Al Moudira Hotel
Jun 9th, 2005, 04:34 PM
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Al Moudira Hotel
Has anyone stayed at the Al Moudira Hotel outside of Luxor? It looks fabulous.
http://www.moudira.com
http://www.moudira.com
Jun 9th, 2005, 09:18 PM
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Al Moudira is lovely ! We stayed there at the beginning of April this year and loved it. If you enjoy different experiences when staying in hotel accommodation, you will love Al Moudira. It is a very different, very relaxing place and the food is very good. Don't expect manicured gardens and pristine tidiness - that is not the Al Moudira concept. It is such a different kind of place that I find it hard to describe - go and see for yourself!
Al Moudira is not in Luxor itself, but the journey to it through countryside and small villages is like journeying through a scene in the Bible. It is wonderful to return from a busy sight seeing trip to the calm of Al Moudira. Hotel staff will arrange tours or taxis for you - a taxi to the ferry across the Nile is about 25 Egyptian pounds. We had a taxi for four hours for 90 Egyptian pounds - the driver took us wherever we wanted to go, waited for us and advised us on how to make the most of the trip.
Is there anything specific that you want to know about it ?
Gaynor
Al Moudira is not in Luxor itself, but the journey to it through countryside and small villages is like journeying through a scene in the Bible. It is wonderful to return from a busy sight seeing trip to the calm of Al Moudira. Hotel staff will arrange tours or taxis for you - a taxi to the ferry across the Nile is about 25 Egyptian pounds. We had a taxi for four hours for 90 Egyptian pounds - the driver took us wherever we wanted to go, waited for us and advised us on how to make the most of the trip.
Is there anything specific that you want to know about it ?
Gaynor
Jun 10th, 2005, 09:18 PM
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I received prices for Al Moudira yesterday. 170 euros for a deluxe room and 220 euros for a junior suite. prices include tax & breakfast. That translates to about $206 & $266 american dollars.
Jun 11th, 2005, 10:00 AM
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We booked this trip online through a UK agent, Kuoni (www.kuoni.co.uk)and as we had a 3 centre holiday I'm not sure how much we paid for Al Moudira. The 'extra night' price quoted for Al Moudira is £70 per person, so £140 may be a fair guess.
On this trip we stayed at Le Meridien Pyramids in Giza and had a superb view of the pyramids from our balcony and also the pool. We were able to walk to the pyramids from the hotel (15/20 minutes)but it is a long way out of the city so you'd need a taxi to go to things such as the museum. We flew from Cairo to Luxor and Al Moudira then from Luxor to Sharm El Sheikh and stayed at the Hyatt Regency where the snorkelling was great! All three hotels were very different and we liked them all, but Al Moudira was our favourite. We wouldn't hesitate to go back to any of them. We book most of our vacations independently of tour operators, but have used Kuoni on several occasions where what we want to do works out cheaper through them or where we are unsure of safety/getting around in a particular country. Their service has always been first class, but the tours they offered in Luxor were very expensive so I would highly recommend getting the hotel staff to get you a taxi to do the sights.
Hope this helps.
On this trip we stayed at Le Meridien Pyramids in Giza and had a superb view of the pyramids from our balcony and also the pool. We were able to walk to the pyramids from the hotel (15/20 minutes)but it is a long way out of the city so you'd need a taxi to go to things such as the museum. We flew from Cairo to Luxor and Al Moudira then from Luxor to Sharm El Sheikh and stayed at the Hyatt Regency where the snorkelling was great! All three hotels were very different and we liked them all, but Al Moudira was our favourite. We wouldn't hesitate to go back to any of them. We book most of our vacations independently of tour operators, but have used Kuoni on several occasions where what we want to do works out cheaper through them or where we are unsure of safety/getting around in a particular country. Their service has always been first class, but the tours they offered in Luxor were very expensive so I would highly recommend getting the hotel staff to get you a taxi to do the sights.
Hope this helps.
Jun 11th, 2005, 01:52 PM
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Thank you so much Gaynor. We also always go independentaly, and we're debating using an agent for this trip for the same reasons you stated. but we have our air tickets, frequent flyer on American & British Air, which would mean using an agent in Egypt. Did Kuoni book your internal flights in Egypt and did they have agents in Egypt to sort out any mishaps--cancelations, etc. This is our main concern if we book independently.
Jun 11th, 2005, 06:50 PM
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The whole thing including internal flights was a package. We were met and returned to the airports at each place by a Kuoni and there was always someone to contact if there was a problem. I don't think that you could book just the internal flights with them. Having now been to Egypt, we would be happy to go independently another time if it worked out to be a better deal that way or had frequent flyer tickets.
Jun 16th, 2005, 03:45 PM
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I used Wildland Adventures, a leader in eco-tourism,for my trip. (wildland.com) They had Emeco Travel in Cairo book the trip for me. I was a "tour of one" on a custom designed trip. We used their basic three week tour & adjusted it to fit my desires.
If it doesn't break your budget, I think that is the best way to go. If I wanted to start at 9, we started at 9. If I wanted a break, we took a break.
My trip was about $2500 a week including 2 meals a day, five star hotel, guide & driver & person who met me for transfers much of the time and included the mandatory cruise down the Nile. It will be less expensive per person for more than one. I couldn't believe how big a discount I received on my five star hotel rooms by using Wildland. I used FFM for airfare.
If it doesn't break your budget, I think that is the best way to go. If I wanted to start at 9, we started at 9. If I wanted a break, we took a break.
My trip was about $2500 a week including 2 meals a day, five star hotel, guide & driver & person who met me for transfers much of the time and included the mandatory cruise down the Nile. It will be less expensive per person for more than one. I couldn't believe how big a discount I received on my five star hotel rooms by using Wildland. I used FFM for airfare.
Jun 17th, 2005, 06:21 PM
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Sunshine--We're looking for luxury hotels & air, like Gaynor we'll hire cabs or cars for sightseeing. We could book ourselves, as we usually do, using expedia & hotel web sites, but after reading Wendy Perrin's Egypt article from Conde Nast Traveller on Concierge.com, we're trying to book this with an Egyptian Co. to avoid the hassle with cancelled flights, reconfirmations, etc. Actually, Emeco is on my list. Most companies aren't eager to do this. We're also debating the meet & assist option, as I understand the airports are bedlam. What was your opinion on the airports--Cairo, Luxor, Aswan or Sharm. Do you feel that you avoided the lines, hassle, etc., using the m&a?
Jun 17th, 2005, 07:40 PM
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Well, I have nothing but good things to say about Emeco.
I'm usually an independent traveler and have traveled extensively in the US & in about 12 other countries. Never used a travel agency or meet & assist or a guide before. I probably could have done it myself, but this way I didn't have to deal with (or get upset by) the problems.
I was met & assisted at the Cairo, Aswan, Sharm, & Luxor airports. I flew in & out of Cairo 7 times. Frankly, I can't say whether things were bedlam at the airports, since all I did was stand or sit while the Emeco man took care of things. By using the M&A service, you have someone who speaks English & Arabic taking care of you.
And there is a lot of opportunity for things to go wrong in Egypt. And often they do. (A plane was cancelled, the Ramses Hlton overbooked & kicked me out after 2 days of a 7 day stay, etc.) Emeco solved the problems before I knew there were any.
And as a last word on the subject, when I was in Sharm, the Emeco man met a client at the airport who was drunk & disorderly on the plane & who had hit an airport employee. The police were going to throw him in jail. The Emeco employee convinced the cops that he would take care of the tourist & there were no charges filed.
If that guy had been on his own, he would have been in the clink. In Egypt. Not a good place to be.
By the way, are you planning on going to the desert?
I'm usually an independent traveler and have traveled extensively in the US & in about 12 other countries. Never used a travel agency or meet & assist or a guide before. I probably could have done it myself, but this way I didn't have to deal with (or get upset by) the problems.
I was met & assisted at the Cairo, Aswan, Sharm, & Luxor airports. I flew in & out of Cairo 7 times. Frankly, I can't say whether things were bedlam at the airports, since all I did was stand or sit while the Emeco man took care of things. By using the M&A service, you have someone who speaks English & Arabic taking care of you.
And there is a lot of opportunity for things to go wrong in Egypt. And often they do. (A plane was cancelled, the Ramses Hlton overbooked & kicked me out after 2 days of a 7 day stay, etc.) Emeco solved the problems before I knew there were any.
And as a last word on the subject, when I was in Sharm, the Emeco man met a client at the airport who was drunk & disorderly on the plane & who had hit an airport employee. The police were going to throw him in jail. The Emeco employee convinced the cops that he would take care of the tourist & there were no charges filed.
If that guy had been on his own, he would have been in the clink. In Egypt. Not a good place to be.
By the way, are you planning on going to the desert?
Jun 20th, 2005, 10:41 AM
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Sunshine--Thanks for the valuable info. I was leaning toward the meet & assist and no we are not going to the desert in Egypt. We're starting in Jordan and will go to Wadi Rum. I'm very much a creature comfort type, so one desert experience is my limit.
Jun 29th, 2005, 10:30 AM
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Two for the road, Luxor was the most hectic airport. Our rep more or less forced us through security and check in, probably upsetting alot of people along the way. We were not comfortable with that, and on our own would have waited in line for a long time. At the gate there was alot of confusion about which flight was boarding (how anyone ever got on the right one i'll never know !)- everyone on our flight applauded when the correct flight number was eventually called !! It was an experience and as such added to the trip, so I would not be put off by it. I would do it again without "meet and greet" and probably feel more in control of what I consider to be acceptable behaviour, even though the wait in line would be longer. There was no particular problem at the other airports - when we first arrived at Cairo we commented on how efficient it all was.
Gaynor
Gaynor
