A visit to the Valley of the Kings is an essential part of any trip to Egypt, and it was a huge highlight of mine. The complex has dozens of incredibly preserved tombs with vibrant artwork from the Book of the Dead along the walls and is quintessential to ancient Egyptian history. It’s a short ride away from Luxor and absolutely worth having a day or half-day carved out of your itinerary for.

What’s up with the Valley of the Kings?

In the ancient Egyptian creation story, the peak called ta dehent (al-Qurn) was said to be where the god Ra first brought the earth out of the water. In doing so, it created the pyramid shape that can be seen on the peak (and obviously was later reflected with the famous pyramids). So this area was a very holy place so royalty had been buried here for centuries.

Being buried in what is now the Valley of the Kings started with Thutmose I who died about 1493 BC. He chose the valley specifically since it was a lot easier to guard and protect. A large interest in ancient Egypt prompted archaeological excavations starting around the 19th century. Today the Valley has a discovered 63-65 tombs, depending on the source. It is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site under Ancient Thebes with its Necropolis.

A Note on Buying Tickets

Each general entrance ticket you get permits you entry to three tombs. Note that not all the tombs are open at once and they close and open intermittently. So if you’d rather visit 6 tombs, you should buy 2 tickets. Since I was with a group tour, we each got an entrance ticket and the option to buy 3 additional tickets (below), of which I bought 3. Keep in mind that including the wait to get in, each tomb took about half an hour to explore. Each tomb involves a lot of stairs, but there are a few that are wheelchair accessible.

There are a few tombs you have to buy additional tickets for:

• Tomb of Ay
• Tomb of Tutankhamun
• Tomb of Ramesses V & VI
• Tomb of Seti I

When I visited, Tomb of Seti I was a steep 2000 pounds (if I remember correctly, Tutankhamun was only 750 or so). I read that an additional ticket is needed to take photos inside the tombs but when I visited that was not the case.

Tomb of Tutankhamun (KV62)

Tutankhamun is probably the most famous Pharaoh ever because of his tomb’s relatively recent discovery in the early 20th century. He died young under unknown circumstances in 1323 BC.

King Tut’s tomb is quite small, probably because he died young and tomb preparation stops at the pharaoh’s death. However it’s very vibrant and the gold coloring on the wall is unique to the others. It also has a large depiction of twelve baboons (representing the twelve hours of night in the Book of Amduat). The paintings are all very large, in contrast to the other tombs that have much smaller but more complex hieroglyphic paintings.

I’ve heard it’s “skippable” but I think it’s a shame to go all the way to the Valley of the Kings and not see King Tut’s tomb. It’s small but unique, and it’s King Tut. And the price of admission was about 750 pounds, if I remember correctly, which is about $14 at the time of writing.

When I was there, a lot of us were obviously staying to take photos and the guards are yelling at people to hurry up. I didn’t see any decoration on the opposite wall so I just headed back up. A few days later, I found out that King Tut himself was next to the opposite wall that I missed! What a bummer. His mummy will one day be put in the Grand Egyptian Museum but I don’t know when. Make sure to keep your eyes peeled.

When in Cairo, I also advise you to visit the Grand Egyptian Museum where the contents of King Tut’s tomb are on display. They’re beautiful and provide an amazing look into the young king’s short life.

Tomb of Ramesses I (KV16)

Ramesses I reigned for a short 2 years before he died in about 1290 BC. Similar to King Tut’s tomb, it’s one of the smallest in the Valley of the Kings, probably because he reigned for so little time.

However, I found this tomb to be quite beautiful. The background is a lovely greyish blue which makes it stand out from the other tombs I visited. The art on the walls is a bit more ornate than that of King Tut’s tomb. The four other tombs are quite similar in style so from the ones I saw, I’d say Tomb of Ramesses I is a good one if you’re looking for something a bit different.

The nice thing about the small tombs as well is that they’re less overwhelming so you can actually stop and really think about what story is being told by the painting.

Tomb of Seti I (KV17)

Seti I was the son of Ramesses I and he died at around 1279 BC. His tomb is an additional 2000 Egyptian pounds to enter.

KV17 is the one of the longest and deepest tombs in the Valley of the Kings, and yes, it’s quite large – and beautiful! There’s a lot of stunning artwork and unlike a lot of other tombs, the outlines are carved. All the detail is so amazing. There’s even a space where the art was drawn out but not painted, and I found this fascinating since you can see the geometry and base lines the ancient Egyptians would use when making their art. It was definitely the coolest tomb.

Would I say it was worth the whopping 2000 pound entry fee? Not sure. If you have the money, definitely. But if you’re on a stricter budget, there are other very beautiful tombs to visit. The tomb of Ramesses V & VI (below) is quite similar in many aspects. The tomb of Seti I is unique, definitely, but 2000 pounds is a lot to drop on it.

Tomb of Merenptah (KV8)

Merneptah was the 13th son of Ramesses II, one of ancient Egypt’s most important pharaohs. Ramesses II lived so long that he actually outlived 12 of his sons, so Merneptah was lucky #13 and got to reign as Pharaoh for about 10 years. He died in 1203 BC.

The Tomb of Merenptah is definitely stunning. It follows the more traditional style in the Valley of the Kings of white walls and colorful painted hieroglyphs and scenes. The thing I didn’t like about this tomb is, believe it or not, it wasn’t built for tourists. It’s a constant downward slope so you have to keep moving and don’t have time to stop and take pictures. I definitely was *that* annoying person with my camera. But more importantly, there’s no place to stop and take in where you are, really look at and examine the the artwork.

Tomb of Ramesses III (KV11)

Ramesses III was actually murdered in 1155 BC, a plot by one of his wives and sons as an attempt for the son to become Pharaoh.

This tomb is another one that has a more classic appearance: white with colored hieroglyphs and scenes on the walls. The halls are corridors are absolutely beautiful and some of the scenes on the wall stood out to me as being different from the other tombs (but I couldn’t tell you why). It was also a bit more interesting because there are more twists and turns, plus a few alcoves. It has a bit more architectural detail than some of the other tombs.

Tomb of Ramesses V & VI (KV9)

Ramesses V started this tomb for himself but died of unknown circumstances 4 years into his reign, about 1144 BC. He was succeeded by his cousin Ramesses VI, died 1136 BC, who then ordered the tomb to be converted into his own. The exact reasons why seem to be unknown. They were both laid to rest in this tomb but the decorations are predominantly for Ramesses VI.

KV9 is also very stunning, large, and quite similar in style to the tomb of Seti I (without the extreme cost). I particularly like the burial chamber with the ceiling from the Book of the Day and Book of the Night (also a feature of the Seti I tomb). I think it’s very well worth the additional cost to see, and is probably one of my personal favorites.

There’s nothing inside the tombs that tells you what you’re looking at or about any of the kings. Guides cannot lecture inside the tombs so you won’t be told what you’re seeing, either. I read this book before heading off to Egypt and it did a great job of giving an overview to the gods and goddesses of Egypt and how to identify them in artwork:

And of course, if you’re on a group tour, you can always take a picture of a specific thing and ask your guide about it.

I hope this guide helped you choose which tombs to visit! If you’ve ever been to the Valley of the Kings, let me know in the comments which tomb was your favorite. Was there one I missed that others should keep in mind? Let us know! I would love to go back and see some more tombs.

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