Luxor Sightseeing: First and Return Visit
The first trip to Luxor and the second are different trips. The first time, the four giants take every hour you have. The second time, you can finally slow down for the smaller places that tour buses skip, and you may enjoy them more.
First visit: the four giants
Karnak (EGP 600) comes first, at gate opening. Walk the great Hypostyle Hall, where 134 sandstone columns crowd overhead, then find Hatshepsut’s obelisk and the Sacred Lake.
Luxor Temple (EGP 500) is best at dusk, when the floodlit colossi and the pink granite obelisk of Ramesses II glow. The Abu Haggag Mosque is built into its columns.
Hatshepsut’s temple at Deir el-Bahari (EGP 440) rises in three terraces against the cliff, and the reliefs record the expedition to Punt.
The Valley of the Kings has a tiered ticket. The general ticket is EGP 750 for three tombs from the day’s open list. Tutankhamun costs about EGP 700 to 750 extra and Seti I about EGP 2,000. The Valley’s own site gives opening details, and you can find an escorted option on GetYourGuide if you want a driver and guide for the west bank.
Return visit: the quieter places
Medinet Habu, the temple of Ramesses III, costs about EGP 200 to 300 and keeps deeply carved reliefs with traces of blue and red pigment, including naval battles.
Deir el-Medina was the village of the craftsmen who built the royal tombs, and two painted private tombs there belong to Inherkha and Sennedjem.
The Luxor Museum (EGP 400) holds the calcite statue of Sobek with Amenhotep III and the royal statues found hidden at Luxor Temple in 1989.
The Mummification Museum (EGP 220) is small, and an hour is plenty.
The Colossi of Memnon need no ticket at all, just a roadside stop on the way to the west bank.
The Avenue of Sphinxes links Luxor Temple and Karnak over 2.7 km. It is ticketed in two segments, so check prices at the office.
Getting across and around
No pedestrian bridge exists in town. The public ferry costs EGP 5 to 10, and a half-day taxi on the west bank runs about EGP 500 to 800 negotiated. Sites there are far apart across desert, so walking between them is not realistic. Plan on a card at the main gates and small EGP notes for taxis and tips. Flash is banned in the tombs, and you should check at the gate about camera permits.
Heat
From June to August the temperature reaches 42 to 46C. Visit before 09:30 and carry water. The Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities is the official source for fees.
Tip: on a second visit, hire the taxi for Medinet Habu and the Colossi in one run, then take the ferry back for sunset. The four day Luxor itinerary shows where these fit.