February 10 (Wednesday): Trying to Depart the US
We were supposed to depart this day; however, major snowstorms on the East Coast ended up postponing our flight until the next day. We had been watching the weather, and we actually moved our flight ahead one day even before the airlines/airports cancelled/closed. I felt better having the decision in my own hands rather than being at someone else’s mercy, and it turned out to be the right one.
February 11 (Thursday): Departing the US
Parking: We used Air Park at JFK for the second time without any problems. The only potential snag was that they moved the entrance for their parking lot from a side street onto the main thoroughfare.
JFK Airport: Terminal 3 is pretty nice; however, we didn’t spend much time in the public areas. As American Express platinum members who were travelling on Delta, we had free access to their club/lounge, so we spent our waiting time there. There’s a huge duty free shop in Terminal 3, along with the usual array of shops, restaurants, and currency exchanges. JFK Airport
Delta Flight: The flight from JFK to Amman was fine. There were a few open seats, so my husband and I moved from into the center aisle of the 2-3-2 configuration with an empty middle seat between us. The flight attendants were friendly and the service was fine. Food was decent, considering it’s airline food. In coach class, movies are played on the general cabin screens, one right after the other, so you don’t have a choice as to what you watch when, but it wasn’t as problematic as I had envisioned it would be. I would use Delta again for the right price and/or itinerary. We chose them over Egypt Air or Royal Jordanian because they flew nonstop to both Amman and Cairo, and it allowed us to have an open-jaw itinerary. Delta Airlines
February 12 (Friday): Amman to Petra
Amman Airport Arrivals: This is a calm and manageable airport. We had to buy our visas, then stand in line for customs/immigration. The purchasing was quick and easy, but the rest of the process was rather slow and laborious, passing your documentation from one man to another, taking your photograph, etc. We exchanged enough US dollars for Jordanian dinars before departing the US, so we did not first have to stop at a currency exchange in the airport. We had no problems whatsoever at the airport; baggage claim was easy and we found our driver quickly. Amman Airport
Desert Horizons Transfer: Our driver, Ahmed, met us at baggage claim as planned. Desert Horizons deserves my kudos because we had to change our plans at the last minute due to the snowstorm. Mohammed, the general manager, communicated with me via e-mail many times over the past several months, then more frequently as it became evident that we would have to adjust our plans because of our late arrival. We intended to spend our first night at the Kempinski Ishtar at the Dead Sea, but we had to bypass that and go directly to Petra because of missing a full day. We had intended to do some sightseeing en route to Petra, including Bethany Beyond Jordan, Mount Nebo, and Madaba, but we had to skip those. We did get to visit Kerak on our last day en route to Jerash rather than on our first day as originally planned. Desert Horizons
Link to My Review of the Movenpick Petra
February 13 (Saturday): Petra
Petra Tour: Our driver from Desert Horizons, Ahmed, hired a local guide to give us a tour of Petra. (Only Petra certified guides are allowed inside.) Petra is amazing, and rounding the last corner of the Siq to catch your first glimpse of the Treasury is priceless. We hiked to the Monastery, and the view is a nice reward after the climb. Maybe I would try a donkey the next time and conserve my energy. We rode on horseback from the ticket area to the entrance (included with your admission, but not necessary--it’s walkable on foot), and took one of the horse-and-buggies back out in the afternoon. I was impressed by the facilities inside--restrooms (although port-a-potties) and even a full-service restaurant run by the Crowne Plaza (there were real restrooms there). We did not climb to the “high place” of sacrifice, choosing to hike to the Treasury instead. You can easily spend a full day in the site, if not two. I thought that one full day was perfect, but I think my husband would have liked to return a second day to explore further.
February 14 (Sunday): Petra to Jerash to Cairo
Desert Horizons: Ahmed met us early in the morning and drove us to a crusader castle (I can’t recall the name but it might have been Shobak) before visiting another crusader castle called Kerak (from the Kingdom of Heaven movie). As a fan of the movie, I think my husband enjoyed the visit, but it was not a must-see in my book. I would recommend hiring an on-site guide, because it was VERY dark inside, and the directions were not clearly marked. Jerash, on the other hand, is fabulous! Having recently visited Turkey, I wondered how the site would compare to Ephesus, Priene, Miletus, Didyma, and I think Jerash is equivalent if not better in some ways. The yellow wildflowers around the site were in bloom, making it very picturesque. The theatre is not impressive compared to Hierapolis in Pamukkale, Turkey, for example, but Jerash has a huge number of standing pillars that are quite impressive, along with some other well-preserved structures such as colonnaded streets, plazas, and arches. I would definitely recommend it.
Amman Airport Departures: As I said earlier, this is a calm and manageable airport. You must clear security in order to check in for your flight, and they don’t allow you to pass through until 2.5 to 2 hours prior. We used Egypt Air, but it seemed to be staffed by Royal Jordanian employees. Check-in was quick and easy, as was passport control. There is a nice duty-free shop in the airport, along with two or three other small shops, a few eateries, and a currency exchange. We ate at a full-service brasserie, where we felt the food and drink prices were fair, considering it was an airport. You are able to smoke in the airport in designated rooms; there is even a smoking room off each departure lounge.
Cairo Airport Arrivals: We found this airport to be a little hectic after the peace of the Amman airport. We got our Egyptian visas prior to leaving the US, so we were able to bypass the bank windows where everyone else had to stop to exchange money and/or purchase their visa. We had no problems with immigration, customs, or baggage claim. We went to the Marriott desk (the JW Marriott shares with the Cairo Marriott) in the arrivals area, but there was no employee present as we had been told to expect. We did see a man in a suit with a Marriott nametag, who told us that the $30 Lancer car that we had arranged through the hotel and asked to have added to our bill would take a very long time to get there. He instead offered us another car service for the same price, but we had to pay cash. It was hard to know if he was scamming us or not, but things turned out fine. You have to sign your name in a big book upon leaving the airport, just prior to the tolls. There is a duty free store in the arrivals area, but you cannot use it unless you just arrived internationally. There is also a convenience store, where we stocked up on drinks and snacks (prices were really reasonable even though it was the airport). There are restrooms and a smoking room in the baggage claim area.
Link to My Review of the Cairo Marriott
February 15 (Monday): Sakkara, Dashur, and Giza
Casual Cairo Detours: We booked about six months ahead with Debbie Senters of Casual Cairo Detours. Debbie is really responsive to e-mail questions, and as you probably already know, she is a frequent contributor to this board. We booked an Egyptologist for one full day tour in Cairo to the pyramids, including Sakkara, Dashur, and the Giza Pyramids and Sphinx. Mustafa was our Egyptologist guide, and Matmoud was our driver in a ?? nine-passenger van, even though it was just the four of us. Mustafa was very personable and knowledgeable, and we were happy with his services.
February 16 (Tuesday): More Cairo Tours
Casual Cairo Detours: We arranged to have an Egyptologist (Mustafa again, but this time without a driver) pick us up at the Marriott and give us a tour of the Cairo Museum. We debated about trying to see the museum ourselves versus using a guide for a half day. Deciding to use the guide was THE best decision--he knew exactly where and when to go to certain areas in the museum, thereby bypassing all the crowds (although we were told it wasn’t particularly crowded on the day that we visited). The security lines are fairly long to enter the museum grounds; if I have a tip, it’s to choose the line on the right when looking directly at the museum. Once you choose a “side”, the lines are contained by pillars, and it’s not really possible to switch from one side/line to the other. You can take photos outside the museum of the grounds (and there are some interesting artifacts to photograph), but you cannot even take your camera inside the museum at all. You must check it next to the security office, where they give you a claim check for when you return. The lines to retrieve cameras were longer than any other lines on the day we were there. Restroom lines inside are long. There is a small gift shop and a small cafeteria. People really complain about the conditions at the museum--hot, dark, crowded--but I really didn’t think it was bad. For our half-day afternoon tour, a Casual Guide, Jim, and his driver, Tariq, met us at the museum and drove us to the Citadel, which was marginally interesting, followed by a trip to the Khan-el-Kalili bazaar. I’m not much of a shopper, but I did want to buy some cartouches at Gouzlan Jewelry to give as gifts. I bought five double-sided silver cartouches, with Arabic on one side and hieroglyphics on the other; they came with a choice of 16”, 18”, or 20” chain and were enclosed in a small velvet pouch. They also have a cheat sheet to understand the writing. I placed my order around 4 pm, and Gouzlan delivered to the Marriott by 10 pm that evening. Their prices seemed fair, and they took credit cards and charged in US dollars, so no added foreign conversion fee. We ate kosharry at the bazaar, which is a traditionally Egyptian food, particularly in Cairo. Delicious! We were eating it on the street and some of the locals got a big kick out of us eating their food. One man chuckled, saying it was the first time he had seen tourists try kosharry. Highly recommended!
February 17 (Wednesday): Luxor West Bank Tour
Casual Cairo Detours: We asked Debbie to arrange an Egyptologist for us for our two days in Luxor. Moemen was our guide; again, he was very personable and knowledgeable. We had a driver as well, but I don’t recall his name. We visited the Valley of the Kings on what was the hottest day of our trip--we think it was 105 degrees--a definite heat wave for Cairo at this time of year. We were not able to take our cameras into the Valley of the Kings. Not only can you not take photos inside the tombs, but you can’t even take photos on the property (this is a new rule made within the past two months, we were told). We went inside three tombs: Seti I, Seti II, and Tutmoses. We did not pay the extra fee to see Tutankahmen’s tomb. I did not find the Valley of the Kings particularly enthralling, but it’s on everyone’s to-see list. It was hot outside, it was even hotter in the tombs, and the lines were long and slow moving. We also visited the Valley of the Queens, including Hatshepsut’s Temple (which was more interesting, and the first glance we had of enormous lifelike statues). We also visited the Colossi of Memnon, which I liked.
Link to My Review of the Hilton Luxor
February 18 (Thursday): Luxor East Bank Tour to Cairo
Casual Cairo Detours: Moemen (and a different driver) gave us a tour of the East Bank sites, including Karnak Temple and Luxor Temple. I don’t recall the driver’s name, which is unfortunately because he was the best one we had during our entire trip. He brought along a cooler packed with cold drinks, which we appreciated immensely, and hopefully our extra tip covered whatever costs he incurred for the beverages. Both Karnak and Luxor Temples are amazing, and must-sees in my book. Moemen took us to his neighborhood sheesha “joint” for drinks and a smoke at the end of the day, which was a unique experience.
Link to My Review of the Novotel Cairo Airport
February 19 (Friday): Cairo to Abu Simbel and Back
Cairo Domestic Departures: Very clean, spacious, comfortable terminal. Gates are somewhat far apart, but there are maps telling you how many minutes it will take to reach each gate. A great idea--one that I wish other airports (particularly in the US) would copy. There are smoking rooms in the domestic departures area, and a few shops and cafes as well as vending machines. They make lots of announcements for boarding. The domestic flights we took all required us to board a bus and drive out to the tarmac, without the aid of jetways. Even our international flight home boarded the same way--bus transport, then climbing exposed stairs to board.
Abu Simbel Airport: Very tiny, as expected! One restaurant/cafe (where you could smoke) and one small souvenir shop. There were plenty of seats for waiting, and the restrooms were clean, well-stocked, and of course, attended (I don’t recall seeing a restroom in all of Egypt without an attendant). We spent much more time at the airport than necessary, but it was a fine place to wait.
Aswan Airport: We had a four-hour layover in Aswan. When I booked our Abu Simbel itinerary, there was a direct (but not non-stop) flight from Cairo TO Abu Simbel via Aswan, but the direct return was already full. We chose to visit Abu Simbel on a Friday because there is a later afternoon return flight to Cairo on Egypt Air, but we really had more time at the site than we needed. When I originally booked, it seemed that a quick one-hour breeze-through wouldn’t be enough, but in retrospect, it would have been fine. It was nice to see the site deserted, though, after the morning crowds had gone home; it was much easier to take photos without hordes of people in them. There’s a nice shady patio cafe just outside the site, and a gauntlet of souvenir shops. If you hire a local guide onsite, be sure to tell him how much time you have. Our guide grouped us with another couple, and assumed that we were on the whirlwind tour, when we actually had lots of time for him to really educate us on the place. We did a short 20-minute tour with the guide, then took another more leisurely look around ourselves. We also walked to the nearby Nefertari Hotel, thinking we could have lunch and a drink, but it was a scary place! We ended up having drinks in a dark, non-air conditioned bar adjacent to the dining room; it reminded me of a circa-1970s basement. I’ve since seen some photos online, and it appears that there is a pool; it would have been nice to have drinks outside near the pool, with a view of Lake Nassar in the background.
February 20 (Saturday): Cairo Relaxation Day
Our flight back to the US departed just after midnight, so we booked our hotel for another full night, even though we would be checking out around 10 pm. We slept late (missing the breakfast buffet, which ends at 10:30 am), then spent the day lounging by the pool. I wish it had been a nicer pool, but the area was clean, there were plenty of umbrellas (although chairs and towels were harder to come by), and large open grassy spaces so you didn’t feel cramped. There was even some marginal drink/food service by the pool. This was the only day we had free time to relax, so it was well deserved and appreciated. We had a late lunch/early dinner on the patio outside the main restaurant, Le Rendezvous. The food and service were fine; no complaints.
Cairo Airport International Departures: This is a different terminal than we had used previously for our domestic flights. There is some shopping and a few restaurants/bars. You can get beer in international departures. They start the boarding process nearly 3 hours before the flight--there is lots of security. There is a smoking room in the international departures building, though none once you pass through the gate security; the same is true for restrooms once you pass through the secondary gate security.
February 21 (Sunday): Arrival in the US
Delta CAI to JFK (Coach): We scored some exit row seats on the return, which gave us lots of extra legroom. That made the flight much more bearable. It was freezing next to the exit doors, though; I think it was the first time that my husband and I were actually cold on a flight--ever!
JFK Arrivals: We arrived 45 minutes early-woo hoo! The only problem was that it dumped us into immigration along with three other large flights, so the wait time was long. I think we spent about an hour. There’s a currency exchange just outside of baggage claim in case you have an foreign money you want to convert to US dollars. There are also soda machines if you need a drink for your ride home.
