Luxor

Luxor is a city in Upper (southern) Egypt and the capital of Luxor Governorate. The population numbers 487,896 (2010 estimate), with an area of approximately 416 square kilometres (161 sq mi). As the site of the Ancient Egyptian city of Thebes, Luxor has frequently been characterized as the "world's greatest open air museum", as the ruins of the temple complexes at Karnak and Luxor stand within the modern city. Immediately opposite, across the River Nile, lie the monuments, temples and tombs on the West Bank Necropolis, which include the Valley of the Kings and Valley of the Queens. Thousands of international tourists arrive annually to visit these monuments, contributing a large part towards the economy for the modern city.

 

Economy

The economy of Luxor, like that of many other Egyptian cities, is heavily dependent upon tourism. Large numbers of people also work in agriculture, particularly sugarcane. The city is notably poorer than Cairo and poverty is widespread in Luxor.

 

Infrastructure

Luxor is served by Luxor International Airport. A bridge was opened in 1998, a few kilometres upstream of the main town of Luxor, allowing ready land access from the east bank to the west bank. Traditionally, however, river crossings have been the domain of several ferry services. The so-called 'local ferry' (also known as the 'National Ferry') continues to operate from a landing opposite the Temple of Luxor. The single fare (June 2008) is 1 L.E. - one Egyptian Pound - per passenger for foreigners. Egyptian nationals pay ¼ of that, 25 piasters. This ferry is mainly used by the locals although a number of foreigners do use it.

 

The sites on the west bank are further than you think and you will need transport - taxi drivers often approach ferry passengers, and it is recommended that a fare be negotiated ahead of time.
There are also local cars that reach some of the monuments for 25 piasters, although tourists rarely use them. Alternatively, motorboats line the bast bank of the Nile all day providing a quicker, but more expensive (5 L.E.), crossing to the other side.

 

The city of Luxor on the east bank has several bus routes used mainly by locals. Tourists often rely on horse carriages, called "calèches," for transport or tours around the city. Do not ask calèche drivers to go to the west bank, because it is too far for the horses, not to mention illegal. Taxis are plentiful, and reasonably priced, and since the government has decreed that taxis older than 20 years will not be relicensed, there are many modern air-conditioned cabs. Recently, new roads have been built in the city to cope with the growth in traffic.

 

For domestic travel along the route of the Nile, a rail service operates several times a day. A morning train and sleeping train can be taken from the railway station situated around 400 metres (440 yd) from Luxor Temple. The line runs between several major destinations, including Cairo to the north and Aswan to the south.

 

Climate

Rainfall in Luxor is rare. The city can get between 0.0 to 6.0 millimeters of rain per month. Average annual rainfall is 2.3 mm (0.09 in) per year.

 

During the summer months, the temperature can easily reach 50 Celsius. In the neighboring Valley of the Kings, temperatures have been known to reach 57 degrees Celsius. Luxor is slightly cooled off by the Nile which runs alongside.

 

The world’s largest open air museum

Luxor is a place like no other on earth and a must-see for anyone visiting Egypt. Here you will find the most impressive Pharaonic monuments, all beautifully preserved and in a spectacular setting against the backdrop of the River Nile. There is so much to see and do here that a day trip is never enough. If you can stay overnight, be sure to book the evening sound and light show at the Karnak Temple or a dawn hot air balloon ride over the West Bank for unforgettable memories of this unique landscape.

 

Valley of the Kings

Explore the tombs of the Pharaohs and the village of the Artisan’s. Tucked into the mountainside are the entrances to the last resting places of Egypt’s rulers. Long tunnels decorated with religious texts and images lead the way to chambers containing huge stone sarcophagi. The elaborate decoration on the walls and ceilings were designed to help the occupant find his way to the next world. In the Artisan’s village, a small tomb with vivid colours on all sides shows that maybe the artists saved the best for themselves?

 

Karnak Temple

A spectacular and immense place of worship to the Theban Gods, this temple was started by Amenhotep III and nearly every Pharaoh that followed added to the complex. Massive columns, statues and a sacred lake make this temple one to visit both in the day, and at night for the Sound and Light Show.

 

Luxor Temple

This strikingly beautiful temple built on the banks of the Nile, while smaller than Karnak, contains a colossal statue of the great Ramses II who built the enormous pylons at the entrance. There is also a stunning red granite Obelisk, whose ‘twin’ now stands in France at the Place de la Concorde.

 

Colossi of Memnon

These gigantic statues herald your arrival to the West Bank and depict the Pharaoh Amenhotep III with smaller statues of his wife and mother at his feet. Originally standing guard over his mortuary temple, the Colossi are all that remains on the site. Subsequent Pharaoh’s may have reused the stone and much would have been washed away by millennia of Nile floods.

 

 

Temple of Hatshepsut

One of the finest monuments of ancient Egypt merges with the limestone cliffs in the same way as the temples in Petra. Hatshepsut was one of the few women to be recognised as Pharaoh in her own right (possibly because she wore a false beard and dressed like a man!) and was a prolific builder and restorer of monuments. She is thought to have been buried in the Valley of the Kings with her father Thutmoses I and later moved to the tomb of her nurse where it lay unidentified until 2007. With her mummy now on display at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, her fame lives on.