Local Attractions

Luxor is the world's greatest outdoor museum filled with awe-inspiring monuments of ancient civilization. Testaments to a desire of immortality, built for eternity in sandstone and granite, the temples, tombs and palaces are surrounded by souqs and luxury hotels.

Note that the costs for these trips can vary quite a lot, so it does pay to shop around.

What to see and do

West Bank

Some of the most famous tombs, temples and sights to be seen can be found on the West Bank. Allow yourself 4 or 5 hours to visit Hatshepsut's temple, the Colossi of Memnon and several tombs in each of the Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Queens. There are also some less well known attractions such as the Valleys of the Nobles and the Workers

Tutankhamun's Tomb

If you are at the Valley of the Kings, you can pay extra to visit this small tomb where you can see the original decorated burial chamber and now also the mummy of Tutankhamun. As you would expect this is a very popular attraction so we would advise that you try to arrive early in the day if you can.

East Bank

Both Luxor and Karnak temples are located on the East Bank, At the Karnak temple there are a number of sound and light shows each night. Each show is in a different language so make sure you check which show is in your language.

Hot air balloon

This is one of the most dramatic ways to see the sights. The trips are usually from the West Bank and take off at dawn, and they last about an hour, but they can vary depending on the weather conditions.

Felucca (sailing boat)

Treat yourself to a one hour or two hour trip on the Nile in one of these traditional sailing boats. As you walk along the river you will see plenty of trips being offered so you can choose your boat and captain depending on what takes your fancy.

Red Sea trips

The day trip will involve an early start and 3 hours travel each way. Some trips will include a boat trip on the Red Sea itself. You might prefer an overnight trip which will be similar to the day trip but with the travelling spread over 2 days and a stay in a comfortable, good quality hotel for the night.

Aswan trip

Take a coach or minibus to the dam and you'll take in the obelisk, Philae Temple and the town. Some trips may also take in a visit to one or more temples along the way.

Nile cruise

You will have plenty of choice if you want to take a trip on the Nile!! Most durations and most standards of boat are available. The itineraries and journey times are too varied to list here, but a trip of any length will involve at least one night on board and some trips (eg from Luxor to Aswan) might also involve the return leg being taken via train.

Having said all that, you can certainly see a lot in one day, and one of our favourite trips on our last visit was a one day tour leaving at 7am and returning at 7pm which was absolutely fabulous. We were able to see a number of sights including the temple at Dendera. The trip also included lunch and afternoon tea.