# East bank or west bank? Source: https://luxor101.com/plan/east-or-west-bank Language: en What is the difference between the two banks, and which one should I do first? # East bank or west bank? Start on the east bank if you would like the temples to introduce the gods and rituals before you visit the tombs. Start on the west if those tombs are your priority or the weather makes an early visit essential. Karnak, Luxor Temple and the museum are east of the river; the royal cemeteries and many funerary temples are west. Both banks have accommodation. Plan crossings and check each site’s hours rather than assuming one timetable for a whole bank. ## Before you go The river is a useful starting point, though the familiar phrase “east for the living, west for the dead” leaves a lot out. The west bank also held homes, workshops and palaces. Today it remains a place of villages, farms and neighbourhoods, as well as extraordinary monuments. Karnak and Luxor Temple are about three kilometres apart on the east bank, with Luxor Museum between them near the corniche. The Avenue of Sphinxes links the temples. Check its admission and walking arrangements, and plan for an exposed walk rather than a shaded stroll. Across the river, the monuments are more spread out. Group nearby sites and arrange transport between them. The Valley of the Kings and Hatshepsut’s temple make a useful pairing, although the road journey goes around the ridge between them. Medinet Habu and Deir el-Medina work well as another morning. Keep exposed west-bank visits early in hot weather. Luxor Temple can be rewarding in the evening when its opening hours allow; museums also have their own schedules. Neither bank has one reliable closing time. Your interests should decide the order. East first gives the tombs some context; west first protects time for the places you most want to see. Either can work, and a short visit need not follow the same order as a longer one. Sources & further reading 2 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. Related ## Explore the connections 1–1 / 13 [Plan ### How many days do you need in Luxor? How many days should I allow for Luxor? ](https://luxor101.com/plan/how-many-days)[Plan ### Getting around Luxor How do I actually move between the sites — and how do I cross the river? ](https://luxor101.com/plan/getting-around)[Plan ### Opening hours and last entry What time do the sites in Luxor open and close? ](https://luxor101.com/plan/opening-hours)[Plan ### Heat, shade and water How do I plan a Luxor day around the heat without ruining the trip? ](https://luxor101.com/plan/heat-and-water)[Ancient Luxor ### Karnak Temple Complex Two thousand years of building, rebuilding and royal ambition, gathered around the temples of Amun. ](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/karnak)[Ancient Luxor ### Luxor Temple A temple of Amun in the heart of today’s city, shaped by royal ritual and the annual Opet festival. ](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/luxor-temple)[Ancient Luxor ### Luxor Museum A museum that brings objects from ancient Thebes into focus, from royal sculpture to reconstructed temple reliefs. ](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/luxor-museum)[Ancient Luxor ### Valley of the Kings The royal burial landscape of the New Kingdom: rock-cut tombs tucked into a desert valley, separate from the kings’ major commemorative temples. ](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/valley-of-the-kings)[Ancient Luxor ### Temple of Hatshepsut Terraces set straight into the cliff at Deir el-Bahari — and a reign that was later chiselled off its own walls. ](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/temple-of-hatshepsut)[Ancient Luxor ### Colossi of Memnon Two seated figures of Amenhotep III mark the entrance area of a once vast royal temple. ](https://luxor101.com/ancient-luxor/colossi-of-memnon)[Journal ### Reading Luxor Across the River The Nile helps you read ancient Thebes: the great temples stand east of the river, while royal cemeteries and commemorative temples spread west. But “east for the living, west for the dead” leaves out the people who lived and worked on the west bank. ](https://luxor101.com/journal/east-bank-or-west-bank)[Journal ### How to Read an Egyptian Temple Start with the route from gateway to court, columned hall and sanctuary. Then read one wall scene by identifying the figures, their actions and the surrounding inscriptions. ](https://luxor101.com/journal/how-to-read-an-egyptian-temple)[Journal ### What a Royal Commemorative Temple Was For Royal commemorative temples sustained worship and the king’s memory, during life and after death. At Thebes, they were separate from the royal tombs that held the burials. ](https://luxor101.com/journal/what-a-mortuary-temple-was-for)