Why AmaWaterways’ Egypt Cruise Is a Once-in-a-Lifetime Journey

Why AmaWaterways’ Egypt Cruise Is a Once-in-a-Lifetime Journey

Are you looking for an amazing Egypt experience? Today we’re heading back to Egypt to talk about Alma Waterways, Secrets of Egypt in the Nile, one of the most fascinating journeys Deb and I have ever taken. Welcome to RTE Travel Talk, Ask a Real Travel Expert, the show that talks to travel professionals around the world. And today I’m delighted to be joined by Barbara Chamberlain of Direct Travel and Neil Dudley, product manager for AMA Waterways to explore this amazing experience. If you enjoy the journey with us today, don’t forget to hit that subscribe button so you’ll never miss an episode. And if this video’s got you inspired, give it a thumbs up or drop a comment and join the conversation. It really helps the channel out. Thanks for being part of our travel community, whether you’re a longtime fan or just dropping by. We really appreciate it. And now on with the show. [Music] [Applause] [Music] Hi folks, welcome back to RTE Travel Talk. Thanks Ken. I’m so excited to be here again. Hi everyone, my name is Neil. I’m with Alma Waterways. It’s great to have you back with us, Neil. And Neil, I am just super excited to chat today about our topic, which is the secrets of Egypt and the Nile. I know that you’ve recently returned from this particular itinerary, and I have firsthand experience myself. It’s just fantastic that we can just sit together and reminisce a bit. you can tell us about it and Barb you can fill us in on what you think possible cruisers would want to know. How does that sound? Exactly. Fabulous. Perfect. Y perfect. So Neil, why don’t we you start with giving us kind of like a 30,000 foot look at this particular product where it goes and what are some of the highlights? Absolutely. So when we entered back in Alma waterways, we used to do Egypt back in the day with you know other compan ships and uh and such but we really wanted to be able to create and uh cultivate our own program and bring out our own ships and such like that. Egypt’s a very special destination and when we do the exotics we really want to make sure it’s a fully immersive experience. So you’ll see our product has a lot of unique things, a lot of exclusive features which uh you don’t normally see. So that was the idea and obviously Cairo is always a highlight. So you’ll do three nights in Cairo. They’re staying at hotels like the St. Regis or the Four Seasons. So these are absolutely by far top of the great hotels. Then you’ve got your seven night cruise on the Nile round trip out of Luxor and a night back into Cairo. And what I love is you will hear stories and Ken, as you know, you’ve been over there. There are hundreds of river cruise ships over on the Nile, but about 80% of these ships actually do truncated cruises. They do three or four nights and you’re really rushing through to see all these things. These are things that it could be a bucket list trip. People might not be going back there. So, you want to be able to spend that extra time in the area. That’s why we have a seven night river cruise up and down to really give clients that fully immersive experience, day and nighttime viewings of some of these stunning sites that you’re going to see along the Nile. Yeah, it makes a huge difference. I think Neil, you know, the length of time that we spent on the Nile and you you did see that we’d be going down the Nile on the Amadalia and you’d have these ships passing you because they were in a rush to get where they were going. Not they certainly are. Yeah. And you don’t you don’t feel that kind of rushed atmosphere on board the Amadalia or the Amalia. Amalia. Yeah. Amalia. It’s a mouthful. It’s all good. So So Barb, let me bring you in here. When clients first talk to you about something in Egypt, what are some of the questions that and concerns that they usually have? It’s not so much they had concerns. I mean, they do listen to the news and they wonder and and if it’s going to be safe and everything and and absolutely it’s going to be safe. I mean, it’s escorted. You you’re looking at uh you know um a luxury brand and Amma Waterways would never ever take their their clients in anywhere that is harmful ever. They are going to look after you and as soon as you land, you know, you have somebody from Amma with you to the time you leave. So, it’s fully escorted and it’s seamless and it’s wonderful. Yeah, it’s absolutely wonderful. And I can speak to that from the minute you land in Cairo, somebody’s there to to meet you. They make sure that you get on the right buses. They travel with you. And it’s like that throughout the whole itinerary. And that’s important. you know, you’re not out there trying to grasp at straws. You know, everything’s looked after for you. So, Neil, what were some of the highlights for you on this particular itinerary? Like, like Barb said, it’s it is great. We know that people want to go to the exotic destinations, but they really do want to do it in fivestar safety and security, and that’s what our product always provides no matter what might be happening in the neighboring regions and such. But all of our exotics are in a boutique level. So, our beautiful European ships, you know, they’ve got 150 to 196 guests. But the Almadalia, the Alo, they’ve got 72 guests on board. It makes it a boutique experience. But what is truly special, and I know Ken, you kind of mentioned it at the beginning saying, you know, you’re met, you’re escorted all the way through, but in our cruise managers and our tour guides are Egyptologists. And this means they’ve gone to university for four years to study and be experts on Egyptian history. And these are the people that are actually with you from day one. And what I also love is the bonding experience. So like I said, we’ve got 72 people on board. We split everybody into three touring groups. And it’s the same touring group from beginning to end. So you bond with all of your fellow guests and you know getting absolutely everything. We’ve got exclusive tours of the the presidential palace in Cairo. Normally it was Nefertitari’s tomb. It was when I was there, but right now that’s being updated. So where again we add in all these exclusive ones where a lot of other companies have these as optional tours. Our owners, our product managers want to make sure that our guests are getting absolutely everything they can possibly ever imagine when they go down to Egypt. And that really is what uh what this tour provides. You know, you’ve got the three nights in Cairo, the seven night cruise, and you can even add Jordan beforehand, which I highly recommend as well. So, absolutely. One of the things that we felt was really important when we went with you was to do the pre-extension in Jordan, which is takes you into Petra. And it’s just an amazing experience and and and so seamless. I I love it because again it is one of those things if you’re going to go all that way you need to make sure you’re doing the full experience. It’s the site you cannot miss. When I went to Petra I like I knew what I was seeing from TV but to see it in person Yeah. it just blows you away. just what you see on TV, it just doesn’t do it justice. And and something you you know that you mentioned about the Egyptologists and the guides, Neil, they make it because they’re so versed in it. And you know, I can I can remember walking down into Petra with the guide in front of us and the history that he he goes through and then the well, I won’t I won’t reveal everything because then it spoil then it spoils it for the it spoils it for folks. You’re going to talk about the fake out reveal, aren’t you? Which I absolutely love. So, well, we’re not going to talk about it, but yes, it’s the fake out reveal. And people will wonder what we’re talking about anyway. So, it’s good. So, no, just it’s just absolutely amazing. So, basically, you’ll go, you can do Petra, you do Wadi Rom. I believe I believe that extension in Jordan is is that that’s two days or three days? It’s four nights. Five days, four nights. So you do two nights in Aman, two nights down in Petra, obviously to include Wadi Rum. You get toured around some of those beautiful ruins outside of Aman. And then uh you’re after the four nights, you then fly on to Cairo. Like you said, you are met and this is another thing which I love that we do. It’s called a VIP package, but basically you’ve got that person who greets you inside the airport before you even clear customs, which is unheard of because is 24-hour airport, one of the only ones in the world. And it is massive to actually have somebody greet you within minutes of you actually getting off the plane and say, “Hi, here we’re take you. Here’s your visas. Here’s the customs. You’ve got an expert line. You don’t have to wait here. We’re going to take your bags.” Like seamless. You don’t even know what’s going on. It’s It’s the best thing you can ever add. Yeah. Exactly. Once you put yourself in Amma waterways hands, basically they’ve got you from beginning to end and it it’s an amazing experience. So, let’s walk through the itinerary just a bit more. We we we do three days in Cairo and then you actually fly down to Luxar to embark the cruise. Yes. Three nights in Cairo, of course, getting in all the main sites, you know, the Great Sphinx, the pyramids, all of those things. Uh tea overlooking the pyramids, spectacular. and uh going off to the brand new Egyptian museum which has been a long time coming but it is open so that’s included in all the Cairo touring and then yes you are flown down to Luxor as a group taken over and you board on to either the Amadalia or the Amalia and then what I love like I said it is leisurely because you’re seven nights allows you for extended periods you’re not getting to a site racing through in two hours saying you got two hours to see the Valley of the Kings. No, you need longer to explore these things. There’s so many things to see and do. You’ve got luxury. You’ve got the Valley of the Kings. You’ve got all the main highlights obviously in that seven night cruise experience. You also get to go to Anubian Village, which none of the other ones go to. So, you get that fully immersive cultural experience in there. You get to go off to Aphrodite Island again, which a lot of times people don’t get a chance to see because again, it’s extra time that’s needed and those shorter cruises don’t allow for it. And to be fair, one of my favorite highlights is when you’re up in Azwan, make sure to go to Abu Symbol. It is definitely a highlight for sure. Oh yeah, when you’re when you’re leaving Aswan, I love the interaction with the pirates. And I don’t know why we don’t talk about it more, but it’s a spectacular experience while you’re on the ship to sit there and barter in the safety of your beautiful river cruise ship, but the uh they call them pirates because technically that’s what they are, but they’re vendors throwing things up to you on the ship. It’s I love it. Unless unless you were like us and I was on we’re on the we were on the bottom deck and you know a lot of people talk well I want to be on the top deck. We loved our we loved our stateateroom that was on the bottom deck because you could open the door and the river was right there. Exactly. So the next thing you know we’ve got one of these pirates. He pulls alongside and he throw he throws his wares right in the cabin. Exactly. Which I promptly picked up and threw back. Yeah. And and it’s just a fun fun fun experience. and and and these people, you know, it’s it’s it’s really one of the highlights. It really is. I agree. People have a lot of fun at it. Y and the sites along the way, I agree with you, but Aba Symbol Abaol is an optional tour, is it not? It is. It’s the only optional we have and it can be pre-booked with your with Barb ahead of time. The reason it’s pre um it’s an optional is because it’s limited seating. Okay. Because they’ve got it’s very controlled as far as how many tour groups and how many numbers they allow into Abu Symbol. Yeah. Like it’s more than that though, right? Because what Alma Waterways does is they get you to a particular port, then you get back, then you get on a plane and you fly down to Abasimble. Exactly. And whereas a lot of these other things, they’re going to put you on a motor coach, put you on a six-hour drive, which like you’re you’re basically in Upyol in 20 minutes, a half an hour. So, it gives you more time more time to explore this place, take in the sights and the sounds of it, and then back to back to the ship. And and you definitely need that time. You need your maximized time. And the government controls how many people are in and out of Abu Syol. It’s one of their top treasures obviously in the country. Yeah. Quick pause, folks. Don’t worry. I’m not long-winded. I just want to share our brand new channel memberships. For just $1.99 and up a month, you’ll get fun perks like badges, early video access, travel webinars, and even travel opportunities with some of our experts. It’s a great way to be part of our travel community while getting a little extra along the way. Just hit the join button below for more details. And now back to our show. Barb, if a client were to ask you whether this itinerary is more about history or more about experiencing modern Egypt, how do you think you’d frame it? I think it’s for everybody. I think it’s for young and old. And I I think it’s it’s history and adventure and and Emma doesn’t disappoint in any of it. I think it’s also great for multigenerational families. There is an age limit 12. But can you imagine like grandparents taking their their teenage children grandchildren on a trip like this and the history that they’re going to learn about this country. I think I think it’s amazing. And people come back and they just it’s life-changing. I mean I I get that statement on three of AMA’s programs. One is Egypt, of course, one is the Mikong and one is their African programs. They all come back and they say, “That was life-changing.” And and and we we watch it on TV. We watch all the old classic show movies about Egypt and we watch all the new documentaries about Egypt. And going and seeing it with your own two eyes. I mean, how amazing is that? Oh, no. It truly is. You basically have memories for years from it. As far as exposing it to um pre-teen and kids, it’s it’s a fantastic experience. It really, really is. I think it would literally get them off of their phones. Yeah. Well, it’s all those things that obviously they see in their history books and things like that. So, it is it is a great opportunity. Oh, man. They I I got to tell you though, there are so many selfie opportunities on this cruise that you know they you might get them off their phones, but they’re going to be busy using those devices to record the experience. That’s okay. And that’s okay. That’s okay. So, let’s talk about the ships a little bit more, Neil. Yeah. the Alma Dalia and the Amma Lilia. What makes these ships stand out from other ones on the Nile, do you think? Because our owner uh one of our owners is the architect designer of all of our ships. We always want to make sure guests are getting that same experience no matter which they’re on. So when we brought the Amadalia, the Amalia out, it was to have that similar setup because we have a lot of our guests who cruise with us before they expand into the exotic. So it’s got our signature twin balcony suites and along the river as you know Ken, there’s always something to see on the Nile River. It’s stunning. Whether it’s, you know, serenely cruising down some of the sites, the uh just the landscapes are beautiful as well. You also have multiple restaurants. You’ve got the main restaurant. And whenever we do our restaurants on board, we always want to make sure that guests are getting that authentic culinary experience from the area you’re traveling through. So, there is always that there. But then sometimes people are like, “Am I going to like Egyptian food?” You will, but always have the North American selection that guests can order as well in case they’re not sure. But we have always been known for having a second restaurant called the chef’s table restaurant on board. But the Egyptian experience, I think, is the best chef’s table we have. Oh, yeah. It’s like full Middle Eastern a fair. It’s outdoors, but it’s under the standard things that you would see out in the deserts for those beautiful desert dinners with those little habachi that they cook them food right in front. It’s it is a full experience, which is not to be missed. We make sure everybody gets a chance to dine in there at least once during their journey. It’s just adding those little extras to our ships and stuff to make sure they’re getting that fivestar experience when they’re wandering around seeing these sites that they’re never going to forget. So, yeah. Yeah, the twin balcony stateaterooms are are tremendous. But, as I said, any of the stateaterooms on board either one of these ships is is really fantastic. Yeah, they’re all good. And I I always mentioned, so if guests have been on with us in Europe, we’ve got a tiny little gift shop for basic souvenirs, but in Egypt, it’s a little different. It’s a much bigger shop. And the reason for that is because, well, as you both know, when you’re in Egypt and you’re out to try to buy things at those local shops is an experience unto itself, which not a lot of people always like because it is full-on bartering there in your face. So, it provides guests with a peaceful opportunity on board to get all of those things that they would see on shore, but in more of a controlled environment. I took advantage. I bought this beautiful lapis necklace on board because I didn’t want to I didn’t want to deal with uh with all the onore antics, shall we call them? But le let’s talk about the onore antics for a minute, Neil, because that’s actually something that your guides were exceptional with. Not only do they provide all this wonderful history and look after you, but they also provide advice on how to barter or don’t do this or you know, you know this. Yeah. I mean, and this is what the great thing about having that person with you throughout the entire experience. Yeah, a lot of the other tour groups will stay at the front because and they’ll say, “Here’s your uh here’s your site. Go on in.” Yeah. And then you’re left honestly to the mercies of these people because then our guide, you know, this is how you deal with it. So, you walk through peacefully and and if you want to barter, they give you the explanations and to be fair, they will go over with you as well. They’re there to take care of everything, not just the stunning sites and such, but every part of the experience. So, it’s bartering 101. Well, really, you know, it it was something that I was never a fan of. I you know I have to tell you I can’t stand baring with the guides that were with us on this tour. It just became so much easier because it’s part of the experience. So yeah really really fantastic service and they also point out the where the government owned shops are. So they say listen when you’re going in here you don’t have any concerns. It’s it’s just like I said it’s just nice that they take care of every part of the experience no matter what it may be. So that’s what I always say it’s seamless you know. I just I I I think it is so important. Well, that’s what Alma Waterways brings to it because they’re really, really good at that. We obviously had Jordan as a prepackage. We’ve als you can do Dubai as well, but we just added a brand new package which is go off to Alexandria on the Red Sea as a post experience, which again is just it’s a stunning almost like a resort area of Egypt. So, again, totally different to what they see down the Niles. We’re always looking to to add enhance experiences whenever we can. That’s great. That that’s absolutely great because people love Dubai and I’ve had people request Alexandria. So, and it would be a good way to see Dubai. I don’t think you’d want to try and do Dubai by yourself. Well, I mean, it’s ever changing in Dubai, right? So, it’s nice to have that local guide over into Dubai and and basically be able to take care of everything for you. So, Barb, when you’re advising clients, do you usually re recommend taking any one of these extensions? Absolutely. I really, really do. Can people are so disappointed when they don’t, you know, many trips, but especially Egypt. It’s it’s really important to see pro when you go there. Like I just can’t understand why anybody wouldn’t. And same same at the end now Alexandria or Dubai. I mean you’re there and the airfare you know you’re covered. So so if you’ve got the time and you got the budget then do it and then you won’t have any regrets when you come back. Yeah. No. Exactly. Now in terms of airfare is airfare included as part of this package? No. But right now, to be fair, we’ve got, you know, you always have the earlier you book of the river cruise, no matter where it is, the better off you’re always going to get. So, actually, right now, we do have a great promotion on about 40 different departures where you can actually get free roundtrip airfare. So, it depends on the sailing, but that’s why you you go to our lovely expert Barb there and she’ll find you the dates with the best offers and such uh that are available out there. So, and and if that doesn’t apply, then yes, Emma has a air desk and they will it’s not included in the price. It’s it’s an add-on, but uh they will uh do up the flights for you and I tell my client and 99.9% of my clients take take Air because once again, when you do it is seamless. Yeah. Well, this is fantastic. I always said that Egypt would was going to be a oneanddone for me, but having done it and looking back on it, I would go back and do it a second time in a heartbeat because there’s so much involved with it and so much history that you can’t you can’t really take it all in in in one. So, you could easily do it a second time in my view. Absolutely. What about yourselves, folks? Is do you have any final words of advice, tips for somebody that might be considering this cruise? How about you, Barb? I always say to book early only because these two ships are small. So there’s not not a lot of cabins. We’re talking like around 40 cabins. So you have to book early to get, you know, the space that you want uh on your trip. And you just you just pay a deposit and then you pay your final payment later on. So it’s not a big burden, you know, upfront. So you can book, you know, ahead of time. Uh they already have their 2027 program out and pricing out. How far in advance do you think you should book something like this? as soon as you know for sure you want to go. I mean, I say more than a year out. Uh, I’ve got bookings into 2027 already. Yeah. I’d have to think, Neil, that these ships sell out pretty fast. Do and obviously the demand for Egypt is, you know, it’s it is through the roof right now. And people are always saying, well, when is the best time to go, you know, because obviously there’s times it can be hotter, cooler if you’re going to Jordan, things like that. Uh, but my tip I will say and this is a great way to make sure that they can go anytime. Go on to Amazon or wherever and get those lovely neck fans. They are USB chargeable. They sit there. They’re like your own cooling device. And then you can take advantage of any time of the year to go to Egypt because with those little fans, the world is changed. Keep that fan going all the time you’re walking out there and uh it’ll be spectacular. So, for each one of you, if you had to sum up the secrets of Egypt in the Nile in just one sentence, uh, what do you think guests would walk away with after this experience? I think they would just say, “I’m so glad I did that.” And like, wow. I mean, just it’s a big wow. It truly is. And how about you, Neil? You know, working for Alma Waterways, it’s a horrible part of my job that they make me go on all these different river cruises and such. And, uh, I used to always say I love the Christen markets. And then I went and did the Meong. like, “Oh, that’s my absolute favorite.” But now after I’ve done uh Egypt, it honestly, it is my absolute favorite river cruise experience. And uh I know that’s what guests will walk away from, too. Especially if they’ve done other river cruise before, the sun. It is. It’s life-changing as you both said before. So, yeah. Well, folks, thank you so much for joining us today. It’s been a pleasure having the both of you. Barb, if folks wanted to reach out to you about a possible river cruise with Alma Waterways, how would they do that? They can give me a call at 519-670-4448 or bch chamberlain atdt.com. Excellent. I will leave that contact information in the description for those folks that might like to reach out. But as always, since I like to live vicariously through the travels of all the wonderful people I get to interview in this channel, I have to know where the two of you are off to next. Barb, how about you going first? Well, I leave this weekend, Ken, to sail on Oceanana’s new Allura. Oh, okay. I come back for 2 days and then I go to the Mediterranean to host a Vertiosa voyage on Seabor from Monte Carlo to Barcelona. Sounds Sounds fantastic. We’ll have to have you back to Regalis with your adventures there. And what about yourself, Neil? Where are you off to next? I am most excited because uh our newest destination debuted earlier this year, which is another stunning exotic one in to Colombia on the Magdalena River, and I will be that in December. So, I’ve never been to Columbia before. I am ecstatic to go see uh this new experience and well, here’s a standing invitation to come back to Regalis with your adventures there because that’s that’s a new and exciting destination and I’m sure it’s going to do extremely well. All right, folks. With that, I’m just going to wish this the two of you safe and happy travels on all your future adventures and destinations. May the wind always be at your back and just perhaps just perhaps I will see the two of you on the Leo deck of the Amadalia someday soon in the future. Thanks Kim. Thanks. And that about wraps it up for today folks. A very special thanks to my guests Neil Dudley of Ama Waterways and Barbara Chamberlain of Direct Travel. If you’d like to reach Barb, I will leave her contact information in the description. If you’d like to reach out to us, you can simply drop a comment. We always respond or send us an email to questionsrealtravel expperts.com. And as always folks, if you enjoy this content, a like, subscribe, share, and a ring of the bell is certainly appreciated and helps other folks just like you to find our content. And if you’re really enjoying the content and want to show it a little extra love, we hope you’ll think about becoming a channel member. It really helps us to keep on delivering that expert travel advice, interviews, and destination reviews that you know and love. So until next time, folks, happy travels. [Music]

Step aboard AmaWaterways’ Secrets of Egypt & the Nile and discover why this luxury river cruise is being called a once-in-a-lifetime journey through ancient wonders and five-star comfort.

Join RTE-Travel Talk host Ken as he sits down with Barb Chamberlain of Direct Travel and Neil Dudley, Product Manager for AmaWaterways, to explore one of the most unforgettable travel experiences on Earth — AmaWaterways’ Secrets of Egypt & the Nile.

In this in-depth episode, Barb and Neil share insider insights on what makes this journey through Egypt’s timeless beauty so extraordinary — from Cairo’s grand hotels and exclusive VIP treatment to the breathtaking temples and ancient tombs along the Nile.

🌍 What You’ll Discover:

The Ultimate Nile Itinerary – Why AmaWaterways’ seven-night cruise and luxury hotel stays in Cairo deliver a fully immersive experience.

Seamless Luxury & Safety – How guests are escorted from arrival to departure with five-star care.

Iconic Highlights – Cairo, Luxor, Aswan, Abu Simbel, and a Nubian village rarely visited by others.

Exclusive Touches – Expert Egyptologists, a VIP airport experience, and an unforgettable Chef’s Table under the stars.

Extensions Worth Adding – Discover Jordan’s Petra and Wadi Rum or unwind on Egypt’s Red Sea coast.

Who It’s Perfect For – Couples, families, and curious travelers looking for something life-changing.

Barb and Neil reveal why AmaWaterways’ Egypt experience stands apart — and why so many travelers say it’s a journey they’ll remember forever.

📞 To reach Barb Chamberlain:
📧 bchamberlain@dt.com
📱 519-670-4448

Contact Real Travel Experts: questions@realtravelexperts.com

Real Travel Experts

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Time Stamps:

Image Credits:
Amalilia and AmaDahlia Video Clips & Images: Courtesy of AmaWaterways
St.Regis Cairo: Courtesy of Marriott Hotels
Grand Egyptian Museum Images: Courtesy of www.visit-gem.com
Abdeen Palace Exterior Yasser.mahmoud, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

RTE Travel Talk does not endorse any of their guests’ products or services. The opinions of the guests may or may not reflect those of the host and RTE Travel Talk.
00:00 Introduction
00:51 Guests Barb Chamberlain & Neil Dudley
01:32 Overview of the itinerary
03:19 Common question: safety
04:22 Highlights for Neil on his cruise
05:50 Jordan pre-cruise
07:11 VIP service at airport
08:06 Itinerary in depth
11:13 Travel Club
11:37 Life changing adventure
13:23 The ships
15:46 Bartering 101
17:12 Alexandria or Dubai Post Extension
18:23 Airfare
19:35 Final Advice
21:43 Contacting Barb
22:07 Future travels of Barb & Neil