Nile Cruising Information

When cruising, packing for your cruise becomes an integral part of your travel. The length of cruise, the destination and the category/style of cruise ship will all determine what you need to pack.
Nile Cruises are River Cruises as opposed to the large sea going cruises. Most Nile Cruises are 3-4 days as they just travel between Luxor and Aswan or reverse. If you are taking a 7 day Cruise you will be returning in the same direction as you went.
All the Nile Cruises have the same basic itinerary, and as sailing between the two cities is no more than a day and half, much of the time is spent in port with the ship based as a floating Hotel.
There are approximately 400 Nile Cruise ships, all carrying approximately 100-200 passengers. All with exterior cabins overlooking the Nile. They all stop in either direction at Kom Ombo Temple and Edfu Temple, the occasional ship may stop in Esna. In each city of Luxor and Aswan there will be sightseeing included as part of the program.
There are varying standards among the ships but we recommend 4 or 5 star ships for quality, cleanliness and comfort.
There is one Captains night but, but this is not the same as the large cruises and with the exception of one or two of the luxury ships formal wear is not required. On another night there will be an Egyptian Galabia Party where everyone has fun dressing up in the long flowing Egyptian robes and dancing and games are part of the evening. Galabias as the long robes are called can be plain for the men and as dressy as the ladies wish and are readily obtainable in the local markets of Luxor and Aswan and in the shop onboard the cruise ship.

In general casual wear including shorts, jeans and tee shirts are acceptable on most of the cruises. If you are travelling on one of the more expensive cruises casual is more likely to be slacks and golf shirts. Take your sunglasses, sunscreen and sun hat. It can get very hot especially in the summer months and some of the sites are open to the sun with no shade.

Remember that Cruise cabins tend to be smaller than Hotel rooms, particularly the bathrooms. If you can travel with one suitcase instead of two you will find it easier to move around in your cabin and much easier to find things as you need them.