Hilton Luxor

a very good hotel in an imperfect location

Hilton Luxor is the best larger property in the Luxor area.

Set on the East Bank of the River Nile, in a suburban area to the north of the city, the hotel is large enough to provide a relaxed and peaceful atmosphere.

The property appears to date from the 1970s (although is probably much more recent), with an angular entrance leading to a huge atrium reception area.

All the most interesting elements are out by the river, with two lovely pool areas, a bar and two restaurants, all with great views across the water towards the famous hills of the West Bank.

The main buildings contain two more restaurants and another bar, as well as an extensive spa.

Guest accommodation is in a remarkable 236 rooms, which come in the usual vast range of specifications. We find the smaller rooms to be rather ordinary, whilst the top suites seem rather overpriced, so we tend to recommend something in the middle.

We usually recommend a three night stay, which gives you two full days, one for the archaeological sites of the West Bank and another for the temples and other sites here in the city. If you add a fourth night, then you can add the fascinating and much more remote archaeological sites at Dendera and Abydos.

Obviously, being a Hilton and being such a large hotel, this place inherently has a rather commercial feel, but there is no denying that there are some really high quality aspects. The fact that it genuinely feels like a resort will be a positive for some people and a negative for others.

A significant negative for us is that we generally prefer to be based at a hotel on the more rural West Bank. With the exception of Karnak Temple, there is little reason for most people to come into the city. The majority of the best sights are on the other side of the river and the drive there and back on the very large new highway is a long way from being the ideal aesthetic experience.

If you are looking for a genuinely upmarket property in the greater Luxor area, then we would usually turn to Al Moudira Hotel.

We usually recommend deploying at least three nights in Luxor, since the handful of hotels on the west bank are both unusually high quality and very relaxing.

The more time you spend here, the more likely you are to get under the surface of the place, avoid the crowds and get out to some of the lesser-known sites.

Seasonality

Luxor experiences a conventional northern hemisphere climate, with a pleasantly warm dry winter Nov-Mar and an uncomfortably hot dry summer centred on May-Sep.

During the Nov-Mar winter season the daytime temperatures typically reach a balmy 25C, with night-time temperatures plunging to a chilly 8C. These warm (rather than hot) conditions have led to winter being the most popular time to visit, meaning that visitor numbers reach their peak, especially around Dec-Jan. We therefore recommend November to mid-December and mid-January to March (excluding a week either side of Easter), although even then you probably need to deploy traffic avoidance measures when visiting the key sites.

The month of April represents a transition between winter and summer conditions and, in many ways, offers the best of both worlds, with visitor traffic also being relatively low (except for a week either side of Easter).

During the May-Sep summer season the daytime temperatures typically reach 41C, with nighttime temperatures holding up around 23C. These conditions are generally considered to be too hot and visitor numbers are much reduced.

The month of October represents a transition between summer and winter conditions and, in many ways, offers the best of both worlds, with visitor traffic also being relatively low.

Most trips spend 12-16 nights exploring the Nile Valley in a north to south direction. Luxor usually comes second, after the pyramids in Cairo and before a boat trip down to Aswan.

Getting there

Luxor is usually the second stop on an Egypt trip, after Cairo.

Guests returning to Egypt on subsequent trips may choose to avoid Cairo completely and fly directly into Luxor. Notably there are direct flights from London.

Most of our guests fly from Cairo to Luxor, but it is also possible for more intrepid travellers to take the overnight train.

The most popular way to leave is on a cruise boat, four to five nights south down the river to Aswan. This leg can easily be done in a few hours by train, or can be done by road if you want to visit the various sites along the way.

usually 3-4 nights between Giza and Aswan