Visit Howard Carter House Luxor on a private half-day Luxor West Bank tour that also takes you to two beautiful royal temples most visitors miss. Discover the home where Howard Carter lived when he found the tomb of Tutankhamun, and the quiet temples of Seti I and Merenptah, far from the crowds.
It is just you, your travel companions, and your own licensed Egyptologist guide who picks you up from your Luxor hotel or Nile cruise ship. Start at the Mortuary Temple of Seti I, a quiet temple with some of the finest carvings of the New Kingdom. Continue to the Mortuary Temple of Merenptah, the son of Ramses II, where one of the most famous inscriptions in history was found. End at Carter’s domed mud-brick home, his base during the search for Tutankhamun, kept as it was in the 1920s.
In just 4 to 5 hours, with entrance fees and a private air-conditioned vehicle included, you see three remarkable places that many Luxor itineraries leave out, at your own pace. Our private Howard Carter House Luxor tour is perfect for second-time visitors, history lovers, and anyone fascinated by the story of Tutankhamun.
– Private tour: just you, your group, and your own Egyptologist guide
– Fewer crowds: quiet temples that most tour groups skip
– The Tutankhamun story: see where Howard Carter lived during his famous discovery
– Your own pace: spend as long as you like at each site
– Hotel or Nile cruise pickup and drop-off in Luxor
– Entrance fees and private air-conditioned vehicle included
– Only 4–5 hours; easy to fit around other Luxor sightseeing
Times are a guide and can be adjusted to suit you.
08:00 – Pickup from your hotel or Nile cruise ship
Your private Egyptologist guide meets you in the lobby of your Luxor hotel or at your Nile cruise ship. Settle into your private air-conditioned vehicle and cross the Nile to the West Bank, the ancient city of the dead, as your guide introduces the pharaohs you are about to meet.
08:40 – Mortuary Temple of Seti I at Qurna
Begin at the Mortuary Temple of Seti I, at the northern end of the Theban necropolis. Seti I, father of Ramses II, ruled Egypt in the 19th Dynasty, around 1290 to 1279 BC. He began this temple for the worship of Amun and his own royal cult, and Ramses II completed it after his death. In the early morning light, with hardly another visitor in sight, take your time to admire its delicate reliefs, among the finest carvings of the New Kingdom, and see where Seti and Ramses are shown making offerings to the gods.
09:40 – Short drive south along the West Bank
Pass the farmland, villages and hills of the West Bank as your guide explains how Luxor’s pharaohs built their temples on the edge of the green valley and their tombs in the desert mountains behind.
09:55 – Mortuary Temple of Merenptah
Explore the Mortuary Temple of Merenptah, the 13th son and successor of Ramses II. Much of this temple was built with stone taken from the nearby temple of Amenhotep III, and you can still spot carvings from the older temple on the reused blocks. It was here, in 1896, that archaeologist Flinders Petrie found the Merneptah Stele, a granite slab recording the king’s victories. It contains the oldest known mention of the name “Israel”, and the original is now in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.
10:55 – Drive to the road of the Valley of the Kings
Continue towards the foot of the Theban hills, near the road that leads to the Valley of the Kings, where Howard Carter searched for years for a lost royal tomb.
11:10 – Howard Carter House
Step inside Carter House, the domed mud-brick home where Howard Carter lived and worked during his search. It was his home in November 1922, when he discovered the tomb of Tutankhamun, the greatest find in the history of archaeology. Walk through his study, darkroom and bedroom, furnished with his original belongings and photographs, and hear the story of the day he first looked into the tomb and saw “wonderful things”.
12:00 – Return to your hotel or cruise ship
Relax in your private vehicle for the drive back across the Nile.
12:40 – Arrive back at your hotel or Nile cruise ship
Your tour ends with plenty of time for lunch and an afternoon at leisure, or more sightseeing in Luxor.
| Number of travellers | Price per person |
|---|---|
| 1 person | $140 |
| 2 people | $85 |
| 3 to 7 people | $70 |
| 8 to 16 people | $60 |
Every booking is a private tour for your own party, so the price per person falls as your group grows. Children under 6 travel free, children from 6 to 11 pay 50%, and from 12 years they pay the adult price. Prices are in US dollars and include entrance fees to both museums.
