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.