Don’t want to sound picky but

[hmatt]

• We are on our first Azamara cruise which is going to Egypt and Israel!!
• we have a tour going to see pyramids with a lunch on the river Nile
• which sounds amazing. I’ve read do not drink Egypt’s water or have
• ice even fresh fruit. We are a little weary about eating the lunch, does
• anyone else worry about eating in foreign countries? Don’t want to be a 
• snob but want our family to stay well.
• thank you,
• Debbie

[SkystheLimit]

Most excursions booked thru the cruise line are vetted for these issues.  

 

[Wander58]

5 hours ago, hmatt said:

• We are on our first Azamara cruise which is going to Egypt and Israel!!
• we have a tour going to see pyramids with a lunch on the river Nile
• which sounds amazing. I’ve read do not drink Egypt’s water or have
• ice even fresh fruit. We are a little weary about eating the lunch, does
• anyone else worry about eating in foreign countries? Don’t want to be a 
• snob but want our family to stay well.
• thank you,
• Debbie

We did this trip in 2017.  It was OUTSTANDING.  We also had an overnight in Luxor and Azamara put us at the Royal Sonesta.  The hotel also catered the Nile lunch cruise in feluccas which is probably what you will be on.  There was always plenty of bottled water on every tour bus - it was never an issue.  If Azamara is organizing the tour - you will not have any issues with the food at any venue, including fruit or salad.  On the same trip we went to Petra and lunch was included.  It was also a buffet at a high-end hotel.  You shouldn't worry!

[Grandma Cruising]

I agree with the comments here. We’ve had meals in Egypt both on Azamara tours and on independent tours too. Never had a problem. Just make sure you drink bottled water or other bottled drinks that you open yourself or see opened in front of you. It’s also probably better not to eat salads like lettuce that may have been washed in tap water.

[uktog]

Azamara always requires their land agent to vet every place guests stop at whether they are eating or not. That does not 100% guarantee there will be absolutely no problems but it greatly decreases the risk. I think the advice given even in these places (no ice, salad leaves and be cautious about any fish dish is an absolute must). We did the ships tour day trip to Luxor. The lunch was lovely it was a buffet. There were many coaches from the ship in including two crew tour buses and I’m not aware of any problems 

Enjoy your trip it is special 

[terry&mike]

Hubby and I traveled to Israel and Jordan in February of this year, via land, spending a total of about 2 weeks between them, and never had a digestive issue. We were in Egypt in 2018, on a river cruise plus land tour, and also did not become ill.  

We focus on eating in places that have lots of customers, as the food turnover is high and the reputation is good. 

[hamrag]

We had similar concerns on a Celebrity cruise which included various ports in the Far East as we sailed between Singapore and Hong Kong. The secret is to be careful, as others have said only use bottled water and avoid any food that could have been washed in tap water etc. etc. Simply common sense, and good hygeine practices.

 

On our Azamara cruises, we didn't do their tours so cannot comment in that regard. Every cruiseline we have taken tours with takes the same care that others have mentioned Az does, so no need to be unduly wary at all on any ship tour.

[PirateWife]

On our cruise several years ago from Athens to Dubei the captain kept warning passengers to not eat street food. Of course, a group did and they got sick which meant the self-serve buffets were served by crew members and everything on the ship was sanitized. The group, including some that had to have IVs, were confined until released by the medical staff. No one else got sick.

[hmatt]

Thank you all so much for great responses, and

for all that have been to Egypt and loved it. Cruise 

is coming on quickly, looking forward to new places,

new ship, and good times! 

 

[Dr H]

My 2 cents: Azamara provides as much bottled drinking water as you can carry, no charge. I however have just given some financial support to my buddy Jeff (Bezos) to help him put his kids through college. For $20, I purchased an ultra high tech UV sterilizing water bottle, that promises to kill 99.9% of all micro organisms in the water, bacterial, viral, parasitic. I am clueless as to how to test this out, but I figured that if we can afford an Azamara B2B from Dubai to Singapore and on to Perth, I can afford to blow $20 bucks on this gadget. It has a Li battery to power  the UV LED, so it will have to go into hand luggage. If you are that concerned, check them out. Prices are all over the spectrum (if you can forgive a high tech pun).

[hamrag]

20 hours ago, Dr H said:

.....For $20, I purchased an ultra high tech UV sterilizing water bottle, that promises to kill 99.9% of all micro organisms in the water, bacterial, viral, parasitic. I am clueless as to how to test this out....

I'm guessing most would consider Egypt as a country in which not to conduct said test!

[Benthayer Gonbak]

On 9/27/2022 at 10:19 AM, Dr H said:

My 2 cents: Azamara provides as much bottled drinking water as you can carry, no charge. I however have just given some financial support to my buddy Jeff (Bezos) to help him put his kids through college. For $20, I purchased an ultra high tech UV sterilizing water bottle, that promises to kill 99.9% of all micro organisms in the water, bacterial, viral, parasitic. I am clueless as to how to test this out, but I figured that if we can afford an Azamara B2B from Dubai to Singapore and on to Perth, I can afford to blow $20 bucks on this gadget. It has a Li battery to power  the UV LED, so it will have to go into hand luggage. If you are that concerned, check them out. Prices are all over the spectrum (if you can forgive a high tech pun).

UV doesn’t necessarily kill everything but is used on wells in the US to a very high result.  I believe backpackers are told to not try the UV on cloudy water.  And yes, I own one just haven’t needed it but I still pack it!  When I first travelled with Azamara on some tours they supplied water for the bus.  I got the impression that this was because they couldn’t procure predictably safe water within the country.

 

i learned when I was young if it wasn’t very hot to be suspicious and not eat it.  Of course, most pealed fruit where we were was safe but there are some stories from countries where fertilizers are unprocessed human waste. 
 

As for lettuce my mother got extremely ill in Egypt after eating it in a hotel.  It was about 8 months before she got rid of the parasite. The parasite was not found in the US.  She insisted that the travel books said it was safe in the hotels!  When she went with me to Bangkok she asked me continually what was safe, so I assume she learned from her mistake.  All of this was years ago, but the rules still work even if they are at times a bit too paranoid.  
 

As for how to test call one of the well known backpacking, camping stores and ask them more about how they are tested and when they are past their usage life.  I’d worry more about how to tell when I should stop using it! 

[harrodsfan]

Eating no salads or fresh fruit except bananas has kept us safe traveling through the world. 
we eat hot cooked food. 

[woodley]

My husband and I did the Nile cruise with lunch which we enjoyed.  At the end of the lunch they served coffee with milk in little jugs with lids on.  I had black coffee my husband had the milk in his.  He went to have a second cup and removed the lid on the milk to see if there was enough.  To his horror the little jug had about 10 fly's floating in the milk.  Later that afternoon he became quite sick so much so we had to get a Dr. out to him he was given fluids and an injection (not sure what was in the injection) but it did stop the symptoms.  He was weak for about a week afterward.  So if anything has a lid on it check under  it before you use it.

[Benthayer Gonbak]

6 hours ago, woodley said:

My husband and I did the Nile cruise with lunch which we enjoyed.  At the end of the lunch they served coffee with milk in little jugs with lids on.  I had black coffee my husband had the milk in his.  He went to have a second cup and removed the lid on the milk to see if there was enough.  To his horror the little jug had about 10 fly's floating in the milk.  Later that afternoon he became quite sick so much so we had to get a Dr. out to him he was given fluids and an injection (not sure what was in the injection) but it did stop the symptoms.  He was weak for about a week afterward.  So if anything has a lid on it check under  it before you use it.

Yikes!  I’m normally leery of milk anyway as I still remember not being allowed to drink it in Italy, decades ago, due to tuberculosis in the local dairies.  And, as a child I hated hot milk which was often served elsewhere.   Of course, I don’t drink things with ice in them either unless I’m positive of the safety.  In Thailand, by land, we were warned that the high end hotels occasionally had water filter failures  that made it better to not trust it.  Similarly, in China we were told not to trust the water in the container that said boiled water which had been cooled!  Only the hot water was considered safe.  
 

On our China tour we were served hot Tang!   Not a favorite of many but safer😂

 

our best rule is if in doubt, don’t!  

[cruise52]

My husband and I went to Safaga in Nov ‘19.  We did an overnight tour to Luxor with a very reputable tour company followed by a ship excursion in Jordan to Petra.  We had nice catered meals on both trips - high end hotels and a tour sponsored meal in Wadi Rum at end of the day.  We did both tours with another couple and had a great time.  After Jordan, I had several days of stomach /digestive issues, as did one of the other people we toured with.   My husband had no problem and neither did the other person in our four person group.  We compared notes on what we ate and determined the two of us experiencing issues had eaten salads, fruit, vegetables etc.  My husband did not.  Fortunately, i brought medication with me that helped to alleviate my symptoms.  

 

I will NOT be eating fresh fruit, salads, veggies or ice anywhere in Egypt unless I do so on the ship.  I think the advice given on avoiding fresh fruit, vegetables, or items that are uncooked is sound advice.  

[Benthayer Gonbak]

On 10/9/2022 at 10:12 PM, cruise52 said:

My husband and I went to Safaga in Nov ‘19.  We did an overnight tour to Luxor with a very reputable tour company followed by a ship excursion in Jordan to Petra.  We had nice catered meals on both trips - high end hotels and a tour sponsored meal in Wadi Rum at end of the day.  We did both tours with another couple and had a great time.  After Jordan, I had several days of stomach /digestive issues, as did one of the other people we toured with.   My husband had no problem and neither did the other person in our four person group.  We compared notes on what we ate and determined the two of us experiencing issues had eaten salads, fruit, vegetables etc.  My husband did not.  Fortunately, i brought medication with me that helped to alleviate my symptoms.  

 

I will NOT be eating fresh fruit, salads, veggies or ice anywhere in Egypt unless I do so on the ship.  I think the advice given on avoiding fresh fruit, vegetables, or items that are uncooked is sound advice.  

 

I found directions in a backpackers type guide that suggested ice in baggies!  So when I took my mother with me from Singapore to Bangkok I packed some small sandwich bags.  She got ice in her drink that night, in the room!  It’s a bit clumsy to keep the edges over the edge of the glass, but she was delighted to have the cold even if she couldn’t crunch the ice!   Of course, the bags are one time use!   
 

i remember being able to eat any fruit that was peeled, in Italy, as a child.  Then I was warned about oranges in Mexico still not being safe because of how they were irrigated.  

[mj_holiday]

We did Egypt and Suez Canal in 2012.  We had a couple of tours that included lunch.  We didn't worry about ice since there was none.  We had no problem with any of the lunches.  Take plenty of water from the ship so you don't get tempted to drink some water served with the meal.  We spent 3 nights at a very nice hotel in Cairo and didn't even think about worrying about any of the food here.  No problems.

[beagle 24]

Hi could you let us know how was your tour as I heve booked same tour for 2023.

Thanks