Nile River - AmaWaterways, Viking or UNIWORLD?

[MERLOTCHAMPAGNE]

Looking to do Nile River in fall 2023.  All 3 of the above lines seem to visit same ports and offer similar excursions.   Why would you choose one over the other?

[trickylibrarian]

Uniworld. Interested in Nile also so spoke with a number of people on our last Uniworld cruise who had only good things to say about their experience in Egypt.   

[MERLOTCHAMPAGNE]

1 hour ago, trickylibrarian said:

Uniworld. Interested in Nile also so spoke with a number of people on our last Uniworld cruise who had only good things to say about their experience in Egypt.   

Thanks for the reply.  Did they indicate which ship as the Sphinx is sold out on the dates we’re available so only their older boat, River Tosca is available.  

[Haqdeluxe]

For what it is worth... The Viking Osiris is brand new and only started sailing this season. It is touted as being a beautiful, state of arts vessel.

Why would I choose one line over the other? Without having sailed the itinerary on all three, I could only reasonably make my choice based on prior experiences. My favorite line is Viking so I'd likely gravitate towards them. Ama and Uniworld would have to have something that really set them apart from Viking. Not to say that in Egypt they don't.

I only know that we have held off on a Vietnam cruise, waiting on Viking's new ship.

YMMV 😀

[Mrs. Claypool]

We cruised the Nile with Uniworld in 2019 and loved the experience so much that we’re doing the exact same cruise in 2023.   We were on the Tosca, and she is an absolutely beautiful ship. 

[Host Jazzbeau]

I would suggest you add Scenic to your list.  Their Nile itineraries are a little different from the usual, and I find them more interesting.  [Haven't done the Nile yet, but like you planning for the future.  I have zeroed in on Scenic's Essence of Egypt & Jordan 20-day cruise/land journey, but they also offer a 7-night Secrets of Egypt & the Nile]

[MERLOTCHAMPAGNE]

3 hours ago, Haqdeluxe said:

For what it is worth... The Viking Osiris is brand new and only started sailing this season. It is touted as being a beautiful, state of arts vessel.

Why would I choose one line over the other? Without having sailed the itinerary on all three, I could only reasonably make my choice based on prior experiences. My favorite line is Viking so I'd likely gravitate towards them. Ama and Uniworld would have to have something that really set them apart from Viking. Not to say that in Egypt they don't.

I only know that we have held off on a Vietnam cruise, waiting on Viking's new ship.

YMMV 😀

Viking was our original thought however their newest ship has been delayed a year and all those bookings have priority for available openings so next fall is completely sold out.  Hence we’re exploring other options as we’ll be in Athens coming off an Med/Israel cruise and it so makes sense to do the Cairo/ Nile cruise tour immediately following. 

[MERLOTCHAMPAGNE]

1 hour ago, Mrs. Claypool said:

We cruised the Nile with Uniworld in 2019 and loved the experience so much that we’re doing the exact same cruise in 2023.   We were on the Tosca, and she is an absolutely beautiful ship. 

Thank you for that reassurance - that’s where we’re gravitating towards at the moment  as Viking and AMA are sold out for the dates we’re interested in.   
Do you recommend one particular deck over the other?    I’ve read the diesel smell can be strong in the aft so we’re thinking mid-forward. 

[MERLOTCHAMPAGNE]

13 minutes ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

I would suggest you add Scenic to your list.  Their Nile itineraries are a little different from the usual, and I find them more interesting.  [Haven't done the Nile yet, but like you planning for the future.  I have zeroed in on Scenic's Essence of Egypt & Jordan 20-day cruise/land journey, but they also offer a 7-night Secrets of Egypt & the Nile]

Thank you for the suggestion - I wasn’t aware that Scenic had a ship on the Nile.  We’ll explore that option.  

[Mrs. Claypool]

1 hour ago, MERLOTCHAMPAGNE said:

Do you recommend one particular deck over the other?    I’ve read the diesel smell can be strong in the aft so we’re thinking mid-forward. 

We were in cabin 216 which is mid-aft.  I didn't notice any diesel smell.  Honestly, I can't remember smelling any unpleasant odors anywhere on the ship.