About Us
Who are we?
Jane is the English half of the partnership with a love of Egypt going back further than she cares to admit (..although she does mention it in her video below ). A regular visitor to Egypt she made the move out to Egypt in 2003.
A keen Egyptologist she welcomes the chance to give advice about places to visit and their historical background.
Mahmoud is the Egyptian half. A Luxor local, he has been guiding tourists and organising tours for many years. If he can’t fix it then he knows a man who can.
We understand that your holiday is your chance to relax so we will do all we can to make sure everything is hassle free. Anything we can do to help you make the most of the experience let us know. We hope you really enjoy yourself and become a regular visitor.
Jane Akshar is the author of the highly popular blog on Luxor, Luxor News, where she keeps people up-to-date with finds, events and attractions in Luxor. Why not have a read before you come and get to know the happenings, town and the people of Luxor. She also writes extensively for Tour Egypt and you can find many of her articles on that site www.touregypt.net
- A Place in the Sun
- Boston Globe
- Daily Telegraph
- Sunday Times
- EasyJet In-flight Magazine
- Monarch In-flight Magazine
- Trip Advisor
- Tour Egypt
- Responsible Travel
- Lonely Planet
- Rough Guide
- Planeta Sostenible
- Egyptian Cultural Heritage Organistion
Flats in Luxor is Officially Green
In 2007, Jane went on holiday to Japan and found my holiday through Responsible Travel. When I read their ethos I thought this is exactly the sort of holiday I want. Then it occurred to me this exactly the sort of holiday I provide. Responsible Travel agreed and now we are officially green. Jane talks about this experience on video
Examples of our policy are
- Staff and subcontractors are all local
- Low energy bulbs and timed electricity in communal areas
- Local craftsmen used for building and fittings
- Food is local and organic
- Walking, cycling and donkey tours
- Introducing guests to real Egyptians and their life
Why go Local?
Jane and Mahmoud would encourage every visitor to Egypt to make their own arrangements with the local guides rather than use the big tour companies. If you use the tour companies none of your money goes to the local economy.
You get a much better price by going local as well.
The locals have had a double whammy of increased safety concerns and the new bridge across the Nile. This means fewer tourists and those that come are cocooned in tour buses and taken from hotel to site with no local contact.
Another advantage is that you can schedule your tour to avoid the hottest part of the day. Especially during the summer, wise tourists start their sightseeing really early e.g. 5 am and rest in the hottest part of the day.
You also get the chance of getting to know the local people and being invited to share their lives. Egyptians are a very friendly people. By being a good tourist (using a local guide and tipping well) you will end up having meals in local homes, meeting the women and children, being invited to weddings and parties and even sitting up late drinking beer and chatting.
