The Oberoi Zahra Luxury Nile Cruiser

I believe in the saying, "The price is what you pay; the value is what you receive." I have never found this more accurate than our stay with Oberoi Hotels and Resorts on their luxury Nile cruiser, the Zahra. While the price was high, the experience was unmatched. Let me share, with apologies in advance, for any "over the top" moments, descriptions, or "ain't this just too great to believe" mutterings.

We started our excursion with an odd moment. Having disembarked from the plane landing in Aswan, we along with another couple boarded a large airport bus. The doors quickly closed behind us, and the bus whisked away. We totaled four passengers on a bus that could hold 80 people. My first thought was that we were being abducted. Wrong; we were being Oberoied. We, along with our new chums, Chris and Sarah Hockey, were being transferred to the Zahra.

Next stop … unbelievable!

The Oberoi Zahra, Luxury Nile Cruiser

Billed as the Nile's most luxurious vessel, Zahra impressed us with it's first-class facilities, elegant décor, and exemplary service.



Lobby

Lounge

Stairwell Between Decks

Deck C with 12 Cabins

Deck D - Spa and Our Cabin

Our Bedroom

Desk and Sitting Area

Bathroom

The 25 luxury cabins are plush and comfortable, with a good-sized bed, table, and chairs positioned towards the flowing Nile. But the piece de resistance is the en suite bathroom. Half the size of the bedroom, the en suite consists of a shiny new toilet and large sink, complete with delicious L'Occitane products, and a massive shower in glass and aquamarine tiles, with an oversized showerhead. The bathroom's river-facing wall is dominated by an enormous picture window, and at the push of a button, the blinds wind up to reveal breathtaking panoramic views of the Nile. JustDon'tthis after sunset; the blacked-out windows are not as concealing as they appear once the lights have been switched on inside!






Restaurant Entrance

The accommodations were brilliant, matched only by what was to follow.

 

8 Days – 7 Nights Cruise Embarkation: Aswan to Luxor   Day 1 - Tuesday 12:00 p.m. - Embarkation 12:30 p.m. - Lunch 2:30 p.m. - Visit the High Dam and the PhilaeTemple       7:30 p.m. - Dinner Overnight in Aswan Day 2 - Wednesday 7:00 to 10:00 a.m. - Breakfast 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.  - Spa Time 1:00 p.m. - Lunch After Sunset – Sound and light show at the Philae Temple 7:30 p.m. - Dinner Overnight in Aswan   Day 3 - Thursday 7:00 a.m. - Sail to Kom Ombo 7:00 to 10:00 a.m. - Breakfast 10:00 a.m. - Visit the Temple of Kom Ombo 11:30 a.m. - Sail back to Aswan 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. - Spa Time 12:30 p.m. - Lunch  3:00 p.m. - Visit to Botanical Garden by felucca 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. - Spa Time 7:30 p.m. - Dinner Overnight in Aswan  Day 4 – Friday 9:00 a.m. - Sail to Edfu 7:00 to 10:00 a.m. - Breakfast 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. - Spa Time 1:00 p.m. - Lunch 2:00 to 6:00 p.m. - Spa Time 6:00 p.m. - Visit the Temple of Edfu 7:30 - Dinner Overnight in Edfu  Day 5 - Saturday 6:00 a.m. - Sail to Luxor 7:00 to 10:00 a.m. - Breakfast 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. - Spa time 12:30 p.m. – Lunch 3:00 p.m. - Visit Karnak Temple and Luxor Museum  5:00 to 7:00 p.m. - Spa Time 7:30 p.m. - Dinner Overnight in Luxor  Day 6 – Sunday 6:30 a.m. onwards - Breakfast 8:00 a.m. - Visit Valley of the Kings, with its royal tombs, King Tut's tomb 1:00 p.m. - Sail to Quina 1:00 p.m. - Lunch 2:00 to 5:30 p.m. - Spa Time 6:00 p.m. - Travel to Dendara Private visit to the Temple of Dendara 7:30 p.m. - Dinner on board Overnight in Quina  Day 7 – Monday 5:00 a.m. - Sail to Luxor 7:00 to 10:00 a.m. - Breakfast 10:30 a.m.  - Visit the West Bank and Temple of Hatchepsut 1:00 p.m. - Lunch 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. - Spa Time 4:30 to 6:00 p.m.  - Visit Luxor Temple 7:30 p.m. - Dinner  Day 8 – Tuesday 5:00 a.m. - Disembarkation   We had the good fortune to have Adel Ashour as our guide. Adel is from Aswan, Upper Egypt, pursuing a doctorate (4th year) in Egyptology in Geneva, Switzerland. Adel is meeting his costs by guiding at the United Nations headquarters in Geneva and maintaining his reputation as "the best guide on the Nile" in working with a few select Nile cruises. A personable young man with an open mind yet a provocative social and intellectual demeanor. Adel would make a fine and strong-minded American Democrat…always ready to give advice to the party's leadership. Current advice or editorial on Obama – rather than "going to the church to pray," Americans should "go to the hospital for an operation". The guests on our cruise numbered 23 (capacity is 54). The number of crew members was reported to be 82. While the crew-to-guest ratio was high, it was the Oberoi quest, if not obsession, to exceed expectations that drove our experience. Meet the  staff that we encountered (supported by crew members that we never saw). Mohamed Aziz Mamdough was the cruiser's Consignor   Mohaned was our General Manager  Mamdouh Milad Wait Staff Mona El_Shazly and Joan Pilot Accolades also to Chef Ajeet and his kitchen staff of 7. Arguably the best collection of 20 conseI'vemeals that we have ever eaten … and this was on a cruise ship. The food was wonderful. Oberoi relocated one of their finest chefs from India, who brought with him a spectacular collection of Indian recipes to sit alongside traditional Egyptian fare. The a la carte menu was changed for every meal and included fresh salads, seafood, curries, and fresh lamb cutlets, accompanied by an impressive list of local and international wines.    Scenes from on-board the Zahra ~

 

An experience is a good one when expectations are met. An experience is a great one when expectations are exceeded. An experience that takes you one step further, a special surprise, is one that you remember for the rest of your life. The surprise was meeting and spending time with some extraordinarily terrific and interesting people ~

Sarah a.k.a. The Mrs from Blighty

Chris a.k.a. Chunka

from Chunka ... "Looking forward to hearing about the Egypt leg and about "those extremely pleasant English people you met?!?!" Make sure you keep in touch as we don't get out much over here and have few friends so we have now officially branded you both our "best friends" even though we just met ya!"

Prue

Prue is a (literal) dame, a Cordon Bleu-trained chef, and a Michelin-starred restaurateur. She's ghost-written recipes for royals, improved the catering on British railways, and has 12 books under her belt. She was on this cruise as a Board Member of the Orient Express Hospitality Group ( a competitor of Oberoi Hotels & Resorts).

Cheryl and Dave



Julian and Sue

Robert and Silvia

Strange Bedfellow

Monkey Boy

Thank you to all who made this an experience that we can add to our collection of lifetime memories.

Allah Akbar

Egypt Today and Yesterday

The people of Egypt are truly "in a transition". The 25 January revolution began a completely new experience here. Everywhere, the people feel a kind of freedom from repressive rules which restricted and limited the daily lives of the normal citizen. Our guide

Hassan

would chuckle at how chaotic the city streets were. Traffic was unregulated. Pedestrians would crisscross through busy thoroughfares with impunity as police were nowhere to be found to uphold the rules of the road. For in this transition period, the people are free even to break simple rules. Hassan would laugh and we laughed along with him.

Cairo and Giza

Our travel from Cape Town to Cairo took nearly 24 hours with stop-overs in Johannesburg and Istanbul. The approach and descent into CIA gave us an initial feeling of just how large and densely populated Cairo is. Our drive to our hotel allowed us a glimpse of the grinding poverty and squalor of the city. Cairo is a paradox of rich history and spiritual people caught in an era of corruption and abuse of human rights … but that was before “25^th January”.

Upper-Middle Class Apartment

The drive to our hotel, the Mena House, took over 1½ hours to go approximately 24 miles. Traffic is very heavy even today, a Sunday afternoon. We drove through areas that had unfinished construction projects, piles of uncollected garbage, roads of broken pavement, and crowds of meandering people. Where were the benefits of the “revolution”?