Ramses tour payment

[thmpsn]

Have read that some have paid immediately after getting off the ship before the tour begins. Anyone have an experience paying this way? We do not wish to carry around (even in a money belt) that much cash. Of course, we would tip at the end of the tour.

Karon

[chrispb]

Haven't been to the Papyrus Institute but papyrus is everywhere - you can get some good buys in the shops which I think are cheaper than the factories. We've been to other markets and bazaars in Egypt but not Cairo - looking forward to the mayhem!!

[mswmurf]

UANDMEFOREVER,

 

I paid 210 for the overnight trip which included the Mena HOuse and a pyramid room. I paid 45 for the nile dinner cruise and 25 for the sound and light show. They are great and you will be pleased.

[davejura]

We are booked for a one day Cairo tour next week. As we are from the UK, I asked if we could pay in ££s instead of USD. No problem. We are looking forward to it, especially after reading all the good reviews. We will take Egyptian LE for tips.

[molly23]

Hello,

 

Can you please give me the itinerary that Ramses offered from Port Said to Cairo overnight, returnbing to Port Said.

 

Thank you,

Molly

[lucille&mike]

Zuke.....

 

Would be interested in knowing how you found the information that Ramses is not a tour company. I would have killed for that info prior to our booking. Found nothing even remotely mentioning it in the hundred or so reviews I read prior to booking. The info was not on their old website either. The site has changed since our tour, not sure if its on the new one or not.

 

Please don't think I'm telling anyone to NOT book with Rames. I just think everyone who is taking this trip and for most its the only chance they'll have for viewing the pyramids should have ALL information available. In this case, I personally would have much rather gone with an actual company that has actual policies that actually lives up to their advertisements. Would NEVER in a million years have taken the chance by booking with a broker for the one excursion that was the reason for our cruise.

 

As the saying goes....... information is a powerful tool.

 

Have a great time on the Jade in the Med as well as in Egypt with no matter who you've booked with.

[Zukini]

Zuke.....

 

Would be interested in knowing how you found the information that Ramses is not a tour company. I would have killed for that info prior to our booking. Found nothing even remotely mentioning it in the hundred or so reviews I read prior to booking. The info was not on their old website either. The site has changed since our tour, not sure if its on the new one or not.

 

Actually, I kind of just realized it from the beginning...it occurred to me that George could not possibly have so many guides on his staff that he could book an unlimited number of personalized tours on any given day, and that he must just be "playing matchmaker".

 

When I was trying to decide between Memphis Tours and Ramses, the fellow from Memphis kept referring to himself as a "tour consultant", and that's when I realized that these companies were probably just brokering independent guides. In my conversations with George at Ramses, I just came to realize that the guides had to be, for the most part, independents that regularly worked with Ramses, but not necessarily FOR them.

 

I don't think I can give you a specific line and verse where this was explicitly stated.

 

Our tour arrangement with Ramses is strictly as a private tour for the two of us, with a tailored itinerary, so perhaps we'll have a little more control over how our tour unfolds. I appreciate your sharing your experience, though. It's brought up several areas that I definitely will make sure we have in writing!

[cruisemom42]

Zuke.....

 

Would be interested in knowing how you found the information that Ramses is not a tour company. I would have killed for that info prior to our booking. Found nothing even remotely mentioning it in the hundred or so reviews I read prior to booking. The info was not on their old website either. The site has changed since our tour, not sure if its on the new one or not.

 

Please don't think I'm telling anyone to NOT book with Rames. I just think everyone who is taking this trip and for most its the only chance they'll have for viewing the pyramids should have ALL information available. In this case, I personally would have much rather gone with an actual company that has actual policies that actually lives up to their advertisements. Would NEVER in a million years have taken the chance by booking with a broker for the one excursion that was the reason for our cruise.

 

As the saying goes....... information is a powerful tool.

 

Have a great time on the Jade in the Med as well as in Egypt with no matter who you've booked with.

 

Just a heads up for future tours or reference -- a great many of the agencies in all the heavily trafficked ports of the Med operate in the same way as Ramses. This includes other frequently mentioned agencies in Egypt and Turkey (personal knowledge), Italy (gathered from others), etc. Even in the Baltics I am sure several of the favored St Petersburg agencies operate this way. Guides in many countries are more or less freelance and operate with several agencies -- or on their own.

[lucille&mike]

There are also many ACTUAL companies that operate in the same areas as well. Egypt, Turkey, Greece & Rome all have large TOUR COMPANIES working there. The names on the sides of the vehicles as well as signage etc. are dead givaways.

[dog]

Zuke.....

 

Would be interested in knowing how you found the information that Ramses is not a tour company. I would have killed for that info prior to our booking. Found nothing even remotely mentioning it in the hundred or so reviews I read prior to booking. The info was not on their old website either. The site has changed since our tour, not sure if its on the new one or not.

 

.

 

I was going to refer you to the other thread on the board about Anyone used Ramses recently where cruisemom42 had mentioned the independent guides working for different companies. And I've experienced the same situation in the Baltics, Greece etc.

 

Thanks for the guide name. I'm making my list.

[Turtles06]

Just a heads up for future tours or reference -- a great many of the agencies in all the heavily trafficked ports of the Med operate in the same way as Ramses. This includes other frequently mentioned agencies in Egypt and Turkey (personal knowledge), Italy (gathered from others), etc. Even in the Baltics I am sure several of the favored St Petersburg agencies operate this way. Guides in many countries are more or less freelance and operate with several agencies -- or on their own.

 

Indeed, on our 12-day Med cruise last year, our guide for our Ekol tour of Ephesus, Yelda Celik, was (as we later learned) an independent contractor who also works for other tour companies. She was FANTASTIC.

 

Thinking about all this in hindsight (it frankly hadn't occurred to me before that trip), it would seem difficult for these companies to have a full time staff of their own guides for a business that varies seasonally if not day by day. What's critical is whether they are sufficiently vetting the folks they use, and properly responding to any complaints they may receive. And, in times of high demand, saying they can't accommodate any other tours if they don't have enough top notch guides. Whether that happens, who knows. . .

[ritraveler]

Hi...we are going to be booking an overnight with Ramses for August...does anyone know what their cancellation policy is...I don't see it on their website and I apologize in advance if it's already been discussed here...thanks

[aussie cruzer]

Hi...we are going to be booking an overnight with Ramses for August...does anyone know what their cancellation policy is...I don't see it on their website and I apologize in advance if it's already been discussed here...thanks

 

 

no money up front or deposit to pay,so no need to worry.

They give you a comfirmation number for your tour & they hope you show up.

[ritraveler]

Hi....just read over my last response form Ramses regarding cancellation. i guess if you are doing an overnight there is a cancellation policy.See below:

 

Hotel cancellation or amendment policy

The time limit on your hotel cancellations or amendments is one month before

your arrival date. You can only cancel your reservation within this time limit.

So Ramses tours will pay your hotel one month before your arrival so any

cancellation or amendments should be before this month.

If you want to amend your booking within last month extra charges will be

applied depend on which hotels

[dog]

Hi....just read over my last response form Ramses regarding cancellation. i guess if you are doing an overnight there is a cancellation policy.See below:

 

Hotel cancellation or amendment policy

The time limit on your hotel cancellations or amendments is one month before

your arrival date. You can only cancel your reservation within this time limit.

So Ramses tours will pay your hotel one month before your arrival so any

cancellation or amendments should be before this month.

If you want to amend your booking within last month extra charges will be

applied depend on which hotels

 

I did not receive this information from Ramses for my overnight, but I am arranging my own hotel.

 

Did you give a deposit or credit card number upon booking?

[ritraveler]

I haven't actually booked yet..just inquired about the itinerary and hotel i was interested in....& he sent the info...waiting to check with the other couple we are traveling with to make sure its what they want to do...he said we didnt have to give a deposit, but when I inquired about their cancellation policy he sent me the info about the hotel ...it was probably in the first e-mail....just so much info packed in it I probably missied it...i was wondering how they can be reserving hotel rooms for people and not have a cancellation policy...it's Egypt tho...so who knows

[CC Help Michell]

Hi, folks,

 

Please review the board's rules about recommending tours or tour providers.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1252871

[Kimchee]

I haven't actually booked yet..just inquired about the itinerary and hotel i was interested in....& he sent the info...waiting to check with the other couple we are traveling with to make sure its what they want to do...he said we didnt have to give a deposit, but when I inquired about their cancellation policy he sent me the info about the hotel ...it was probably in the first e-mail....just so much info packed in it I probably missied it...i was wondering how they can be reserving hotel rooms for people and not have a cancellation policy...it's Egypt tho...so who knows

 

I do not know which company(s) you have communicated with, but it appears, due to some ports being cancelled on some cruises, one, or some, of the travel companies in Egypt are waiving the deposit requirement. as a both a marketing advantage or a show of good faith.

Kimchee

[ra2k]

Hi !! I also have a question about payment method, do you take credit card, USD, or EUR ?

[mikewrit]

Eight of us on an overnight last weekend from Port Said to Alexandria by way of all the major points and several nifty additions including lunch on a felluca and the Sphinx sound and light show. Two couples paid in dollars, one in euros and one in Egyptian pounds after a stop at one of the zillion cash machines along the way. The excellent guide, Mahmoud Gouda, said he might be able to take a credit card in a serious pinch, but it would have to be a the end of the tour when his boss might or might not be at the dock in Alexandria with the credit card reader.

[bconley351]

We're doing a Holy Land Cruise next year... thinking of booking tour through Ramses or Blue Nile, but concerned about putting money upfront in case of itinerary change away from Egypt. Do either of these companies require non-refundable deposit?

[Karennella]

We went to Egypt in September on the HAL Prisendam; the ports were changed earlier in the year and then reinstated. We had already booked with Nileblue Excursions and kept in contact. We had a group of 6 for the overnight excursion, and no deposit was asked for. We requested to pay during the first day so we didn't have to carry the cash around and then just paid our tip at the end. We paid in $US cash but could have arranged euros.

A concern we'd had with the changes in the ports was whether we would need to buy the US cash, but we decided we could pay the ship's bill with it anyway. When we got it at a 30 year high it made us feel happy, so all was good!

Had a great tour and highly recommmend both a private excursion and the company.

[winewanderer]

We recently returned from a cruise with Alexandria as a port stop.

 

We weren't sure that we wanted to plan anything as we weren't 100% sure we would stop there.

 

I contacted Ramses by e-mail in Italy and arranged a tour for just my husband and I to the Pyramids and Cairo Museum.

 

We had a whole air-condiioned van to ourselves. We had a great guide, Hosni (I'm sure that's not the right spelling). He was fantastic.

 

He told us all kinds of history on our 3 hour drive to Cairo and about modern life. And he timed things so well. We had almost 2 hours in the museum first then went to the pyramids and Sphinx and left Cairo before traffic got crazy. Was a great day.

 

It was $100 each and we paid in US cash at the end. This turned out to be there easiest because we had the cash when we left home.

 

It was great having a private tour, no people to wait on or time wasted doing things we didn't want to.

 

I highly recommend Ramses.

[billyandted]

We're doing a Holy Land Cruise next year... thinking of booking tour through Ramses or Blue Nile, but concerned about putting money upfront in case of itinerary change away from Egypt. Do either of these companies require non-refundable deposit?

 

On our recent NCL Jade Cruise Oct / Nov we used Ramsestours.com to book our private overnight tour of Egypt. The booking process was easy & even though I changed a few details along the way everything was handled swiftly & efficiently for me. All my questions& I had quite a few were answered promptly which I really appreciated. Our guide Karim Sperry & driver Samir were waiting when we docked & away we went on our adventure. The traffic was to say the least horrendous but Samir made it fun & Karim seemed to know all the short cuts to gets us to all the sites before the big buses & made sure we had the best seats at the Light Show & the Dinner Cruise! Karim made us feel save which could be difficult in a city of over 15 million people & we thank him for that. Egypt was a Culture Shock but the flat tire, the fender bender & the many traffic jams were handled with ease & helped make this a very memorable experience.

Our group of 8 highly recommends using this company for your trip to Egypt.

[Karennella]

Keep in mind that the major tour companies use contract guides, who may work for several companies, and the major companies operate in similar ways. They have had so little work this year that our guide told us he had nearly decided to retrain as a teacher but he really feels he lacks the patience and hopes things will improve. I told him, being a retired teacher, that if he could shepherd tourists around so efficiently, teaching would be easy, but he loves being a tour guide.

They are upset that the ship companies use various methods to encourage people to use teir vastly over-priced tours instead of private tours. They imply that their are visa issues, which there are not. Everyone is given a temporary visa, as they said, you may just wish to get off the ship for an hour and go shopping! They tell you that the boat will be held if the ship's excursion is delayed but not for a private excursion. On the Prisendam we were late leaving several ports as they were waiting for people who were not on the ship's excursions.

We were extremely happy that we chose the private excursion. It is not a place I woould return to, though my husband would, as I found the heat and rubbish everywhere hard to cope with. We wanted to see as much as possible in the two days and we did.