The temples at Abu Simbel were formerly located further down the hillside, facing the Nile in the same relative positions, but due to the rising waters of Lake Nasser, the original locations are underwater. Each temple was carefully sawed into numbered stone cubes, moved uphill, and reassembled before the water rose.
The Great Temple of Ramesses II was reassembled fronting a fake mountain, built like a domed basketball court, where the stone cubes occupy a section under the dome; from outside, the fake mountain looks like solid rock.
Archaeologists have concluded that the immense sizes of the statues in the Great Temple were intended to scare potential enemies approaching Egypt's southern region, as they travelled down the Nile from out of Africa.
EgyptAir offers daily flights to Abu Simbel from both Cairo (NB: early morning flight, about 5.30 am) and Aswan (up to four flights daily). http://www.egyptair.com.eg . Many smaller airlines also operate the Aswan to Abu Simbel route. <!-- Timetables of plane flights at the country, regional, and city level is too much information. Airlines and routes can be changed too rapidly for this to remain useful indefinately. Inserting a table will be reverted and deleted. See Wikitravel:Travellers' pub#TMI on Airplane Routes -->
Abu Simbel is currently inaccessible to foreigners travelling by car, on account of police security concerns. Travellers are only able to access Abu Simbel by bus from Aswan.
Foreign travellers can get to Abu Simbel by coach or minibus from Aswan, travelling in police convoys. There is at least one daily convoy each way - the number and frequency of these are often raised when demand increases. Travellers are advised to check at the Aswan tourist office before making firm plans.
For most of the year, the bus convoys leave Aswan around 3:30am to avoid the searing desert heat for at least the outward journey. Trips can be booked at a day's notice from even the most budget of hotels' receptions, although the tourist information kiosk near Aswan central station is the safest option. All buses travel together in a military convoy, and the journey takes around 3 hours each way. It is advisable to travel on air conditioned buses, as the journey back to Aswan is very hot.;
It is possible to travel by cruise ship from Aswan through Lake Nasser to Abu Simbel.
The town of Abu Simbel is small enough to navigate on foot.
Due to the displacement of the temple, it is widely believed that this event now occurs one day later than it did originally.
Also, look for a "Kilroy was here" on the lower legs of one of the 4 giant statues of Ramesses II, along with other grafitti, formerly considered fashionable.
Be sure to follow the pathway inside the fake mountain dome, to see how the mountain was constructed.
As with the pyramids at Giza, reading about them, before arriving, in no way diminishes the impact of seeing them firsthand. The reconstructed temples at Abu Simbel appear entirely real, not like a simulated building at some theme parks; however, do go inside the dome of the Great Temple to appreciate that it is a fake mountain.
Seti Abu Simbel (tel: 400720, singles US$137, doubles US$185) is Abu Simbel's only 5-star hotel, and has pleasant chalet-style rooms overlooking Lake Nasser. Buffet breakfast (LE 42), lunch (LE 45) and dinner (LE 65) are offered in the Seti.