Luxor, Egypt

Sunrise Hot-Air Balloon over the Valley of the Kings

Up before dawn, over the west bank as the sun comes off the eastern cliffs. The one thing that shows you how all of Luxor fits together.

About 3 hours including transfers, flight around 45 minutes Small group Shared basket. Private baskets available on request. Pick-up from any Luxor hotel or from your Nile cruise boat, in the dark, included.

Luxury Adventure & Desert Honeymoon & Couples

Trip highlights

Sunrise over the Theban hills and the Valley of the Kings
The mortuary temples and the green-to-desert line from the air
Hotel and cruise-boat transfers in the dark, both ways
Licensed operators and experienced pilots only

About this tour

You are collected in the dark, taken across the river, and you watch the envelopes inflate in the half-light with the burners lighting them from inside.

Then you go up, and Luxor makes sense. The green strip along the Nile, the abrupt line where irrigation stops and desert starts, the mortuary temples laid out in a row along that line, the valleys cut back into the cliffs behind them. From the ground these are separate sites you drive between. From eight hundred feet they are one landscape, arranged exactly as the people who built them intended.

Flights last about forty-five minutes, weather depending, and land in the fields on the west bank where a vehicle meets you.

How the day runs

1Step
Pick-up around 4am

Early, and unavoidably so — the flight has to be up before the sun and down before the wind gets up.
2Step
Cross to the west bank

By road or by boat depending on where you are staying, then out to the launch field.
3Step
Inflation and launch

Watching the balloons fill is a large part of the experience. Then up as the sky changes.
4Step
The flight

Around forty-five minutes over the west bank, the temples and the cultivated land.
5Step
Landing and return

Down in the fields, met by a vehicle, and back at your hotel in time for breakfast.

What's included

Transfers from your hotel or cruise boat and back
Balloon flight of approximately 45 minutes
Flight certificate
Light refreshment before the flight

Not included

Tipping for the ground crew and pilot
Personal expenses

Questions about this tour

Balloons do not fly in wind, and operators cancel readily — which is the behaviour you want. If your flight is cancelled we rebook it for the next morning if your itinerary allows, or refund it. Build it into a morning you can afford to lose rather than your last one.

Much less than people expect. A balloon basket does not sway and there is no sensation of speed — you move with the air. People who dislike heights on ladders are usually fine in a balloon.

Children need to be tall enough to see over the basket, and you must be able to stand for the flight and manage a braced landing. Tell us about any back or mobility issues and we will check with the operator before booking.

From

$100

Priced per group once we know your dates and numbers — tell us both and you will have a figure the same working day.

DurationAbout 3 hours including transfers, flight around 45 minutes
DestinationLuxor
StyleSmall group
Group sizeShared basket. Private baskets available on request.
Pick-upPick-up from any Luxor hotel or from your Nile cruise boat, in the dark, included.