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We wake up with a magnificent view of the Nile:

We ask to change the room inorder to have a direct view of the Nile and our request is accepted 🙂
The hotel staff is friendly, they offer to change our room when we return from the day’s excursion. It’s perfect.
Head to the hotel restaurant for a quick breakfast.

Accommodation: Pyramisa Hotel Luxor
Address: Khaled Ibn El Walid Street, Luxor
Location: 25°41’11.3″N 32°37’50.2″E
3 nights, from 02/11/2024 to 05/11/2024
Price: €255
Booked with Booking.com

We have an appointment with Abdelgawad’s son at 07:45
Abdelgawad is our contact in Luxor. We talked via Whatsapp with him before our arrival (+20 100 349 1756)
He has a small motorboat and knows a lot of people in Luxor.
One of the advantages of staying in a hotel on the banks of the Nile is that you can be picked up by a boat directly at the hotel and avoid taking a taxi.

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Here we are, by boat to cross the Nile to the West Bank with a magnificent backdrop of the Valley of the Kings and hot air balloons

You should know that for the pharaohs, the East Bank represents life, the West Bank represents death.
That is why most of the temples are on the East Bank and the tombs on the West Bank of the Nile

Morning program:

• Abdelgawad’s son takes us across the Nile
• A private driver picks us up on the other side (organized by Abdelgawad)
• Departure to the monuments on the West Bank via the Colossi of Memnon
• Visit the temple of Medinet Habu
• Visit the temple of Hatshepsut
• Visit the Valley of the Kings

After crossing the Nile, we begin our tour by observing the Colossi of Memnon
These are two 20m high statues remaining from the palace of Amenhotep III.
The anecdote that made them famous is that following an earthquake, one of the statues cracked and gave rise to a strange phenomenon. At sunrise, the stone began to whistle. This phenomenon has stopped due to renovation work.

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We continue our way to the temple of Medinet Habu. The normal price is 220 EGP (4.4 €). In our case, with our Arab passports, we pay 20 EGP (0.4 €) per person.
This price difference is practiced on almost all Egyptian monuments, as well as train tickets. We like that 🙂

The temple of Habu is just magnificent.
This is a visit that we highly recommend.
It was built for Ramses III and has remained in a very beautiful state of preservation

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Second stop of our visit, the temple of Hatshepsut.
The normal price is 440 EGP (8.5 €). In our case, with our Arab passports, we pay 40 EGP (0.8 €) per person.

The special thing about Pharaoh Hatshepsut is that she was A Woman.
The exterior of the temple is impressive. It offers a breathtaking view of the city

The interior is less extraordinary, but the temple is definitely worth a visit. It is a must-see on the west bank of the Nile in Luxor

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We continue our journey to the Valley of the Kings.
This is the region that contains the tombs of the pharaoh kings. The valley has about sixty tombs and burial chambers

Just before the ticket office, you will find a 3D representation of the layout of the tombs underground

The entrance fee per person is 750 EGP (14.5 €). For Arabs: 60 EGP (1.2 €)
This price includes access to the Valley of the Kings and 3 tombs among those that are open (except tombs requiring a supplement)

For tombs with a supplement:

• Tomb of Ay: 200 EGP (4 €). For Arabs: 10 EGP (0.2 €)
• Tomb of Seti I: 2000 EGP (40 €). For Arabs: 500 EGP (10 €)
• Tomb of Tutankhamun: 700 EGP (14 €). For Arabs: 40 EGP (0.8 €)
• Tomb of Ramses V & VI: 220 EGP (4.3 €). For Arabs: 30 EGP (0.6 €)

We take advantage of the reduced rate for Arabs to buy additional tickets for the tombs of Seti I, Tutankhamun and Ramsses V & VI

You will find site maps everywhere to help you find your way. Due to the large crowds and the heat, we choose to only visit the tombs that we paid extra for.

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We start with the tomb of the famous Tutankhamun

Be careful when going down the stairs:

We arrive in the burial chamber and we find ourselves face to face with the only mummy that remains in the Valley of the Kings : Tutankhamun

The tomb is magnificently decorated

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The second tomb that we visit is Ramsses V & VI. The entrance is spectacular:

In the burial chamber, we find the Sarcophagus of the pharaoh, or what remains of it. The tomb was plundered and the Sarcophagus broken by thieves

Admire the walls of the tomb magnificently decorated with hieroglyphs

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The last tomb we visit is Seti I. He is the father of the famous Ramses II.
It is the most spectacular temple in the valley. It is impressive:

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The site is immense and exciting, but the hot weather with our 2-year-old child forces us to go back. Our driver is waiting for us and takes us directly to the hotel by land, passing the new bridge of Luxor.

On the way back, we stop in a small village to do some shopping and buy some traditional Egyptian bread (Eich baladi)

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We arrive at the hotel, change our room as agreed and we enjoy a direct view of the Nile. It is magnificent:

After a well-deserved break, we have an appointment with Abdelgawad at 4:30 p.m. for a tour with his small boat.

Abdelgawad welcomes us with a traditional Egyptian meal served directly on the boat. It is delicious.

Let’s go for a magnificent sunset tour on the Nile

At the end of our little boat trip, Abdelgawad, who has become our friend, offers to drop us off on the Luxor corniche to drink coffee and smoke a shisha with him.

We leave for our hotel in a horse-drawn carriage after this busy day. Tomorrow, we wake up very early to be the first on the Karnak temple.

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