Egyptian Getaway
We flew down to Aswan, taking advantage of the new direct Thomson charter service, which began in November. It was wonderful to leave the freezing temperatures behind and to arrive in hot sunshine and cloudless skies. Admittedly it was a bit of shock to the system going from -33F at Gatwick to 33C in Aswan!
Aswan was nothing like I expected. It’s a really vibrant town with lots of interesting places to visit including the colourful bazaar and excellent Nubian museum. There are also lots of wonderful excursions available including the Aswan High Dam, Philae Temple and Abu Simbel. We stayed at the Moevenpick Resort Hotel, which is in a peaceful location on Elephantine Island in the middle of the Nile - just a few minutes by shuttle boat from the city. It's a very well managed hotel with a friendly atmosphere and excellent service. Our room was spacious and well-maintained and the food we sampled in the Orangerie restaurant was very good.
The beautifully furnished Royal Villas are ideal for family groups and are simply stunning. The views from their terrace of Kitchener Island and the Tombs of the Nobles with feluccas sailing closely by are magnificent and it’s wonderfully tranquil.
Talking of views, the bar on the top floor of the hotel gives wonderful 360 degree views over the Nile and the city and is the perfect location for viewing the magnificent sunsets whilst sipping a cocktail.
We really enjoyed our stay at the Moevenpick and our time in Aswan .So much so we kept our fingers crossed all week that the UK airports would shut down once again forcing us to stay a little longer in this lovely location - no such luck this time! Why do Airports never close when you want them to?