Valley of the Kings Ramses IV

We’ll depart the hotel in the morning, crossing over to the west bank of the Nile by motorboat, and then traveling by coach to the Valley of the Kings. The Valley of the Kings, situated in a secluded locale in the Theban Hills, is where the great pharaohs were buried in rock-cut tombs and surrounded by all the treasures they would need in the afterlife. Almost all of the sacred burial chambers were plundered over the millennia—with the exception of an obscure young ruler whose reign lasted a mere decade. On the afternoon of November 26, 1922, British archaeologist Howard Carter made a small hole in a sealed doorway, inserted a candle, and peered inside. Completely untouched, Tutankhamen’s burial chambers contained thousands of priceless objects inside, along with a gold coffin containing the mummy of the teenage king.

Upon arrival in the Valley of the Kings, we’ll set off on a walking tour, which includes a visit to the tomb of this young pharaoh, followed by a visit to the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut, built for Egypt’s first known female monarch. Ruling for 20 years in the 15th century B.C., Hatshepsut is also considered one of Egypt's most successful pharaohs.

Valley of the Kings, long narrow defile just west of the Nile River in Upper Egypt. It was part of the ancient city of Thebes and was the burial site of almost all the kings (pharaohs) of the 18th, 19th, and 20th dynasties (1539–1075 bce), from Thutmose I to Ramses X.
Used as a burial chamber for nearly 500 years from the 16th to 11th century BC, the Valley of the Kings was used for royal burials for the Kings, their families, and their possessions. In 1979, it became a World Heritage Site, as well as the rest of the Theban Necropolis.Read more