Safaga allows passengers access to Luxor, on the banks of the River Nile, famous as the site of Karnak Temple, Hatshepsut’s Temple, the Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Queens. Karnak Temple is a vast complex consisting of three main temples, several smaller enclosed temples and a number of outer temples. The whole complex was built over a period of 1300 years and includes several of the finest examples of ancient Egyptian design and architecture. The tombs in the Valley of the Kings, although stripped of many of their contents centuries ago, still display fantastic wall paintings depicting the lives of the pharaohs in ancient Egypt, down to the minutest detail. The most famous tomb, that of the young pharaoh Tutankhamun, was discovered in pristine condition by Howard Carter in 1922. the most famous tomb in the Valley of the Queens is the Tomb of Queen Nefertari, the principal wife of Ramses II, which was only opened to the public in 1995. nearby, the spectacular Hatshepsut’s Temple was built by Queen Hatshepsut’s architect, Senenmut, in honour of the only woman ever to reign over Egypt as pharaoh.