A boat ride upriver past Elephantine Island brings you to Gharb Soheil, the most visited of Aswan's Nubian villages, and the approach, sand dunes tumbling to the water and camels on the bank, is lovely in itself. The village is a riot of colour: houses painted cobalt, saffron and pink, their walls decorated with folk motifs, lanes strung with embroidered scarves, beaded jewellery, spices, henna and sacks of deep-red hibiscus. Nubian culture is distinct from the rest of Egypt, with its own language, music and famously warm hospitality, and a visit usually includes sweet mint tea or karkade, a chance to try henna, and Nubian food if you stay for a meal. Some houses keep small Nile crocodiles in tanks as a local tradition, which fascinates children though not everyone loves it. It is unashamedly geared to visitors now, but the welcome is genuine and the setting truly beautiful, best timed so you sail back at sunset.
Plan your trip with Seen