Valley of the Kings Luxor

Across the Nile from Luxor, in a dry valley beneath a pyramid-shaped peak, the pharaohs of the New Kingdom cut their tombs deep into the rock. More than sixty tombs have been found here, the most famous being Tutankhamun’s, discovered almost intact in 1922.

Inside, long corridors lead down past walls covered in brilliantly coloured paintings and hieroglyphs, still vivid after more than 3,000 years, showing the king’s journey through the underworld. A selection of tombs is open at any one time, rotated to protect them.

Go first thing in the morning, as the valley traps the heat. Most visits continue to the terraced temple of Queen Hatshepsut and the Colossi of Memnon on the West Bank, and the day can begin with a sunrise hot-air-balloon flight over Luxor.