3 Days: Luxor Short Break

Tour Experts Egypt’s representative will meet and assist you at Luxor International Airport to facilitate the arrival procedures, and then he will escort you to your 5-star hotel in Luxor. At the hotel, you will get your welcome drink while our representative is finishing the check-in process and then review your holiday itinerary with you to schedule and confirm your pick-up times for each tour.

Overnight in Luxor.

Depart your Luxor hotel and journey to the west bank of the Nile River. As you travel, listen as your guide tells tales about the Valley of the Kings, the mountain-cut royal necropolis of the capital of Thebes that once stood on the site of Luxor. Soak up views of the rugged mountains and, on arrival, enjoy a brief stop at the valley’s visitor center.

Then, explore the inner rock-cut chambers and tunnels. Guides are not permitted to accompany you inside the tombs, but your guide will describe what to look for before you enter. Walk through colorful, hieroglyph-covered corridors and see painted chambers that once contained the remains of ancient Egypt’s rulers. If you wish, pay an additional cost direct to enter the tomb of King Tutankhamun.

Next, drive to the Temple of Hatshepsut, a vision of geometrical colonnades hewn into a cliffside. Learn about the temple’s history and life of Queen Hatshepsut, Egypt’s first female ruler. Stroll around the courtyards and terraces, and admire the statues and hieroglyphics that adorn them.

Then, stop for photos at the Colossi of Memnon: two towering statues of the Pharaoh Amenhotep III, that once stood at his now long-gone funerary temple. Hear the stories and legends that surround the statues, and inspect the Roman-era graffiti engraved in the stone.

Continue to the Nile’s East Bank to visit the age-old Temples of Karnak Temple. Walk along the Avenue of the Sphinxes to the gateway, and then explore inside with your Egyptologist guide. Hear how the huge pylons at the entrance were constructed, and marvel at the courtyards and sanctuaries beyond. The deeper you go into the complex, the further back you step, with the oldest ruins dating back more than 3,000 years.

Gaze in awe at the showpiece Hypostyle Hall crowded with 134 massive columns that tower above you like an ancient forest. Crane your neck upwards and learn about the ingenious methods used to raise them by the long-ago Egyptians. Lastly, your tourguide will transfer you back to your hotel in Luxor.

Overnight in Luxor.

Visit the age-old Temples of Karnak and Luxor Temple on the Nile’s East Bank on this private tour from Luxor. With your own Egyptologist guide, travel by minivan to Karnak, an awesome collection of temples and halls dating back over 3,000 years. Ogle the giant columns of the Hypostyle Hall, walk the Avenue of the Sphinxes, and see other highlights as you learn their history. Then, head for Luxor Temple to admire its columns, courts and statues; and discover how it was embellished by Tutankhamun and Alexander the Great.

Depart your central Luxor hotel or Luxor river port by minivan and drive to the Temples of Karnak on the Nile’s East Bank.

As you travel, hear how Luxor stands on the 4,000-year-old site of Thebes, Egypt’s ancient royal capital, and how Karnak is the largest of its temple complexes. Discover how this vast collection of buildings was developed by more than 30 pharaohs, including Amenhotep IV and Ramses II.

On arrival, walk along the Avenue of the Sphinxes to the gateway, and then explore inside with your Egyptologist guide. Hear how the huge pylons at the entrance were constructed, and marvel at the courtyards and sanctuaries beyond. The deeper you go into the complex, the further back you step, with the oldest ruins dating back more than 3,000 years.

Gaze in awe at the showpiece Hypostyle Hall, crowded with 134 massive columns that tower above you like an ancient forest. Crane your neck upwards and learn about the ingenious methods used to raise them by the long-ago Egyptians. See the sacred lake where pharaonic offerings were purified, and then enjoy free time to stroll around the site at leisure.

Continue to Luxor Temple, an ancient temple in the center of Luxor laid parallel to the Nile. Hear how it was built in around 1,400 BC, and added to by Tutankhamun, Ramses II and even Alexander the Great.

Admire the two colossal statues of Ramses at the entrance, and the granite gateway obelisk whose original counterpart now stands in Paris’ Place de la Concorde. Then, head inside to gawk at the richly carved inner sanctuaries, papyrus columns and courts. Peep inside the atmospheric anterooms, including the chapel dedicated to Alexander the Great, who rebuilt the room in his name.

Tour Experts Egypt’s representative will escort you to Luxor International Airport where you will catch your flight back home.