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Karnak temple, Luxor
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LuxorTravel Guide

Egypt5 stories

The world's greatest open-air museum sits on the Nile between Karnak and the Valley of the Kings — and feeds its visitors sun-ripened Upper Egyptian home cooking at wonderfully gentle prices.

Is Luxor right for you?

When to come

Winter

Around 41°C by day in July, 23°C in January — recorded at the local weather station.

What it costs

Cheap by regional standards — eating, sleeping and moving around all cost little.

What we've planned, and who for

No hour-by-hour route here yet — the guides below cover it by subject instead.

Luxor is inWarm in JanuaryKind to a budgetWhere the food is the reasonAncient wonders
When to go
January: around 23 degrees by day, 7 at night, 3 millimetres of rain, dry. We recommend this month.
February: around 25 degrees by day, 9 at night, 0 millimetres of rain, dry. We recommend this month.
March: around 30 degrees by day, 13 at night, 2 millimetres of rain, dry and hot. We recommend this month.
April: around 35 degrees by day, 18 at night, 0 millimetres of rain, dry and hot. We recommend this month.
May: around 39 degrees by day, 22 at night, 1 millimetres of rain, dry and hot.
June: around 41 degrees by day, 25 at night, 0 millimetres of rain, dry and hot.
July: around 41 degrees by day, 26 at night, 0 millimetres of rain, dry and hot.
August: around 41 degrees by day, 26 at night, 0 millimetres of rain, dry and hot.
September: around 39 degrees by day, 23 at night, 1 millimetres of rain, dry and hot.
October: around 36 degrees by day, 20 at night, 1 millimetres of rain, dry and hot. We recommend this month.
November: around 29 degrees by day, 13 at night, 1 millimetres of rain, dry and hot. We recommend this month.
December: around 24 degrees by day, 9 at night, 0 millimetres of rain, dry. We recommend this month.
Cold to hot, by dayDry to wetWhen we would go

Winter

Average daily highs, recorded at Luxor, 1991-2020 normals.

Where this comes from

NOAA (via en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luxor)

Budget level

Budget

Typical cost profile for visitors

Combine it with
  • Cairo500 km

    half a day's travel · both good in January, February, March

  • Wadi Rum, Jordan510 km

    half a day's travel · both good in March, April, October · a different price level (mixed)

  • AlUla, Saudi Arabia540 km

    half a day's travel · both good in January, February, March · a different price level (luxury)

  • Petra, Jordan590 km

    half a day's travel · both good in March, April, October · a different price level (mid)

Plan itWhere to stay in Luxorad · Booking.comTours and tickets
On the map

Finding Luxor

Open in Google Maps Larger map
The stories

Reading Luxor

Seated colossi of Ramses II and the great pylon of Luxor Temple under a dramatic sky
01
Destinations

Luxor on a lean budget: the smart traveller's playbook

The world's greatest open-air museum is also one of its most affordable destinations — if you use the local ferry, time your tickets and bargain with a smile. A practical guide to doing Luxor well for less.

Egypt · 2 min
Towering hieroglyph- and relief-carved sandstone columns of an ancient Egyptian temple hall at Karnak, Luxor, Egypt
02
Itineraries

Luxor is a city of mornings: four of them, in order

Every monument here rewards the first two hours of light and punishes the middle of the day, which is why Luxor is planned morning by morning rather than day by day - four of them, plus the evenings.

Egypt · 12 min
Ta'ameya, the Egyptian fava-bean falafel, in a bowl with one split open to show the green interior
03
Food

From dawn ful to midnight tea: eating your way through Luxor

Upper Egypt's table runs on fava beans at sunrise, slow tagens at noon and hibiscus tea long after dark. A full day of eating in Luxor, hour by hour.

Egypt · 2 min
A visitor sits in the shade between the hieroglyph-carved column drums of Medinet Habu on the Luxor west bank, the sandstone glowing warm in late afternoon light.
04
Hidden Gems

The souq lanes and West Bank villages of Luxor

One cheap ferry ride and fifty metres past the souvenir stalls, Luxor turns local: farming villages laid over a necropolis, painted tombs nobody queues for, and a market that still shops for itself.

Egypt · 13 min
A bowl of Egyptian koshari — macaroni, rice and lentils under tomato sauce and a heap of crisp fried onions — set on a wooden board.
05
Food

What to Eat in Luxor: A Dish-by-Dish Guide to Upper Egypt's Table

Between the temples and the tombs, Luxor eats beautifully: ta'ameya at dawn, molokhia at noon, sugarcane juice in the heat and tea on a Nile-side terrace.

Egypt · 2 min
In pictures

Luxor, framed

Feluccas under sail scatter across the Nile at Luxor at sunset, their dark triangular sails silhouetted against a peach sky above a palm-lined bank.
Photo: Nathalie Lays / Unsplash
A narrow Luxor alley off Al-Sahaby Street at night, strung with coloured lanterns and fairy lights above the tables and chairs of a street café where a man sits alone.
Photo: Ayumi Kubo / Unsplash
Karnak temple, Luxor
Photo: Nemanja Raca / Unsplash
Karnak temple, Luxor
Photo: charles escat / Unsplash
Our picks

What we'd do in Luxor

See and do

Eat and drink

Before you go

Practical essentials for Egypt

Money

Egyptian pound (EGP)

Language

Arabic; English is widely used in hotels, at tourist sites and among educated Egyptians, much less so elsewhere

Power

Type C/F, 220V 50Hz

Getting around

Uber and Careem are the practical door-to-door option in the cities; in Cairo, three metro lines also run on paper tickets bought at the station.

Tipping

Baksheesh is constant - keep small notes for porters, attendants, guides and drivers - while smarter restaurants already add a 10-12% service charge.

Tap water

Not safe to drink - use bottled water and avoid unpeeled raw fruit and vegetables.

Driving

Right-hand side; the 1949 International Driving Permit is required alongside your national licence.

Emergency

122 (police), 123 (ambulance), 180 (fire), 126 (tourist police)

Country-level guidance, checked against official sources. Currency, fares and entry rules change — confirm anything time-critical before you travel.

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