Tours in Valley of the Kings

The Valley of the Kings is a dry ravine on the west bank where pharaohs were buried for around five hundred years. Over sixty tombs have been found in it. They were cut into rock, not built on it, and that was the whole idea.

How the ticket works

This catches people out, so it is worth knowing first. The general ticket admits you to three tombs. Which three depends on what is open that day.

• Rotation. Tombs close and reopen to spread the wear, so the list changes through the year.
• Extra tickets. Tutankhamun, Seti I and Ramesses V and VI are each charged separately.
• Photography. A camera ticket is sold at the gate, and phones are not a way around it.

What is around it

The valley is one stop of several on the west bank. Hatshepsut's terraced temple is ten minutes away. The Colossi of Memnon sit on the road in.

Tutankhamun's tomb is small and plain by the standards here, and that is the point of it. It was the one they missed. Everything else had been emptied in antiquity.

Practical

• Go at opening. The valley traps heat and holds it. By late morning the tombs are airless.
• The shuttle. A small train runs from the ticket office to the tombs, and it is worth taking.
• Choosing tombs. Ask the guide which of the open three are deepest and best painted. They are not equal.
• Bring. Water and a hat. There is no shade between the entrances.