Basically, Luxor is an open-air museum, and in Egypt, there is no better place to rest for a few days and just lose yourself in the wonders of the ancient world. With our list of 15 top Attractions in and around Luxor, schedule your journey.

1. Temple of Karnak

Of all the many monuments in Luxor, Karnak’s Temple Complex must be the most astonishing and beautiful feat. The Great Temple of Amun, the Temple of Khons, and the Festival Temple of Tuthmosis III are within its precincts, as are many other structures.

It is not constructed on a single unified plan, but reflects the construction effort of several successive Egyptian rulers who vied with each other to add and adorn this great national sanctuary, which during the New Kingdom became the most important of the temples of Egypt.

All the monuments here are on a gigantic scale, reducing tourists as they look up at mighty columns and monumental statuary to ant-like proportions. Don’t scrimp on your visit here, even though you are short on time. To try to make sense of the whole complex, you need at least three hours to enjoy 1th of 15 Top Attractions in Luxor.

You can easily walk to Karnak along the Nile-side Corniche road from downtown, but most people take a taxi due to the sun. If you are short of time, there are plenty of tours offered that whip you around the Karnak highlights. A private tour of the East Bank of Luxor, Karnak, and the temples of Luxor is a nice choice. This half-day tour takes an Egyptologist on a visit to these ancient sites.

2. Luxor Temple

Luxor Temple, presiding over the new downtown area, is an ode to Egypt’s changing face over the ages. “It was first built by Amenophis III (on the site of an earlier sandstone temple), known as “Amun’s southern harem” and dedicated to Amun, his consort, Mut, and the moon god Khons, their son.

It includes the chapels of the deities with their vestibules and subsidiary chambers, a large Hypostyle Hall, and an open Peristyle Court, which was approached by a large colonnade from the north, like all Egyptian temples.

A parade of pharaohs, including Amenophis IV (who obliterated all references to the god Amun inside the temple and installed the Sanctuary of the god Aten), Tutankhamun, added and altered the temple (who had the walls of the colonnade embellished with reliefs and in turn destroyed the Temple of the Aten),Seti I (who had restored Amun’s reliefs), and Ramses II (who extended the temple significantly, adding a new colonnaded court at the north end). The temple was converted into a church during the Christian era, while within the complex grounds, the Mosque of Abu el-Haggag, dedicated to a revered holy man, was built in the Islamic period.

3. Valley of the Kings

Hidden between rugged escarpments, the legendary Valley of the Kings was the final resting place for the 18th, 19th, and 20th dynasty kings. Their key draw is their wall paintings that are beautifully vibrant.

Since it was believed that the dead man sailed in a boat through the underworld at night, accompanied by the sun god (or maybe having become one with the sun god), the walls of the tombs were decorated with texts and scenes describing this voyage and giving the dead man directions on its path.

There are 63 tombs inside the valley, which are a roll-call of popular names from the history of Egypt, including the famous boy-king Tutankhamun. In order to protect the paintings as much as possible from the damage caused by moisture, the tombs are open on a rotating schedule. Enjoy for unforgettable time at one of 15 Top Attractions in Luxor.

4. Temple of Deir al-Bahri (Queen Hatshepsut’s Temple)

At the foot of the sheer cliffs surrounding the desert hills, the Temple of Deir el-Bahri is magnificently placed, the cream-colored, almost white, sandstone of the temple standing out prominently against the golden yellow to light brown rocks behind it.

The temple complex is laid out on three terraces, connected by ramps, rising from the plain, dividing it into the northern and the southern half. A raised colonnade is situated along the western side of each terrace.

From the eastern slopes of the hills, the terraces were hewn, with retaining walls of the finest sandstone along the sides and to the rear. The temple itself was partially hewn out of the rock as well.

Within, statues, reliefs, and inscriptions richly adorn the complex. Notice how Queen Hatshepsut had portrayed herself to prove that she had all the authority of a king with the characteristics of a male pharaoh (beard and short apron).

5. Luxor Museum

The Luxor Museum, one of the best museums in Egypt, holds a beautifully displayed local collection that tells the tale of ancient Thebes from the Old Kingdom right up until the Islamic Period.

The two Royal Mummies of Ahmose I and what is thought to be Ramses I are the museum’s prize belongings in two rooms on the ground floor, which are worth a visit here alone.

A sparkling display of amulets, silver pots, grave and tomb furnishings, and votive tablets running through the centre of the floor space is accessible on the upper floor. While here, check out the reliefs on Akhenaten’s re-erected Wall. The 283 blocks of sandstone are decorated with painted reliefs and originally belonged to the Temple of the Sun at Karnak, Akhenaten.

6. Colossi of Memnon

The famous gigantic statues known as the Colossi of Memnon are next to the road which runs from the Valley of the Queens and Medinet Habu towards the Nile. Carved out of hard yellowish-brown sandstone quarried in the hills above Edfu, they show Amenophis III sitting on a throne in the form of a cube, once standing guard at the entrance to the temple of the king, of which only scanty traces remain.

They were taken for statues in Roman Imperial times by Memnon, the son of Eos and Tithonus, who was killed by Achilles during the Trojan War.

Better protected than the one to the north, the South Colossus. It is 19.59-meter high, and part of the base is hidden under the sand. The overall height must have been some 21 metres with the crown that it originally wore but has long since disappeared.

The North Colossus is the famous “musical statue,” that during the Roman Imperial period brought flocks of visitors here. Visitors noted that at sunrise the statue emitted a musical note and this gave rise to the myth that with this sweet, plaintive note, Memnon was greeting his mother, Eos. After Emperor Septimus Severus had the upper part of the statue restored, the sound ceased to be heard.

You will see the huge site (currently being excavated by archaeologists) where Amenophis III’s temple once stood, if you step behind the statues.

7. Medinet Habu

Medinet Habu is frequently missed on a West Bank tour, with the popular Valley of the Kings and Temple of Deir al-Bahri the main attractions, but this is one of the most beautifully decorated temples in Egypt and should be on the hit list of anyone in the West Bank.

The complex consists of a small, older temple constructed and expanded in the Late Period during the 18th Dynasty, and the great Temple of Ramses III, associated with a royal palace, enclosed by a four-meter-high battlemented enclosure wall.

The main temple area was designed precisely on the Ramesseum model and was dedicated to Amun, like the Ramesseum. These reliefs are some of the finest you’ll see on the West Bank here.

8. Tombs of the Nobles

Then make a beeline for the Tombs of the Nobles, which may be less common, but actually contain much better preserved examples of tomb paintings, if you have not had your fill of tombs in the Valley of the Kings.

The site contains approximately 400 tombs of different dignitaries, dating from the 6th dynasty up to the Ptolemaic period.

The tomb paintings here are not so concerned with leading the dead into the afterlife; they depict scenes from everyday life in Egypt instead. Some of the most vivid and vibrant tomb paintings in Egypt are, in particular, the Tomb of Sennofer, Tomb of Rekhmire, Tomb of Khonsu, Tomb of Benia, Tomb of Menna, and Tomb of Nakht.

If your time is limited, choose to see the Sennofer Tomb and the Rekhmire Tomb. They both have extremely extensive paintings portraying scenes from the everyday life, jobs, and family life of men. During the reign of Amenhotep II, Sennofer was an overseer, while Rekhmire was the pharaoh’s vizier.

9. Ramesseum

On the edge of the cultivated ground, some one and a half kilometres south of Deir el-Bahri, lies the great mortuary temple constructed by Ramses II and dedicated to Amun. It is still a highly impressive landmark, but only about half of the original building remains.

It was known during the Roman Imperial era as the Tomb of Ozymandias, mentioned by the historian Diodorus (1st century BC) and was later immortalised in his poem Ozymandias by the English poet Shelley.

Similar to the reliefs of Abu Simbel, the north tower and south tower are inscribed with reliefs of Ramses II’s combat with the Hittites. The Battle of Qadesh takes up the whole of the left hand half of the wall in the South Tower. Scenes here depict Ramses dashing against the Hittites in his chariot, who are killed by his arrows or escape in wild chaos and fall into the Orontes River, You can see the Prince of the Hittites and the enemy running into their fortress.

The remains of a monumental figure of the king are inside the First Court, which is estimated to have initially had a total height of 17.5 metres and weighed more than 1,000 tonnes.

10. Valley of the Queens

The tombs mainly belong to the 19th and 20th dynasties in the Valley of the Queens. A total of nearly 80 tombs, most of them excavated by an Italian expedition led by E, are now recognised. Between 1903 and 1905, Schiaparelli.

Many of the tombs, resembling mere caves in the rocks, are incomplete and without décor. With much of the decoration consisting of paintings on stucco, there are few incised inscriptions or reliefs.

Only four tombs are open for public viewing, but the famous Tomb of Queen Nefertari, reopened only in 2016, is one of the party, making it well worth a trip here. The Tomb of Queen Nefertari, Wife of Ramses II, is considered to be the finest of the glut of tombs in the West Bank. Dazzling, highly detailed and richly coloured scenes cover the walls and ceilings of the chambers here,which celebrate Nefertari’s legendary beauty.

The Tomb of Prince Amen-her-khopshef is the best of the three other tombs that can be seen here, as the wall paintings of its chambers have well-preserved colours. Amen-her-khopshef died while still a teenager, the son of Ramses III.

The Tomb of Khaemwaset (another son of Ramses III) and the Tomb of Queen Titi both contain some interesting preserved scenes, if you have time, or simply like tombs, although those in the Titi tomb are more faded than Khaemwaset. In the field of archaeology, there is no consensus on who Titi’s husband was. Still more of 15 Top Attractions in Luxor.

11. Mortuary Temple of Seti I

The Mortuary Temple of Seti I is dedicated to Amun and to the cult of the father of the king, Ramses I. Left unfinished by Seti I, it was decorated with reliefs and inscriptions by Ramses II that compete in quality with Abydos’s contemporary work.

The temple was originally 158 metres long, but the sanctuary, with its separate halls and chambers and some scanty fragments of the courts and pylons, is all that now remains.

The temple’s Hypostyle Hall includes some excellent examples of reliefs for those travellers interested in ancient Egyptian decorative work. The winged solar disc; flying vultures; and the names of Seti I, enclosed by snakes and flanked by two rows of hieroglyphics, are on the roof slabs above the central aisle. The low reliefs on the walls show the offerings of Seti I and Ramses II to different gods,including, on the right, Hathor of Dendera who is suckling Seti.

Deir el-Medina is home to a small mosque, the remains of the village of workers (where the royal tomb craftsmen lived) and the workers’ tombs themselves, Mortuary Temple of Seti I one the interesting 15 Top Attractions in Luxor.

12. Deir el-Medina

Deir el-Medina is home to a small mosque, the remains of the village of workers (where the royal tomb craftsmen lived) and the workers’ tombs themselves. The wall paintings adorning the tombs, which are a vivid depiction of everyday Egyptian life, are well worth a visit.

Don’t miss the Tomb of Sennedjem, an artist from the 19th Dynasty. It has a vaulted tomb room and religious-themed reliefs and paintings, including a fine depiction of a funeral banquet. The contents of the tomb, found in 1886, are now on display in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

13. Mummification Museum

In a collection of well-set-out and detailed exhibits, this small yet fascinating museum demonstrates the processes behind the ancient Egyptian tradition of mummification.

The exhibits contain real mummies (both human and animal) and the materials used in the mummification process (including the spatulas used to scrape the brains of the deceased person out). It’s probably not the best museum for anyone especially squeamish, but for anyone looking to find out more about the burial rituals of the pharaohs, the simple information panels and well-thought-out displays are a must.

In particular, look at Maserharti’s mummy, the high priest of Amun in the 21st dynasty, which is highly well-preserved.

14. Hot Air Balloon Ride over Luxor at Sunrise

It can get so hot during the day in Luxor, so it’s a good idea to schedule some activities early in the morning or late in the afternoon.

As many of the sights open at 6am, early risers are certainly rewarded here. Take a hot air balloon ride, the most common activity in the region, for great aerial views over the entire west bank, with its temples and village farmland tucked between the escarpment, with balloons all taking off just after sunrise. look at all 15 Top Attractions in Luxor .

With a couple of quality stables providing horse riding tours, this is also a perfect time for horse riding on the west bank.

15. Felucca Ride to Banana Island

There’s no better way to indulge in Luxor than taking a felucca trip to Banana Island if you’ve had your fill of temples and graves for the day.

This teeny palm-shaded island, five kilometres upriver from Luxor, is the perfect chilled-out alternative to the West and East Bank’s historic jewels. After a long day of temple and tomb viewing, climb on a felucca in the late afternoon and sit back to watch the Nile-side views as the captain of the ship lifts the sail and you slide up the shore. If you sail back at sunset alone, you’ll get to see the river at its most majestic. Wish to enjoy reading 15 Top Attractions in Luxor.

New Cairo Travel NCT is ready to give our guests the best Luxor trips and itineraries to explore much of Luxor’s 15 Top Attractions in Luxor  important things to do.