Luxor's East & West Bank Highlights Tour
Description
Enjoy the top attractions of Luxor in a full day tour, starting from the west bank side of the Nile river where the ancient Egyptian pharaohs were considering it as the place of eternal life, you will visit the Valley of the kings where the most famous ancient Egyptian kings exist, then to the most beautiful funeral temple of the most famous queen female ruler in the ancient history (the queen Hatshepsut temple), before leaving the west side of luxor pass by the two huge guard of the kings valley (Colossi of Memnun) .After lunch, Time to see the biggest temple in the world ( Karnak Complex ) which considered the biggest temple in the world.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Luxor Highlights........ Enjoy a full day tour to discover the Ancient capital of Egypt : Luxor, formerly called Thebes. All the temples and ancient monuments scattered on both banks of the Nile river make this city a real open-air museum. Temple of Hatcheptsut, Valley of the Kings, Colossi of Memnon, Karnak temple... these are so many wonders that will not fail to impress you. Your egyptologist guide will wait for you at Luxor in order to reach the West bank of Luxor : the first step of your day. Discover first the valley of the Kings, a symbol of pharaohs' glory. This valley was chosen by the pharaohs to be their royal necropolis after the Pyramids of the lower Egypt were stripped of their treasure. The site contains 63 tombs excavated in the rock of the mountain, the most famous one is that of the young king Tutankhamun. Adventure yourself inside a royal tomb and examine the colored scenes on the walls, these give you insights on the beliefs and funerary rites of Ancient Egyptian. Here you understand that to get prepared for death is the first goal of a pharaoh, therefore, the tomb was for each king the great achievement of his life. The royal tombs are until now a great witness of the prestige and greatness of the pharaohs.
Continue your excursion with the Memorial Temple of Hatchepsut. Arriving to the site, the impressive cliff will not miss to captivate your eyes. But it’s at the foot of this masterpiece of nature that remains the real wonder : Hatshepsut temple. The external architecture match perfectly with the refined cliff, the building seems to have been sculpted into the rock. Once inside the temple, you are able to examine on the walls, scenes that tell the story of the female pharaohs that has made Egypt strong and wealthy under her reign. You can notice that many figures have their face damaged, these are representations of Hatshepsut that Tutmosis III wanted to get rid of. Indeed after her death Tutmosis III became king and finally took revenge on his stepmother that had stolen the power from him. Actually, he did everything to erase the name of Hatshepsut from history : he ruined the face of some of her statues, destroyed her cartouches or removed them.
Last site in the West bank : the colossi of Memnon. Massive, proudly standing, and the gaze fixed toward the Nile, the two colossi of Memnon were the guardians of Amenhotep’s memorial temple. This complex was the vastest and the most sumptuous in Egypt, here Amenhotep was venerated as a god. After an earthquake of 27 BC, the remaining part of one of the colossi was believed to sing at the time of sunrise. But this sound disappeared after the renovations. The several earthquakes and floods took away this prodigious temple. Today the area is a vast archaeological research site, still guarded by the two great colossi. Have lunch in a nice local restaurant.
Continue your day with the visit of the two glorious temples of the East bank of the ancient Thebes. Get into Karnak temple : the vastest Ancient temple dedicated to the Theban triad Amun, Mut and their son Khonsu. Karnak temple was connected to Luxor temple by an alley of sphinx which was used during the Opet Festival : the statues of the Theban triad were carried in procession from Karnak Temple to Luxor Temple so that Amun-Ra (the solar shape of god Amun) meets Amun-Min (the shape of Amun in Luxor Temple). The ancient complex is composed of three precincts, only the one of Amun-Ra is accessible to the public. Make your way through the papyrus field of the hypo style hall. The 134 columns shaped like papyrus will not miss to impress you. The walls will captivate you with their colored engravings and hieroglyphs. At the back of Amun-Ra precinct : a charming sacred lake of natural spring water that was used by the priests to purify themselves before entering the temple. The whole complex was built and developed during more than 2000 years. Hence, about thirty Pharaohs have contributed to the construction of the building, making it unique by its size, its degree of elaboration and the diversity of styles. After finishing this amazing day, You will be escorted back to your hotel
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- The duration of transfers are approximate, the exact duration will depend on the time of day and traffic conditions
Reviews(225)
It was an awesome experience to see one of the most impressive sight of accident Egypt. Our guide Refaat was super friendly and very well informed on Egyptology. Our driver Ahmed was also very friendly and super safe driver. Totally recommend.
We travelled to Egypt as a group of 16 family members and friends, mainly to explore the country’s historical sites. We booked our entire trip with Magic Carpets Travel, including hotels, guides, transport, sightseeing, and the Nile cruise from Aswan to Luxor, as well as our time in Cairo. Everything was very well planned and organised. The itinerary covered Cairo, Luxor, and Aswan smoothly, and all transfers and activities ran on time. Whenever we asked for changes or adjustments to the plan, the team responded quickly and handled them without any issues. The guides were knowledgeable, transport was punctual, and even small arrangements such as local experiences were handled professionally. We felt well looked after throughout the trip. Overall, it was an excellent experience, and we thoroughly enjoyed the holiday. Magic Carpets Travel are sincere, hardworking, and reliable. I would highly recommend them to anyone planning a trip to Egypt. Thank you for a memorable journey.
We were accompanied for 2 days by a super driver: Hocine. He has a great drive, he is super nice and very helpful. We were all over the west bank of Luxor and the next day from Luxor to Aswan passing through Edfu and Kom Ombo.I really recommend. Fast booking and very professional.
We found our private driver with the hotel Nefertiti, Hocine drove us all the way to the west bank. We were able to visit every point of interest without stress. Very nice and welcoming, I really recommend! Thank you to him for his patience and kindness!
We had a very interesting tour with our guide Mostafa. He was very friendly and told us many interesting things about Egyptian history.
My guide Rabie is the best guide one can get. As an Egyptologist he is very knowledgeable and caters to your wishes and specific questions. I came for the architecture and he showed me edifices I didn't know I wanted to see! Ala the driver was very smooth and calm on the road, making the trip to all the sights very comfortable. To anybody who wants to know the most of the culture, history and religion of ancient Egypt, book this tour!
We did a two-day tour of Luxor, staying at the Nefertiti Hotel. Our guide was Mohamed Mustafa, who explained everything about each site well. We drove both days and everything went smoothly and normally. When we left the tour, the guide made a lot of emphasis on giving the driver a VERY GOOD tip. It was our last day in Egypt and our budget was finished. We gave him everything we had, which was not much, but it was everything. When I was giving it to the driver, the guide took the money, counted it in front of us and said contemptuously, "Do you think this is a good tip?" We were very uncomfortable trying to explain to him that we didn't have any more, that that was all, since our trip was over. The guide said that we should go to the ATM to get some money and tip him, that they would wait for us. I was really stunned. Explaining whether or not I had money in my account seemed like too much for me, so we left the conversation there and left. I reported this to our Magic Carpet coordinator Bassel Osama, who took the complaint and apologized very cordially, which is appreciated. I fully understand the tipping culture in the country and we tipped absolutely all the guides and drivers we had on the entire trip, but this situation was horrible and uncomfortable and ruined the nice image we had formed of Egypt during the week of travel. It was disappointing and we were all left with a bad taste in our mouths. Know that people tip as much as they can, remember that it is not obligatory to tip as well.
Thank you Shimiaa for visiting the East Luxor Valley. The explanations were clear, interesting and helpful. We even asked to walk "The Alley of the Sphinx" (alley that connects one temple to the other), she agreed with a smile to wait for us at the other temple for the time of our walk. Magic Carpet is therefore strongly recommended for their professionalism and organization.
Excellent tour with Ahmed, our very knowledgeable guide, and Alla our driver. The tour was organized on very late notice (9PM for a pickup 6AM the next day) and everything was just perfect. We can only recommend.
Ask for Shimiaa Rabie - a highly educated and great tour guide who was more than equipped to answer the numerous questions throughout the tour, not just about the history but the wider area. Visited the Valley of the Kings and other sites on the Nile West Bank, it was a great day and whilst very busy she helpfully guided through the history of the area and the links between each of the sites and the city itself! I would highly reccomend!!!