Uniworld Boutique River Cruises hosted 140 travel agents from Australia and New Zealand over the past week on their largest full-ship charter program exclusively for travel agents. Hosted by the Uniworld sales team, the famil to Egypt welcomed agents and their partners from all corners of Australia and New Zealand. The hybrid itinerary offered 3 nights in Cairo (instead of 4) and 7 nights cruising the Nile from Luxor to Aswan and return to Luxor.
“We were thrilled to charter just one of the ships, but when that filled within a week, we thought, why not? Let’s charter both,” said Alice Ager, Managing Director of Uniworld ANZ.
The S.S. Sphinx and River Tosca each accommodate 82 guests and 60 crew.
“Each of our ships have a unique personality and this week we’ve all had the opportunity to really explore both ships over — we had dinner on both ships and enjoyed the entertainment in both lounges. But the highlight was our 50th Anniversary Golden celebration on the sundeck last night. We danced the night away while our ships gently cruised the Nile. It’s something I think we’ll all remember for a long time,” said Ager.
Splendours of Egypt & the Nile is Uniworld and Luxury Gold’s signature program covering all the key sites:
- Sakara and the Grand Pyramids and the Sphinx in Giza
- The Grand Egyptian Museum
- All the temples and tombs along the banks of the Nile between Luxor and Aswan including Dendera, Luxor, Valley of the Kings and King Tuten Kahmun’s tomb.
- Sunset afternoon tea at the Old Cateract Hotel in Aswan
All excursions are included except a few Masterpiece Collection excursions
- A morning in Abu Simbel
- Sand-duning and swimming in the Nile in Aswan
“I think we’ve really showcased the best of what Egypt has to offer with this double-charter. It’s a game-changer for Egypt, having the highest calibre of professional travel agents experience Splendours of Egypt and the Nile first-hand – I’m anticipating huge results based on the feedback!” Said Ager.
Uniworld and Luxury Gold travel in small groups of maximum 27 guests each with a private Egyptologist who is an expert on the complex history of ancient Egypt and modern Egyptian culture.
“The Uniworld Egyptologists have been the stars of the show, bringing each temple, tomb and experience to life with their incredible passion and knowledge. You get so much more out of it when you travel with a local expert, that’s for sure.” Said Ager.
“Egypt is definitely a trending destination for both Luxury Gold and Uniworld, with 2028 sales up 100%+ year on year, we saw the perfect opportunity with this double-ship charter,” Ager said. “It’s the week before our official season kicks off, so it’s warm here in Luxor — but great there are fewer tourists this time of year.”
The Uniworld Egypt season runs from mid-September to end-May and doesn’t operate during the hottest months.
“While we were in Kom Ombo, EgyptAir announced their intention to connect Cairo and Sydney with flights starting next year, which is just fantastic and will make it even more accessible. Egypt is trending and I know double-ship charters like this will create even greater support for Egypt as a destination and of course first-hand experience brings even deeper confidence to sell it. I can see Egypt becoming our biggest program outside of Europe.” Said Ager.
Uniworld have agent rates available on Splendours of Egypt & the Nile onboard the S.S. Sphinx on 31 October and 7 November. To book, please contact their reservations team.
