West Bank of Luxor
While Luxor and Karnak Temples are on the East
Bank the West Bank offers many wonderful sites. There is no
way to see all that this area has to offer and the following are the
highlights of the area that you will most likely visit during your
tour.
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Valley of the Kings and Valley of the Queens
Different tombs are opening and closing
constantly. So there is no way to know which tombs will be open
during your visit. However, although all the tombs are
slightly different there is a similarity between them all so no
matter which tombs you see I am sure you will really enjoy this
tour. Both males and females tombs are in Valley of the Kings
area. The name king in this case really means the ruler who
could also have been a woman. The Valley of the Queens is very
similar just a little smaller scale. Of course the most famous tomb
in the Valley of the Queens is Queen Nefertiti but is seldom open to
the public. We did not get to see this tomb.
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On arrival at the Valley of the Kings
you walk a little way to get past the ticket booth and to the small
trams that will take you further up into the tomb area. This is a
desolate place and quite beautiful with the desert and mountains
surrounding you. On arrival there is a shaded area with
fans where your guide will give you an idea of what you are going to
see and point you in the direction of the tombs that are open.
The guides are not allowed to enter the tombs with you. The tombs
are not far away from each other but there is quite a bit of uphill
walking in some cases. This is an excursion that requires one
is comfortable walking.
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Entering the tombs you are met by the tomb guides. Most do
not speak much English and they are there to be sure that you do not
take pictures which is absolutely forbidden inside the tombs. They
are also there to point out areas of interest and to get a tip - be
sure to have a lot of small Egyptian money with you on this
excursion. Your guide will tip the "outside" tomb person but
most people do tip the "inside" tomb person.
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The tombs inside are usually long narrow corridors heading down,
some quite steep, with carvings and paintings on the walls on both
sides. As you progress down deeper into the tombs there are
often little areas shooting off from the main walkway which used to
house all the treasures of the Pharaoh. At the base is the
burial chamber where the Pharaoh tomb was placed. These do vary and
each one is interesting. |
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| Tomb of King Tutankhamen is of
course the most famous having only been discovered in the early
twentieth century. There is an extra charge to enter this tomb. The
actual burial chamber is very small in comparison to most of the
other burial chambers. No more than 12 could be in this area at one
time. Whether this is worth it is up to you. I found many of the
other tombs more interesting it is just that this is the "famous"
tomb as all the treasures were found and are now housed in the
Museum in Cairo. |
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