Getting to the Valley of the Kings from Luxor
The two ways across
The ferry. Roughly EGP 10 to EGP 20 per person each way. That band is the honest answer rather than a hedge: the published figures in circulation are all over the place, and the band is where the credible ones sit. There is no timetable at all — the boat goes when it is full, typically within ten to fifteen minutes. Carry small notes, and expect to be quoted more than a local pays; that is normal here and is not the same thing as being cheated.
The bridge. There is a road bridge south of the city, and crossing by car means a substantial detour. This page gives no figure for how far south it is, how long it is or when it opened. The distance most often repeated online traces to a forum post roughly twenty years old, and the opening year that circulates appears only on stock-photo captions. Neither is a source, so neither is printed.
Why there is no taxi fare on this site
Taxis here are never metered. The price is agreed before you get in, and that is the whole of the useful advice. The 2026 sources checked for a full day’s hire disagree with each other by a factor of five for the same day out. A spread that wide is not a price range you can plan against; it is evidence that nobody publishing has actually checked. Printing the midpoint would look helpful and would be an invention.
For tuk-tuks on the West Bank the position is worse. Four targeted searches produced no usable figure in any currency. So this site writes nothing numeric about them, and would rather be visibly short of an answer than quietly wrong.
What to do instead: agree the fare in advance, out loud, before the vehicle moves, and agree whether it covers waiting time. Ask at your hotel that morning for what the current going rate is — a person in Luxor this week knows something no page written months ago can.
Why this page will not tell you where the ferry lands
One forum thread from 2025 says the East Bank landing moved. Nothing corroborates it in either direction. Sending a reader to the wrong dock at half past five in the morning is a real harm and a small saving in words, so this page gives no directions to it. Ask at your hotel, or ask anyone walking towards the water at that hour; this is a crossing thousands of people make daily and it is not hard to find in person.
Once you are on the West Bank
You reach the visitor centre, buy the ticket there, and then get up to the tombs themselves. The tram does that in about three minutes and costs EGP 20 per person, round trip. It is officially optional, and some visitors report site staff pressing them to buy a ticket anyway — if that happens, you are not being scammed, you are being sold something you may decline.
No source states the walking distance from the visitor centre to the tombs, in metres or in minutes, so this page states none. A three-minute tram ride is a duration on a vehicle, not a distance on foot, and the two are not interchangeable however often you see them swapped.
Bring the right money for each leg
The ticket window has not taken cash since June 2023 — Visa and Mastercard only. The ferry and the tram want cash, in small notes. So the correct answer to “card or cash?” for this trip is both, in that order of importance. The card-only page has the announcement it rests on, and the cost page assembles the whole day’s spend.
The tour option, and what it does not solve
A private half-day of the West Bank — Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut and the Colossi of Memnon, about five hours — is listed from US$20 per person with “Admission Ticket Not Included” and the guide as a paid option. That solves the crossing and the driving. It does not solve the EGP 750 at the window, and it certainly does not include Tutankhamun. Read the inclusions on any product before you assume otherwise: what the ticket admits you to.
One more piece of geography with a cost attached: the West Valley, where the tomb of Ay (WV23, EGP 200 adult) sits, is a separate drive from the main valley. Plan it as an addition, not a detour. And whichever way you arrive, arrive early — the heat page explains what you are racing.
Frequently asked questions
How do you get to the Valley of the Kings from Luxor?
The valley is on the West Bank and Luxor town is on the East Bank. You cross by public ferry, roughly EGP 10 to EGP 20 per person each way with no fixed schedule, or by the road bridge south of the city, which is a substantial detour by car.
How much is the Luxor ferry?
Roughly EGP 10 to EGP 20 per person each way. Sources disagree enough that a single figure would be misleading, so this site publishes the band. Carry small notes and expect to be quoted more than a local pays.
How much is a taxi to the Valley of the Kings?
This site quotes no taxi fare. Taxis are never metered and the price is agreed before you get in; the 2026 sources checked for a full day disagree by a factor of five, which is an absence of information rather than a range.
Do I need the tram at the Valley of the Kings?
It is officially optional. It costs EGP 20 per person round trip for a ride of about three minutes from the visitor centre up to the tombs, and it takes cash. No source publishes the walking distance, so this site does not state one.