FCO travel advice - Luxor is now GREEN

[LovelyLadyLux]

I'm positive that once the Pro-Morsi supporters and the Opposition hear the colour is Green they'll stop protesting and clashing. I mean why protest and clash for what you believe in and go through all that kafuffle when the tourists are coming back cause the colour is GREEN!

[LivinginLuxor]

Glyph is correct in one matter - the wording of the advice has hardly changed, just the pretty colours on the map! I'm also fairly certain (and could be proved wrong) that the airlines won't be lining up to re-open direct flights here.

[Cyprus100]

The announcement below was made only this week. So although Luxor has come off the non-essential travel advice list, Cairo is still a no go area and FCO are advising to only use the airport for transit passengers and not to leave its' vicinity. I can't see that Thomson will change their thoughts on this just yet (this is for the Red Sea cruise itineraries only):

Thomson Cruises has cancelled its entire Red Sea winter cruise season on Thomson Majesty citing ongoing safety concerns in Egypt.

The ship will instead be based in Limassol for the rest of this season, before moving to its new home port of Malaga, Spain, in March next year. Passengers are being advised.

The announcement comes just one day after Egypt announced it was confident that cruise lines would return to the country in 2014.

A statement from Thomson reads: “Thomson Cruises has regretfully taken the decision to cancel the Thomson Majesty Red Sea cruises scheduled for this winter.

“The safety of our customers is always our number one priority, and as the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has advised against all but essential travel to Cairo and Luxor this means that we are not able to offer our customers an alternative itinerary that would meet their requirements for a Red Sea cruise.

"In addition, we are not able to offer the full excursion programme, such as famous sites of The Pyramids and Valley of the Kings that we know they want to experience."

Thomson is one of many cruise lines which have cancelled port calls to Egypt over the past few months. However, it was the only line to base a ship in Egypt, so its decision to cancel its winter season will come as a huge blow to the country, which has seen relative calm descend on it in the past few weeks.

Yesterday, at the U.K.'s biggest trade show, World Travel Market, Egypt's Tourism Minister Hesham Zaazou said at a press conference: “I have had a lot of talks with the major cruise operators, and I believe they will come back to Egypt in 2014.”

[Bombay]

Thomson are selling Luxor from March 2014.

[Brian Yare]

I flew out of Hurghada to Birmingham yesterday. The flight was about 1/3 full. The queues for the easyJet to Gatwick and Thomson to Gatwick and Manchester also suggested an occupancy of less than 40%.

But now that the travel advice has changed I will plan to return to Luxor with Helen for Xmas & NY. No idea yet what the routing will be, but at least the insurance will be possible.

I don't know what the economics would be for one of the airlines that fly to Hurghada to switch to Luxor. Birmingham being midway between Manchester and Gatwick I'd love Thomson to switch that flight, but I don't expect it to happen.

[HEPZIBAH]

I'm positive that once the Pro-Morsi supporters and the Opposition hear the colour is Green they'll stop protesting and clashing. I mean why protest and clash for what you believe in and go through all that kafuffle when the tourists are coming back cause the colour is GREEN!

I'm taking it that the above was written very much tongue in cheek.

I can't speak for everyone else, only myself although I'm sure others share my views. I am fully aware that there may be troubles ahead, that something could flare up at any time and in any place and that I need to be perhaps more cautious than I ever have been in the past. I was fully in support of the UK FCO's travel advice against all but essential travel to Luxor and, to be quite honest, am surprised that that level of advice has changed and been lowered. However, during this whole period I have never been afraid to return to Luxor. I was there in February and booked my next return visit in about March for December of this year - the first time I have ever booked a ticket so far in advance!

What held me back from visiting again, and I know this applies to many others, was the fact that I was not prepared to travel without full and adequate insurance. I never considered needing the insurance because of acts caused by civil unrest (or whatever legal wording). although that could have been and still could be a possibility, but my main concern was that I would be covered if I should be taken ill or have an accident that would require medical attention beyond my normal, limited, financial means.

To be fair, rightly or wrongly, I've only ever considered my first visit to Luxor to be that as one of a tourist. I still don't think of myself as one - regardless of what my visa status legally declares me to be. I am just someone who wants to go and visit friends, be a part of their lives for a while but without being a [potential] burden on them.

So, the colour has changed but the actual advice has not changed noticably - the important thing is [to me anyway] that it has changed a negative into a positive for many people. That's fine with me.

[LovelyLadyLux]

@Hepz - yea I did write it tongue in cheek and I actually read the advice and while the colour may have changed very little of the wording did. Personally I'd still want to check with my insurance company to make sure I'd be covered cause there is still wording such as "non-essential travel" etc.

I think that tourists will return but it is going to be in slow dribs and drabs as stability remains but they will again vanish quickly as (if) incidents emerge.

Airlines are also slaves to insurance companies. I can't see that they are going to fly their planes into areas of unrest just for the sake of flying there. Hardly think any of the various fleets are just sitting empty and am equally positive they have people sitting there doing nothing but cost benefit analysis of going to different destinations.

It will all unfold in time.

[Glyphdoctor]

There was some article the other day that quoted I think Thomas Cook and they said something like once the travel warning was lifted, deciding when or if they should go back to Egypt would be purely a financial decision.

Oddly enough, I've seen several interviews/articles about US travel companies that were quite keen on sending people to Egypt right now. One was owned by an Israeli and the other was doing combo tours of Egypt and Israel, and sounded like it was also a Jewish owned company. But most US tour companies seem to otherwise be laying low. Go figure!

[Bombay]

There was some article the other day that quoted I think Thomas Cook and they said something like once the travel warning was lifted, deciding when or if they should go back to Egypt would be purely a financial decision.

Oddly enough, I've seen several interviews/articles about US travel companies that were quite keen on sending people to Egypt right now. One was owned by an Israeli and the other was doing combo tours of Egypt and Israel, and sounded like it was also a Jewish owned company. But most US tour companies seem to otherwise be laying low. Go figure!

Thomas Cook have NEVER left Egypt they still fly to Sharm and Hurghada always have. They left Luxor at the end of last winter season when they closed the office for UK Thomas Cook in Luxor.

easyJet and Thomson were the only UK airlines flying to Luxor this winter anyway this was planned long before June 30th and any Travel Advisory.

[Glyphdoctor]

I said "I think" Thomas Cook and "they said something like" which means I don't remember the exact words they used or who said it but the bottom line was that they would resume business if it made financial sense to them.

[Bombay]

I said "I think" Thomas Cook and "they said something like" which means I don't remember the exact words they used or who said it but the bottom line was that they would resume business if it made financial sense to them.

So we will assume it was Thomson and they are selling from March 2014

[LivinginLuxor]

A simple solution for the airlines - fly Gatwick-Hurghada-Luxor, and the reverse for the return journey. If they are flying at about 30% capacity, it would make economic sense, and passengers to Luxor would not need to change flights. I think Transavia did this in the past.

[Bombay]

A simple solution for the airlines - fly Gatwick-Hurghada-Luxor, and the reverse for the return journey. If they are flying at about 30% capacity, it would make economic sense, and passengers to Luxor would not need to change flights. I think Transavia did this in the past.

Takes the crew outside its duty time.

[Angela]

A simple solution for the airlines - fly Gatwick-Hurghada-Luxor, and the reverse for the return journey. If they are flying at about 30% capacity, it would make economic sense, and passengers to Luxor would not need to change flights. I think Transavia did this in the past.

Takes the crew outside its duty time.

I once asked Easyjet if they would ever do a Birmingham - Luxor route or a Manchester - Luxor route. They said it would never happen because it would exceed the number of hours that Easyjet staff are allowed to fly without needing an overnight stay which is why they only did the Gatwick-Luxor route. I don't know if that applies for other airlines as well

[Bombay]

A simple solution for the airlines - fly Gatwick-Hurghada-Luxor, and the reverse for the return journey. If they are flying at about 30% capacity, it would make economic sense, and passengers to Luxor would not need to change flights. I think Transavia did this in the past.

Takes the crew outside its duty time.

I once asked Easyjet if they would ever do a Birmingham - Luxor route or a Manchester - Luxor route. They said it would never happen because it would exceed the number of hours that Easyjet staff are allowed to fly without needing an overnight stay which is why they only did the Gatwick-Luxor route. I don't know if that applies for other airlines as well

I Don't think so they fly to Sharm and the rules are CAA not easyJet they are the same rules as Thomson and every other airline operate to.

[HEPZIBAH]

A simple solution for the airlines - fly Gatwick-Hurghada-Luxor, and the reverse for the return journey. If they are flying at about 30% capacity, it would make economic sense, and passengers to Luxor would not need to change flights. I think Transavia did this in the past.

Takes the crew outside its duty time.

Good point!

I was in Luxor a couple of years back when our Easyjet flight was very late getting into Luxor because of a sandstorm. It had had to put down in Hurghada and wait for clearance to come to Luxor. The other airlines affected - Thomson etc - appeared to be putting up their passengers in hotels and waiting until the next day to fly back to the UK. Easyjet landed in Luxor, off boarded and reboarded passengers in record breaking time and took off. It wasn't until we were over an hour into our flight they announced that we would be making a stop in Rome to pick up a new crew as the existing crew were over their hours - delaying our eventual landing at Gatwick by at least another hour!

[Brian Yare]

A simple solution for the airlines - fly Gatwick-Hurghada-Luxor, and the reverse for the return journey. If they are flying at about 30% capacity, it would make economic sense, and passengers to Luxor would not need to change flights. I think Transavia did this in the past.

That occurred to me, but it probably would not work. The flying time would require too many extra crew and the arrival and departure times from the UK would be all screwed up. The total time between the plane leaving the UK and returning there would be about 17 hours. I foresee health and safety issues.

[Who2]

Funnily for me, where I live Luxor it has always been green, that's why I live where I live, it's called 'Eco living (eco) the scientific study of interactions among organisms and their environment, such as the interactions organisms have with each other and with their abiotic environment.
It's 'nice it's 'eco it's 'green.......Now! my gov decides to admit I'm not daft..f***em.....
Ps: "personally, I feel that our Majesties FCO has lost that 'derring do once, so famous for that British spirit, seems so sadly lacking these days.
"Dr Livingstone, I presume ?"
"No just another Dr, Mr Angry J.D.retired ex of Tonbridge Wells......

[Bombay]

Takes the crew outside its duty time.

[Who2]

Speaking to a couple of Americans recently they both said it was quite cheap to fly here now from the States, both from different departure points....