Mediterranean Coast · Destination guide
Alexander's sea-facing capital — a salt-air corniche, the great library reborn, and Graeco-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 Graeco-Roman rather than pharaonic: the catacombs of Kom el-Shoqafa burrowing three levels underground, the Roman amphitheatre, 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 catches 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 honour the ancient one, its tilted glass disc rising like a second sun over the harbour. Inside, the vast reading room steps down towards the sea, alongside museums and a planetarium — a working answer to a two-thousand-year-old loss.
2–3 hours
02A Roman-era necropolis spiralling 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 harbour 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 real question is 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 amphitheatre 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 holiday.
Two hours by fast train or about three by car — an easy day trip or overnight from the capital.
Trade pharaonic temples for Graeco-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 catalogue
A 13-day guided holiday combining Alexandria, Cairo, a three-night Nile cruise between Aswan and Luxor, and a Red Sea break in Hurghada. We arrange domestic flights, private transfers and a dedicated Egyptologist throughout. This itinerary suits travellers who want museum and city sightseeing in Cairo and Alexandria followed by the paced sightseeing a short Nile cruise affords, then four nights for snorkeling and beach time in Hurghada. As a licensed Egyptian tour operator, we book the hotels and cruise with local suppliers and manage timings so you move comfortably between cities.
This nine-day land tour links Cairo, Alexandria, Aswan and Luxor, with private Egyptologist guiding at the major attractions named in the itinerary. In Cairo, visits include the Giza Plateau, the Grand Egyptian Museum, Old Cairo and Khan El-Khalili; Alexandria brings the Catacombs of Kom el Shoqafa, Bibliotheca Alexandrina and Qaitbay Citadel. In Aswan, the itinerary includes Philae Temple, the Unfinished Obelisk and Aswan High Dam, followed by Luxor’s East and West Banks. We arrange the accommodation, transfers and transport between cities. Unlike fixed-seat group coach tours, sightseeing here is by private vehicle with an Egyptologist guide.
This 10-day Egypt tour combines Cairo’s ancient monuments, Alexandria’s Mediterranean setting, a seven-night Nile cruise and time on the Red Sea coast in Hurghada. In Cairo, visit the Giza Pyramids, the Sphinx, the Valley Temple of Khafre and the Grand Egyptian Museum, followed by an Old Cairo programme covering Coptic, Islamic and Jewish heritage. Your Egyptologist accompanies visits to Luxor West Bank, Karnak Temple, Edfu, Kom Ombo, Philae Temple and Aswan’s High Dam. An overland excursion from Aswan reaches Abu Simbel, where Ramses II’s temple and the Temple of Nefertari stand beside Lake Nasser. Discovery Tours Egypt is a licensed Egyptian tour operator arranging the hotels, cruise vessel, guides and transport.
Opened in 1929, the four-star Steigenberger Cecil sits at 16 Saad Zaghloul Square in Alexandria's Raml Station district. It is a long-standing part of the city's hotel story, and the address puts you in the middle of an established urban neighbourhood rather than a resort zone. From here you can set out for the old centre and the Mediterranean waterfront. What your booking includes – room, meals, facilities – depends on the arrangement you pick, so confirm it before you pay.
Le Metropole Hotel is a five-star hotel from 1902 at 52 Saad Zaghloul Street, close to Raml Station in the centre of Alexandria. The building carries the city’s early twentieth-century hotel history, and the address puts you in the middle of Alexandria rather than at a beach resort outside it. Listed facilities include a restaurant, bar, room service, a business centre and an airport shuttle. A central street can be livelier than a seaside setting. Egypt Discovery can fit this stay into a wider Egypt trip, and we confirm the room category and any meals with the hotel before you book.
The five-star Tolip Hotel Alexandria stands on Corniche Road in the Roshdy district, on the stretch of coast road that follows the Mediterranean. That puts it on the seafront rather than in an inland suburb. The Corniche links the middle of the city with the eastern districts, so the hotel works as a base for seeing Alexandria, although journey times to individual sights depend on traffic. Egypt Discovery books the room for you through the hotel. The facilities listed for the property include a pool, spa, gym, bar and restaurant, but room details, meals and what is open should be confirmed for your dates before you commit.
Helnan Mamoura is a seafront hotel on Alexandria's Corniche offering a quiet Mediterranean base for short stays and conference use. We favour it for single-night stopovers because it places guests on the Corniche at sunset without central traffic. Montazah Royal Gardens and Montazah Palace lie a short drive away; Qaitbay Citadel is reachable by Corniche drive. Corniche rush-hour can add to transfer times and some rooms face the road rather than the sea. As a licensed Egyptian tour operator, we arrange room reservations, private cars and half-day tours from Helnan Mamoura.
Hilton Alexandria Corniche is a five-star hotel at 544 El Geish Road in Sidi Bishr, on the eastern stretch of the city's Corniche. That is some way from the old centre around the Bibliotheca Alexandrina and the western harbour. Alexandria is a Mediterranean port whose sights run from the ancient to the modern, and the hotel gives you somewhere to base yourself. Listed facilities include a pool, spa, gym, rooftop terrace and an airport shuttle, and the room, meal plan and extras follow the rate and dates you pick. Egypt Discovery can organise sightseeing and transport separately, so you can fit your hours at the hotel around museums, the waterfront and the historic quarters.
A private day by road from Alexandria or its cruise terminal to Cairo and back. In the morning you visit the Giza Pyramids and the Sphinx, and after lunch you move on to Coptic Cairo, the old Christian quarter with its churches and synagogue. An Egyptologist guide stays with your party all day, in a vehicle that is yours alone. Allow about 13 hours from pick-up to drop-off.
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 Graeco-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 amphitheatre 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 amphitheatre and a slower wander.
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.
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