samcat

My husband and I are scheduled for a Nile tour on the dates above: Cairo, Luxor, Edfu, Kom Ombo, Aswan, Abu Simbel. What should we expect for weather? Any special packing suggestions -- other than wash cloths (which I just read about today) hat, sunscreen, comfortable shoes? We're traveling with AHI. We're aware of some tipping issues, but will deal with those. Thanks for any advice.
Samcat

kak113

I can't comment on the weather since we were there in November but my top 5 things I was glad I brought for packing besides your essentials were:

1 - hand sanitizer
2 - extra pair of sneakers (pair 1 was filthy)
3 - a long gauze like skirt - good for covering up the bathing suit on the cruise, a little nicer for dinner.
4 - a small head lamp (i carried it rather than wearing it) for inside the pyramids (we went in the Great Pyramid and the Red Pyramid)
5 - granola bars / cheese crackers - we were out touring nonstop and it was nice to have little snacks in between sites.

dutyfree

I had bought all of these toilet seat covers along with smaller rolls of TP on recommendations of Fodorites-seriously never needed or used them. The one thing that was invaluable were the travel packs of kleenex. Between the sinus problems we all got in Cairo and using them for napkins,substitute for TP they were invaluable.Hand sanitizer definitely a must!

dutyfree

Forget the washclothes-just buy those nylon puffs on a string. They dry quickly and are so much easier to use.They are usually about a dollar at Walmart or Target.

samcat

Thanks, Kak113 and Dutyfree. These are helpful suggestions.

Iowa_Redhead

I think all but one of the hotels I was in had washcloths. Definitely take travel packs of kleenex. There was no bathroom attendant in the Luxor airport and we ended up stuck there for a few hours. No attendant = no TP.

Granola bars, peanut butter crackers, and Clif bars were all greatly enjoyed on our bus. We often didn't have lunch until 2 or even 3 in the afternoon and the snacks in daypacks helped keep us going.

I had a tiny LED flashlight that was great in the pyramid and in the bus bathroom (for some reason there was a problem getting the light to stay on while in use). Another fun toy was a very small, battery operated fan. It fits in the palm of my hand and runs on 2 AA batteries but it's a pretty powerful little thing. That was a lifesaver at the Valley of the Kings.

I burn very easily, so I took a very light weight cotton long sleeve shirt and a very light weight scarf to cover up with. I wore Tshirts and then the cotton shirt as an overshirt to keep the sun off my arms and the scarf for my head and neck. I think I felt a lot cooler by keeping the sun off of my skin.