West Bank Full-Day Tour: Valley of the Kings & Karnak Temple

Four ancient temples and tombs in a single day, guided through their histories and hierarchies.

A private full-day tour of Luxor's West Bank and Temple of Karnak combines the Valley of the Kings, Temple of Hatshepsut, Colossi of Memnon and the vast Karnak complex into one itinerary, with an expert Egyptologist guide, air-conditioned vehicle and hotel pickup included. The tour runs eight hours and covers the religious and mortuary sites that defined ancient Thebes across both banks of the Nile. Entrance fees to individual sites are optional add-ons. Your guide speaks English, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and 26 additional languages.

Step-by-step itinerary

Stops and time spent at each

1. Valley of the Kings2h
2. Temple of Hatshepsut2h
3. Colossi of Memnon30m
4. Karnak Temple1h 30m
5. Luxor Temple1h

Explore Luxor's West and East Banks

• Pickup from hotel or preferred location
• Visit three tombs in Valley of the Kings
• Explore Temple of Hatshepsut
• See the Colossi of Memnon
• Tour the Temple of Karnak
• Visit Luxor Temple
• Transfer back to hotel or preferred location

The experience

Your day starts with pickup from your hotel, Nile cruise or Luxor airport in a private air-conditioned vehicle. The guide meets you there and the route heads straight to the West Bank, where the Valley of the Kings holds three tomb interiors you'll walk through: the burial chambers of ancient pharaohs carved into the limestone cliffs. If you want to see the Tomb of Tutankhamun, that's an optional extra at 200 Egyptian Pounds beyond the tour price.

From the valley floor, the route climbs to the Temple of Hatshepsut at Deir el Bahari, a three-tiered mortuary temple built into the cliff face itself. The guide explains how it functioned as both a religious site and a monument to the female pharaoh who built it. Next comes the Colossi of Memnon. Two massive seated statues that are all that remain of King Amenhotep III's mortuary temple, standing alone in the desert as a measure of what once surrounded them.

The afternoon moves to the East Bank and the Temple of Karnak, a sprawling complex of halls, columns and courtyards that grew over centuries as successive pharaohs added their own structures. You walk through the vast hypostyle hall with its forest of towering columns and carved reliefs, and the guide walks you through the religious hierarchy and purposes of each section. If time allows, there's an option to browse Luxor's souq for souvenirs or take a walk through central Luxor before the return transfer to your starting point.

What’s included

• Air-conditioned private vehicle.
• hotel, airport or Nile cruise pickup and return transfer.
• professional Egyptologist guide.
• visits to the Valley of the Kings (three tombs), Temple of Hatshepsut, Colossi of Memnon, Temple of Karnak and Luxor Temple.
• all service charges and taxes.

Options for this experience

2 options

Full-day tour of the West Bank and Temple of Karnak in LuxorGuide in 51 languages · 08:00, 09:00, 10:00 and 11:00Pickup is included

Guide plus car with driverGuide in 51 languages · 08:00, 09:00, 10:00 and 11:00Guide plus car with driver; pickup is included

You pick the guide language when booking.

You'll see the exact price of each option when you check availability.See dates and prices

Before you book

Days and timesEvery dayDepartures at 08:00, 09:00, 10:00 and 11:00

Book up to4h before

AgesAdult (6 and older) · Child (3 to 5 years) · Infant (under 3): free

GroupPrivate

Live guideEnglish, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Arabic, Bangla, Burmese, Cantonese, Chinese, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Filipino, Finnish, Greek, Gujarati, Hakka Chinese, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Japanese, Javanese, Korean, Kurdish, MNP, Malay, Malayalam, Marathi, Norwegian, Pashto, Persian, Polish, Punjabi, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak, Swedish, Tamil, Telugu, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Urdu, Vietnamese, Wu Chinese and Xiang Chinese

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup included.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.

Prices and times updated 11 days ago

Good to know

Low physical effortStroller-friendlyPublic transport nearbyInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Egypt VIP Tours

Is this one for you?Choose this if you're covering both banks in one day and prefer a private vehicle with a guide who contextualizes what you're seeing, rather than navigating between sites on your own or joining a larger group.

Traveler reviews

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Top questions

What languages is the tour guided in?

Live guide in English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Hindi, Bangla, Chinese, Wu Chinese, Slovak, Serbian, Swedish, Korean, Kurdish, Cantonese, Tamil, MNP, Gujarati, Czech, Telugu, Punjabi, Thai, Polish, Hebrew, Danish, Javanese, Xiang Chinese, Chinese, Malay, Pashto, Filipino, Croatian, Hungarian, Hakka Chinese, Ukrainian, Urdu, Malayalam, Marathi, Greek, Finnish, Burmese, Arabic, Vietnamese, Japanese, Persian, Romanian, Dutch, Norwegian, Russian and Turkish.

Can children come?

Yes. Ticket types: Child (3 to 5 years); Infant (under 3): free.

What exactly is inside the tombs in the Valley of the Kings?

The Valley of the Kings holds burial chambers of ancient pharaohs carved deep into the rock. You visit three tombs on this tour, walking through decorated passages and chambers where the pharaohs were laid to rest, though most have been emptied of their contents over centuries. The walls carry hieroglyphic inscriptions and painted scenes from the Book of the Dead.

Is the Temple of Hatshepsut still standing, or are these just ruins?

The Temple of Hatshepsut at Deir el Bahari is largely intact: its three terraced levels, colonnades and inner sanctuaries are still there, built directly into the limestone cliff. It's one of the best-preserved mortuary temples in Egypt and stands as a complete architectural structure you can walk through, not a scattered ruin.

How long does the tour actually take, and when does it end?

The tour runs eight hours from pickup to return. It starts in the morning with hotel collection and ends with a return transfer to your hotel, Nile cruise or airport in the late afternoon, so plan for a full day away from your base.

Can I skip the Temple of Karnak if I'm tired by the afternoon?

The Temple of Karnak is included in the full-day itinerary and is the final major stop before your return transfer. If you need to leave early, you'd need to arrange that with your guide, though the tour is paced to fit all four sites (Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut, Colossi of Memnon and Karnak), into the eight hours.

Do I have to pay extra for entrance to each temple?

Entrance fees to the individual sites are optional add-ons to the tour price. The Tomb of Tutankhamun in the Valley of the Kings costs an additional 200 Egyptian Pounds if you want to enter it. Other site fees are separate from the base tour cost.