Luxor the name of "Luxor" means "Palaces" and it is the premier travel destination in Upper (southern) Egypt and the Nile Valley. The dynastic and religious capital of Middle Kingdom and New Kingdom Egypt, Luxor has much for travellers to enjoy vast temples, ancient royal tombs, spectacular desert and river scenery and a bustling modern life. Luxor is a city on the east bank of the Nile River in southern Egypt. It's on the site of ancient Thebes, the pharaohs’ capital at the height of their power, during the 16th–11th centuries B.C. Today's city surrounds 2 huge, surviving ancient monuments: graceful Luxor Temple and Karnak Temple, a mile north. The royal tombs of the Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Queens are on the river’s west bank.
Both east-bank temples have preserved statues, columns, obelisks and hieroglyphics, plus sound-and-light shows at night. The west-bank necropolis includes the tombs of Tutankhamun and Ramses III, which is adorned with colourful 2000-year-old reliefs. The Luxor Museum displays artifacts recovered from many of the tombs, while the Mummification Museum sheds lights on mummification techniques. The Mortuary Temple of Queen Hatshepsut is backed by towering cliffs. Traditional felucca sailing boats, cruise ships and hot-air balloons provide trips on or above the river. Many of the modern hotels and restaurants in Luxor overlook the water
Luxor is a city in Upper (southern) Egypt and the capital of Luxor Governorate. The population numbers 506,535 (2012 estimate), with an area of approximately 417 square kilometres (161 sq mi). The modern city sprawls to the site of the Ancient Egyptian city of Waset, also known as Nut and to the Greeks as Thebes or Diospolis, 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 of the west bank Necropolis, which includes the Valley of the Kings and Valley of the Queens.
Luxor was the ancient city of Thebes, the great capital of (Upper) Egypt during the New Kingdom, and the glorious city of Amun, later to become the god Amun-Ra. The city was regarded in the Ancient Egyptian texts as was.t (approximate pronunciation: "Waset"), which meant "city of the sceptre", and later in Demotic Egyptian as ta jpt (conventionally pronounced as "ta ipet" and meaning "the shrine/temple", referring to the jpt-swt, the temple now know by its Arabic name, Karnak, meaning "fortified village"), which the Greeks adapted as Thebai and the Romans after them Thebae. Thebes was also known as "the city of the 100 gates", sometimes being called "southern Heliopolis" ('Iunu-shemaa' in Ancient Egyptian), to distinguish it from the city of Iunu or Heliopolis, the main place of worship for the god Ra in the north. It was also often referred to as niw.t, which simply means "city", and was one of only three cities in Egypt for which this noun was used (the other two were Memphis and Heliopolis); it was also called niw.t rst, "southern city", as the southernmost of them.
The importance of the city started as early as the 11th Dynasty, when the town grew into a thriving city. Montuhotep II who united Egypt after the troubles of the first intermediate period brought stability to the lands as the city grew in stature. The Pharaohs of the New Kingdom in their expeditions to Kush, in today's northern Sudan, and to the lands of Canaan, Phoenicia and Syria saw the city accumulate great wealth and rose to prominence, even on a world scale.[9] Thebes played a major role in expelling the invading forces of the Hyksos from Upper Egypt, and from the time of the 18th Dynasty to the 20th Dynasty, the city had risen as the political, religious and military capital of Ancient Egypt.
The city attracted peoples such as the Babylonians, the Mitanni, the Hittites of Anatolia (modern-day Turkey), the Canaanites of Ugarit, the Phoenicians of Byblos and Tyre, the Minoans from the island of Crete. A Hittite prince from Anatolia even came to marry with the widow of Tutankhamun, Ankhesenamun.[9] The political and military importance of the city, however, faded during the Late Period, with Thebes being replaced as political capital by several cities in Northern Egypt, such as Bubastis, Sais and finally Alexandria.
Climate of Luxor
Luxor has a hot desert climate like the rest of Egypt. Aswan and Luxor have the hottest summer days of any other city in Egypt. Aswan and Luxor have nearly the same climate. Luxor is one of the sunniest and driest cities in the world. Average high temperatures are above 40 °C (104 °F) during summer (June, July, August) During the coldest month of the year, average high temperatures remain above 22 °C (71.6 °F) while average low temperatures remain above 5 °C (41 °F).
The climate of Luxor has precipitation levels lower than even most other places in the Sahara, with less than 1 mm (0.04 in) of average annual precipitation. The desert city is one of the driest ones in the world, and rainfall does not occur every year. The air in Luxor is more humid than Aswan but still very dry. There is an average relative humidity of 39.9%, with a maximum mean of 57% during winter and a minimum mean of 27% during summer.
The climate of Luxor is extremely clear, bright and sunny year-round, in all seasons, with a low seasonal variation, with about some 4,000 hours of annual sunshine, very close of the maximum theoretical sunshine duration.
Getting Around Alexandria
Luxor has an extremely wide variety of accommodation options, from camping and hostels, right up to 5 star luxury hotels like the Old Winter Palace Hotel which is of extreme opulence and has played host to both movie stars and heads of state. In all Egypt, Luxor probably experiences the greatest seasonal variation in hotel rates - some hotels can be up to 50% cheaper (or more) in the low season (summer), others have no change.
Whilst the vast majority of accommodation options are to be found on the East Bank, an increasing number are to be found (and are being developed), however, on the more laid-back and isolated West Bank, close to the tombs and the Valley of the Kings. A lengthy stay in the area might benefit from staying on both sides of the river for some time.....
If you are arriving in Luxor by train or bus, beware the over-friendly and sometimes pushy hotel touts, especially at the station (these guys are a symptom of the sometimes fierce competition between rival hotels, especially at quiet times).
Overview
How to get there
Attractions
Where to stay
Visit Egypt! The beginning of Civilization
Uganda Wildlife, Nature, City life & Cultural Tourism Event Experience
8 days | 3 Major Destinations | 6-25 Travellers
From $1,800
Architect Tourism SMC Ltd is an African tourism company, crafted to inspire and enable a breathtaking beautiful experience of Africa. Visit Africa is one of Architect Tourism SMC tourism brands. Visit Africa is inspired to craft innovative, fun and breathtaking tourism events, trips, excursions, getaways, safari, vacations, holiday, and tours experiences.
Vision: To inspire, craft, and enable a breathtaking beautiful experience of Africa.
Our Values: African, Oneness, Integrity, Client focused, Conservation focused, Innovative, Excellence, Simplicity.
Company Registration Number: 80020002986484 | Company Tax ID: 1018106912
Visit Africa is an African tourism brand, that profiles every tourist destination, in every country, in Africa; Destinations, How to get there, Attractions, Things to do, How to get around, itinerary pricing and Where to stay, for an adventurous breathtaking and thrilling experience of tourism of Africa.
Visit Africa
Destinations
Visit Namibia
We are Social!
Search this website!
Africa
Visit Africa
Visit Uganda
Visit Tanzania
Visit Zimbabwe
Visit South Africa
Visit Kenya
Visit Morocco
Tour Itineraries
Visit Africa Copyright © 2019 - Visit Africa is a Tourism Brand of Architect Tourism SMC Limited.
Wildlife in Africa
Visit Egypt
Visit Rwanda