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Luxor has thousands of bookable tours, so choosing the right one can be harder than choosing which ancient site to visit. We’ve grouped 24 well-reviewed options by what they cover, from Valley of the Kings and West Bank tours to hot-air balloons, Nile cruises, felucca rides, and day trips to Dendera and Abydos.
A note on the badge: 🏆 Most Reviewed means the listing has the highest number of traveler reviews among the options shown in that category. It does not mean we’ve independently judged it to be the best tour. Review totals can reflect how long a listing has been available and how prominently it appears on Viator. In categories where the listings have relatively few reviews, those differences are especially weak evidence of quality.
Use the badge as a starting point, then compare the rating, number of reviews, itinerary, inclusions, price, and cancellation policy before booking.
Ratings, review counts, and prices were checked in September 2026 and can change over time.
How to Choose
- Private or shared group? Private tours cost more per person but give you more flexibility and avoid waiting for other travelers. Shared tours are generally cheaper and work well if you don’t mind a fixed schedule.
- What’s a reasonable price? As a rough September 2026 guide, half-day tours often fall around $30–50 per person, while full-day and specialty tours commonly run $80–150. Prices vary considerably by group size, inclusions, and operator, so compare what is actually included rather than judging by the headline price alone.
- What’s included? Check whether transport, a guide, meals, and entrance fees are included. Two tours covering the same sites can have very different final costs. See our Luxor entrance fees guide for current site pricing.
- Book ahead when availability is limited. Sunrise balloon flights and tours involving limited-access Valley of the Kings tombs can have more constrained availability on busy days.
Prices are indicative rather than fixed and can change by date, season, group size, and operator.
Valley of the Kings & West Bank Temples
The West Bank is where most first-time visitors start — the Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut’s cliffside temple, and the Colossi of Memnon are all within a short drive of each other. For tomb-by-tomb detail and current ticket prices, see our full Valley of the Kings guide.
- 🏆 Most Reviewed — Luxor Day Tour: Valley of Kings & Queens & Hatchepsut Temples — ★4.9, ~1,725 reviews. A full private day covering the Valley of the Kings, Valley of the Queens, Hatshepsut’s temple, Medinet Habu, and Deir el-Medina, with an Egyptologist guide and entrance fees included.
- Private Half-Day Tour: Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut Temple & Colossi of Memnon — ★4.8, ~492 reviews. The shorter version of the above if you only want half a day on the West Bank.
- Private Tour to West Bank: Valley of the Kings & Hatshepsut Temple — 301 reviews. A well-reviewed alternative operator covering the same core sites.
- Shared Day Tour: Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut Temple & Memnon — 38 reviews. Small-group format, the most budget-friendly pick in this category.
- 4-Hour Private Tour: Valley of the Kings & Hatshepsut Temple with Lunch — ★5.0, 38 reviews. Same route with a lunch stop built in.
Full-Day Highlights: East & West Banks Combined
For travelers who only have one day in Luxor, this crosses the Nile to cover both sides of the city, including Karnak’s hypostyle hall.
- 🏆 Most Reviewed — Full Day Tour to East and West Banks of Luxor — ★4.8, ~1,700 reviews. Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut Temple, and the Colossi of Memnon in the morning, then across the Nile to Karnak and Luxor Temple in the afternoon.
- Full Day Tour to East and West Banks of Luxor (Private, with Lunch) — 5.0, ~600 reviews. Same route from a different operator, with lunch built into the day.
Sunrise Hot Air Balloon Rides
The classic Luxor bucket-list experience — most operators pick you up before dawn for a flight over the West Bank temples as the sun comes up. For a deeper look at cost, safety records, and how to pick an operator, see our full hot air balloon guide.
- 🏆 Most Reviewed — Hot Air Balloon Ride in Luxor Egypt with Transfers Included — ★4.9, over 4,500 reviews — the most-reviewed experience on this page. Long-running operator with a strong safety record.
- Sunrise Ballooning Luxor with Transfers Included — 820 reviews — another highly reviewed option.
- Sunrise Hot Air Balloon Ride in Luxor — 24 reviews, listed from $40.
- Luxury Hot Air Balloon Ride – VIP Service — 180 reviews. Private basket, for anyone who’d rather not share the flight with a large group.
Multi-Day Nile Cruises
If you’re pairing Luxor with Aswan, a short cruise is the most relaxed way to see both, plus the temples in between. Ship types, cost breakdowns, and a fuller comparison of current listings are in our Nile cruise guide — below is a single well-reviewed pick for anyone who’d rather book straight through Viator.
- 4-Day Nile Cruise from Aswan to Luxor Including Abu Simbel & Hot Air Balloon — 839 reviews. Sails past Kom Ombo and Edfu, with Abu Simbel and a Luxor balloon flight bundled in.
Day Trips to Dendera & Abydos
These two temples sit north of Luxor and get a fraction of the visitors of Karnak or the Valley of the Kings, despite arguably better-preserved color and carving — see our full day trips guide for the history behind each site, including our guides to Dendera and Abydos.
- 🏆 Most Reviewed — Dendara and Abydos Temples Day Tour from Luxor — 268 reviews, the most-reviewed listing in this category.
- Private Full-Day Tour: Dendera & Abydos from Luxor — ★4.8, 14 reviews. Private car and guide, entrance fees included.
- Private Day Tour to Dandara and Abydos Temples from Luxor — ★5.0, 41 reviews. A well-reviewed alternative operator covering the same route.
Felucca Rides & Sunset Sailing on the Nile
A slower-paced way to see Luxor from the water, usually timed for sunset over the West Bank hills. Pre-booking below gets you a fixed price and no dockside haggling; if you’d rather negotiate directly with a captain on the Corniche — often cheaper, always more spontaneous — see our felucca guide for how that works and what to expect to pay.
- 🏆 Most Reviewed — Amazing Sunset Sailing by Felucca in Luxor – 2 Hours (Private) — 505 reviews.
- Sunset Felucca Ride with Banana Island — 163 reviews. Includes a stop at Banana Island for tea, a nice add-on for families.
- Luxor Sunset Felucca Ride with Lunch or Dinner on Board — 160 reviews. Good option if you’d rather combine the sail with a meal instead of planning one separately.
- Nile River Felucca Ride in Luxor — 23 reviews. The simplest, lowest-cost sail for a quick hour or two on the water.
Evening: Karnak Sound & Light Show
Karnak after dark is a genuinely different experience from a daytime visit — worth doing on top of, not instead of, a regular temple tour. See our Karnak Sound and Light Show guide for current ticket prices and show times, or book tickets directly if you’d rather skip the tour markup and arrange your own transport.
- 🏆 Most Reviewed — Karnak Night Experience: Private Transfer & Entry Tickets — 58 reviews. This category has far fewer total reviews than the daytime tours, so treat this as the strongest option within a smaller sample, not a mass-market bestseller.
- Karnak Sound and Light Show with Private Transport — 41 reviews, round-trip private transfers plus the show.
- Private Sound and Light Show at Karnak Temple (Skip-the-Line) — 18 reviews. Includes skip-the-line access and an English-narration headset for a more self-guided pace.
All-in-One Combo Day
For travelers who want to check off several bucket-list items without booking them separately.
- 🏆 Most Reviewed — Hot Air Balloon with Luxor Full-Day Tour — 5.0, ~479 reviews. A sunrise balloon flight followed by a full day of West and East Bank sightseeing with an Egyptologist guide.
- Sunrise Balloon, Full-Day Luxor Tour & Sunset Felucca — 159 reviews. Same idea with a sunset felucca ride tacked on instead of ending after sightseeing — a long day, but it covers almost everything on this page in one go.