down to sleep.

Although it felt rather narrow, the bed was comfortable enough to sleep reasonably. The one thing I noticed was the foot space was rather small and angled toward the neighbouring seat.

As the seat next to me was unoccupied, I was easily able to slide one of my size 12s over to the other side of the divider, but the configuration could have been awkward if both seats had been occupied.

I managed around 4 hours of decent sleep and awoke around an hour and a half before landing, ready for breakfast.

Breakfast was a Spanish tortilla, served with bread, cheese and fruit, along with orange juice and coffee.

We landed a little ahead of schedule in Frankfurt, with more than enough time to catch my connecting flight to Paris, which will be the subject of my next review.

This Eurowings Discover flight exceeded my expectations. While the hard product is decidedly mid-table in business class terms, the service was friendly and attentive. I had a comfortable flight with a decent meal and a good few hours of sleep. I arrived in Frankfurt ready for the day ahead. For a little over £1,000 ($1,300) for a transatlantic round trip, I couldn’t ask for more than that.

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Hotel review – Four Points by Sheraton, Punta Cana, Dominican Republic

In between my flights from Paris via Montreal and to the USA I spent a total of four nights at the Four Points by Sheraton, near to Punta Cana Airport.

Although the hotel is rather overpriced by local standards, with rates often hovering around the $200/£160 mark, I chose it for the convenience of its location near the airport. I was also able to mitigate the expense by using the last of my Marriott points for two of the nights.

The hotel is reached in around 10 minutes by a free shuttle, which can be ordered via a free telephone located just after customs clearance.

The rooms are functional, comfortable and reasonably well appointed.

The hotel also offers a buffet breakfast at a cost of $23 (£18) per person.

The hotel also has a small swimming pool, which in Punta Cana’s tropical climate is rather inviting.

Whilst this was a perfectly comfortable hotel to while away a couple of layovers, one thing did leave a rather sour taste. On checking in for my third stay, I noticed a mysterious $40 additional charge on my folio, which was not brought to my attention.

Upon enquiry, this was vaguely and variously described as a resort fee and later as a tourist tax.

After a discussion with a member of management, this amount was offered to me as a restaurant and bar credit and covered a steak sandwich and a few beers on the pool terrace.

In conclusion, this hotel is a reasonable option for a short layover, if convenience for the airport is a major factor. However, be sure to check your bill and obtain a satisfactory explanation for any additional charges.

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Destination guide – Grand Canyon South Rim, Arizona

After flying to the USA from the Dominican Republic last Autumn, a good friend of mine and I took to the road to visit the Grand Canyon.

As we only had a few days to view this magnificent landmark, we decided to visit only the South Rim.

The South Rim is generally considered to be the best option to visit, in order to gain an overview of this spectacular natural feature.

As we visited during the late Autumn, we had to be a little patient and wait for the right conditions, but we were eventually rewarded.

As you can see, Autumn is a wonderful time of the year to appreciate this stunning vista.

On our last day, my friend ventured out in the early hours to capture the panorama in the dawn’s auroral glow.

We spent two days appreciating this captivating landscape and we could very happily have spent much longer.

The South Rim offers dozens of viewpoints, each of which offers a unique perspective on the topography.

Due to the distances between these viewpoints, it is highly advisable to travel by car, although many of the points are served by relatively frequent buses from the Grand Canyon Village and lodges.

If time is a precious commodity, as it was for us, I would suggest staying in the village lodges. We chose the Maswik Lodge, which I will review in the coming days.

All of the photographs featured in this article were taken by my good friend, Stefan Mundt of Eagle Studios in Racine, Wisconsin.

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