Valley of the Kings

Another day in Egypt and another step back in time to a land centuries ago. Traveling along the Nile on an eight day cruise, today was all about the West Bank of Luxor, or Thebes as it was called in the time of the Pharaohs, the side of the city dedicated to the dead. While the East Bank is dotted with monuments to life and the living, the West Bank is considered a necropolis where the dead are honored and are left to await the afterlife. This is a belief common throughout the whole of Egypt.

The Valley of the Kings is the most famous and most visited site on the West Bank. Deep in the arid sandstone mountains and in the shadow of a pyramid shaped peak, the great Pharaohs of Upper Egypt created their magnificent tombs. Inside there is little left, all but one were robbed centuries ago, however the incredible decoration makes a trip to the valley worth doing. The ceiling and walls are covered with painted hieroglyphic carvings celebrating the life of the tomb owner and it’s easy to imagine the treasures that once accompanied the king into his afterlife. To ensure the preservation of the artwork, photography is not permitted inside the tombs, so you are going to have to take my word for it … or go see for yourself!

Your ticket for the Valley of the Kings includes entry into three of the tombs (except for Tutankhamen’s—I’ll get to that later), and on our visit our wonderful guide Samir pointed us in the direction of three of the best. Due to the large number of visitors to the site, guides are not allowed inside with their customers so Samir told us what to look out for and what was unique about each of the tombs we would see. It would have been great to have him come in with us, but at least without a guide the large bus groups that descend en masse tend not to stay inside too long. They just arrive, walk in, walk out, and tick it off their list of things to do in Egypt.