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MARA HOUSE LUXOR
  • EGYPT TRAVEL ADVICE from Mara
  • MARA HOUSE LUXORExpand
    • Luxor Holidays – 3 night package deal
    • The Salahadeen Feast
    • Compare Mara House to 3 Top Tour Companies
    • Guests’ Photo Gallery – Mara House Luxor
    • Mara House Luxor – Hotel Gallery
    • Guest Book
  • TOURS in EGYPTExpand
    • TOURS IN LUXORExpand
      • Abydos and Dendera tour
      • Karnak Temple Tour
      • Luxor Temple Tour
      • Luxor Holidays – 3 night package deal
      • Luxor & Aswan
      • West Bank Tour – Valley of Kings etc.Expand
        • Medinet Habu: The Pharaoh’s Bargain with Chaos
    • TOURS IN CAIROExpand
      • PRIVATE ACCESS to the GREAT PYRAMID of GIZA
      • Abdeen Palace
      • Antiquities Museum at Tahrir Sq.
      • Cairo Basic Tour – 3 Nights
      • Coptic Cairo, Cave Church & Garbage City
      • Gayer Anderson Houses
      • Giza Plateau
      • Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM)
      • Ibn Tulun Medieval Mosque
      • Islamic Museum
      • Medieval Cairo
      • Saladin Citadel, Sultan Hassan and Rifaii Mosques
      • Saqqara 7-Step Pyramid & Serapeum
    • SMALL GROUP TOURS WITH MARAExpand
      • Family Tour of Egypt – A Child’s Eye View of Ancient Egypt
      • Egypt Tour with Mara – A Journey Beyond the Ordinary
    • First-Time in Egypt? Here’s the Perfect 7-Day Itinerary for You
    • Egypt – 9 nights incl Nile Cruise
    • 2027 Solar Eclipse Package – 11 nights
    • Insider Advice – Hidden Pitfalls in Tour Websites
  • TRANSFORMATIVE TRAVELExpand
    • PRIVATE ACCESS to the GREAT PYRAMID of GIZA – A Once-in-a-Lifetime Experience
    • Sacred Journey of Remembering Along Egypt’s Chakras
  • NOMADS! – Mara House: Your Home in Egypt
  • EGYPT HISTORY & CULTUREExpand
    • Egyptian Rulers & Legends
    • Cairo History & Heritage
    • Luxor History & Heritage
    • Gods of Egypt
    • Muhammad Ali Dynasty
  • Who is Mara?
  • Mara’s Blog
  • Contact Mara
MARA HOUSE LUXOR

stories-in-stone

Back view of a woman in a flowing turquoise dress walking gracefully through the towering sandstone columns of Karnak Temple in Luxor, Egypt.
Mara House Updates & News

The Moment the Temple becomes the Library

ByMara 01/10/202501/10/2025

At Karnak, stone columns rise like shelves. In this moment, the temple becomes the library — and Egypt’s timeless pages unfold before me.

Read More The Moment the Temple becomes the LibraryContinue

Mid-1960s scene at Abu Simbel during the temple relocation: international engineers and Egyptian workers stand on scaffolding, discussing as a massive stone head of Queen Nefertari is suspended by a crane above her seated statue. Colossal statues of Ramses II are in the background under warm golden-hour desert light
Egyptian History & Culture

Ramses II: From Ozymandias to Abu Simbel’s Sun Miracle

ByMara 21/09/202501/10/2025

He loved her like a god, carving her face into temples, aligning the sun to kiss their statues — and, 3,000 years later, her stone head refused to fit until it gazed upon him, eternally watching over her king.

Read More Ramses II: From Ozymandias to Abu Simbel’s Sun MiracleContinue

two women walking together past ancient temple in Luxor

Luxor Temple – The Temple in Man

Read More Luxor Temple – The Temple in ManContinue

Sekhmet with blood stained clothes, holiding a sickle ravaging the earth among fallen bodies as the God Ra watches from the sky in horror
Transformative-Travel-Egypt

Understanding Egypt’s Fierce Goddess of Power & Protection – Sekhmet

ByMara 09/09/202501/10/2025

She was the bringer of plague and the patron of physicians; a destroyer and a protector. Her dramatic tale of rage and pacification is key to understanding the ancient Egyptian mind. Join us to learn her story and where to find her in Luxor. Her name was SEKHMET.

Read More Understanding Egypt’s Fierce Goddess of Power & Protection – SekhmetContinue

King Narmer explains his vision of a powerful, unified Egypt to artisans as they design the Narmer Palette
Transformative-Travel-Egypt

Narmer Palette: The Stone That Dreamed a Nation

ByMara 07/09/202501/10/2025

The Narmer Palette is more than carved stone. It is magic in action—Heka—the moment Egypt was dreamed into being. Carved around 3100 BCE, it shows Narmer uniting North and South, not only through conquest but through the creative power of intention, word, and image.

Read More Narmer Palette: The Stone That Dreamed a NationContinue

A woman in an a white dress walks a moonlit path towards the illuminated walls of Medinet Habu temple at night.
Luxor Travel & Accommodation

Walking Through the Nerve Center: A Guide to Medinet Habu’s Three Faces

ByMara 23/08/202501/10/2025

Medinet Habu is a temple, a royal palace, and a fortified stronghold. It was the stage for grand victory celebrations, daily life, and the brutal Harem Conspiracy. This is a guide to reading its stones and feeling its layered history.

Read More Walking Through the Nerve Center: A Guide to Medinet Habu’s Three FacesContinue

Egypt: History, Culture, Legends, Stories – Bringing the Past to Life

Read More Egypt: History, Culture, Legends, Stories – Bringing the Past to LifeContinue

The Day the Mountain Moved
Transformative-Travel-Egypt

The Day the Mountain Moved

ByMara 22/07/202501/10/2025

Discover the story of Simon the Tanner, the Coptic miracle of Moqattam Mountain, and Cairo’s Cave Church—where faith once moved a mountain.

Read More The Day the Mountain MovedContinue

A Standing Statue of Thutmose III
Transformative-Travel-Egypt

Ancient Echoes: The Eerie Vibes of THUTMOSE III’s Tomb

ByMara 16/08/202301/10/2025

Thutmoses III’s tomb, strange energy, a palpable connection it evokes with history. Mara’s eerie experience and an uncanny affinity that transcends time.

Read More Ancient Echoes: The Eerie Vibes of THUTMOSE III’s TombContinue

A Egyptian priest in a simple white linen robe carries an offering bowl through the dim, sacred halls of Abydos Temple, illuminated by the soft glow of a wall-mounted oil lamp
Transformative-Travel-Egypt

Abydos Temples – The Priests Who Kept the Heartbeat | TheSevenKeys #6

ByMara 15/08/202301/10/2025

We follow the keeper of the keys into the hushed dawn of Abydos Temple. This is the story of the priests whose daily rituals were a symphony of the senses, maintained the cosmos, and whose sacred purpose is echoed in our own lives today.

Read More Abydos Temples – The Priests Who Kept the Heartbeat | TheSevenKeys #6Continue

A view down a long interior arcade at Ibn Tulun Mosque, Cairo, with rows of pointed arches receding into the distance over a faded green carpet.

IBN TULUN MOSQUE – History, Legends & Hidden Treasures

Read More IBN TULUN MOSQUE – History, Legends & Hidden TreasuresContinue

Close-up of the mysterious 'helicopter' hieroglyph carved into a ceiling beam at the Temple of Seti I in Abydos, Egypt.
Transformative-Travel-Egypt

The Maker’s Hand – Unseen Genius at Abydos | TheSevenKeys #5

ByMara 06/11/201601/10/2025

Helicopter, plane, stealth fighter, submarine on the same ancient Egyptian carving at Abydos Temple – you have to see it to believe it

Read More The Maker’s Hand – Unseen Genius at Abydos | TheSevenKeys #5Continue

Pausing for breath during the climb from the Pit of the Great Pyramid, overwhelmed by the blissful energy of the ascent.

Private Pyramid Visit

Share your Cairo dates and I’ll let you know if I can fit you into a small group for a private visit inside the Great Pyramid, after dark.

maraegypt@gmail.com

No obligation

Recent Posts

  • The Moment the Temple becomes the Library 01/10/2025
  • The Click That Quieted the Fear 25/09/2025
  • Ramses II: From Ozymandias to Abu Simbel’s Sun Miracle 21/09/2025
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Mara - your host at Mara House Luxor standing outside the ornate wrought Iron door of Mara House Luxor
A personal moment at the door of Mara House — Mara seeing guests off with warmth and gratitude
  • EGYPT TRAVEL ADVICE from Mara
  • MARA HOUSE LUXOR
    • Luxor Holidays – 3 night package deal
    • The Salahadeen Feast
    • Compare Mara House to 3 Top Tour Companies
    • Guests’ Photo Gallery – Mara House Luxor
    • Mara House Luxor – Hotel Gallery
    • Guest Book
  • TOURS in EGYPT
    • TOURS IN LUXOR
      • Abydos and Dendera tour
      • Karnak Temple Tour
      • Luxor Temple Tour
      • Luxor Holidays – 3 night package deal
      • Luxor & Aswan
      • West Bank Tour – Valley of Kings etc.
        • Medinet Habu: The Pharaoh’s Bargain with Chaos
    • TOURS IN CAIRO
      • PRIVATE ACCESS to the GREAT PYRAMID of GIZA
      • Abdeen Palace
      • Antiquities Museum at Tahrir Sq.
      • Cairo Basic Tour – 3 Nights
      • Coptic Cairo, Cave Church & Garbage City
      • Gayer Anderson Houses
      • Giza Plateau
      • Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM)
      • Ibn Tulun Medieval Mosque
      • Islamic Museum
      • Medieval Cairo
      • Saladin Citadel, Sultan Hassan and Rifaii Mosques
      • Saqqara 7-Step Pyramid & Serapeum
    • SMALL GROUP TOURS WITH MARA
      • Family Tour of Egypt – A Child’s Eye View of Ancient Egypt
      • Egypt Tour with Mara – A Journey Beyond the Ordinary
    • First-Time in Egypt? Here’s the Perfect 7-Day Itinerary for You
    • Egypt – 9 nights incl Nile Cruise
    • 2027 Solar Eclipse Package – 11 nights
    • Insider Advice – Hidden Pitfalls in Tour Websites
  • TRANSFORMATIVE TRAVEL
    • PRIVATE ACCESS to the GREAT PYRAMID of GIZA – A Once-in-a-Lifetime Experience
    • Sacred Journey of Remembering Along Egypt’s Chakras
  • NOMADS! – Mara House: Your Home in Egypt
  • EGYPT HISTORY & CULTURE
    • Egyptian Rulers & Legends
    • Cairo History & Heritage
    • Luxor History & Heritage
    • Gods of Egypt
    • Muhammad Ali Dynasty
  • Who is Mara?
  • Mara’s Blog
  • Contact Mara
Mara - Mara House Luxor

Meet Mara

Hi, I’m Mara — the heart behind Mara House Luxor.

Over twenty years ago, I came to Egypt on an ordinary tour. It could have been so much better. And so, over time I created the kind of memorable experiences that I should have had. If you want to know more about the face behind the website, stories and business, click on Who is Mara.

You can book everything directly with me via email. I respond to all emails personally: maraegypt@gmail.com

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Please note that some pages and posts contain affiliate links to Amazon.  If you make a purchase through these links, I may earn a small commission, at no additional cost to you. Rest assured, I only endorse products I’ve personally used and would recommend to a friend.

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  • EGYPT TRAVEL ADVICE from Mara
  • MARA HOUSE LUXOR
    • Luxor Holidays – 3 night package deal
    • The Salahadeen Feast
    • Compare Mara House to 3 Top Tour Companies
    • Guests’ Photo Gallery – Mara House Luxor
    • Mara House Luxor – Hotel Gallery
    • Guest Book
  • TOURS in EGYPT
    • TOURS IN LUXOR
      • Abydos and Dendera tour
      • Karnak Temple Tour
      • Luxor Temple Tour
      • Luxor Holidays – 3 night package deal
      • Luxor & Aswan
      • West Bank Tour – Valley of Kings etc.
        • Medinet Habu: The Pharaoh’s Bargain with Chaos
    • TOURS IN CAIRO
      • PRIVATE ACCESS to the GREAT PYRAMID of GIZA
      • Abdeen Palace
      • Antiquities Museum at Tahrir Sq.
      • Cairo Basic Tour – 3 Nights
      • Coptic Cairo, Cave Church & Garbage City
      • Gayer Anderson Houses
      • Giza Plateau
      • Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM)
      • Ibn Tulun Medieval Mosque
      • Islamic Museum
      • Medieval Cairo
      • Saladin Citadel, Sultan Hassan and Rifaii Mosques
      • Saqqara 7-Step Pyramid & Serapeum
    • SMALL GROUP TOURS WITH MARA
      • Family Tour of Egypt – A Child’s Eye View of Ancient Egypt
      • Egypt Tour with Mara – A Journey Beyond the Ordinary
    • First-Time in Egypt? Here’s the Perfect 7-Day Itinerary for You
    • Egypt – 9 nights incl Nile Cruise
    • 2027 Solar Eclipse Package – 11 nights
    • Insider Advice – Hidden Pitfalls in Tour Websites
  • TRANSFORMATIVE TRAVEL
    • PRIVATE ACCESS to the GREAT PYRAMID of GIZA – A Once-in-a-Lifetime Experience
    • Sacred Journey of Remembering Along Egypt’s Chakras
  • NOMADS! – Mara House: Your Home in Egypt
  • EGYPT HISTORY & CULTURE
    • Egyptian Rulers & Legends
    • Cairo History & Heritage
    • Luxor History & Heritage
    • Gods of Egypt
    • Muhammad Ali Dynasty
  • Who is Mara?
  • Mara’s Blog
  • Contact Mara