Yay or Nay on Viking Tour: Egypt Departing 3/17

I recently booked an Egypt and Jordan tour for next January, through Intrepid. Here is their update:
In response to this rapidly evolving situation, we have made the decision to cancel all departures of Intrepid trips to Egypt, Jordan, Oman and Saudi Arabia from 4th March up to and including 31st March 2026. It appears the tour leaders currently in country are assisting anyone who wants to depart early? So maybe it's a choice?
Odysseys Unlimited has an update on their website and refers to the current "level 2" for Egypt, but also the mandatory evacuation to Cairo for return to home countries for those currently on tour and has cancelled the upcoming tours, through April.
What a challenging decision for you (and a tragic situation overall). Likely only you can decide but were it me, I'd want to know what specific level of support Viking will provide, should you need it. And are you registered with the State Department?

"We have “cancel for any reason” travel insurance."

I'd probably check the parameters for your cancel for any reason insurance. Those policies are generally not really cancel for ANY reason but they are cancel for any reason the insurance sets out before you purchase. It might not cover cancelling because there is war in a nearby country and you are tentative about travel.

Oooph, that's a tough one. We have quite a few friends in Jordan, as well as some working in the Gulf, and they are all quite shaken up. Life is not normal there at all. I tend to think that Americans are generally too risk-averse to travel, as I felt safer living in Amman than I did in major US cities, but I wouldn't travel there now. While enrolling with STEP can be helpful to keep abreast of information, keep in mind that American citizens are completely on their own if they want to evacuate. Friends of ours drove 15 hours across multiple borders in order to leave Doha. Other friends are evacuating Saudi now on commercial flights. On the other hand, a friend who has lots of ties in Egypt says that life is pretty normal there. I think the concern would be if the war spills over, which it certainly could.

I was going to say the same thing as Pam. Read your policy carefully and then talk to the insurance provider and get their response in writing if they say your reason qualifies.

I lived in Saudi Arabia for five years and am very familiar with the Middle East and Egyptian situations. I have been to Egypt 3 times and most of the Arab countries on the Arabian Peninsula.

The Egyptian government provides armed guards for group tours. My wife and I took a great Gate 1 Travel tour and river cruise about three. years ago in Egypt. In my opinion, the country is safer than it was 10 years ago.

Is it safe now, I see no reason to cancel your Viking Tour. I believe if Viking thought it was dangerous, they would cancel the tour.

Whether to go or not really depends on your risk tolerance. If you think you would feel uneasy the whole time, then perhaps now is not the time for you. OTOH, as you rightly pointed out, the State Dept advisory has remained unchanged at a level 2, similar to the advisories currently given by the UK and Canadian governments. There were videos released 3 days ago by 2 different Americans who live in Egypt and conduct tours. Both reported business as usual in Egypt - that nothing has changed since last week's war against Iran began. They also pointed out why they dont think Egypt would be a target- there are no American military installations in Egypt and they have tried to mediate in previous de escalation efforts.. We just returned from Egypt a month ago, and would return again tomorrow if we could.

gwen, we just took the Viking cruise tour to Egypt in January. I saw no evidence of any anti-Americanism, in fact we felt very welcomed. People there are just living their lives, and Iran is just another foreign country to them. Viking provided very comprehensive security and escorted the tour everywhere, from airport arrival to airport departure at the end.

Just my opinion, but the one outcome that impacts everyone everywhere, is the rise in oil prices. Thats more likely to trigger unhappiness than politics or religion.

At this point in time no. Don’t go. Yes Egypt will have armed guards but Iran has been hitting other countries with its missiles and unfortunately I think some crazy people may start targeting Americans as this war drags on. This isn’t your average war like the Gulf War. Most Americans have left the Middle East and there are few embassies and help for Americans. And we have an unstable president in charge.

I’d cancel if your policy allows it and I’m usually not one to worry.

Any word on your Viking Egypt cruise? Hoping things work to your best outcome!

Personally, if I were on that tour and Viking didn't cancel it, I'd go.

But that's not advice. That's just based on my personal level of risk tolerance. Only you can determine what your level of risk tolerance is.

It's my understanding that Iran has ceased launching missiles at other Arab countries. But even if that is true, it doesn't mean things will change tomorrow or next week.

There are no guarantees that you will be safe on any tour in any part of the world. There's also no guarantee that you'll be safe if you stay home.

It's interesting that Egypt is still a "go" for Viking - seems most tour companies have canceled their tours there for the month of March (I know, for example, that Overseas Adventure Travel has done this), even though Egypt itself is deemed a safe travel level. Lots of info online about tour companies getting people out of the area. I'd be tempted to just wait until after the March 12 "resumption" date and see if Viking cancels, but that depends on your comfort level....

Thanks to everyone for your thoughtful input. From multiple sources, including 2 acquaintances who live in Cairo, life in Egypt has not been affected at all. Our concern isn’t of a military attack, but more of a lunatic from some splinter terrorist group doing something that would disrupt the trip, the flights, etc. While it’s true that bad things can happen anywhere, anytime, entering a “hot” part of the world less than a week from now seems irresponsible, and this lifetime dream of a trip would be marred not only by our own worry, but by knowing how many friends & family would be worried about us the whole time. So, we’ve opted for “better safe than sorry,” but I reserve the right to pout. Viking is honoring the 110% vouchers issued when they first canceled, so we’ve re-booked for early next Feb. Viking has even refunded the cost of the travel insurance we purchased through them.

We also received this from STEP this afternoon:
“U.S. Embassy Cairo advises U.S. citizens to closely monitor the news for regional developments related to military operations in Iran. U.S. citizens should exercise caution and remain aware of their surroundings.
Due to high tensions in the region, the security environment remains complex and can change quickly.
U.S. Embassy Cairo is open and operating normally. The State Department’s Travel Advisory for Egypt remains unchanged at Level 2 ‘Exercise Increased Caution,’ with ‘Do Not Travel’ guidance for the Northern and Middle Sinai as well as parts of the Western Desert We will update this guidance if new information indicates a different threat level. Airline travelers may experience outbound flight cancellations or delays depending on airspace status of destinations.”

Reading between the lines: The U.S. doesn’t want to piss off an ally, but really doesn’t want its citizens going there right now.