Osiris Tours Reviews 305

Osiris Tours exceeded our expectations on all accounts! From initial planning with Mahmoud to the moment we arrived in Cairo, our every need was tended to. Mahmoud (owner of Osiris Tours) promptly answered all our questions creating a custom itinerary to meet our desires. When we wanted to make adjustments before our departure, he quickly accommodated us and offered options for our consideration. When the Israel-Hamas war started, Mahmoud eased our concerns sending us videos of other Osiris travelers currently traveling in Egypt giving us reassurance of conditions in Egypt.

Once we arrived in Cairo, the Osiris team met us before immigrations expediting us though the airport process with out a worry for us. Our Cairo tour lead Mina delivered us to our fantastic hotel accommodations getting us checked-in and getting us ready for our first day’s tour in Giza. Our Egyptologist guide, Marwa, was knowledgeable and attentive. She taught us so much about early Egypt during our amazing tours of the Egyptian Museum and the pyramids. She introduced us to Egyptian culture visiting artisans and enjoying the most delicious local food. Marwa is also an artist herself who helped us to take amazing pictures along the way.

Next we departed Cairo for the journey south to Abu Simbel. Again, the Osiris airport team moved us easily through the airport for our arrival to Aswan where met Sam our Egyptologist guide and began the the drive to Abu Simbel (the light show at Abu Simbel is a must). We absolutely love Sam who guided us through Abu Simbel, Aswan, Luxor and Dendera! Luxor Temple at night is a must, Nefertari’s tomb is must, Seti I tomb is a must, Dendera Temple is a must (catacombs, crawling into secret chamber, panorama view from up top)… we can go on and on. Sam was incredibly enthusiastic, knowledge, funny, kind and caring, and made us feel completely at ease. Sam made sure we had extra time at any site we desired, and was able to get us special access to certain tombs/temples. We can’t wait to see Sam again on a dig in his village, fingers crossed Sam gets the digging permit!! We can’t say enough positive things about Sam, we consider him part of our family now. Along with Sam, our drivers Ayman (Aswan) and Ahmed (Luxor) were fantastic, expertly navigating busy streets, and always making sure we were comfortable, and had plenty of drinks and snacks.

All too soon, it was time to return to Cairo for our last days in Egypt (at least for this visit). Again Osiris made all the arrangements go smoothly. Back in Cairo, Mina worked magic for us getting us the Presidential Suite in the Triumph Luxury Hotel in Cairo! We enjoyed our last day touring in Cairo meeting back up with Marwa and visiting a beautiful palace and grounds and the modern National Museum of Egyptian Civilization. When it was time to depart late that evening the most fantastic airport expeditor moved us quickly through the exit process and got us on our way.

All throughout our trip, the Osiris team arranged awesome plush accommodations (The Old Cataract Hotel is Aswan is the best ever and a must stay), expert drivers driving us to all sites, and Egyptologists provided detailed history with exciting ancient stories to keep us enthused and engaged. We felt completely safe throughout our entire journey to Giza, Abu Simbel, Aswan, Edfu, Kom Ombo, Luxor, Dendera and Cairo. The Egyptian people are courteous, kind and welcoming to tourists. Young children especially like speaking with tourists and taking pictures, they are so very sweet. We absolutely love everything Egypt has to offer and are incredibly grateful for such an amazing experience thanks to the expertise and professionalism of Osiris Tours. We look forward to future adventures with Osiris, they are the best!

My husband and I returned from an Osiris tour to Egypt and Jordan in early November. It was a trip of a lifetime and a wonderful experience. We felt very safe in both countries, despite hostilities in the region. In our view, a tour with private guides and drivers is the best way to explore the antiquities while learning about the culture of the countries, and the cost is not much more than small group tour. It also provides a lot of flexibility. Mahmoud Gerbril, founder and President of Osiris personally helped us plan our trip, guiding us through options to assure that we would realize our goals. When we needed to change our itinerary because of a cancelled pre-tour in Israel, he quickly modified our schedule, changing hotel reservations and offering options. The guides Osiris provided in Egypt and Jordan were excellent and we had no trouble understanding them. Sayed Bazuka was our guide throughout Egypt, and he was outstanding! The airport representatives were invaluable, getting us Visas, guiding us through customs and taking care of issues that arose, and we appreciated the helpfulness and safety focus of our drivers. Overall, we had a fabulous experience. We purchased extra tickets that allowed us to climb up inside the Great Pyramid in Giza and to enter some of the more spectacular tombs in the Valley of the Kings and Queens in Luxor and it was well worth it!!

We have taken many private tours over the years, and this tour of Egypt and Jordan arranged by Osiris Tours was definitely one of the absolute best!
First, on arrival we immediately felt absolutely safe with our private drivers and private guides. They were very thoughtful and protective of us and made sure that we always felt comfortable. Also, every hotel that we stayed in had excellent security and that made us feel even more relaxed during our trip. We never felt insecure or unsafe at all. I would definitely recommend the private tour arrangements if you are at all hesitant about traveling to this region. It is worth it because you will be completely safe and protected throughout your entire journey.

When I contacted Mahmoud with an interest in a trip to Egypt and Jordan he was immediately responsive and designed the perfect itinerary for us based on our preferences and what we wanted to see on our 11 day journey. He was very thoughtful in getting everything perfect for us, and was very patient when we had questions or wanted to make changes.

Immediately when we arrived we could see the level of organization. Our Osiris representative met us at the airport and whisked us through immigration and got us directly to our driver. Every transfer went like clockwork. They even made sure that we were checked in properly for our transfer flights, and never left us until we were ready to go through security.
Our drivers and private guides were all excellent. They were very professional and thoughtful, as well as knowledgable. The guides all had degrees in Egyptology or Egyptian history, or both. They were interactive and highly informative. We learned SO much! Also, they arranged our schedule to fit the times that we wanted to see or do things and made sure to get us to the busier tourist sites before (or after) the often stifling crowds of tourists arrived, making our experience at each place even more memorable and fantastic.

Our hotels were all really great and several of the 5 star hotels were absolutely amazing. Again, every hotel had excellent security so we always felt perfectly safe and comfortable.

We also appreciated the private portions of our tour, like the private access to King Tut's tomb, the private Nile River felucca boat ride (romantic and stunningly beautiful), and the private desert safari in Wadi Rum.

I can't say enough about how appreciative we are to Osiris Tours for this amazing and once in a lifetime experience. We would most definitely schedule a trip through Osiris Tours again, and we will recommend it to our friends!!

Osiris Tours gave us the most special and memorable experience of Egypt. From the initial contact, to the planning, during the trip and afterwards. Everything was meticulously planned. I can't speak highly enough of Mahmoud and his team. Read all the other reviews on TripAdvisor, Google etc (I've posted longer ones elsewhere because Mahmoud and his team deserve the recognition!) to see how much everyone absolutely loved their experience with Osiris Tours.

If I could rate a trip more than a 5, I would. We had a wonderful trip to Egypt and Jordan planned by Osiris. From the moment we got off the plane and were greeted to the exceptional guides, hotels and experiences, everything was perfect. Particularly given the extensive media coverage about the war, it was wonderful to feel safe and supported as we traveled around. The people we met and the things we did here were truly amazing. We are so very glad we came!

We booked our trip over a year ago and pre-paid in advance. Mahmoud was very professional through the process but when we canceled out of concern for our safety given the violence in the region, he refused to grant any kind of refund or even credit forward future trip, despite incurring no cost for our canceled trip.

Our trip to Morocco was canceled due to the devastating earthquake, but we had babysitters lined up and wanted to travel. I set my sights on Egypt, but time was short to plan — two weeks to be exact. After 12 hours of researching and calls to other travel companies telling me we were too late, Osiris Tours’ owner, Mahmoud, actually picked up the phone when I called. It was Friday evening, his time. He had me submit a request with budget, interests, length, etc and when I woke up Saturday morning, there was an itinerary in my inbox! We exchanged a few more emails over the weekend to select some additional excursions, etc. and by Monday morning, I had a custom, private 12 day tour to Egypt booked! I was so excited he was able to work this magic for us.

Then, the time to travel began. Once you step off the plane in Egypt, literally everything is handled for you. Our plane was late and we arrived at 3:00 am in Cairo, but all of the people assisting us had smiles on their faces. In all of the airports, we had someone to walk us through every single step of the way. There is no stress about where you are supposed to go or do. We felt incredibly safe and taken care of. We had an amazing in-country coordinator who met us at the airport to explain how everything was going to work. He then met us a few hours later to introduce us to our private guide (do these people ever sleep?!) to start our trip. He gave us advice on tips (it is a tipping country) and advised us how much Egyptian money to pull out of the ATM. Super helpful… All of our tours included private drivers in spacious vans just for us who were waiting for us with the AC cranked and cold bottled waters. We had two guides — one in Cairo and one who traveled in Upper Egypt with us the entire way (Luxor, Aswan and Abu Simbal). Their wealth of knowledge was incredible! I’m an Egyptology nerd, and I can’t believe how much new information I learned. Our guide in the South was like a mini celebrity with everyone saying hi to her and another guide whispered in our ear that we were lucky to have “the best.” We could tell. She knew these places inside and out. She also knew when the cruise ship groups would be arriving so coordinated all of our tours to beat the crowds (and heat as much as possible), which gave us beautiful pictures and short lines, if any. In Cairo, we had the same guide and driver for all of our time, and they were so amazing. Driving in Cairo is a bit of an adventure, but we quickly learned to trust our driver and could relax amongst all the honking. When we returned to Cairo at the end of our trip for our final days, it was like coming home seeing familiar faces. They felt like friends at the end.

Besides the people, the accommodations were great, the tours Mahmoud recommended were spot on, and the food they provided was amazing. Even the order of the tours was perfectly orchestrated. If we would have done our itinerary in reverse, I feel like some could have felt like a let down because it just kept getting better and better. (Tip: Nefertari’s tomb in the Valley of the Queens is spectacular and it’s hard to compete after seeing that. Definitely buy all the extra tombs that are recommended and feel free to skip the free ones in the Valley of the Kings if it’s hot and you are tired.)

If you are debating between a land only package or cruise, I highly recommend skipping the cruise. We watched the tour groups from the boats and couldn’t imagine moving in large groups at some of these places. So much wasted time waiting and we saw probably 2-3 times more than cruise itineraries would allow. It was a lot of time in the car, but they were so comfortable that we just rested and edited pictures along the way. The resorts we stayed in were fantastic, and we enjoyed massages at the hotel spa one afternoon after touring and ended most our days with a drink in the pool overlooking the Nile. We didn’t miss anything by skipping the cruise, except wasted time.

If you are considering booking with Osiris, just do it! You won’t regret it. You will feel like a VIP the entire time. Thank you Mahmoud and team for an absolute trip of a lifetime!

Visiting Egypt has been a dream for a very long time, and this trip was perfect. Mahmoud worked with us, responding to our many questions and ideas, to create our own ideal custom trip. He was very receptive to including those items that were important to us, and removing items that we did not want. Our local guide in Cairo, Sayad, our local guide in Luxor, Sam (Essam), and our Cairo representative Ahmed, were skilled, knowledgable, and made history come alive. Our Cairo driver, Ahmed, was skilled and made us feel safe in what felt to us to be a crazy traffic experience. The vans were clean, roomy, new and the driver always had the perfect AC temperature and cold bottles of water ready. The transitions from airport to hotel to historic sites were seamless. We would recommend Osiris, and all of our guides in Egypt, to anyone that hopes to have a once in a lifetime experience.

Planning for this trip started in Nov/Dec 2019 – well before Covid. Mahmoud Gebril spent about 45 mins on the phone with me understanding our interests, preferred way to travel and physical readiness for the trip and then reverted with an itinerary which was tailor made for us. We placed our deposit in February 2020 for the trip to occur in October 2020. Then, COVID. The trip was rescheduled to April 2021 but we were not yet comfortable traveling that far with COVID lurking so I asked to postpone. Mahmoud was a gentleman and a miracle worker – carrying our deposit forward to September 2023. We can’t thank him enough.

As for the trip itself: it was perfection. We travel frequently and have worked with many agents/companies. This trip stands out. Mahmoud Gebril listened carefully to our interests and the trip was planned perfectly to accommodate us. From the moment we stepped off the plane in Cairo, we were in expert hands. Every person we interacted with was a consummate professional – courteous, on time and informative. Egypt is an extremely confusing place and the Osiris team made it easy. They helped us with our entry visas, in the airports, at the hotels and as we made our way around the country. Our guides in Cairo and Upper Egypt were amazingly knowledgeable (Marwa in Cairo and Sam in Upper Egypt). Our drivers were on time and professional. Special shout out to Mina in Cairo, our trip coordinator, for the best surprise of the trip which we will treasure. And to guide extraordinaire, Sam – we will never look at the Horus sculpture we returned home with without thinking of his kindness, sense of fun and knowledge.

If you plan to go to Egypt, there is no better choice than Osiris Tours.

Trip of a lifetime!

My family and I have just returned from a trip to Egypt organized by Osiris Tours (Mahmoud Gebril), and what an incredible experience it was! From seeing the pyramids and the Sphinx and riding camels in Giza, to visiting Saqqara and eating in an amazing bedouin restaurant to walking around in Cairo and having a guided food tour with our guide it was all breathtaking and incredibly eye-opening.

Then, we were off to Luxor and the Valley of the Kings (including the tomb of King Tut Ankh Amun) Habu Temple, the Valley of the Queens, (including the most incredible tomb of Queen Nefertari), Valley of the Nobles and Temples of Dendera and Abydos.

The next leg was the cruise on the Nile. Every morning, we met our guide for a new adventure: Karnak Temple, horse carriage ride to and from Edfu Temple, Abu Simbel Temple, just to name a few visits.

When we disembarked in Aswan, we were brought to the Old Cataract hotel, the oldest and most beautiful hotel in all of Egypt. We went on a Felucca (sailboat ride) up and down and around this fairytale-like place. We were also treated to the Nubian village and saw an elementary school and a house. What an incredible experience!

Then, it was back to Cairo and our guide Ahmed and driver Tito, who were both amazing. We saw the Citadel, and Mohammad Ali Mosque, the Egyptian museum and of course, the Khan El Khalili Bazaar, where we also had an incredibly delicious meal.

Our final leg of the trip was Petra in Jordan, and a desert jeep safari in Wadi Rum, followed by a day at the Dead Sea.

Mahmoud had made an incredible schedule with the perfect balance of visiting and discovering and downtime. Every place that we stayed at was stunning with service beyond anything that you see around the world nowadays. People were welcoming, and always ready to help us with anything that we could wish for.

Our biggest crush: the Four Seasons Hotel at Residence in Cairo. Coming back there was almost like coming home.

The people that made this trip so incredible: Mahmoud (Osiris tours), who organized every bit of it; Yasser, our coordinator on the ground; Ahmed, our guide in Cairo; Essam, our guide in the south; and Tito our super skilled and friendly driver in Cairo.

I did a lot of research before booking this trip because it had been a bucket-list item for many years. Osiris tours made it an incredibly amazing experience. We were ALWAYS accompanied everywhere we went: at the airports, with official security, for anything we needed and were never left wondering: “what's next?”

In one word: PERFECT.

Thanks a million Mahmoud

LS and family

We worked with Osiris for a recent trip of Egypt and Jordan. After a decent amount of research, I emailed Osiris to request a trip plan. We were allowed to customized the entire trip and Osiris really made all of our dreams come true! From start to finish, every airport transfer, tour guide, driver, and experience was perfectly executed. We had local guides at every location (Cairo, Luxor, Petra, Wadi Rum, and Dead Sea). We even had a last minute flight cancelation that caused little chaos, but Osiris adjusted our pick ups and it was like it never happened once we landed. We can't wait to plan another trop with Osiris in the future!

We had such an amazing trip with our introduction to Egypt coordinated by Osiris Tours!!! Definitely 5 out of 5 stars!!! All aspects of the trip were coordinated smoothly with easy airport transfers, wonderful accommodations (mini-bus and hotels), professional drivers and fantastic guides. Bazooka and Hamdy were perfect tour guides — informative, flexible and very personable. Your recommended itinerary covered such a great depth of information and centuries of history. In particular, I’m delighted that you recommend we add a day in both Upper and Lower Egypt. There was a good focus on Ancient Egypt with a splash of modern culture. We could not have been happier with the hotel selections — in particular, The Old Cataract Hotel in Aswan was spectacular. Ramadan coordinated everything very smoothly in country. Thank you to your whole team!

My husband, mom and I had a dream holiday to Egypt - thanks to Mahmoud and team Osiris! It was smooth sailing from the moment the landed in Cairo airport, as they organise airport attendants to help breeze through immigration.

Mahmoud was patient and very responsive on email, as I sent a lot of questions his way. We finally planned the perfect 10 days/9 nights trip across Cairo, Luxor and Aswan, with a day trip to Abu Simbel thrown in.

We started out with Mohamed Saad as our guide in Cairo. He was super friendly and kept my mom company as my husband & I climbed inside the Great Pyramid. Saad was great at giving us the history behind everything we saw at Giza, Memphis and Saqqara - and answered all our questions so well with his 20+ years of experience. He also gave some advice on dinner locations and recommended specific trustworthy shops at the Khan el-Khalili bazaar.

Our next guide who stayed with us for 7 days was Ismail Haroun Ahmed. Ismail was amazing - he's super experienced and could answer all of my husbands questions while giving us very detailed summaries of everything we saw (as he could tell we were super interested). I love how he helps us to remember everything (E.g. the South crown is shaped like a champagne bottle, the north like an ice bucket and when you combine the two, you get both the Upper & Lower Egypt crowns)! We extended our stay in Cairo a few days after our Osiris tour, and we could still remember all the tips Ismail shared as we visited the many beautiful museums. We really enjoyed his stories - and Ismail takes amazing photos of us as well. We really appreciated Ismails' suggestions for dinner and hanging out in Luxor - his hometown. He also spent sometime sharing more about modern life in Egypt - from his kids education to women's role in society. It's super fascinating, and we felt very lucky to have Ismail as our guide.

If you're looking for a luxe private tour - Osiris is your only choice (trust me, I've done a ton of research).

Some things to note:
- Please bring plenty of extra cash in EGP, and in smaller notes as well for tips. It added up to about USD 30/person per day as we'll need to tip drivers, tour guides, airport representatives, hotel staff and other folks such as bathroom attendants, sailboat drivers etc.
- Some caretakers in the tombs/inside the pyramids will also grab your phones to help take photos - in exchange for some tips. We didn't mind so much as they helped us capture some group photos inside these areas where guides aren't allowed.
- You can choose the tour start timings. We preferred to start early (7am pick-up on most days) to end around 12pm-2pm where they'll drive you back to the hotel. This allowed us to enjoy the cooler morning weather. Be sure to enjoy a heavy breakfast at the hotel as you'll be having late lunches.
- If you have your heart set on a particular restaurant for lunch, do let your guide know in advance. We spotted a beautiful rustic Nubian restaurant across from Philae Temple (Solaih Nubian Restaurant - do whatsapp them in advance with your menu choices), and Ismail helped to arrange a felluca ride for us to enjoy lunch in between our tour.
- Mahmoud will share some important travel information that includes clothing for women. Good to dress respectfully in a Muslim country to avoid stares.
- Note that as this is a private tour, we can choose to visit the various local government-approved factories and stores if we wish to - so speak up if you're not interested or prefer to head back to the hotel earlier. We skipped some, but enjoyed visiting the papyrus, alabaster and gold shops to customise a cartouche.

Our trip to Egypt provided by Osiris Tours was fantastic and went beyond our expectations. From the time we were picked up at the airport in Cairo, to the time we were dropped off there the experience was seamless. The two guides that e had were excellent, and the several people, who handled the logistics; the airport assistants, and the transfer-men (from airport to hotel, guides, etc.), were very courteous and helpful. We travel often, and we are able to navigate our way around foreign airports, but always slowly and sometimes with doubt. The airport assistants provided expert guidance through the airports and sped up the process. Mohamed Ramadan, the gentleman who transferred us from the Cairo airport to our hotel is an excellent face for Osiris Tours. He was very gracious and always had a smile on his face. The hotels were excellent; especially the Old Cataract in Aswan. During downtime there we enjoyed watching feluccas and other boats navigate the Nile. It's a busy environment, yet from the bank, a very serene and relaxing experience. Exploring the hotel was an adventure in itself as we walked in the long-gone footsteps of some of history’s notable and famous guests. As I mentioned previously, the guides were excellent as well; Ahmed in Cairo, and Alaa in the south of Egypt. Both showed great knowledge of Ancient Egyptian history and patiently answered our questions. Alaa did a fantastic job interpreting the reliefs in each temple, which made each site a unique experience. When he completed the tour, Alaa always offered us additional alone-time at each site to further explore or take photos. Ahmed expertly navigated us through the Cairo Museum and explained and interpreted the various exhibits. He also treated us to a surprise tour of a recently renovated mosque near the market in Cairo, which proved to be very interesting and educational. Both Ahmed and Alaa not only explained Egyptian history but also introduced us to Egypt as a country and its people. We chose not to do the Nile cruise, and this allowed for the guides to schedule our visits to avoid crowds and in a few instances the hot afternoon sun. Prior to the trip Mahmoud was very helpful in assisting us to select the perfect itinerary, and to make suggestions, and to answer questions. He was quick to respond, always polite, courteous and very customer service oriented. This trip will remain with us forever as one of our experiences of a lifetime. I would recommend Osiris Tours to anyone looking for a great adventure in Egypt.

My wife and I, along with our 3 teenage children thoroughly enjoyed our trip to Egypt, during our Spring break. What an amazing trip! This was a trip of a lifetime that was carefully planned and coordinated by Osiris Tours. Great options.Great results.

I was initially skeptical selecting Osiris Tours, solely based on online reviews. Most of us have been sold on 5 star rating's that disappointingly equated to, at most, 2 star service. Definitely not the case with Mahmoud of Osiris Tours. Custom tailored options, based on my wife's and my requests. We were treated like VIPs the entire time in Egypt.

A special acknowledgment to Mohammed Faussee and his team who were extremely professional, prompt and gave specific instructions which really took the pressure out of navigating a foreign country with a large family.

Now, what made this trip so memorable besides, the living history lesson, were our two AMAZING AND EXTREMELY KNOWLEDGEABLE tour guides. Our Cairo tour guide Ahmed Fathy Alsayed and Luxor tour guide
E-SAM definitely showed their experience in this business by offering up numerous suggestions for side trips to local vendors, local cuisine and entertainment and were just all around accommodating with my family. Great, down to earth people, from day one. I can't express enough gratitude for their hospitality.

And lastly, a big thank you to both of our drivers (Ahmed X 2). Don't know how you all do it. Navigating those busy streets daily. Made our busy days in Cairo and Luxor more palatable. Big Thanks!

Looking forward to our next Osiris adventure. All the best!
lan, Mia, Xavier, Marley & Kai March 2023

Osiris Tours meant being totally spoiled and looked after seamlessly. Not one hitch - amazing considering travel these days. Owner, Mahmoud Gebril spent much personal time on our desires/budget to give us not just the stunning, awe-inspiring archaeology but an insight into Egyptian culture as well. There was down time too, so necessary. It was flawless. Effortless. Worth every penny - a totally fair price for what we received.
Coming back to luxury accommodation (often boutique and typica with fresh flowers once in our room) after sight-seeing was a treat. The guides were informative, (our favourite had 27 years experience) and magicked every extra wish (like lunch at Mena House when there were no free tables). Memorable: an essential oils shop to experience lotus, papyrus and jasmine flower essences. Add in: an adventure to the roof of an ancient mosque, local home cooking, a slow sail boat up the Nile, hikes in the desert and a feeling of privilege to see some of the real Egypt. As seniors we could not have had this trip without Osiris. Kudos to Mahmoud for such a successful feat of organization. Patricia L. Canada

If you are looking for a custom luxury tour of Egypt, look no further than Osiris Tours. From the first email with Mahmoud the entire experience was low stress and well organized. I felt reassured and well cared for from the planning stage up to the day we flew home from Egypt.

For starters, Mahmoud is excellent at responding promptly and providing advice on which sites, hotels, and options are best. He will work with your time frame and help you build a perfect Egyptian itinerary. I am picky about the things I wanted to see and wanted ample time for photographs, and the itinerary accommodated these requests.

The trip itself was top notch. The trip was 14 days in Egypt including a Nile River Cruise. We had excellent guides (Mohammed in Cairo and Hamdi in Luxor/Aswan) and skilled drivers. They were always prompt and on time. The guides had a wealth of knowledge about Egypt and were enthusiastic about sharing it. Airport transfers were smooth with someone waiting for you as soon as you arrive at each airport. Hotels were well chosen and meals were excellent. The 3 night Nile River Cruise chosen for us was stellar! We would not change a thing.

Egypt is a tough country to travel without a guide. I usually do independent travel, but for Egypt it would be such a headache. The price of this luxury tour was similar/better than most other large group companies in the field (but you get your own private guide, private ground transportation, and YOU call the shots about shopping, time, and sights). It was well worth the expense.

In summary, for a 5 star custom luxury experience of Egypt I strongly recommend this tour company.

My wife and I have always wanted to visit Egypt. After much online research, we decided to book with Osiris based on the great feedback on TripAdvisor and my experience in planning with Mahmoud over the phone. We are traveling home tomorrow after what turned out to be our best trip abroad ever. Not only was Egypt a fascinating place historically, but the Egyptian hospitality we experienced all over the country really made us feel welcome.

Do yourself a favor and experience what it’s like to travel with Osiris Tours. Every single detail is pre-planned and executed perfectly. Airport reps at each transit point are waiting for you, no issues, they handle all of the paperwork where needed, they walk you to security handle your bags, it’s very VIP. We felt safe and well taken care of everywhere we went. All drivers were polite, competent, safe, and vehicles were clean. All hotels were lovely and first class. The process at all transit points was flawless. If you stay in Aswan, ask for the Sofitel Old Cataract, it’s incredible. Both guides we had were amazing, knowledgeable, patient, kind, and full of facts and stories which brought history to life for us. Mahmoud is always in touch with his team in the background making sure everything is going smoothly.

A few special shout outs. First to Moheb our airport rep in Cairo on arrival. He has such a great, engaging personality and we made fast friends with him…it was a good first impression for us of Egypt. Our driver Bishoy was excellent and kept us alive in the crazy Cairo traffic and even taught us some Arabic. Then to Marwa Khater, our guide in Cairo on our first and last days. Marwa is a powerhouse, she showed us so much of Giza and Cairo on our days with her and also managed to take the most wonderful insta-worthy photos of us amid all of the pyramids and monuments. She also arranged our camel ride with an owner whose animals were very well taken care of and in good condition. We bonded with her, and we left feeling like family. Next we spent 6 days with Ismail Haroun Ahmed in Aswan and Luxor. Ismail was very detailed with the history but had such a kind and patient way with us and such wonderful hospitality that we ended up having the best time with him.

Five stars are hardly adequate to rate this trip, but since 10 stars aren't available, five will have to suffice.

Mahmoud Gebril is a true professional. Shortly after contacting Osiris Tours about a potential trip to Egypt, he responded with a detailed itinerary. He worked closely with us to tailor it specifically for our requirements.

The hotels were excellent. The Four Seasons provided a tranquil retreat from the intense experience of Cairo. The Hilton in Luxor is beautifully situated. We watched hot air balloons rise every morning across the Nile. The Old Cataract in Aswan was indeed palatial and sitting on the terraces in the evening, watching the little tour boats was a treat.

The true magic was provided by our guides. Our Cairo team--Ahmed Fathy Alsayed and Atef Ragab (AKA Fearless Driver) were a terrific team. Ahmed had answers to all of our questions and brought the sites, whether pyramids, museums, or mosques vividly to life. Atef negotiated the chaotic Cairo traffic with ease and always got us safely and speedily to our destinations. They also provided experiences that were not part of the tour. The best falafel we had on the trip was from a stand in a village on the way to Dahshur. In Alexandria they introduced us to an unbelievably delicious rice pudding with honey, ice cream, raisins and nuts. They made our visit extraordinary in every way and we will never forget their kindness and professionalism.

Calaf, our guide in Luxor and Aswan was also terrific. He was enthusiastic, well-informed and passionate about his work. He managed to bring Egyptian history vividly to life for us. He had answers to all of our questions and a warm and funny personality. We had several different drivers, all of whom were excellent. Ahmed, who met us at the airport and checked in with us during our stay was also quite personable.

The gentlemen who escorted us through the airports were uniformly excellent. They managed entry and exit visas, with speed and ease. We never had to wait in long lines to acquire boarding passes, etc.

Mahmoud’s entire team in Egypt is first rate. We are so glad we chose Osiris Tours to be our guide to the vast history of this fascinating and beautiful country.

We will heartily recommend this company to anyone who wishes to gain an in-depth understanding of Egypt.

Excellent experience with Osiris tours. Very knowledgeable Egyptologist guides - their passion about the subject really brought the history to life. Our customized private tour made the most of our time thanks to their expert advice during the planning phase. The whole trip was stress-free, from the moment we landed in Cairo until final goodbyes at the airport. Highly recommended.