Top Middle East Budget History Custom Private Tours & Packages 2025/2026

What travelers are saying

"An amazing Egypian Trip My mom and I had an amazing 10 day experience visiting the cities of Cairo, Luxor, Baharyia, and Aswan in Egypt. A friend recommended using Jakada Tours Egypt and connected me with Ahmed. As soon as I contacted Ahmed, I can see why he raved about him. He was professional, personable, responded to emails in a timely manner, provided a detailed itinerary, and helpful in every way possible from the beginning of the trip to taking us to the airport. We arrived in Cairo in the late evening, picked up visas, exchanged money, found Sherif our tour guide, and were on our way to the Cairo Pyramids Valley hotel where we stayed for 3 nights. The owner Ahmed checked us in, took us to the rooftop for Hibiscus tea, great conversation, and watched a light show projected on the pyramids. The hotel was nice, clean, had hot water, room was a decent size, served breakfast, had a great view of the pyramids, and was near lots of shops and restaurants. In Cairo, Sherif Khattab took us through the city explaining the culture, food, people, and the history of the Pyramids of Kings Cheops, Chephren, Menkaure, the Sphinx, Saqqara, the capital Memphis, Egyptian Museum, and a walking tour of the Khan el Khalili Bazaar. The open air museum and the pyramids were breathtaking. The process in which the pyramids were built and how it was structured was just unbelievable. Climbing the pyramid was a once in a lifetime experience. Learning how papyrus was made was an interesting process. Sherif introduced Falafel with eggplant in what we would call a pita bread and OMG it was delicious. As I tried it my mom gave me the side eye because she could never get me to try eggplant when she cooked it. Now I love it! We ate at local restaurants where they served different types of grilled meats and chicken, salad, falafel, and fresh fruit drinks. My favorite drink was the fresh mint lemonade. The food was delicious, hot, and filling. After a long day, we slept in an overnight sleeper train. I am so happy I Youtubed this experience so I would know what to expect. The bottom seat turns into a bed, the ladder for the top bunk is underneath, the trays to eat food hook into the sides of the train, the sink will be right at your stomach as soon as you stand up from sitting down, the radio doesn’t work, you will use a community bathroom, no showers, lighting is ok...just use your cell phone if you need to, no internet so don’t expect it, food was baked chicken, rice, vegetables, drinks, and desert. It was relaxing, clean, fun, and served its purpose. I repeat this is not a luxury train, it is only to get you to your next destination. In Luxor we met our new tour guide Ahmed and we hit the ground running. Ahmed was detail oriented, friendly, knowledgeable, professional, and personable. We visited the Valley of the Kings which comprised of: Rameses III & IV Merenptah, and the Tomb of Tut Ankh Amun which was one of my favorites. To see the original skull and feet...WOW! We were in awe of the colorful and creative artwork that told a story on the walls of every tomb and how well it’s preserved. The tombs are built underground into mountains which was shocking. The Temple of Hatshepsut displayed huge statues of Kings and Queens with the walls full of art work. The time and energy spent to sculpt these kings and queens is unimaginable. We began Christmas morning with a short boat ride with tea and snacks to take a ride on a hot air balloon. To see how the balloon inflates, to flying high in the sky, the breathless views, waving at the kids chasing the balloon as we passed through different areas, landing in patch of sugarcane, greeted by armed security, watching the process of how the balloon deflates and transported until our ride arrived. Visited the Karnak Temple Complex and ended the day with a relaxing boat ride in the Nile. The hotel was clean, had hot water, accessible to shops and restaurants on the street, and had a beautiful view of the Nile River. In Aswan we had the same tour guide and visited other temples such as King Ramses II and Queen Nefertari, Nubian monuments, and a Felucca ride around the islands of Aswan. To be in the land of the original Nubian people and learning the history was incredible eye-opening. Train ride back to Cairo. Our final attraction was the Bahariya Oasis White Desert and Black & White Desert Oasis which was picturesque with Sherif Khattab our first tour guide. The drive was relaxing and we ate lunch at the home of our desert tour guide. His wife prepared a delicious spread of chicken and vegetables. He was friendly and hospitable even though we spoke different languages we still understood each other. We did not do the overnight stay in the desert and glad we didn’t because the temperature dropped that night. Instead, we stayed at a hotel not too far away. The hotel was clean, had hot water, and the food was once again delicious. Overall, this trip was once in a lifetime. The tour exceeded my expectations, the information was invaluable, and Ahmad took great care of us. Other tidbits - the weather is cool in the morning but warms up by 11 and can get cold at night so make sure you layer up - if you sleep in the desert, just remember there is no bathrooms and it can get COLD - bring a bucket hat for the sun - bring tissues, wipes, hand sanitizer, snacks for the road/train trips - bring toilet paper (2 rolls) some bathrooms do not have toilet paper or people will try to charge you for it - do not allow anyone to do anything for you (ex: take pictures, ask directions, carry your bags through the train station, or assist you in any way) since a tip will be expected - do not feel pressured by store owners to buy anything - don’t be afraid to bargain and negotiate prices up front"

What travelers are saying

"An amazing Egypian Trip My mom and I had an amazing 10 day experience visiting the cities of Cairo, Luxor, Baharyia, and Aswan in Egypt. A friend recommended using Jakada Tours Egypt and connected me with Ahmed. As soon as I contacted Ahmed, I can see why he raved about him. He was professional, personable, responded to emails in a timely manner, provided a detailed itinerary, and helpful in every way possible from the beginning of the trip to taking us to the airport. We arrived in Cairo in the late evening, picked up visas, exchanged money, found Sherif our tour guide, and were on our way to the Cairo Pyramids Valley hotel where we stayed for 3 nights. The owner Ahmed checked us in, took us to the rooftop for Hibiscus tea, great conversation, and watched a light show projected on the pyramids. The hotel was nice, clean, had hot water, room was a decent size, served breakfast, had a great view of the pyramids, and was near lots of shops and restaurants. In Cairo, Sherif Khattab took us through the city explaining the culture, food, people, and the history of the Pyramids of Kings Cheops, Chephren, Menkaure, the Sphinx, Saqqara, the capital Memphis, Egyptian Museum, and a walking tour of the Khan el Khalili Bazaar. The open air museum and the pyramids were breathtaking. The process in which the pyramids were built and how it was structured was just unbelievable. Climbing the pyramid was a once in a lifetime experience. Learning how papyrus was made was an interesting process. Sherif introduced Falafel with eggplant in what we would call a pita bread and OMG it was delicious. As I tried it my mom gave me the side eye because she could never get me to try eggplant when she cooked it. Now I love it! We ate at local restaurants where they served different types of grilled meats and chicken, salad, falafel, and fresh fruit drinks. My favorite drink was the fresh mint lemonade. The food was delicious, hot, and filling. After a long day, we slept in an overnight sleeper train. I am so happy I Youtubed this experience so I would know what to expect. The bottom seat turns into a bed, the ladder for the top bunk is underneath, the trays to eat food hook into the sides of the train, the sink will be right at your stomach as soon as you stand up from sitting down, the radio doesn’t work, you will use a community bathroom, no showers, lighting is ok...just use your cell phone if you need to, no internet so don’t expect it, food was baked chicken, rice, vegetables, drinks, and desert. It was relaxing, clean, fun, and served its purpose. I repeat this is not a luxury train, it is only to get you to your next destination. In Luxor we met our new tour guide Ahmed and we hit the ground running. Ahmed was detail oriented, friendly, knowledgeable, professional, and personable. We visited the Valley of the Kings which comprised of: Rameses III & IV Merenptah, and the Tomb of Tut Ankh Amun which was one of my favorites. To see the original skull and feet...WOW! We were in awe of the colorful and creative artwork that told a story on the walls of every tomb and how well it’s preserved. The tombs are built underground into mountains which was shocking. The Temple of Hatshepsut displayed huge statues of Kings and Queens with the walls full of art work. The time and energy spent to sculpt these kings and queens is unimaginable. We began Christmas morning with a short boat ride with tea and snacks to take a ride on a hot air balloon. To see how the balloon inflates, to flying high in the sky, the breathless views, waving at the kids chasing the balloon as we passed through different areas, landing in patch of sugarcane, greeted by armed security, watching the process of how the balloon deflates and transported until our ride arrived. Visited the Karnak Temple Complex and ended the day with a relaxing boat ride in the Nile. The hotel was clean, had hot water, accessible to shops and restaurants on the street, and had a beautiful view of the Nile River. In Aswan we had the same tour guide and visited other temples such as King Ramses II and Queen Nefertari, Nubian monuments, and a Felucca ride around the islands of Aswan. To be in the land of the original Nubian people and learning the history was incredible eye-opening. Train ride back to Cairo. Our final attraction was the Bahariya Oasis White Desert and Black & White Desert Oasis which was picturesque with Sherif Khattab our first tour guide. The drive was relaxing and we ate lunch at the home of our desert tour guide. His wife prepared a delicious spread of chicken and vegetables. He was friendly and hospitable even though we spoke different languages we still understood each other. We did not do the overnight stay in the desert and glad we didn’t because the temperature dropped that night. Instead, we stayed at a hotel not too far away. The hotel was clean, had hot water, and the food was once again delicious. Overall, this trip was once in a lifetime. The tour exceeded my expectations, the information was invaluable, and Ahmad took great care of us. Other tidbits - the weather is cool in the morning but warms up by 11 and can get cold at night so make sure you layer up - if you sleep in the desert, just remember there is no bathrooms and it can get COLD - bring a bucket hat for the sun - bring tissues, wipes, hand sanitizer, snacks for the road/train trips - bring toilet paper (2 rolls) some bathrooms do not have toilet paper or people will try to charge you for it - do not allow anyone to do anything for you (ex: take pictures, ask directions, carry your bags through the train station, or assist you in any way) since a tip will be expected - do not feel pressured by store owners to buy anything - don’t be afraid to bargain and negotiate prices up front"

What travelers are saying

"The weeklong Mejdi tour of Israel I recently went on - "Dual Narrative Mult--Day Tour of Israel and Palestine" - was deeply disappointing in its failure to provide anywhere close to a balanced dual narrative about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Our Palestinian guide gave extensive information about the Palestinian perspective on the conflict, which was quite interesting and informative, whereas our Israeli Jewish guide gave extremely little information about the conflict. I would estimate that 90-95% of the information we were provided about the conlict over the course of the week, past and present – from our two guides and from the outside speakers and museums we visited that directly addressed that issue – was from the Palestinian perspective. And our lodging was in Palestinian/Arab sections of cities all of the nights of the tour except for the first night in Haifa. As one of the very few Jewish people in my tour group, during much of the tour I felt lonely and sad at the large imbalance in the information we were exposed to about the two narratives. I realize not all Mejdi tours of Israel are likely to be this disappointing, in part because the guides are not the same for each tour group. But at the same time I would have hoped for a much more balanced experience from a tour that’s marketed as a “dual narrative” one. I gave this feedback to the Mejdi leadership right after the tour, and they thanked me for the feedback and conveyed that my experience wasn’t typical or common, but I wonder how they would know that, given that they didn’t solicit feedback from us after the tour. And I know from many private conversations with others in my tour group that, while several people on the tour were very pleased overall, there were several others who shared my disappointment. While there were a number of very interesting experiences on the trip, and Mejdi did a reasonably good job of managing the trip logistics, overall the trip was deeply disappointing for the reasons I've given above."

What travelers are saying

"The weeklong Mejdi tour of Israel I recently went on - "Dual Narrative Mult--Day Tour of Israel and Palestine" - was deeply disappointing in its failure to provide anywhere close to a balanced dual narrative about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Our Palestinian guide gave extensive information about the Palestinian perspective on the conflict, which was quite interesting and informative, whereas our Israeli Jewish guide gave extremely little information about the conflict. I would estimate that 90-95% of the information we were provided about the conlict over the course of the week, past and present – from our two guides and from the outside speakers and museums we visited that directly addressed that issue – was from the Palestinian perspective. And our lodging was in Palestinian/Arab sections of cities all of the nights of the tour except for the first night in Haifa. As one of the very few Jewish people in my tour group, during much of the tour I felt lonely and sad at the large imbalance in the information we were exposed to about the two narratives. I realize not all Mejdi tours of Israel are likely to be this disappointing, in part because the guides are not the same for each tour group. But at the same time I would have hoped for a much more balanced experience from a tour that’s marketed as a “dual narrative” one. I gave this feedback to the Mejdi leadership right after the tour, and they thanked me for the feedback and conveyed that my experience wasn’t typical or common, but I wonder how they would know that, given that they didn’t solicit feedback from us after the tour. And I know from many private conversations with others in my tour group that, while several people on the tour were very pleased overall, there were several others who shared my disappointment. While there were a number of very interesting experiences on the trip, and Mejdi did a reasonably good job of managing the trip logistics, overall the trip was deeply disappointing for the reasons I've given above."

What travelers are saying

"The weeklong Mejdi tour of Israel I recently went on - "Dual Narrative Mult--Day Tour of Israel and Palestine" - was deeply disappointing in its failure to provide anywhere close to a balanced dual narrative about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Our Palestinian guide gave extensive information about the Palestinian perspective on the conflict, which was quite interesting and informative, whereas our Israeli Jewish guide gave extremely little information about the conflict. I would estimate that 90-95% of the information we were provided about the conlict over the course of the week, past and present – from our two guides and from the outside speakers and museums we visited that directly addressed that issue – was from the Palestinian perspective. And our lodging was in Palestinian/Arab sections of cities all of the nights of the tour except for the first night in Haifa. As one of the very few Jewish people in my tour group, during much of the tour I felt lonely and sad at the large imbalance in the information we were exposed to about the two narratives. I realize not all Mejdi tours of Israel are likely to be this disappointing, in part because the guides are not the same for each tour group. But at the same time I would have hoped for a much more balanced experience from a tour that’s marketed as a “dual narrative” one. I gave this feedback to the Mejdi leadership right after the tour, and they thanked me for the feedback and conveyed that my experience wasn’t typical or common, but I wonder how they would know that, given that they didn’t solicit feedback from us after the tour. And I know from many private conversations with others in my tour group that, while several people on the tour were very pleased overall, there were several others who shared my disappointment. While there were a number of very interesting experiences on the trip, and Mejdi did a reasonably good job of managing the trip logistics, overall the trip was deeply disappointing for the reasons I've given above."

What travelers are saying

"What an incredible trip! I am so thankful to have planned my Algeria travels with Mosaic North Africa. It was packed with excitement, history, and sights. I was truly blown away by how much they were able to pack into my 12 days. Not a moment was wasted. When I arrived, the local guide team greeted me and were so kind. They worked at my own pace. They taught me about Algeria’s history, from Roman ruins to French occupations. Everything was pre-arranged, we even had police escorts in some places. My highlight was undoubtedly the 4-day desert camping. Very few can say they went so deep into the Sahara Desert. We traveled by 4×4 to see numerous ancient cave drawings, hike massive sand dunes, and camp under the stars… all the meals were delicious, cooked fresh. It was perfect. A time I will not forget, and I certainly could not have made it all happen on my own."

What travelers are saying

"I booked with Tours by Locals on Jan. 31, 2019. We were on a cruise out of New York City. We were due to arrive back to port in the morning and booked this to fill our day before we flew out in the evening. Two days before our tour I received an email that our guide was no longer available and they would try to find another. They didn't and cancelled our tour that had been booked for almost 9 months."