Djed Tours Egypt 2024

Two friends and I traveled with Djed in January 2022. It was a fabulous trip and I would not hesitate to travel with them again. We traveled in January, which was much cooler (and sometimes colder!) than your trip will be in the summertime. We had a dedicated Egyptologist with us everywhere we went, who guided us (just the three of us!) in Cairo, in Luxor, in Abu Simbel, in Aswan, and on the dahabiya. We had several different Egyptologists and they were all great. Much more about them in my trip report, linked below:

Here is my trip report: https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/two-wonderful-weeks-in-egypt-a-travel-report

Thanks so much! I read your report a couple of weeks ago! Glad to hear your trip went well. I have had Egypt on my bucket list for many years. It’s a dream come true!

What was your experience with the Valley of the Kings? Do you recommend any specific tombs that we should visit? We have signed up already to do 3 of the extra ticket tombs - Tut, Seti I, and Ramses VI. We need to choose 3 more that would be included with general admission.

Here's a guide that might help you answer your question: https://www.timetravelturtle.com/best-tombs-valley-of-the-kings-egypt

Although there are 63 tombs in total, there are only 18 that are ever open to the public. And, even then, never all of them at the same time. The authorities change things regularly to help preserve them.

So you may not necessarily get your choice.

When I was there this past October, I visited the tombs of Rameses I, III, and IV, plus Tutankhamen.

It was horrendously hot in Egypt in October (well over 100 F), and even hotter in the tombs. You might not want to overdo it in summer.

I traveled with Djed twice -- in 2020 and 2021, and I would travel with them again without hesitation.

Basically, they have a city representative in each major city -- Cairo, Luxor and Aswan -- who meets you at the airport and arranges guides, drivers and whatever other resources you need. My experiences with their guides and drivers have always been superb. I learned a tremendous amount during my trips.

They will send you extensive information about travel details before your trip. The main thing to be aware of early on is that Egypt is a tipping society, and you will need to budget for tips for guides, drivers, the dahabiya crews, ... and basically everything. That's just the way things are in Egypt.

Also, make sure that you are happy with your itinerary because that's what the guides go by while you are there. They will arrange whatever you want to do, and they stick closely to it. If there is something you are on the fence about --- like going inside the Great Pyramid -- just let them know, and they will quote you an optional price for an on-site decision.

A big plus for us was how Djed handled the early days of the Covid shutdown. Our first trip was in March 2020, and, unfortunately the Egyptian government ordered all the airports and hotels to shut down about half way through our trip. We were on the dahabiya, somewhere between Esna and Edfu, when Djed called us to deliver the bad news. Djed told us that we needed to find a flight, any flight, out of the country before the shutdown. After we identified a flight, Djed was willing to take us whatever airport we needed -- Cairo, Luxor, Hurghada, or Sharm El Sheik to catch our flight and get out of the country safely. As we were searching for flights, the guide and the entire dahbiya crew assured us that there was nothing to fear, and that if for some reason we were not able to get out of the country that we were welcome to stay in their homes and with their families for as long as necessary. Eventually, we found a flight from Cairo, and Djed was able to get us from Esna to Cairo in time for our flight. On top of that, Djed gave us a credit for everything we missed in 2020 when we returned to Egypt in 2021. We could not have asked for more professional handling of a very difficult situation.

The only negative is that they can take a long time to respond to email and itinerary requests. When we were planning our original trip, the owner of the company insisted on preparing all the itineraries himself, and the company was getting to size at which that wasn't practical. I think that they have since hired additional people to help create itineraries.

A few random notes from your itinerary:

• Giza Pyramids -- If you are the sort of person, like me, who likes to ride every camel and go inside every pyramid, it's a lot to squeeze the Giza Pyramids, Saqqara and Dashur into a single day. On our second trip, we opted to spend a whole day at Saqqara, and I enjoyed it a lot.

• The farmhouse lunch, if it's still in the standard itinerary, in Saqqara is a real treat.

• I really enjoyed spending the night at Abu Simbel. Not many tours do that, and I enjoyed the Nubian vibe of the little village almost as much I enjoyed the temples.

• The dahabiya cruise is amazing. I am looking for an excuse to do it again someday. Bring a swimsuit because you might have an opportunity to swim in the Nile.

• Luxor. Think about whether you want to see any of the premium tombs -- Ramses V/VI, Seti, Tutankhamun, or Nefertari --- at the Valley of the Kings/Queens. They are not included with your regular ticket.

• Luxor. We enjoyed a felucca dinner cruise, catered by Sofra, so much in 2020 that we wanted to do it again in 2021. Sofra, a restaurant owned by Djed, is seriously good. We ate there several times and always enjoyed it

Have a great trip, and don't hesitate to reach out if you have any questions.

Superb responses. Thanks so much!

We won’t be spending the night in Abu Simbel since the next morning we board our cruise but I will plan that stay over on the next trip.

We are interested in seeing the crocodiles - not sure if that’s possible in the wild or if we have to go somewhere that they are kept captive. Did you hear about them while traveling in upper Egypt?

As for the Valley of the Kings, do they take you around in covered trams or do you need to walk a lot? I’ve seen both online. I would imagine many of the tombs are far apart and require going some distance between them.

I had researched specific tombs in Valley of the Kings before our trip, but then received very good advice on this forum that I might do well to leave it to our tour guide to recommend the general admission tombs for us on the day that we are there. That turned out to be very good advice. It seems that tombs can be open or closed on any given day, and we would only find out which were open once we are there. Our guide was a university educated Egyptologist who knew about each of the tombs and could recommend which three we would be enjoy given what was open that day (and given our limited stamina for LONG descending staircases). Also, there is a fair amount of walking up to the tombs area from the parking lot. I do not recall seeing any other form of transportation up the long sidewalks. It will be HOT while you are there and no shade. There are also usually long steps and/or ramps down into each tomb. If you are really planning on visiting six tombs, you may be surprised how very exhausting your time in the area will be in the very dry heat. Bring PLENTY of water with you and please do wear a hat, sunscreen, etc.

Also, re. crocodiles: I don't recall seeing any, although there may have been crocodiles in a caged area at the temple at Kom Ombo, where we stopped during the dahabiya cruise. Your guide may point out some pits near the temple where it's possible that crocodiles were kept long ago. There is also a museum to crocodiles at that site, and you can go in and visit it if you wish to do so. I wasn't particularly seeking crocs out because I live in Louisiana and have plenty of opportunities to see their alligator cousins!

As far as I know, there are no crocodiles in the wild north of the Aswan High Dam. We saw what we thought might have been a crocodile at Abu Simbel, but closer inspection of the photo when we got home showed that it was only a floating stick. Sigh. We saw some crocodiles in pits at Banana Island not far from Luxor, and we saw lots of mummified crocs at Kom Ombo.

At the Valley of the Kings we took a tram from the main entrance to general tomb area. After that, we walked. I don't recall any of it being strenuous. (Now, the some of the pyramids are a different story. The Red Pyramid was a workout, and I have heard that the Bent Pyramid is even more of a workout. )

I agree with jmauldinuu to take your guide's advice on which three regular tombs to visit at the Valley of the Kings. The premium tombs are entirely up to you.

I just re-read your original post and noticed that you are going in the summer. Egypt was plenty warm in March and October. You are a brave soul to do it in the summer.

And one more thing .... pictures are here, if you are interested:

From 2020 - https://mariematthews.smugmug.com/Egypt

From 2021 - https://mariematthews.smugmug.com/Egypt-and-Istanbul

I wonder if the tram at the Valley of the Kings is a seasonal thing. We were there in early January and did not see a tram or golf cart-like vehicle) running between the parking lot and the tombs area.

Thank you everyone! Great advice. We want to see as much as possible but also be conscious of the heat. We have both traveled in desert conditions in the western USA so we know our limits and how we need to avoid overdoing it. I wish I could have gone during the winter but I am a teacher and I don’t have a long enough winter break to go somewhere like Egypt.

Marie,
Those are spectacular photos. Did you have issues with using your camera? I use a Nikon D500 and I’ve heard if you do use a large camera they either make you pay extra or make you put it away.
Thoughts everyone?

Cameras were not a problem at sites, but you should avoid using flash inside tombs and temples. I seem to recall that we were asked not to use cameras inside the temples at Abu Simbal a request which seemed to be ignored by most visitors! Your guides should let you know about camera usage. I hope you will include a visit to Queen Hatshepsut’s funerary temple, near the Valley of the Kings. It is a stunning building beautifully decorated and with great views from the top.

of a grand staircase over to the Nile. I did the hot air balloon ride - absolutely stunning. the balloons were filling with air as the sun came up, and then we lifted off just as the dawn broke. The flight took us over farms and temples in the soft early light and when we landed the ground crew welcomed us with mint tea and a song. All this required an early departure from Luxor (I think we got up at 3 am), a ferry over the river and a bus to the take-off site. Our hotel had prepared us a picnic breakfast and a coffee shop provided much needed caffeine! We managed to keep going on the morning program of visiting more funerary temples and lunch before heading back to Luxor for a much needed siesta. Definitely a highlight in a trip of highlights!

Thanks so much. About cameras ... yes, there were a lot of restrictions. The best thing I did photo-wise was to upgrade my phone a few months before my first trip.

Your big camera is fine outdoors, but it's pretty much prohibited in any interior space, including all tombs and museums. Even at the Nileometer in Cairo, I had to leave my camera with our driver. Theoretically, you can buy a photo pass for the tombs in the Valley of the Kings, but our guides discouraged it. I didn't see a single big camera in any of the tombs. In 2020 I could bring my camera into the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, but I wasn't allowed to use it. In 2021, I was required to check all my camera gear outside the museum. I think they might have had some issues with social media influencers.

However, you can shoot with your phone absolutely anywhere. There were no restrictions on that.

My favorite shooting experience was in the markets in Daraw. (Our guide did ask us not to photograph women there.) Also, the streets behind the Winter Palace in Luxor were wonderful.

You probably won't have any problem with dust in the summer, but we encountered a couple of dust storms in March 2020. (Dust storms are common in March and April.) My camera and lenses were weather sealed and were fine, but the dust destroyed my friend's point & shoot camera. Even outside of dust storm season, I would avoid lens changes as much as possible.

I carried two m4/3 bodies, one with a 12-100mm and another with an 8-18mm. It all fit into a 6L bag. The 12-100mm was my real workhorse most of the time.

If you have a D500, I am guessing that you might enjoy wildlife or bird photography. You will see a lot of waterfowl on the dahabiya. If that sort of photography is your thing, you might enjoy a long lens just for the dahabiya. I doubt you will use it anywhere else. On the first trip, I took a long lens (100-300mm). On the second trip, I left it at home because I didn't want to schlep the extra weight for the entire trip. I didn't particularly miss it on the second trip.

Did you compare Djed with other tours? There is no discussion of price on your thread.

We took a 13 day tour of Egypt with Gate 1 that included all your places, but we were NOT interested in a Dahablya cruise. Cost was almost half of Viking and the best deal around.