Luxor is a brilliant place to relax and to get the chance to see ancient archieology and also to learn a thing or two! If you have always wanted to go to Egypt, then go to Luxor. There is alot to do and alot to learn.
I went in Nov 07 and had a brilliant time. We stayed in a 5 star hotel for 2 weeks, which was situated right on the River Nile! We could dip our feet in the River Nile without leaving our hotel! How amazing.
The Valley of the Kings and The Valley of the Queens were definately the highlights of the trip. This is where explorers found all the tombs of the ancient kings and queens of Egypt. Each tomb would tell a story of how the royal had lived as they would be buried with their valuables and stories. Some of the tombs had traps to defer thieves from gettin into them, and in alot of cases these thieves would fall into the traps and die. This was all told to us by the our personal guide. You could hire a personal guide and driver for £50 per couple, as we did. Both of the Valleys were interesting and a little bit creepy actually! The Luxor Museum was definately something worth visiting and only about a ten minute walk from our hotel. I would say it took us about an 2 hours to look thoroughly around the Luxor Museum. The Mummy Museum was totally not worth visiting and probably took us 20 minutes and was not as interesting.
Attractions Around Luxor
There were a few day trips around Luxor. One was a visit to Aswan, a neighbouring town. There were also trips going to Cairo but was a days travelling away. In Cairo of course you can visit the Pyramids.
Things To Do
Luxor is very hot pretty much all year round and maybe too hot at times. We went on a camel ride, which lasted about 20 minutes which was fun but there was not much scenery just going round and round in circles. We went to Banana Island one night on an excursion with our hotel which was a special little Egyptian party with Egpytian themed food, decorations and dancers. The shisha came out too, which is very popular in Egypt and alot of North African countries. A shisha is a pipe whereby you smoke flavoured tobacco with. Apparently it is harmless? Hmm. Something you must do in Luxor is ride a horse and carriage, well its only a matter of time before you are forced on one anyway (by the locals). Just go with it, its fun!
Hassle
You definately get alot of hassle in Luxor and it can get very annoying but if you know how to get rid of it then you'l be OK. Im quite dark with dark hair, well I used to be anyway so i wasnt getting as much hassle as someone who was fair with fair hair.
Who is it for
I wouldnt recommend you go to Luxor if you were looking to party every night! I went with my boyfriend at the time and had a lovely time. Luxor would suit couples and maybe the more mature traveller.
The Verdict
Luxor is a great place to wind down and chill. Somewhere to do some exploring, but not too much. Would be great if there was abit more night time entertainment (that was safe) and we didnt feel the need to stay in our hotel. Hassle from the horse and carriage men can be abit too much at times. Do not go if you are easily led as you may just get ripped off!
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Oct 16th, 2009
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