Private Tour To The Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) & Royal Mummies.

Having used Egypt Royal Tours last year, and enjoying a great 2 day tour I was pleased to be able to book my excursion with them this year. The communication with Meda, the owner, was excellent and we had everything planned prior to my arrival. He was clear on price and absolutely flexible with the itinerary (as I have been lucky enough to have visited Cairo on many occasions I wanted to tick off some other sights too that I had not previously visited). Nothing was too much trouble. I was travelling solo, so it is ultimately reassuring to know that this is a door to door service. And having the use of a private car is really useful, as at each stop you only need to take what you need, everything else can be left securely with the vehicle/driver. I was flying in from Sharm, this year just for the day; arriving at 9am and returning to the airport at 8pm, so a very full day. I was met at the airport by Hanan, my guide for the day, and Sam, who was in charge of negotiating the (very) busy traffic to get us everywhere safely! Both Hanan and Sam were lovely, it was clear from the outset that my day/itinerary/comfort was their top priority. And, importantly, as always with Egypt Royal Tours this really was all about the sites and the history - I say this, as previous experiences have shown me that many supposed tour companies or ‘private taxis’ are more interested in driving you to a succession of shops between sites, encouraging you to buy things, often telling you about tenuous family links to each shop. This is NOT what Egypt Royal Tours are about. Hanan, having studied archaeology at University, was always able to answer any questions - and provided an absolute wealth of knowledge about everything we saw. In addition, Sam also pointed out many interesting facts along the routes. In terms of museums it was a day of 2 extremes! The huge, new GEM, and the small, older NMEC (inc. Royal Mummies Hall) We started at NMEC - it is over 2 floors and gives an excellent overview of Egyptian history, having Hanan on hand ensured I got the very best out of the visit as she was able to fill in so much more detail. And, for me, what a WOW factor the mummies were - very much worth seeing, it makes you feel ‘up close and personal’ to the ancient civilisation! From there I had requested the addition of a visit to Coptic Cairo, as it was one site I had never visited. Again, Hanan held an amazing amount of knowledge on the site. Also, another advantage of having a personal guide is that you get very little hassle from the street sellers - an added bonus. We then went to the GEM, and it was breathtaking - I had seen pictures and news coverage but it was amazing. Hanan took me round and again gave really fascinating insights to much of the exhibition (and there is a lot!) I then had time alone to wander around again having agreed a meeting point in the museum with Hanan. After leaving the GEM we went for a wonderful traditional meal before heading into Khan El Khallili (another accommodated request from me, as it’s one of my favourite places). It is mesmerising but an absolute warren, so having Janan on hand to navigate was perfect. After this I was taken back to the airport It was an exhausting but hugely enjoyable day!!!! I would highly recommend Egypt Royal Tours, and Hanan and Sam, they work well together Highlights for me are - the willingness of Meda to give a truly bespoke experience - the sense of safety from the door to door service, and personal car/comfort - as soon as you meet up you exchange numbers to ensure contact should you get lost - the day is most definitely about you, with no hard sell/‘shopping experience’ - your preferences are taken into account for everything, including meal/food choices - Hanan and Sam both added so much to the day Honestly, I highly recommend them if you really are keen to get the most from a trip to Cairo - worth every penny, and with entrance fees and lunch included it really does work out very reasonable