River Nile, Cairo

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Built in 1959, the powder blue Nile Hilton building quickly became the symbol of modernism and luxury in the years following its construction. Unfortunately, time has been unkind and the hotel has become anything but, and is in desperate need of restoration. However, the distinctive Miami-style art déco edifice, which occupies the strategic position overlooking the Nile on one side and Midan Tahrir on the other, is an important landmark. In 2008, the Nile Hilton Hotel was sold to the luxury Ritz Carlton hotel management company, which announced its plans to renovate the building and open its first hotel in the city of Cairo. Once the hotel opens, it will be called the Nile Hotel and will likely once again be THE hotel to stay at in Cairo.

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Without it, Egypt would not be as we know it. For many millennia, the Nile has been Egypt's source of life, water, transportation and inspiration. The river flows from as far south as tropical Africa and cuts its way through the Sahara before reaching the Mediterranean. In Cairo, it separates Gizah from the main city and within it lie two large urban yet green islands: Gezira and Rodah. The Nile provides Cairo with stunning views that you can enjoy. Take a stroll along the banks of the Nile, but beware, do not swim in it or drink from it!

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There are still a handful of these ancient structures left but they are well off the beaten path. These are the measuring devices of the ancient Egyptian fortunes - the Nile being too high or too low meant difficult times ahead for the farmers along it's banks. The nilometers are deep, cyclindrical stuctures with a stone measuring column standing in it's center. This one is located at the southern tip of an island in the heart of Cairo.

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During your trip in Cairo and in your way from the Mesuem to the Pyramids , you can take a boat in the river Nile , it takes about 20 minutes to reach a place near the Pyramids and during these 20 minutes you will be able to see a lot of Cairo sights including hotels , bridges and many bulilding representing the modern civilization in Egypt.
you can arrange the boat trip alone and bargaining the boat owners or u can simply select it when arranging the Cairo tour , later u can have a nice dinner at a resturant by the nile .
Here we say : who drinks from Nile water should come again to visit it :)

One of my fondest memories is strolling across the Nile bridges in the city that never sleeps, and watching the young egyptian lovers, hand in hand, just before the sunsets. The Nile is the lifeline of egypt, economically, strategically, historically and environmentally, but more than that is just how dear the nile is to egyptians.

I walked through much of egypt, especially along the nile, and will remember at night seeing the city lights reflecting off the water, as the small boat barges and rough looking boats painted colourfully with home-made tarps covering, fans running, the egyptian music blowing the speakers blaring across the nile the fervantly passionate egyptian music. Stark contrasts of Marriot and Sheraton towers on the street where ghetto taxis commute. Its a sight to see.

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The Nile flows north through downtown Cairo. It is like a requirement when in Cairo to see the Nile.
It is obviously one of the most important waterways in history. It is not all that impressive but worth a quick stop.

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Cruise down the Nile on this elegant cruise ship while you are entertained for an unforgettable, relaxing dinner. The cruise starts at 7:30 and lasts about two hours - you will enjoy eating your dinner while sailing up and down the Nile taking in the amazing lights of Cairo. The house band accompanies the belly dancer and the Tanoura (whirling dervish) show. The food is varied, served buffet style, and service is excellent. It costs about $65 USD with extra for drinks.

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A felucca ride down the Nile in Cairo is a pleasent experience. I took a ride just before sunset, which was great.
You can decide on the lenghth of the ride, but you will pay per hour. You need to haggle once again. There are mooring points along the corniche.
I do not know what the average price would be, but paid EPounds 60, for an hour.
At night there are many motor-driven sight-seeing boats, which seems very popular with the local in-love couples.

I took a cruise up the Nile, which at the time seemed strange since "up" the Nile means going due south. My U.S.A. mindset has up as north. This trip took essentially three days. But in order to get to the starting point of the cruise, you have to take practically an all night train ride through a land populated by people who hate your guts. I had a room and bed all to myself. I remained awake for quite awhile though. Every now and then, we would stop at some station in the middle of the night and another train would pull up next to us, packed to the rafters with various Egyptian natives. The luggage racks, exactly what you would expect, simply parallel bars, were filled with people sleeping. These people were born into abject poverty. I wasn't. I had absolutely nothing to do with the life I incarnated into. And that's the only reason I was in some luxury cabin while they were just struggling to survive.

Cruising the Nile, my cabin was at the lowest level and since I was traveling alone, I had it all to myself. The portholes of my cabin were exactly at water level. Imagine how bizarre that is, looking out the window and seeing underwater every now and then.

The country is permeated with the fragrance of baking bread, a subtle blend of old world middle eastern spices. You get to sit on top of the deck, on the roof of the boat, drenched in sunlight, while a panorama of human history dating back ten millenia rolls slowly past you. Nothing can prepare you for this. No photos, no books, no reviews given by rapt reviewers such as myself. The images of the date palm orchards, the green fields, the sun-baked mountain range beyond, the biblical clay/adobe dwelling huts that people live in, the caravan of boats stretching ahead and behind as much as a mile (but with plenty of room between boats) all add up to one of the most positive experiences in travel you will ever have.

There were two downsides to my trip. I was on a boat with predominantly non-English speaking people and it made for a rather isolated feeling, watching everyone else enjoying and sharing their time together while I was pretty much excluded, due to my abysmal language skills, (or lack there-of). The second point was the sense of guilt that I felt. My position was necessarily that of a white sahib, some well-fed rich arsehole, smoking fat cigars and putting them out in the faces of the less fortunate, even though for me to even DREAM of doing that would be unthinkable.