Booked the Nile Cruise and then a week in the Jasmine Palace Hotel in Hurghada. When we arrived at the airport we was quickly greeted by a rep who sorted the visas and transfer to overnight in the hotel before departure by bus to meet the boat at Luxor. The boat had been changed twice but as an ex boat owner I understand they can break down. The bus journey was approx five hours not the comfiest but the driver got us there safe and sound. The boat was lovely and seeing the temples was amazing and our guide was very knowledgeable. As it was our wedding anniversary we booked a balloon ride over the Valley of the King's,this was amazing, the only downside was we paid €20 for the video and was ripped off and it never was delivered to our boat as promised so watch out for this.We asked our contact to help us but he tried but we still never got the video. The food at Jasmine Palace Hotel was great.

Arrived in Egypt for a week in Hurghada and a Nile cruise. The Tuesday to Saturday at the Hurghada Long Beach hotel was faultless, absolutely brilliant. Great hotel. Picked up from the airport by Hvezda,transfer to the hotel, information given regarding transfers to Luxor on the Saturday morning . Sat came and the mini van arrived,off we went across the desert,two rest stops , halfway and at Qena ,then down the Nile to Luxor. We arrived at the quay in Luxor and boy did we strike lucky. The MS Orient Grand Rose was our boat,it was,quite simply, stunning. From our room to the dining, lounges,upper deck with pool,but most of all,the wonderful staff. All perfect and way above our expectations. Ahmed our guide and the various drivers are all perfect ambassadors for Egypt and Egyptology. Our trips ,all the usual plus Abu Simbel,went so smooth. Our balloon ride across the West Bank at Luxor was cancelled but that was out of anyone's control. We left the boat on the following Saturday,after a wondrous week,and headed back to Hurghada. Another put stop halfway and the driver fit us to the Long Beach Hurghada for our final few days of relaxation. Our car to the airport was on time and we bid Hvezda a fond farewell and headed home. Egypt we love you,we will return. Drivers and guides fantastic, hotel and boat and all staff, wonderful. We will return.

Booked Hotel/cruise deal through Travodeal. Paid extra for specific hotel, room and ship with 4 days either side of cruise so we could relax. Ship was changed twice as we approached leaving day 2 days in we were approached by Hvezda rep who informed us that we must pack as cruise was being brought forward! So we had to stop what we were doing, cancel our plans and pack up our clothes again at short notice. We left our unneeded luggage at the hotel for our return We were also informed that our ship had changed for the 3rd time, confirmed by Travodeal as “an upgrade”. On arrival at Luxor we were told the ship had changed again! We were escorted through a shabby area of the Nile and presented with a ship on very poor condition. I will review the cruise separately. We, along with our party were given rooms on level two, water level. Despite all paying extra for a top floor. We all rebelled at this point and demanded what we had paid for. After a while the manager conceded and reissued upgraded rooms. On return to Hurghada, we were taken to a completely different hotel. Our party were also told that they did not have rooms available in their hotels. There was no rep, no call from Travelodeal and we were left 10 km from our original hotel on what was an area of building sites. We were then informed that the rep would see us at 1330 the next day. We arranged to get a taxi to retrieve our luggage Unsure of what was going on, we were unable to unpack, plan, enjoy or relax. My partner was in tears. I emailed TRAVELODEAL who did not support us at all and advised us to accept the downgraded hotel. We saw the rep the next day who blamed the hotel mix up with a computer glitch! However, he was unable To find us alternative accommodation - even though I had called our original hotel, who confirmed they still had rooms. I gave the rep an ultimatum that we would check out and pay for original hotel if something was not done - nothing from rep or Travelodeal. We checked out and booked into an alternative hotel and tried to recover the final 3 days of a ruined holiday. Be aware of Travelodeal and Hvezda tours Egypt. You will be misled; mis-sold and left out of pocket. Stranded without support and holiday ruined. The whole party of 18 had the same bad experience.

First, the good points about our one week in Hurghada and one week Nile cruise… we were met at the airport. Second, the less than good points, the stay in hurghada was foreshortened so we left the hotel there after two nights… we were told this when we arrived at the hotel And then… the guide in Luxor (on the boat) curates everything so that you end up in a shop of his choosing. A ‘city tour’ of Aswan went 1/2 mile along the riverside and 400 yards inland to a spice shop. The shop was next to a market which we were not able to see… This, and so much the guide did reeked of cynicism. One of the horse and carriage drivers told me the guides take 50% of the sale price of whatever you buy and, because of the control the guides exercise, are effectively making it difficult for them to operate at all. We hired a boat that took us from Luxor museum down to the Winter Palace, waited there, then up to the Karnak Temple light show…£200 LE. It’s difficult… to do it on your own… but you’re being exploited if you don’t

We've just returned from a great holiday in Egypt 7 day nile cruise & 7 days in Hurghada We had problems as follows: 1/ Hvezda travel changed our plans on arrival without notice, we were supposed to have 2 days at the hotel then the river cruise but it was changed so we arrived at 11.30pm and had to be up and off at 5.30am on the first morning So we managed it but it wasn't ideal. The cruise in fact didn't leave for another day so I assume our plans were changed for their group transfer convenience. 2/We booked to go on a day trip to Cairo We were advised to fly rather than by coach as the day would be much longer by coach The cost was listed as £225 but when we agreed to do it we were told it was £250 but we had to pay in $s. I could'nt understand why we could pay in Egyptian pounds So I was charged $660 which cost me £530 When I complained that I had been overcharged I was simply fobbed off with very poor customer service from Rezy 3/We were given flight details at the very last minute and were booked onto the 10.50pm flight home. I can only assume that they choose the cheapest flight which was very frustrating as we watched 2 earlier flights leave which we could has got. So we waited at the airport for over 5 hours. The flight was then over 2 hours delayed so we got back to our hotel in hurghada at 3.30am which was a 22hour day for us so the coach trip would have been shorter and much less expensive!! When I expressed my dissatisfaction with Rezy he ignored me for 24hours then fobbed me off, so I complained to head office and they were also a waste of time. In summary, Egypt well worth a visit. Fascinating history and sight seeing I cannot recommend Hvezda, I wouldn't use them again. But the trip I would recommend! Just choose your travel agent carefully.

Truly terrible experience with this company. We booked with Travelodeal via secret spaces. hzevda were the travel company used to book our hotel (Gravity Sahl Hasheesh) and for the transfer from the airport to the hotel and back again. We arrived in Hurghada and went outside and the hvezda agent was nowhere to be found, after almost an hour of looking one of the local cabbies found him. He stated he didn’t know who we were. I showed them the print out of the travel voucher with there details on it and he called someone. After well over an hour he returned with a big grin on his face to tell us our hotel was booked but transfer were not. I referee to my voucher once again and he refused to honour it. He then said if I pay him 1400 Egyptian pounds he’d get the driver to take. We were 45 mins from the hotel so what choice did we have? We paid him and he refused to provide us with a receipt. Dodgy much??? It was clear they just didn’t want to drive the extra distance to Sahl hasheesh and this was the only way they would. They also told us they wouldn’t be come to collect us the following week to take us to the airport so I had to sort out a private transfer. Hvezda travel wouldn’t never be a choice we’d use, it wasn’t our choice to begin with and Travelodeal (also useless) are the ones who used them. Plenty of Egyptian firms are amazing, this one isn’t and it’s to be avoided. The other people in the van were also having trouble with a Nile cruise having books a hotel for 7 nights and then to have a cruise the agent was telling them they were there for just for that night and they’d be picked up in the early hours to be taken to the start of their cruise which would have left them with about 2 hours sleep. Honestly terrible service and dodgy as hell. Stay well clear of these people.

We booked our holiday to Egypt through TravelODeal, and I will NEVER use them again. They used Hvezda as the travel agency they booked our package holiday with which was 7 nights in Hurghada and a 7 night nile cruise. The 7 nights in Hurgahada were supposed to be at the Sea Star Beau Rivage hotel and we ended up staying there for 4 nights before doing the 5 hour trip in a coach to Luxor to star tour cruise on the King Tut 1. Before the holiday even began, I knew there were going to be problems. I'm a super organised person, so I checked my booking directly with the Sea Star Beau Rivage hotel, who told me that they only had a room booked for us for the first 3 nights but nothing else. I went back to travelOdeal who put me in contact with Hvezda and they told me that everything was fine and not to worry. I subsequently checked with the hotel again who told me that all was now in order. The week before our holiday was due to start I did a final check to make sure the cruise was booked and to try and get more information about transfers from the airport to the hotel and from the hotel to Luxor and back again. They informed me that the dates had changed and that we were now going to stay for 4 nights before doing the cruise. I again checked with the hotel, who thanked me for the information. On arriving at the airport in Hurghada we were met by a rep from Hvezda telling us to buy our Egypt Visa, I'd already purchased them online (no waiting at the airport), so we continued through customs. When we got outside we were met by another person who told us we needed to wait for other people who were also going to the same hotel. Eventually, we were taken into the parking lot and directed to the most decrepit, broken-down people carrier you could ever imagine. It was baking hot and the vehicle had no aircon. After a hair-raising ride across Hurghada, not for the faint of heart we arrived at the hotel. Although touted at 5 star it definitely isn't more than a 4 star place as it is dated and the rooms are tired. The following morning we went to the rep meeting at 10 am and he didn't have us on his list. Then he couldn't find our name on the list of people who had booked the full excursion package while on the Nile cruise. This was all eventually sorted, but didn't exactly instill us with confidence about the competence of the company, which was already on very shaky ground. We were told that we needed to be in the foyer of the hotel at 6am on the morning of our departure for the Nile cruise. A large number of us were there at this designated time, at 6.50am, following a call from my husband to the rep the coach finally arrived and the guide on the coach told us that he had told the rep on numerous occasions the correct time for pick up from our hotel was 6.45am but that apparently everyone from all the different hotels were all still being told 6am... Piss up and brewery come to mind. After the long drive across the Sahara to Luxor we finally arrived at our cruise boat. It must of been beautiful in its hay day, but now it is rather tired and not particularly clean, the surfaces in our cabin had a layer of black grease over them and out of site place like under the beds and in the nooks and crannies there was dirt and built up dust. We were given lovely towel decorations on our beds each day, which was nice. The biggest problem with our cabin was that it was a triple as we had our 15 year old daughter with us, but as there are only 2 triple cabins on the boat the expensive room upgrade we had paid for to ensure we were not close to the noisy engines was for nought. The following evening I found glass in my food. This was completely unacceptable so I wrote an email of complaint to Hvezda asking to change boats and for a refund for the upgraded room. We were then moved into two separate rooms on the upper deck and the email I received back from Hvezda told me that as far as they were concerned they had dealt with my complaint about the glass in my food with the complimentary fruit basket and bottle of wine they had provided... I'll leave that to you to decide if this was good enough, or not. The Egyptologist we were provided with for all of the excursions I cannot fault in any way - Ahmed was totally fantastic for the entire trip, and when tragically, a member of the group died from a heart attack when we were visiting the temple of Kom Ombo, he dealt with everything very professionally. On arrival back in Hurghada we were informed that we would now be staying at a different hotel, the Swiss Inn Resort which is located close to the airport. We were very dubious and I think all of us were thinking, oh no, what are we going to find when we get there! But it was an absolutely fantastic hotel, truly 5 star and we all thoroughly enjoyed our time there. Overall we had an amazing time, loved seeing all of the amazing history that Egypt has and would go back again to see more. But as for Hvezda, they seriously need to sort themselves out - try employing some women perhaps as they'd no doubt get things done far better as we are expert organisers! Note that all images are of the fantastic Swiss Inn Resort in Hurghada. A last piece of advice that really should be provided to everyone considering a nile cruise and excursion package - there are a lot of stairs on the boats that you will need to navigate daily. The ground on all the sites you will visit is very uneven, rocky, with lots of trip hazard and often involves climbing steps. The Valley of the Kings one of the tombs involves going down steep steps way inside a mountain it's slippery and steep going in, but remember you also need to climb back up to get out. It is not suitable for anyone with mobility problems, or other health issues that affect your balance, heart, lungs or general ability to cope with these situations.

Our ship was MS Symphony probably not the smartest ship on the Nile but certainly the best for being looked after. The cabins yes they are small and maybe a bit dated but cleaned to a high standard by the lovely staff who looked after them. Everyday a new towel model, crocodile, flower, monkey swinging from the ceiling they were a lovely touch. Hot water all the time and a good shower and towels changed every day. The restaurant was really nice with views of the Nile from the windows. The food was good plenty of variety to chose from. The staff were so helpful and insisted carrying your food and drink to your table. The top deck was a real sun trap and plenty of chairs, tables and sunbeds and towels. Every afternoon tea and cake. I cannot praise the staff enough they were fantastic and great fun. Thanks Ali for making it such a lovely holiday. The cruise was really great and visited all the temples and of course the Aswan Dam. Look out for the men on the small boats who pull along side of the ship selling their wares. The tablecloths are a fantastic buy but make sure you barter well. I got 2 large tablecloths with 6 napkins in each package for 600 Egyptian pounds dont pay any more. It is really fun shopping this way they throw the packages up to you if you like them you put the money in the bag and throw it back, its good fun and the men are really funny. We had a good guide Amar who was very knowledgeable. He did tend to walk fast and sometimes had problems keeping up. I would point out that you are taken to a place selling and demonstrating perfumes, one selling ceramics and papyrus demo a bit of waste of time in my opinion as it was very expensive would have preferred more time in the temples. We had a great time and thankyou to all concerned.

From start to finish they lied , mislead & were making it up as they went along. The list of issue not only from us, but EVERONE we spoke is too much to list. The problem is that you book a hotel or Nile cruise as a package through JETLINE, TRAVELZOO ETC, not knowing that HVEZDA will be the local operator, SO ASK YOUR BOOKING COMPANY WHO THEY USE

Had a wonderful cruise on the Nile. Would highly recommend. The tour guide, Mohammed, was fantastic and extremely knowledgeable and attentive. The boat itself, the Nile Jewel, is a bit dated but was very clean, the food was good and all the staff on board were friendly and gave excellent service. In summary, a wonderful holiday. I am rating the tour 5 star because of the excellent tour guide who was great.

My wife and I have been lucky enough to go on many types of holidays and having some wonderful experiences across the world. This holiday was one of the best. Egypt is a country we had wanted to visit for some time because of it's climate and rich cultural history. We were not let down, the 7 day Nile cruise was fantastic mainly due the our brilliant guide Mohamed Fekry. Mohammed is an intelligent and extremely knowledgeable but what makes him extra special is his personality. Whilst looking after all members of our group he was respectful, thoughtful and kind and a credit to his profession. Although our trip involved the usual tourist visits to local arts and crafts workshops with the usual sales hype he ensured there was no pressure on members of our group to make purchases. The biggest compliment I can pay him is that he looked after us as though we were his family. Egypt is a wonderful country with wonderful welcoming people and and a abundance of cultural and historical sites to visit we will definitely be going back and very much hope that Mohammed will be out guide.

We went on a 7 day cruise along The Nile on The Nile Jewel. We did all the tours including Cairo. We had a fantastic time. Our tour guide Mohammed was incredible. Nothing was too much trouble for him. His knowledge is extremely good. Mohammed made our trip memorable. We will definitely go back.

The company in Luxor was fantastic our tour guide/ rep Mohamed fekry was a credit to the company! Went above and beyond for us on our stay on the jewel Nile cruise! Made us feel like family and had such a wealth of knowledge with the ancient history of Egypt! Back in hughada Is a completely different story! We arrived back at the hotel 2am travelling from Cairo my wife fell in a poorly lit area of the hotel so we rushed and asked for ice. 12 hours later we still hadn’t been checked in or given the ice for her swelling knees. We contacted the local rep which was the quality control manager mr sa-Id, and he offered us an excursion at a discounted rate as an apology. But nothing else. The next day a member of our group ended up in hospital with a chest infection. We contacted the above again and had no answer for hours and hours and finally when he made contact. His response was. I will let the office know and get back to you. 2 days later still no contact and we again have reached out multiple times with no answer. We then found another rep of the company in reception. Asked for his help on regards to the hospital and he asked for 200 Egyptian pounds each way to take us there and bring us back otherwise he would not help and we would have to make our own way there, considering a taxi is 46 Egyptian pounds each way. So all in all the first week was such an amazing experience I would highly recommend a Nile cruise. But do not stay in a hotel in hughada with this company they are no help what so ever in a crisis and palm you off every chance they get!

We booked on a seven day cruise from Luxor to Aswan. Arrived at the boat and immediately asked for an extra £35 person tips in advance. Whilst to my rather soft sensibilities were offended it was worth every penny. This meant we didn’t have to worry about how much and who to tip, something which we could easily get wrong and offend. Also Egypt is comparatively cheap and £5 a day tips is very reasonable. I can not speak highly enough of Ahmed our guide and friend while on the cruise. He took all the worries out of visiting all the sites shops and markets. His knowledge of the temples and the valley of the kings was second to none. Without Ahmed this trip would have been terrible. While not all was perfect on the trip. We have fantastic memories and enjoyed every minute this is because of Ahmed *****

I know there have been lots of bad reviews about this company but I can not fault them, we arrived in Luxor from Hurgharda at lunch time, we were met by our guide H who asked us to go into the bar while the porters took our luggage to our cabins. H then proceed to tell us about the tip system, I already knew about this from previous posts and gave him the £70 per couple, I actually think it’s quite a good idea as you are never expect to tip again on the 7 day cruise which we usually do and can rack up! From start to finish the trips were well organised, H had pre ordered our tickets for each site we visited so there was no hanging around when we got there, he was so knowledgeable and explained everything but also gave us free time to wander on our own which was great. The drivers of the vehicles we used each day were really good drivers and the vehicles were spotlessly clean. Water was provided each day after our visits. The boat although quiet old was very clean, all staff were very friendly and helpful, we have an issues with our safe and the sink, these were immediately sorted. The food was plenty full, lots of choice and very well cooked. I would not hesitate to use this company to friends and would definitely use if I visited Egypt again.