So its three hours each way to drive - but seriously it is worth it! My original departure was 4am but after talking to the company it isn't necessary to leave that early unless you have something planned for the afternoon. I got to sleep in a little, we left at 8:45am which meant we missed the crowds - I literally had the temple to myself for 30 minutes before anyone else showed up! My guide was Magdelena - very knowledgeable and friendly.

Our guide was not very knowledgeable and was unable to answer our questions clearly, always giving blurry answers. Guide and driver were not very welcoming either. I’d recommend choosing another tour agency to go to Abu Simbel. And make sure to leave Aswan at 3:45am and not later (they’ll try to push the time many many times) because the earlier you get there the least tourists.

Before heading to Egypt, I was unable to secure a flight to Abu Simbel for the time I would be in Aswan. However, I was determined to not miss visiting the iconic temples in Abu Simbel! Once in Egypt, I was able to arrange a private tour which included a ride in a minibus from Aswan to Abu Simbel as well as a tour outside of the temples. At $120.00, the cost for the minibus tour was less than one half of the cost for the tour with flight to Abu Simbel. The tour included five people and we had an early start from our hotel. The minibus was comfortable and the tour guide provided a nice overview of what we would be experiencing at Abu Simbel. The minibus ride also allowed me to enjoy the scenery along the way including desert areas and Nubian communities. Once we arrived the tour guide provided a great summary of the history of the temples and also helped us run the “gauntlet” of the bazaar once we were leaving the temple area. Note that tour guides are not allowed inside of the temples; visitors are able to explore the interiors on their own. Both the drive to and from Abu Simbel was smooth and I felt safe throughout the tour. For those visitors who don’t mind an approximately three hour road trip, this is a great option that allows for a lovely scenic journey and even a little nap, if necessary!

The place itself is amazing and a must do however it was horribly expensive with this company. We had done other tours in egypt that were amazing and less than half the price with guides that were out going and extremely educated on diverse topics. On this tour I felt like we go there, we looked around and went back. On the other tours at least they gave us water, food, and pleasant conversation. I would book once getting there unless you want to throw away a lot of money! The worst thing is after paying all that money, Then they asked for a tip after. I would not go with this company, but I would definitely go to Abu Simbel.

We were met up at the train station at Aswan and immediately felt well taken care of. We then travelled in a mini bus in a convoy to Abu Simbel, which took three hours one way. The guide spoke excellent English and was very knowledgeable and gave us the historical background on the Aswan Dam and Abu Simbel. The ride thorough the Sahara desert was an experience in it self. The Abu Simbel temple was magnificent! We had a tight schedule and needed to catch our train to go back to Cairo and the guide and the driver made every effort to make sure we made it on time. The tour was all in all very well organised and we highly recommend it!

Fascinating place! Even if a long trip to get there, well worth it!

Long journey but worth it, amazing to see
Guide was great

My son characterized this exhibit as the Mount Rushmore of Egypt. He is correct. This is a amazing tour and the statues are along the back of a breathtaking lake. The whole scene is quite picturesque.
** It is a long commute from Aswan to Abu Simbel. 3 hours + / - You drive through the desert with a caravan of other tour vehicles for safety. Bring water and borrow the pillow from your hotel room :-)

My guide (Michael) and driver (Peter) were both professional and on time. The drive is roughly 3 hours (I left with the early 4 a.m. convoy). Michael spoke fluent English, and upon arrival at the site we walked to the front of the massive mountain monuments. Michael explained both momuments and their interiors (Guides are not permitted inside) for perhaps 20 minutes before giving me a full 2 hours and 15 minutes to explore by myself. This is an amazing place and a must see. Just make sure you grab a drink as soon as you step out of the car because after about 10 minutes alone I walked backed to the parking lot to buy a drink.

The local agency met us at our boat when we arrived in Aswan and made arrangements to met us the next day at 3:45 am. The boat provided a box breakfast and coffee/tea. My son and I were the only participants, so we basically had a private tour. We went in a car with driver and guide. Abu Simbel is well worth the long drive and early morning departure. Afterwards they took us to our hotel in Aswan and arranged for transportation to the airport the next morning. Very impressed with the service and highly recommend the tour.

On time and as advertised, would love to have more time at the temples but the tour guide wanted to go to the papyrus shops which i didn't want to go to. So we just waited for a while until the convoy was ready to go. Overall, a good experience

Overall a good tour - the guide was excellent, the vehicle was comfortable and the on-board ice-box was appreciated. The second half of the return trip in darkness was a bit hairy since the driver was reluctant to use his headlights!

Guide was wonderful, and we enjoyed the trip. Our driver was a little crazy, but we made it there and back just fine.

Tour went well, a bit rushed at the site however. Guide should stay with customer longer I feel. Generally good.

We had a great day with Mark and the drivers. Mark is a wonderful young man, well-educated in Egyptology and a lot of fun! We were amazed at the size and color of the Temples. We dare you to find the seams where modern work moved the Temples to above the dam! The convoy was a problem - they were very disorganized & wasted a lot time making the convoy turn around to start another way. We were so delayed that we only had about 1:15 to see the Temples. Mark made a yeoman's effort to give us all the info we needed in the Temples. Folks, the problem is w the gov't convoy system - NOT with Viator. DON'T MISS these wonderful Temples because of the convoy. We suspect that some days it'd work great & others it'd have problems. An additional idea - try to get to the Nubian Museum - these people were displaced as were the Temples by the dam & their story is amazing. Just above the museum is Nubian House. Whether you stop there for the hibiscus drinks, tea, cakes & fried doughnuts which were great or just get near there, the view is the most beautiful we saw in Egypt. We got there because of a taxi driver we hired to take us to the Museum. In Luxor Viator had told us not to miss the Aswan sunset - we merely mentioned it & the driver zoomed up to the House. At first we felt a little hijacked, not surprising in Egypt - the cabbies are trying to make extra money in a poor economy - be firm if you don't want something - but this time it was a gift!

absolutely brlliant. the trip, although long, was very comfortable with just the two of us..the actual time for looking at the temples was only one hour. i thought that was not enough time to see them.i was aware that we had to go in convoy but i felt we could have gone an hour later.

Visiting the temple rates a 6 star, but transit & content rate a 3-4. The guide was very helpful and well informed, but it would have been better facilitation to provide content during other opportunities, not when standing in full 107 degree sun for 20 minutes to go over details. If we had known about return options we would have elected gettting an earlier convoy for the return journey. However we had a great guide, willing to help with photos and anything we asked. The 4am, 4 hour trek through the desert would have been much better in an a/c spacious bus than our little fur-rugged, windows opened and 3 guys sleeping small van. But the driver was very nice.

While Abu Simbel was fantastic and is a must see, the six hour drive (3 hrs there, 3 hrs back) seemed excessive for the short time you are actually at the temple.

Abu Simbel was great. The guide was ok, but considering we spent hours with her, she gave us a 10 minute briefing we could have gotten from any tour book and that was it. They were gracious enough not to insist we stop at the Papyrus factory on the way back. It's a long drive, and while the private car was nice, we could have gotten one with a guide through our hotel for the same price that we paid for 1 person with Viator. We were concerned we wouldn't be able to get a tour for all 4 of us on the 1 day we were in Aswan, but once we arrived, it was clear we would have had no issues finding an alternative tour for much cheaper.

The trip was great, the way is kind of long but you may get see a lot of camels on the road. We went to the tour at 1130pm it was nice because we had the temples to our selves. If you can stand a little heat then I would recommend going at this time, you get to see the sunset on the way back. The guy who arranged the tour with the guide was very nice, he also helped me confirm the tours I had in Luxor and Cairo.