Mon 02 Aug 2027 · Luxor, Egypt
6:23
minutes of totality. Longest of the century.
A total solar eclipse passes directly over Luxor with the longest land totality from 1991 to 2114. Six minutes twenty-three. Directly above the Valley of the Kings. We have an office in Luxor. This page is how we're planning it.
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Luxor · 25.69° N
The line of greatest eclipse runs above this riverbank. The pharaohs mapped this sun for three thousand years from here.
Path of totality · 2 Aug 2027
The shadow enters Egypt over the Western Desert, crosses Luxor, and exits over the Red Sea.
Why Luxor
The line of greatest eclipse, three-thousand-year-old sightlines, and the clearest sky on the path.
The 2 August 2027 eclipse track crosses southern Spain, North Africa, the Arabian peninsula and the Horn of Africa. The centre line – where totality lasts longest – runs through Upper Egypt almost exactly over Luxor. Greatest eclipse falls at 12:43 local time with the sun 82° above the horizon, which is to say nearly overhead. The corona will read cleaner than at any low-altitude site on the track.
The climatology is what separates this eclipse from most others. Early August in Upper Egypt is the driest, clearest weather window of the year – the chance of an overcast 12:43 is statistically nil. Compare the 1999 Cornwall eclipse, watched by half of Britain through cloud. Compare an Antarctic centre-line totality you simply can't fly to. Luxor in August is the rare site that's long, clear, and reachable.
The line of greatest passes within a few miles of Karnak, Luxor Temple, the Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut and the Ramesseum. Egyptian astronomy mapped this sun for three thousand years from this riverbank. You will not get this combination of subject and event again in our lifetimes.
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6m 23s
Totality duration over Luxor
Longest land totality 1991–2114. 1999 Cornwall: 2m 07s (and largely overcast). 2024: 4m 28s.
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82°
Sun altitude at greatest eclipse
Nearly directly overhead – no horizon issues, and corona display reads unusually clean.
- 03
~97%
Clear-sky probability
Upper Egypt in early August: essentially zero rain risk. The reason astronomers settled on Luxor.
- 04
25.69° N
Centre line of greatest eclipse
Luxor sits within 12 km of greatest duration. Aswan and the Valley of the Kings fall inside the path.
What we're building
Six trip shapes for the eclipse. Cairo-run, honest about August heat, sized from three nights to ten.
Every shape below is a bookable product page with full itinerary, cabin or room pricing, cancellation ladder, and the eclipse-day plan locked in. They share three things – ISO 12312-2 viewing glasses, an astronomy escort and a midday cooling plan – and differ on everything else. The 5-day Luxor→Aswan cruise is the most-booked shape; the 4-day Aswan→Luxor with eclipse-on-disembarkation is the cleverest scheduling; the dahabiya is the smallest and quietest; the hotel-only suits travellers running their own programme; the grand tour is the full Egypt arc with three Red Sea decompression nights.
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Luxor hotel-only · independent · 4 nights
Karnak-side 5★ allocation for travellers running their own plan
Rooms only – no transfers, no guide, no eclipse-day programme. For independent travellers and astronomy clubs bringing their own kit and itinerary.
4 nights 31 Jul – 4 Aug · transfers optional
- 02
Aswan → Luxor cruise · eclipse-day exit · 4 days · 3 nights
Aswan to Luxor, disembark Mon 2 Aug – eclipse from the sun deck after checkout
The clever shape. Board in Aswan Fri 30 Jul, sail north through Kom Ombo, Edfu and Esna. Dock in Luxor Mon 2 Aug; cabin checkout at 09:00 as normal, but you stay onboard – bags in storage, sun deck yours through 12:43 totality, plated lunch, then transfer to Luxor airport for evening flights.
Aswan · Kom Ombo · Edfu · Esna · Luxor · eclipse onboard
- 03
Cairo + Luxor · short shape · 5 days · 4 nights
Cairo, the GEM, and the eclipse over Luxor – the fly-in option
Two nights Cairo, two nights Luxor, eclipse on day three. For travellers who can't take eleven days off but still want Pyramids in the same trip.
Pyramids · GEM · eclipse · Karnak · Valley of the Kings
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Luxor → Aswan cruise · most booked · 5 days · 4 nights
Luxor → Aswan aboard a 5★ ship – eclipse on day one
Arrive Luxor Mon 2 Aug, board the ship, watch totality at 12:43 from the sun deck, then sail south through Edfu, Kom Ombo and Aswan. The ship is your accommodation on eclipse day – no 9am checkout to negotiate.
Luxor · West Bank · Edfu · Kom Ombo · Aswan · Philae
- 05
Dahabiya · private charter · 8 days · 7 nights
Eight-cabin dahabiya, moored at a private bank site for totality
Sail-powered, no engine note. The boat moors at a riverbank site we hold for the charter group – ten guests max, one table, no other tourists in sight.
Esna · El Kab · Edfu · Kom Ombo · Aswan
- 06
Grand tour · everything · 11 days · 10 nights
Cairo + cruise + Abu Simbel + Red Sea – the full arc
Two Cairo, four-night Luxor→Aswan cruise through eclipse, Abu Simbel as a full day, three Red Sea nights to decompress. All domestic flights included.
Cairo · Luxor · Edfu · Kom Ombo · Aswan · Abu Simbel · Red Sea
Allocation locks around 9 months before. The register-interest list below is how we contact you when these go on sale.
From the desk
We've got one Luxor office and a finite number of partner hotels. The astronomy community is competing for the same rooms we'd use. The interest list is how we know who to call first when allocation locks – usually 6 to 9 months out.
– Suhaila · Client Experience, Discovery Tours Egypt
The practical questions
Eight things people ask us about 2 August.
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01 When exactly is the eclipse?
Monday, 2 August 2027. First contact (the partial phase begins) about 11:20 Egypt time. Totality reaches Luxor at roughly 12:43 and lasts 6 minutes 23 seconds. Fourth contact at about 14:05. The sun is nearly overhead – 82° altitude – which means no horizon issues matter at all and the corona display is unusually good.
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02 Why Luxor in particular?
Luxor sits effectively on the line of greatest eclipse. Totality is longer over Luxor than anywhere else on land for this eclipse, full stop. The Met Office equivalent figures for early August in Upper Egypt show essentially zero rain risk and very high clear-sky probability. Aswan, Karnak and the Valley of the Kings all fall inside the totality path. Longest totality, almost-certain clear sky, and the most celebrated archaeological landscape on Earth – this combination will not repeat in our lifetimes.
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03 Six minutes – is that a lot?
Yes, genuinely. The 1999 Cornwall eclipse gave the UK two minutes seven seconds in the most-favoured spot – and it was overcast for most of the country. The 2024 North American eclipse hit four minutes twenty-eight in Mexico. 6m 23s at Luxor is the longest land totality between 1991 and 2114 – so longer than anything else any of us will see in our lifetimes. If you're going to fly for one eclipse, this is the one.
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04 Is it a published holiday yet?
Not yet. Luxor's quality-hotel stock is finite and the world's astronomy community is competing for the same 200 or so rooms inside the totality zone. We're negotiating allocation now and will publish formal itineraries once contracts are signed. The register-interest form on this page gets you on the call list as soon as those open – early pricing, first refusal on rooms, no obligation either way.
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05 What's the trip going to look like?
Two formats. The 5-day shape: 2 nights Cairo + 2 nights Luxor. Arrive Cairo Saturday 31 July. Sunday: Pyramids and the GEM. Monday 2 August: early Cairo–Luxor flight, straight to a dedicated observation site for the 12:43 corona, then into your Luxor hotel. Tuesday: Karnak and Luxor Temple (east bank). Wednesday: Valley of the Kings and Hatshepsut (west bank), afternoon flight back to Cairo, home. The 11-day shape: 2 Cairo + 4 Nile cruise (Luxor→Aswan, with the cruise as your accommodation on eclipse day so the 9am-checkout problem disappears) + 1 day Abu Simbel + 3 Red Sea decompression nights. Both include ISO 12312-2 viewing glasses, a dedicated observation site, an astronomer escort, private Egyptologist guiding, and a midday cooling plan – early August in Luxor is 40°C plus.
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06 Can I bring my own telescope or camera kit?
Yes, and we'd encourage it. We're arranging dedicated equipment-friendly observation sites with shade tents, mounting platforms, power, and chase support for serious astrophotographers. Mention what you'd be bringing on the interest form and we'll route you to the right tier of group.
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07 Flights, visas, all that?
We arrange Cairo–Luxor domestic flights inside the package. International flights are separate – Heathrow direct to Cairo on EgyptAir is about five hours; one-stop via Istanbul, Frankfurt or Doha is often £100–£200 cheaper. UK passports need an Egypt visa: £25 e-Visa or roughly £30 on arrival (we handle the latter for you).
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08 What will it cost?
Firm pricing comes when allocation locks. Indicative ranges, subject to the market shifting: from £3,800 per person for the 5-day Cairo + Luxor package, from £6,800 per person for the 11-day Cairo + Nile cruise + Abu Simbel + Red Sea arc, both ground-only, twin share. Solo and luxury supplements as usual. Eclipse demand for Luxor's hotel and ship space will push prices above a normal August week – that's just the reality of finite cabins and global demand.
Monday, 2 August 2027. The Egypt your ancestors planned trips around.