Tour Overview
This private tour is a second day on Luxor's West Bank, built around four sites that most first-time visitors miss: the Valley of the Queens, the temple of Ramses III at Medinet Habu, the workers' village and tombs of Deir el-Medina, and the Ramesseum of Ramses II. A private Egyptologist and an air-conditioned car collect you from your Luxor hotel or Nile cruise, with lunch and entrance fees included. Choose it once you have seen the Valley of the Kings, or if you prefer quieter sites.
Tour Highlights
- See painted tombs of queens and royal children in the Valley of the Queens, the place the Egyptians called Ta-Set-Neferu.
- Walk through Medinet Habu, Ramses III's fortress-like memorial temple, where carved battle scenes and ceiling colors are unusually well preserved.
- Visit Deir el-Medina, the village of the craftsmen who cut and painted the royal tombs, and step into their own small, colorful tombs.
- Stand beside the toppled colossus of Ramses II at the Ramesseum, among carved scenes of his Battle of Kadesh.
- Spend the day at West Bank sites that are usually far calmer than the Valley of the Kings, with a private guide and car.
Tour Route
Is the Valley of the Queens worth visiting after the Valley of the Kings?
Yes. The tombs are smaller, but several are among the most finely painted on the West Bank, and the valley is usually much quieter. After seeing the kings' tombs, you notice how the decoration changes for queens and young princes, and your guide can explain why.
The most famous tomb here, that of Nefertari, wife of Ramses II, is opened under special conditions and is not part of the standard entry ticket. Ask us when you book if you would like to include it.
Why is Medinet Habu called the best-preserved temple on the West Bank?
Because so much of it survives: its enclosure walls, its fortified gateway, its courts and many painted reliefs. Ramses III built it as his memorial temple, and it later sheltered a whole town, which helped protect it. For many visitors it is the surprise of the day.
What makes Deir el-Medina different?
Most ancient Egyptian sites tell you about kings and gods. Deir el-Medina tells you about the ordinary skilled workers who carved and painted the royal tombs. Thousands of written notes found here record their work rotas, disputes, shopping and family matters, which makes it one of the best-documented communities of the ancient world.
- The village: the stone foundations of the workers' houses along a single main street.
- The tombs: small family tombs with bright, lively paintings, often of the afterlife the workers hoped for.
- The setting: a quiet fold in the Theban hills, a short drive from the Valley of the Queens.
How is this different from the main Luxor West Bank tour?
The main West Bank tour covers the Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut's temple and the Colossi of Memnon. This tour visits four different sites, so the two days do not repeat anything. Together they cover the most important monuments of the Theban Necropolis.
If this is your first visit, start with the Luxor West Bank tour to the Valley of the Kings and Hatshepsut, then book this one for the next day. If you also want the temples on the city side of the river, add the Karnak and Luxor Temple East Bank tour, or browse all our Luxor day tours.
Tour Itinerary
Four quieter West Bank sites in one day, two before lunch and two after, all within a short drive of each other.
Your private Egyptologist guide and driver meet you at your hotel or cruise boat in Luxor and take you across to the West Bank. This time you head to the southern part of the Theban hills, away from the busier sites you may already have seen.
Royal wives, princes and princesses of the 18th to the 20th Dynasty were buried here, in more than 70 tombs cut into a quiet side valley. Like the royal tombs, they were given plain entrances to avoid tomb robbers. Inside, the best of them keep bright paintings of the dead being led before the gods.
The great memorial temple of Ramses III stands inside high mud-brick walls, entered through a gateway modeled on a Syrian fortress. Its outer walls show his wars against the Sea Peoples, and the inner courts still hold much of their original color. Next to it is an older temple begun by Hatshepsut and Thutmose III.
Lunch at a local restaurant in Luxor is included in the price. It splits the day neatly in two and gives you a proper rest in the shade before the afternoon's two sites, which are close to each other on the West Bank.
This was the village of the workmen who built and decorated the royal tombs, and they were buried on the hillside above their homes. Their family tombs are small but beautifully painted. Your guide explains what the written records found here reveal about their wages, families and daily lives.
Ramses II built this memorial temple for himself and dedicated it to Amun. The pieces of his fallen colossus still lie in the first court, and the walls show the Battle of Kadesh and the Festival of Min. Your guide also points out the mud-brick storerooms that once surrounded the temple.
After the Ramesseum, your driver takes you back to your hotel or cruise boat. The guide, car, lunch and entrance fees for the sites in the program are already paid, so tips and any optional extra tickets are the only costs to plan for.
What's Included
What the tour price covers, and what to plan for separately.
Paid
★
Your
Own
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers about this tour. For anything else, message us on WhatsApp — we reply fast.
Your private guide and driver collect you from your hotel or Nile cruise boat in Luxor and return you there after the Ramesseum, the last stop of the day. Send us the name of your hotel or boat when you book so we can plan the pickup and the route.
The price includes your private Egyptologist guide, a private air-conditioned car, entrance fees to the sites in the program, one lunch and all service charges. Tips, drinks and personal expenses are extra. Nefertari's tomb needs its own special ticket, which is not part of the standard entry and not included.
Yes. The guide and car are only for your group. The per-person price falls as more people share the same car and guide, and it moves slightly between the summer and winter seasons. The full price table by group size is shown on this page. Prices start from {price} per person.
It is ideal for that. Travelers who have already seen the Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut and Karnak often feel they have finished Luxor, but these four sites show a quieter and more personal side of ancient Thebes, from royal children's tombs to the homes of the tomb builders.
Yes. Avicon Travel is a Class "A" travel agency licensed by the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism under License No. 1962 and registered since 2010. Our office and team are in Karnak, Luxor, so the guides, drivers and cars on this tour are our own local team, not a booking desk abroad.
