Best of Egypt for Teenagers - 8 days

Egypt was wonderful. It is really difficult to put into words how amazing this place is. We had a fantastic, friendly, helpful and knowledgeable guide who really helped us enjoy the experience. We learnt so much and really fell in love with Egypt. I definitely recommend this as a place to come and see for yourself. It is not a place you can safely explore on your own but with a tour and a great guide it was a priceless experience. • Weather - Hot but okay • Travel - The flight was good and then we were collected by our tour and given priority exit and cleared the airport in record time. It was amazing. Driving in Egypt is completely crazy. It makes Italian and French drivers seem completely organised and cautious. My pair loved it. • Hotel Accommodation - Fantastic. Big, clean rooms with friendly staff. • Cost of things - Cheaper than Australia. Good value • People - Our tour guide was amazing, our On The Go guide was great, the drivers were great and the hotel and restaurant staff were friendly. We didn't interact a lot with the locals except with our tour guide. It is a very different culture and a little confronting at times but on the whole the people seem hard working and friendly. • Scenery / architecture - INCREDIBLE. The pyramids are just the start of the amazing things you can see in Egypt. We saw and learnt so much and we really just scraped the surface there is still so much more of Egypt that I would like to see • Food - Fantastic • Bed /Pillow - Great in the hotels. Not great on the sleeper train • Tours / attractions - Our tour was amazing. We got lucky as we were the only family so we had the tour and our tour guide to ourselves. We also got lucky as we may have had one of the best tour guides in the world.

We loved our trip and had a really amazing time. Alam was incredibly helpful and knowledgeable. The food was amazing in the Egyptian restaurants that he took us too. Only two comments I would make is that we could have done with less shopping visits, though I appreciate that some people really want this side of things. Also maybe starting earlier in the day to dodge the heat. We normally set off at 9am. We would of happily started at 8 or even 7.30 and then enjoyed more free time in the afternoon. But again everyone is different.

We have been travelling regularly since 1999 and have now visited over 50 countries covering North America, South America, Africa, Southeast Asia, Europe, China and Antartica. We're not a huge fan of guided tours as often you end up with a questionable guide whose only aim seems to be to gain commissions from your purchases. However, this trip was different and (by far) the best one we have ever had. Medo is the perfect host and the ideal choice when you have some teens on board. His friendly outgoing manner is a breath of fresh air and he had us all feeling like one big family within a day. Medo is enthusiastic about his home country and his knowledge of Ancient Egypt is staggeringly huge. Medo was also keen to help us enjoy an authentic experience and advised on cuisine and optional activities outside of the tour. His humanity and care for everyone in the group was phenomenal and very reassuring. I can't recommend Medo enough.

I looked at many tours to Egypt before I booked this one, and I decided to go with "On The Go Tours" because of the great online reviews and the fact that the tour was specifically aimed at families with teenagers (I was taking my almost 13 year old grandson), also that it fitted in with the school holidays. We were surprised to learn on arrival that we were the only two people booked on the tour, but it turned out great for us. We were met at the airport and guided through immigration and customs with no stress at all. We arrived on Sunday, a couple of days before the tour started, so were able to settle in and enjoy some of the sights and sounds of Cairo beforehand. Our guide Helal met us on the Wednesday morning and he gave us a full briefing on what to expect for the next few days. Helal was just awesome! He was so full of knowledge and there wasn't a single question he couldn't answer. He was able to pitch the information at just the right level for my grandson (and for me!) so that we felt informed but not overwhelmed. I am a seasoned traveller, but this was my first structured tour so I was a little apprehensive about being "organised", but I needn't have worried, Helal made us feel very special, and we really felt that we had made a friend. The tour itself was perfect for a teenager, enough history to educate and enthral, but with some free time to swim and explore a little on our own, although Helal was always on hand to help if we had any questions or concerns or wanted to add extra activities. It goes without saying that the sights we saw were absolutely mind-blowing..... the pyramids, Saqqara, the Valley of the Kings, the Temple of Hatshepsut, Luxor Temple, Karnak, and the jewel in the crown for us, the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. The only minor complaint I have is that we were not able to stay longer in the museum due to the way the tour was structured. Three hours is just not enough to experience all the wonders that lie there, and my grandson and I both agreed that we could have spent the whole day in there. Having said that, we had done a huge amount over the four days and so it was nice to relax on the final afternoon (but I want to go back to that museum!) All in all it was the holiday of a lifetime for my grandson, and I was absolutely delighted with the way "On The Go Tours" made all the arrangements, and everything went like clockwork. The hotels were first class, with great swimming pools and restaurants, and the overnight train between Cairo and Luxor was an adventure! I would recommend "On The Go Tours" to anyone, and I may even book another tour in the future!