African Safari Club, MS Star of Luxor

Very highly recommended. At the airport we were met and greeted by ASC reps who were both courteous and efficient. Everything was perfect right from the start. The captain of the boat reversed the itinerary in order to avoid the crowds in peak season and it worked. I only that the big cruise companies such as Royal Caribbean would take as much interest in the fine detail as ASC did on our cruise. The best holiday that my wife and I have had.

The MS Star of Luxor is value for money. Good food. Excellent service with a smile. Bad point Fight home our cases were left in Luxor. However, would recommend to anyone.

It was fabulous!!!!

The Cruise onboard MS Star of Luxor overall was excellent and was thoroughly enjoyed by both of us. It represents excellent value for money when you consider it is almost all inclusive (drinks are extra even water). The staff are helpful and very friendly although I believe the ulterior motives of additional tips are behind this.

Too much time in port and not enough cruising for my liking but that is a personal preference.

It is easy to critisise and complain, and we genuinely did enjoy the holiday but they would do well to make a few simply improvements.

My review is based around the ship rather than the tours which were excellent , although tiring. We've both just come back after a two holiday in Egypt with the first week spent onboard the 'Star of Luxor' and we did have a good time.... but ....unfortunately by the end of the week the cracks were beginning to surface.

We were in a lower bunk in the bow section which was good from a engine noise point of view but because it was next to the staff entrance there was a lot of coming and going at all hours, staff talking and a permanent smell of cigarettes in our room. The ship was, as others have pointed out, refitted in 2003 but I think it could have been a rush job!, there was some tiling around the pool which had fallen off leaving some sharp edges, the railing around the outer edges of the deck was wobbly, quite a lot of the crockery had cracks or chips in them and most of the carpets had had it - nothing major - it just had the feel of a tired ship that need another refit.

The tour guides were great and very knowledgeable, but for me the tour manager drove me up the wall!, he kept doing the 'I can't hear you' routine so every greeting had to be repeated and his meetings took up far to much time for a holiday.

The food was generally good but we did notice towards the end of the week that certain dishes started to reappear in other forms.

By the end of our week we had a small booklet of receipts because they won't take money on board you sign for everything ( tea,coffee,beer,food,water), guess it works for them...

I would recommend it to a friend for the tours and staff were good at the price we payed.

The boat was well appointed, the cabins small but adequate for the length of time you spend in them everyday, the dining room was clean and the tables were laid freshly everyday, the sun deck was great, the swimming pool lovely, I could go on and on.

My husband enjoyed this trip so much, he wants to do it again and he never wants to return to anywhere we go. He loves to visit new places all of the time. He found this so trip so exciting, he wants to go again and soak up some more Egyptian hospitality and so do I.

This is an exciting but tiring holiday. Don't do it if you wish to spend a week resting. The cruising is restful but getting up in the early hours is not too easy to recover from before you go home. Avoid the light shows, they are daylight visits, repeated in the dark. Abu Simbel is difficult to recommend unless you must see those giant statues. The on-board entertainment is good and the staff decoration of your cabin each day is always a pleasant surprise. The staff work hard and are keen to please. The engines are noisy at times but you get used to it, along with the occasional diesel fumes.

If you go, ask for antibiotics from your GP in advance and take some re-hydration treatments and Imodium from your local chemist before you go. These are likely to be essential if my experience is a guide.

There are over 100 boats on the Nile, use another.

Built 1993; Refurbished 2003.

Cruise:

Luxor to Aswan cruise Feb 2007

A few niggles apart, such as loose tiles on the sun deck and a little wear and tear here and there, the ship appeared in good condition to visit the land of the Pharaohs.

Noise:

Ships engines can be noisy at the best of times, with panels rattling in sympathy with the engine. Not on the Luxor Star: the quietness of the main engines was impressive with no rattling on the Rameses deck. We went through Esna lock, docked at night without disturbing our slumber.

However we had a servicing barge parked right outside our window on Thursday night pumping something from our ship till 11pm.

River docking places are few and ships are moored next to each other with generators running. This can make overnight stays a noisy affair, as was reported from occupants of bow/stern cabins. As the suites are situated at the front and stern I'd think twice about shelling out on expensive suites, the noise is worse!

Otherwise sailing on the Nile is a smooth affair, the only ripples you get are from other vessels, which because of their size do not affect the boat at all.

Service:

Egyptian on-board staff are all male, obliging and helpful. The cabins are well laid out, with double or single beds, a fridge and a b/w TV with mostly Egyptian programs, why bother watching it anyway?

On return from excursions, the room service had cleaned our room and made some intricate sculpture with the towels, bedspreads and some of our personal items: a crocodile, a boat, a palm, a man sitting on your bed etc.

Food:

Restaurant meals were self service, of good quality and plentiful for the price of the cruise. There are always 2-3 fresh salads, washed in bottled water so we were told, two meats, plenty of veg and a good range of desserts or fruit.

Bar:

A pleasant bar with a dance floor on deck 4 but also a quieter area further on. Drinks are relatively expensive.

Entertainment

A good Derwish show was put on Tuesday night, with a dancer turning for 10 minutes on the spot without stopping.

Wednesday was Disco, Thursday we all dressed up for dinner in Arabic tunics, shawls and headgear and played party games all night.

The Arabian gear was bought cheaply in a bazaar, not without a Monty Python style haggle, or on board in the ship's shop.

It would not be a Nile cruise without a belly dancer on Friday.

Excursions:

10 excursions were included in the basic price, Karnak temple and Temple of Luxor, Valley of the Kings, Valley of the Queens, Colossae of Memnon, Temple at Edfu, Kom Ombo Temple, Aswan Dam, Philae Temple including a transfer to the island on small boats and a trip on a Felucca on a traditional sail boat on the Nile.

All scheduled excursions delivered what it said on the tin.

Optional trips:

Evening sound and light show at Philae temple, better light show than Karnak.

Coach trip to Abu Simbel, get up at 3 for a 4 hour convoy there, then 4 hours back.

Evening Sound and light show at Karnak temple was poor.

Flight to Cairo for Pyramids, Lunch, Egyptian Museum, Bazaar, get up at 3am!

Hot air Balloon trip at Valley of the Kings was 45 minutes.

Shopping opportunities:

Alabaster factory was very basic, a lot of hassle.

Papyrus workshop let you see how it's produced but where do you hang these works at home?

The Perfume factory visit in Aswan. Many Essences were on sale as used by Chanel, Dior, Prada etc. bit of a tourist trap.

DIY shopping:

Morning stroll through the Aswan/Luxor bazaars, highly recommended if you want to interact with the locals whilst shopping. Always haggle and always watch your change! Even the official Post Office in Aswan tried to diddle us and gave us the wrong change.

Dress code:

Always casual. If travelling in Winter/early Spring, take a jumper or jacket for the morning visits. Winds can be chilly.

Overall impression: Good value for money.