# Three days in Luxor Source: https://luxor101.com/itineraries/luxor-3-days Language: en # Three days in Luxor The plan we would follow ourselves, and the one everything else is measured against. **Days**: 3 **Nights**: 3 **Pace**: Steady The route at a glance Three days connect the east-bank temples with the royal tombs, the workers’ village and Medinet Habu on the west. These places tell related stories of religion, rule, work and family. Keep a substantial break each day and leave the third afternoon open. A meal, a river outing or time in today’s city can be as much a part of the trip as another monument. Confirm hours and access before fixing the order. [Your days in order](https://luxor101.com/itineraries/luxor-3-days#itinerary-sequence) Ideal traveller A visitor who wants the main sites alongside time for the city and river. The plan can be adapted for families, different access needs and a wide range of interests. Not for Shorten or reorder the days around heat, mobility and interests. A three-day stay does not require three full mornings outdoors, and no itinerary can guarantee that every tomb route suits your needs. Itineraries ## Your days in order Day 01 ### Karnak, a long rest, and Luxor Temple late **Start**: At the Karnak gate when it opens **Finish**: Leaving Luxor Temple after dark Stops 1. [Karnak](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/karnak) 2–3 hours Use the main buildings as landmarks and leave time for a few details. A licensed tourist guide with strong Egyptological knowledge can help explain the building phases; walking east is not a strict sequence from newest to oldest. 2. [Luxor Museum](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/luxor-museum) Optional 1–1.5 hours If the museum is open at a suitable time, its sculpture and reliefs make a useful comparison with the temples. Arrange a separate rest if the hours do not fit. 3. Out of the sun until the light drops Two to three hours, and it is in the plan for a reason 4. [Luxor Temple](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/luxor-temple) 1–1.5 hours Late in the day, and the order matters: seeing Karnak first is what makes Luxor Temple legible, because this building is the place the procession from Karnak was going. Plan the day **Heat exposure**: High **Walking**: Moderate **Food and rest**: Bring water and allow for a largely exposed visit. Leave a generous break afterwards, with a confirmed place to sit and cool down rather than another compulsory stop. **Transport**: Plan transport between the east-bank stops according to your accommodation and the weather. The Avenue of Sphinxes links the temples, but walking it is optional and requires checking current access. **What to skip if tired**: Keep the rest break even if that means omitting the museum or shortening Karnak. Choose the parts that interest you most rather than trying to complete the complex. [Back to all days](https://luxor101.com/itineraries/luxor-3-days#itinerary-sequence) Day 02 ### Valley of the Kings, Deir el-Bahari, and one more **Start**: At the crossing at first light **Finish**: Back on the east bank in the early afternoon Stops 1. [Valley of the Kings](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/valley-of-the-kings) 2–3 hours First, and early. Pick tombs by what you want to see rather than by fame — a long deep tomb and a short shallow one make a better pair than two of either, and which tombs are open on any given day is decided by a conservation schedule, not by us. 2. [Temple of Hatshepsut](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/temple-of-hatshepsut) 1–1.5 hours The temple lies beyond the ridge from the valley. Its approach and terraces are largely exposed, so choose a cooler visiting period when hours allow and adapt to the day’s conditions. 3. [The Ramesseum](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/ramesseum) About 1 hour The Ramesseum adds a comparison with Medinet Habu: both were royal commemorative temples, but different parts survive. Add it if you want to explore that contrast; otherwise leave the time for rest. 4. [Colossi of Memnon](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/colossi-of-memnon) Optional 15–30 minutes The statues mark the entrance area of Amenhotep III’s once extensive temple. A short stop gains depth when you connect them with the wider remains behind them. Plan the day **Heat exposure**: High **Walking**: Moderate **Food and rest**: Plan for exposed ground and bring drinking water. Arrange a meal and seated rest at a confirmed place on either bank. If someone is struggling with heat, stop the circuit rather than continuing in search of another monument’s shade. **Transport**: Agree the chosen stops and their order with your driver, including time to rest and the return crossing. The proposed sequence is not a verified navigation route or a fare quotation. **What to skip if tired**: The Ramesseum, and then the third tomb. Tomb stairs are the thing that catches people out here: two tombs and a temple is a complete morning, and a third tomb taken while you are already tired is the one you will remember least. [Back to all days](https://luxor101.com/itineraries/luxor-3-days#itinerary-sequence) Day 03 ### The village, Medinet Habu and a free afternoon **Start**: At the crossing early, though not as early as yesterday **Finish**: Whenever the afternoon ends — that is the point of it Stops 1. [Deir el-Medina](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/deir-el-medina) About 1 hour Begin with the village’s surviving streets and rooms, viewed from the permitted paths. Allow for exposed ground, then check which tombs are open and whether their descents suit you. 2. [Medinet Habu](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/medinet-habu) About 1.5 hours Compare Medinet Habu with the Ramesseum: look at the courts, surviving roofed sections and painted reliefs. Choose the time around the heat and opening hours rather than expecting a quiet period. 3. [Valley of the Queens](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/valley-of-the-queens) Optional About 1 hour A short distance from both of the above, small, and it does not need a slot of its own. Take it only if the morning has gone easily — three west-bank sites and an afternoon is a full day. 4. An afternoon on the river, or in the town The rest of the day, unscheduled on purpose Spend an hour or two in a felucca, explore the souk or walk along the corniche and stop for a rest. After several days at ancient sites, leave time to see the present-day city too. Plan the day **Heat exposure**: High **Walking**: Moderate **Food and rest**: Keep the morning selective and the afternoon flexible. Arrange lunch on whichever bank suits your plans, and confirm shade, water and boarding conditions for any river outing. **Transport**: Arrange transport between the west-bank stops. For a river outing, agree the duration, route, return point, fare and safety arrangements before boarding. **What to skip if tired**: The Valley of the Queens is optional and should be the first thing to go. If you are truly done with tombs by now, that is a reasonable state to be in on day three — go straight to Medinet Habu, spend longer in it, and start the afternoon early. [Back to all days](https://luxor101.com/itineraries/luxor-3-days#itinerary-sequence) Plan ## Do you need a guide or a driver for this? This is a suggested route, not a booking. Arrange any guide, driver or admission separately, and confirm what each service includes. [Choosing a guide in Luxor](https://luxor101.com/plan/do-you-need-a-guide) Ancient Luxor ## Places on this route - [Karnak Temple Complex](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/karnak) - [Luxor Museum](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/luxor-museum) - [Luxor Temple](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/luxor-temple) - [Valley of the Kings](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/valley-of-the-kings) - [Temple of Hatshepsut](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/temple-of-hatshepsut) - [The Ramesseum](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/ramesseum) - [Colossi of Memnon](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/colossi-of-memnon) - [Deir el-Medina](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/deir-el-medina) - [Medinet Habu](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/medinet-habu) - [Valley of the Queens](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/valley-of-the-queens) Journal ## Reading for the journey [ ### Luxor in Three Days Without Rushing It Group Karnak and Luxor Temple on one day, the Valley of the Kings and Hatshepsut’s temple on another, and southern west-bank sites on a third. Keep a midday break and shorten any day that feels too full. ](https://luxor101.com/journal/luxor-in-three-days-without-rushing-it)[ ### Karnak: Finding Your Way Through the Layers Karnak grew through additions, rebuilding and reuse. Compare the western pylons, central obelisks and eastern Festival Hall; walking east does not follow a simple newest-to-oldest sequence. ](https://luxor101.com/journal/karnak-in-the-order-it-was-built)[ ### The procession that explains Luxor Temple The Opet festival connected Karnak and Luxor Temple through a journey of divine images and royal renewal. ](https://luxor101.com/journal/the-procession-that-explains-luxor-temple)[ ### Choosing Tombs in the Valley of the Kings Choose KV34 for its distinctive Amduat drawings if the demanding route suits you, KV17 for carved funerary scenes, or KV62 for Tutankhamun’s burial setting. Confirm which tombs are open and separately ticketed before choosing. ](https://luxor101.com/journal/which-valley-of-the-kings-tombs)[ ### Deir el-Medina: The Ancient Egyptian Village That Makes the Tombs Feel Human The writings from Deir el-Medina include work records, letters, accounts and religious texts. They reveal parts of a royal workforce’s lives, filtered through what people recorded and what survived. ](https://luxor101.com/journal/what-the-workmen-wrote-down) Sources & further reading 3 Tier 1 Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities — visitor information: opening times, ticketing and site access Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities (Egypt) Tier 2 The Illustrated Guide to Luxor: Tombs, Temples and Museums, Kent R. Weeks American University in Cairo Press Tier 2 Thebes in Egypt: A Guide to the Tombs and Temples of Ancient Luxor, Nigel and Helen Strudwick British Museum Press Source review is incomplete. Consultation dates are shown only for checked references. **Opening hours, ticket prices and tomb access change.** Published prices and hours carry an online source-check date where available. Field checks, current access and human editorial review remain separate; confirm arrangements before travelling.