Early in the morning, we start from El Gouna Hotels our ride to the first stop of our Abydos-Dendera-Luxor – El Gouna day trips incl. Overnight stay. The Abydos Temple of Seti I in Al Belina is located near the city of Sohag, about 160 km from Luxor.
Abydos Temple – Temple of Seti I
Abydos Temple was built for celebrations, coronations and processions. At the time of its creation, it was located on the processional path from Karnak Temple in Luxor to Deir el Bahri.
You visit a temple complex that was restored based on the old flooring plan and presents the former original condition very well. Seti I built the temple as a mortuary temple for Ramses I, the father of Ramses II. Ramses II was the one who completed the construction of the temple.
The Temple of Seti I, also called Abydos Temple of Osiris, built over several terraces, is similar to its construction of the Hatshepsut Temple. On our tour, we visit some of the most famous objects in the Abydos Temple, the so-called “Abydos King List” and the main sanctuary of the God Osiris, located on the highest terrace and a place of worship in the history of ancient Egypt. After that, we make our way to the next sight on our 2 Day El Gouna day trips, the
Dendera Temple – Dendera Zodiac
Dendera Temple, the temple of the goddess Hathor, is one of the best-preserved temples in Egypt and about 55 km away from Qena (a city in Upper Egypt), in the so-called Qena Arch, where the Nile River curves from east to west on its way to Cairo. Instead of building the Dendera Temple Complex, like all the other temples of Egypt from east to west, it was decided, to build it from north to south.
Hathor Temple, built in honour of the Hathor goddess (“cow goddess”), was only freed from the sand which buried the temple complex in the 19th century. For this reason, the temple is in such a well-preserved condition. On our visit to the Dendera Temple, we come across Osiris again. Enjoy a look at the Dendera Zodiac, the world-famous Zodiac Dendera sculpture (the original plate is in Louvre Paris since 1821) on the ceiling of a chapel in the Dendera Temple Complex. That indicates that high priests dealt with astrology even then. From this beautiful temple with its fascinating wall drawings, we start our way to one of the other Luxor sights, the largest temple complex and open air museum in the world, the
Karnak Temple
We enter Karnak Temple, one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites since 1979, through a sphinx-lined entrance, part of a processional path that led from the Luxor Temple to the Karnak Temple and was restored in a long restoration process. From there, we enter the Hypostyle Hall, a big pillared hall made of 134 columns. The height of the Hypostyle Hall is so impressive that one wonders how the Egyptians were able to create this masterpiece in the time of the pharaohs.
The Karnak Temple on Luxor East Bank, built for worship, is home to several chapels. The white chapel, the oldest structure in the Temple Complex, the red chapel, built by Queen Hatshepsut and the alabaster chapel of Thutmose. Among several temples, you find the temple of Ramses III. You will quickly notice that this is a pretty large complex. Visit the Holy Lake on the edge of Karnak Temple before we bring you to your Hotel Luxor Egypt. Here you have time to relax after this eventful day.
Would you like to relax? No problem! For all “evening active” people, we offer an optional visit to the Karnak Sound and Light Show. A wonderful experience in the Karnak Temple Complex. Alternatively, for all early risers, how about discovering Luxor sights from a different perspective, with a hot air balloon Luxor ride at sunrise?
After breakfast and the check-out from the Hotel Luxor Egypt we continue our Tour on the...