Things to do in Esna

We had fairly low expectations but from the minute we were picked up in Aswan by Samy, our wonderful guide, we were in safe hands. He was a real expert and showed us around all the sights, advised us on tipping and made sure everything ran smoothly. The Golden was a great cruise ship and we were well looked after by a kind crew. Cabin was clean, comfortable and well equipped with well received air conditioning. The food was plentiful, varied and tasty. When we reached Luxor, George took over as our guide. He was an expert in Egyptology and managed to pack in a surprising amount in a relatively short space of time. We did not enjoy the carriage ride- we had no option but to go by horse and carriage, and we did not feel the horses were well cared for. We were taken to a couple of craft shops, but were not pressurised to buy in the same way we have been in other places, and they had clean toilets, cold hibiscus tea, and A/C.