Where to Stay in Luxor: East vs West Bank with Kids

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When I was deciding where to stay in Luxor it was quite overwhelming looking at all of the possibilities! There are so many options available from basic guesthouses to lavish and luxurious hotels.

Luxor was our first stop on our trip to Egypt and the first thing to work out was which bank of the Nile we wanted to be on.

The East Bank is the busier side where the central part of Luxor is. This was appealing as it is close to the main sights and houses many of the larger hotels.

The West Bank is much quieter and has more guesthouses and accomodation is generally a bit cheaper. We opted for the West Bank and it was perfect for our family but we’ve rounded up the pros and cons of both banks as well as some specific recommendations.

Top areas to stay in Luxor

The river Nile cuts through the city of Luxor and has just one bridge which is quite far from the central area, meaning a large detour if crossing by road.

Luckily crossing the river by boat is very easy. Whichever bank of the Nile you choose to stay on you will need to cross at some point as there are sights on each bank.

The East Bank is home to Luxor and Karnak temples as well as the main museums and markets. Pretty much all visitors head over to the West Bank at least once to go to the Valley of the Kings and Hatshepsut temple.

There is a public river ferry that goes back and forth for around $0,50 US per person. Alternatively there are numerous river taxis available to whisk you across privately and for our family of five this was a similar price to the public ferry.

Why stay on the East Bank of Luxor?

• It’s close to many of the main sights like Luxor and Karnak temples and the souk.
• There are loads of restaurant and cafe options for food.
• Most of the larger hotel chains are here but there are some budget options too.
• The east bank is closer to the airport for transfers on arrival.
• Most of the larger more upmarket hotels are on the East Bank.

Disadvantages of the East Bank

• There are fewer smaller hotels have swimming pools.
• Accommodation generally tends to be more expensive.
• It can be very busy and we found there was often a lot of hassle from people trying to sell things. This was mostly people encouraging us to go for a ride in their ‘Egyptian ferrari’- Benjamin looked very excited when he first heard this until he realised it was a horse and carriage!

Why stay on West Bank of Luxor?

• Accomodation is often cheaper.
• It’s much quieter and less hassle than on the busy East Bank.
• The West bank brings you close to the Valley of the kings and the airfield for Hot Air Balloon rides.
• There’s a more local-feel and the west bank still has restaurants and shops.
• We thought it was an enjoyable experience crossing the Nile regularly either by river ferry or private taxi boat.
• Hotels tend to be smaller family-run guesthouses on the West Bank, and most are very close to the river.

Disadvantages of the West Bank:

• There are fewer resort-style hotels which many families enjoy.
• Fewer restaurant options for meals, although crossing to the East side for dinner isn’t difficult.
• It can feel like more effort to get to places e.g. Luxor temple, the souk when you can’t just walk there.

So, which bank is best?

We stayed on the quieter West Bank and were really happy with our choice, although I know it wouldn’t be for everyone.

Travelling with kids it was nice to be somewhere a bit calmer and to be able to see a bit more of local life. Having said that there were times when we wanted to nip to a museum that being on the East Bank would have been easier.

I would imagine if visiting with much younger children the East bank would probably be more convenient. The east would also work better for travellers wanting to be in the thick of it and stay out later into the evening.

When we were choosing I was more drawn to the West Bank but in reality I looked at accommodation options on both sides of the Nile. We tend to prefer smaller family-run hotels so the West Bank suited us perfectly as this was where the majority of these hotels were situated.

If you’re a family looking for more resort-style accommodation, the East Bank will have more options.

Where to stay on the East Bank of Luxor

The East Bank of Luxor is the main city centre and so sprawls for quite a long way. Personally I like to be able to walk around in a city so would aim to find accommodation that is walkable to some of the main sights and restaurants if possible.

Luxor temple is situated right by the river, with some of the museums close by and there are plenty of hotels in this area to choose from.

If you prefer more resort-style hotels these are often slightly further out but taxis are numerous and inexpensive for getting around if you need a break from walking. There are also always Egyptian Ferraris around waiting to whisk you away!

For the resort hotel experience: Steigenberger Resort Achti

The Steigenberger Resort may be slightly further our of central Luxor but is worth it for a heated pool with a magnificent Nile view.

It’s a perfect choice for families wanting to balance sightseeing with relaxation and play time by the pool.

Budget East Bank option: Nefertiti Hotel

It’s difficult to find budget options with a pool on the East bank, unless you go quite far from the centre. This was one of our deciding factors in staying on the West Bank.

If a pool isn’t important to you, the Nefertiti Hotel is a great East Bank choice. It is very centrally located, a stones throw from Luxor temple and has a roof terrace with some of the best views in the city.

We ate here one evening and thought the roof was fantastic. It’s also complete with games to keep children (and adults) entertained.

Where to stay on the West Bank of Luxor

On the West Bank there are many more budget options with swimming pools. These are mostly small family-run guest houses.

We stayed on the West Bank and loved it so we wrote a full review of our budget Luxor hotel.

For your own apartment: Villa Belzoni

We loved our stay in Villa Belzoni. There are three apartments which share a small pool and beautiful roof terrace with Nile views. Breakfast is included and the owner Mohammed is a great source of information for your time in Luxor.

It’s really well located just 2 minutes from the Nile and around a ten minute walk from the public ferry across to the East bank.

For a larger hotel with river views: Nile Valley Hotel

The Nile Valley hotel is perfectly positioned near the public river ferry and boasts a fantastic rooftop restaurant with excellent river views.

It also has a pool (this was one of our non-negotiables in Luxor), which is a great place to cool off after a day sight-seeing. We didn’t stay here but it was on my shortlist due to the great reviews.

We did have dinner in the rooftop restaurant which serves a good mixture of egyptian dishes and some more familiar items like pasta dishes that the children appreciated.

There are loads of other accommodation options available to choose from on expedia and booking.com. I usually opt for places with plenty of good reviews. Our travel resources page has lots of other travel website ideas that might help in planning your trip to Egypt. Let us know if you find some other hotel gems in Luxor that we don’t know about.