Travel: Luxor and Aswan

Egypt Today (Megan Detrie)

Sites that don’t get nearly as much tourist traffic include the tombs of the nobles, which have stunning wall paintings; Deir El-Medina (the Valley of Artisans), home to the artists, craftsman and workers employed by the Pharaohs; and the Ramesseum, with its colossal bust of Ramses the Great.

Luxor is also home to some of the nation’s best museums. Both the Luxor Museum (6am-8pm in summer; 6am-7pm in winter) and the Mummification Museum (9am-1pm and 4pm-9pm) are artfully arranged with well-labeled exhibits. The Luxor Museum also includes two royal mummies of Ramses I and Ahmes I; unlike in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, you don’t have to buy a special ticket to see them.