Mediterranean Coast · Destination guide
Alexander's sea-facing capital – a salt-air corniche, the great library reborn, and Greco-Roman Egypt two hours north of Cairo.
Get your bearings
Alexandria faces the sea, not the desert. Founded by Alexander the Great in 331 BC and once home to the ancient world's greatest library and a lighthouse counted among the Seven Wonders, it spent centuries as the Mediterranean's intellectual capital and now carries a faded, salt-stained character unlike anywhere else in Egypt.
What survives is layered and Greco-Roman rather than Pharaonic: the catacombs of Kom el-Shoqafa burrowing three levels underground, the Roman amphitheater, Pompey's Pillar, and the modern Bibliotheca Alexandrina built to echo the lost library. Tying it all together is the corniche – a long curve of seafront where the city eats grilled fish and watches the waves.
Most people visit Alexandria from Cairo, two hours north by fast train. It works as a long day trip, but an overnight lets you catch the city at its best: the seafront in the evening light, and a morning at the library before the day-trippers arrive.
What you're really here to see
01A modern library built to honor the ancient one, its tilted glass disc rising like a second sun over the harbor. Inside, the vast reading room steps down toward the sea, alongside museums and a planetarium – a working answer to a two-thousand-year-old loss.
2–3 hours
02A Roman-era necropolis spiraling three levels underground, where Egyptian gods and Roman togas share the same carved walls – the strange, brilliant fusion that only Alexandria produced. One of the largest Roman burial sites in Egypt.
1–2 hours
03A 15th-century fort standing on the exact spot where the Lighthouse of Alexandria once burned – built, in part, from its fallen stones. The walk out along the harbor wall, with the sea on three sides, is the city's best hour.
1 hour · go at sunset
04The former royal summer palace sits in green gardens above its own private bay at the eastern end of the corniche – a Florentine-Turkish folly with a beach below. The grounds are a calm hour away from the city's traffic.
1–2 hours
Time to allow
Alexandria is compact – the question is really day trip or overnight.
Fast train up, the library, the catacombs and Qaitbay, grilled fish on the corniche, and back by evening. Long but doable.
An overnight catches the seafront at dusk and the sights before the day-trippers – the way to see Alexandria properly.
Add the Montaza Palace gardens, the Roman amphitheater and Pompey's Pillar, plus time to simply wander the old streets and cafés.
Slot Alexandria onto the start or end of a Cairo visit – the natural Mediterranean counterpoint to the Pyramids.
Where it fits
Alexandria is a coastal counterpoint to Cairo – close enough to fold into almost any trip.
Two hours by fast train or about three by car – an easy day trip or overnight from the capital.
Trade Pharaonic temples for Greco-Roman ruins, the desert for the sea, and the crowds for a slower coastal pace.
The best grilled fish and seafood in Egypt, eaten on a seafront that has watched ships for two thousand years.
Add it to the front or back of your Cairo days rather than treating it as a separate trip.
From the catalog
A five-day Egypt food tour in Cairo and Alexandria. You take a private tasting walk through Cairo at night, walk Al-Muizz Street and Khan El Khalili, and ride a felucca on the Nile at sunset. Then you drive to Alexandria for a street food, seafood and café walk, and see Qaitbay Citadel, the Roman Theatre and the Bibliotheca Alexandrina. Four nights in hotels, private transfers and a guide for the sightseeing are included. Tastings are tasting walks, not full meals, so you will want to choose a lunch or dinner of your own.
An 18-day Egypt tour that links Cairo, Alexandria, a four-night Nile cruise from Luxor to Aswan, Abu Simbel and the Red Sea resort of Hurghada. You see the Giza Pyramids, the Grand Egyptian Museum, the Egyptian Museum, Islamic and Coptic Cairo, Alexandria's main sites, Karnak, the Valley of the Kings, the Nile temples and Abu Simbel, with a licensed Egyptologist on the sightseeing days. Seventeen hotel and ship nights, the Cairo to Luxor flight, the transfers and the entrance fees on the guided sightseeing days are included.
A six-day Egypt tour that links Cairo, a day trip to Fayoum and Wadi El Rayan, and two nights in Alexandria. You see the Giza Pyramids, the Great Sphinx and the Grand Egyptian Museum with an Egyptologist, spend a private day in Fayoum, then travel by road via Wadi Natrun to Alexandria for the Qaitbay Citadel, Pompey's Pillar, the Catacombs of Kom El Shoqafa, the Bibliotheca Alexandrina and the Graeco-Roman Museum. Five hotel nights, the transfers and the road travel are included.
A three-day Egypt tour with two nights in Cairo. Day 2 is a full day trip to Alexandria with its catacombs, the modern library, the Qaitbay Citadel and Montaza Palace gardens. Day 3 covers the Giza Pyramids, the Great Sphinx and the Grand Egyptian Museum. A licensed Egyptologist guides both sightseeing days, entrance fees to the listed sites are included, and the airport transfers are arranged for you.
A nine-day Egypt tour that links Cairo, Alexandria and the Nile by rail and river. You see the Step, Bent and Red Pyramids, spend a full day in Alexandria, take the overnight sleeper train from Alexandria to Luxor, then cruise for four nights from Luxor to Aswan. Your Egyptologist guide, entrance fees, transfers, the domestic flight from Aswan to Cairo, hotels and your cruise cabin are included. The sleeper train runs on set days, so we plan your dates around it.
A 21 day Egypt tour that joins Cairo, Alexandria, Aswan, a three-night Nile cruise from Aswan to Luxor, Luxor and the Red Sea at Hurghada. You see the Giza Pyramids, Saqqara, Memphis and Dahshur, the Egyptian Museum, the Citadel and Islamic Cairo, Abu Simbel, Philae, Kom Ombo, Edfu, Karnak and the Valley of the Kings, then relax on the Red Sea. Domestic flights, hotels, the cruise cabin, entrance fees, transport and Egyptologist guides on the sightseeing days are included. Offered at first-class and luxury standards.
This 10-day itinerary visits Cairo, Alexandria, Aswan, Abu Simbel and Luxor, focusing on Pharaonic, Coptic and Islamic sites. It is led by experienced Egyptologists and includes guided visits to major monuments and museums. We are a licensed Egyptian tour operator and we arrange domestic flights and the first-class train transfer between Aswan and Luxor. Unlike mass coach programs, we limit daily group sizes and favour guided walking at each site so you have time to study inscriptions and architecture. Expect early starts at major temples and a pace tuned to avoiding midday heat where possible.
A 13-day tour linking Alexandria, Cairo, Aswan, Luxor and Hurghada by domestic flight, road and a three-night Nile cruise between Aswan and Luxor. We arrange private guided touring with a dedicated Egyptologist, private air-conditioned transfers, and meet-and-assist at airports. Standard site entrance fees are included; the Khufu pyramid interior and premium tombs such as Tutankhamun or Seti I are not included unless requested. Unlike short fly-cruise packages, this itinerary allows proper guided visits to Edfu and Kom Ombo during the three nights on the Nile. Discovery Tours Egypt is a licensed Egyptian tour operator and we coordinate all ground arrangements for the trip.
This 15-day itinerary links Cairo, Alexandria, Aswan, a Nile cruise between Aswan and Luxor, Luxor and Hurghada, finishing in Cairo. We are a licensed Egyptian tour operator and we arrange all transfers, domestic flights and Egyptologist-led sightseeing. We do not run large coach-group itineraries; transfers and excursions are by private air-conditioned car with local guides. Unlike short packaged cruises, this trip includes full calls at Kom Ombo and Edfu and time on both Luxor East Bank and West Bank, plus two full days at the Red Sea for snorkeling and a desert quad safari.
Every way in
Day trips, classic multi-day tours, Nile cruises, hotels and private transfers – every part of an Egypt trip can be arranged from Alexandria. Start wherever makes sense.
Hotel pickup, a private Egyptologist, half or full day.
2–15 day private itineraries, hotels and guides included.
Pair Alexandria with a 3–4 night river cruise in one trip.
Aswan ↔ Luxor sailings, dahabiyas and classic cruisers.
5★ and boutique stays, hand-picked by our team.
Private meet-and-greet from the airport to your hotel.
Best time to visit
A Mediterranean climate – milder than the rest of Egypt, and at its best outside deep winter.
Warm, breezy and bright (22–30°C) – the corniche at its finest and the sea swimmable. The sweet spot for Alexandria.
Hot and humid, and packed with Egyptian holidaymakers escaping the inland heat. Lively, but hotels fill and prices climb.
Mild but the wettest, windiest stretch in Egypt – Alexandria actually gets winter storms. Atmospheric, but pack a jacket.
Whenever you come, save Qaitbay and the corniche for the golden hour, when the sea and the old stone glow together.
The practical part
An easy hop from Cairo, walkable along the sea – the practical part.
The fast train from Cairo takes about two hours; a private car takes three. We usually run it as a guided door-to-door day or overnight from your Cairo hotel.
The sights string along the coast – comfortable by private car with a guide, with short walks at each stop along the corniche.
Seafront hotels along the corniche put you near the library and the evening promenade; the historic Cecil Hotel anchors the old downtown.
Alexandria's seafood is the best in Egypt – pick your catch from the ice and have it grilled. We point you to the places locals actually use.
Common questions
Yes, especially for the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, the Catacombs of Kom el-Shoqafa and Qaitbay Citadel, plus a Mediterranean seafront unlike anywhere else in Egypt. It's a Greco-Roman, sea-facing counterpoint to Pharaonic Cairo.
Yes – it's two hours by fast train, so a long day covers the library, the catacombs, Qaitbay and lunch on the corniche. An overnight is better, letting you see the seafront at dusk and the sights before the day-trippers arrive.
The fast train is the easiest option at about two hours; a private car takes roughly three. We typically run it as a guided door-to-door trip from your Cairo hotel.
The Bibliotheca Alexandrina, the Catacombs of Kom el-Shoqafa, Qaitbay Citadel, Pompey's Pillar, the Roman amphitheater and the Montaza Palace gardens – all tied together by the long Mediterranean corniche.
Spring and autumn (April–June, September–November) are ideal – warm, breezy and swimmable. Summer is hot, humid and crowded with Egyptian holidaymakers; winter is mild but the wettest, windiest season in Egypt.
One overnight is the sweet spot – enough for the headline sights and an evening on the seafront. A day trip works if you're short on time; two nights lets you add Montaza, the amphitheater and a slower wander.
Read next
Plan your trip
Tell us your dates and what you want out of Alexandria – we'll send a private, tailored itinerary within 24 hours. Cairo · Luxor · Aswan · Hurghada · Marsa Alam · Sharm El Sheikh, on the ground since 1988.
