Our trip to Egypt is LIVE! + Staying safe in the woods
Published 3 months agoย โขย 7 min read
Hi Reader,
I hope you are doing well wherever you are.
Last week, we celebrated St Jordi (St George) in Catalunya, the most beautiful day of the year, our version of Valentines Day, the day of books and roses ๐น
The legend says that on this day, George the Knight killed a dragon that laid siege to a village and demanded a damsel a day to eat. Where he died, a rose grew and ever since then, we celebrate the day by exchanging roses and books.
Traditionally, men give roses, women give books, but in reality everyone gives books and roses to everyone and authors set up stalls in the streets of Barcelona to sign their books.
I had not been in the city on this day for almost 25 years, so this time I wanted to really make it special and spend the day immersing myself in this beautiful tradition and it was as magical as I wanted it to be, albeit pretty crowded.
Meg is still sharing stories of our most recent tour to Egypt on Instagram. Follow the trip here to see what we are up to.
In this week's email ๐ฉ:
Our 2027 Egypt tour spring tour is live! Come join us on this journey through ancient and modern Egypt, from the buzzing streets of Cairo to the calm Sahara oasis of Siwa.
This week's episode of our podcast is live! This week we are talking to Nicole about keeping safe in the woods, and beyond. Go listen to Nicole explaining how she was attacked in Madrid and how she put in practice everything she had taught for years.
We are back to Egypt in 2027 for another incredible year!
Our Egypt trip is a bit different from the many options out there, and that's why we get so many raving reviews (read reviews here):
We stay at amazing luxury 4-5* hotels, not generic 3* hotels that are dated
We combine Ancient Egypt with modern-day Egypt
Our trip is active and explores Egypt from all angles; 4x4 desert safaris, hot air balloon ride, boat excursions, food & shopping tours
We have optional extension to Siwa, a highlight for everyone who comes
Dates:
2 to 11 April (2 to 14 April with Siwa)
Itinerary: Click here to see the full day by day itinerary on our tour page.
Itinerary highlights
Here are the places we will visit:
The pyramids
โ
We will spend a whole day at the Giza pyramids and Saqqara, the oldest pyramid in Egypt. We will visit some tombs and take photos by the Sphinx. We will have lunch with pyramids view, in a privileged location, and take photos from an isolated spot devoid of other tourists.
We will start early, so we are the first ones to enter the pyramids complex and enjoy the entire area to ourselves. Since our hotel is right in front of the complex, we can easily get there before the tour buses arrive.
In Cairo, we will also visit the Grand Egyptian Museum, the largest and most impressive in the country, where we can see Tutankhamun tomb and treasure, among many other Egyptian artefacts.
Luxor
โ
Luxor is the gem of the Egyptian citivlisation.
We will visit the stunningly decorated tombs of the Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut's Temple, the only female pharaoh who decided to build her temple in the Valley of the kings, and Luxor and Karnak Temples during the day when most tourists aren't around.
This is also where you can sign up for an optional hot air balloon at sunrise over the Valley of the Kings and the River Nile.
Aswan
โ
Aswan is a wonderfully relaxed city only made better by our night on a 5* Nubian boutique hotel with each room enjoying a garden with Nile River views.
We will enjoy afternoon tea with sunset views at an uber luxe historic hotel and visit a Nubian village on a gentle boat tour through the conservation area. We will also visit Philae Temple, standing on its own island.
Abu Simbel Temple
โ
We will fly in and out of Abu Simbel to avoid the 4 hour drive, and spend one night there to avoid the crowds that come on day trips. This way we can enjoy a crowd-free visit in the afternoon and sunset on this mind blowing temple followed by the light show under the stars. Abu Simbel will leave you speechless.
Old Cairo
โ
We will walk the streets of Old Cairo, which most tourists avoid, on our walking food tour that will explore Egyptian traditions, street food and female owned stores and stalls.
We will also walk Moez Street, known as a live museum, and the colorful Khan El Khalili market, ending with a rooftop lunch at a female owned traditional hotel and restaurant.
Siwa Oasis
โ
If you can, I would DEFINITIVELY recommend joining us for this optional extension.
We will spend time in a remote desert oasis, floating on salty thermal lakes, getting lost in labyrinthine mud villages and sleeping under the clearest of skies. Peaceful, lush, and remote, unlike any other part of Egypt.
Here are the things previous guests loved about our trips and that make us different from other trips to Egypt.
โ
Independent travel in Egypt is tough: Touting at the sites is tiresome, even for experienced solo travelers, and there are no signs or explanations anywhere so a guide is essential to highlight info and tell you what you are looking at and tie it all together so it makes sense. Getting around the country is not easy either, so private transportation is useful.
โ
We have designed the program entirely to avoid crowds and be alone at temples, tombs and sites. We have had some of the crowded sites like Abu Simbel, the Sphinx, Saqqara tombs and pyramid, Hatshepsut's Temple etc. all to ourselves on every trip, so you can enjoy them without having to fight people or feeling like a sardine in a steaming can. It makes all the difference.
We can do this because everyone visits at the same times, so with our expert local knowledge, we can go when nobody does. It seems so easy, but the majority of tours, especially those on Nile cruises, literally visit the sites at the same times because they are on a set schedule, and all river cruises do the exact same itinerary on the same days. Crowds are my pet peeve, and avoiding them, my obsession.
โ
We stay at BEAUTIFUL hotels. Many guests tell us that the hotels we stay at are the best they have ever stayed at. In Cairo, we stay right by the pyramids, so you can have breakfast with the best views. In Luxor, we stay at a magical palatial luxury boutique hotel. In Aswan, we stay at a Nubian inspired, villa-hotel with river-facing rooms. If you like to treat yourself, no other tour has such fabulous accommodation.
โ
We support women, of course, like on all of our other tours, and our guide is just phenomenal. Fun, energetic, knowledgeable and caring. We will eat at several restaurants owned by women and visit stores owned by women.
โ
We go where others don't: We visit the most remarkable ancient sites, but skip the ones that are less interesting so we can spend time in old Cairo, having a decadent afternoon tea with sunset felucca views and visiting under-the-radar Siwa Oasis.
This week's podcast episode is a conversation with Nicole Snell around staying safe in the woods and in the wild in general, including the nightlife in European cities.
Nicole has been teaching self defense for years and does so to groups of students and at Army bases. She most recently had a scare in Madrid during a night out, and put in practice everything she had been teaching which gave her extra learnings and insights.
Listen to this conversation between Anastasia and Nicole in this week's episode.
Check out all the details of the podcast here, listen to the episode and start following us [Solo Female Travelers Podcast] on your favorite podcast platform so you don't miss an episode:
โ