Sightseeing tour of the city from the port of Alexandria

Tour Details:

We will meet you at your cruise at the port of Alexandria; you will recognize our driver by the sign with your name in his hands to embark on a journey to the second largest city in Egypt – Alexandria, a beautiful place located on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea.

Alexandria was founded by the great conqueror Alexander the Great and is famous for its great library, which is considered the largest in the entire world, as well as the Pharos Lighthouse, which is one of the Seven Wonders of the World.

Sultan Qait Bey decided to use the site and materials of one of the ancient lighthouses, which was destroyed after several earthquakes, and built a fortress known today as  the Cai Bey Citadel or Qait Bey Fort. It was built sometime in 1480 AD and was one of the most important defensive fortresses in the Mediterranean. Some restoration work has recently been carried out and therefore it is now open to numerous visitors.

Then you will visit the new Library of Alexandria,  the Biblioteca Alexandrina, which houses a priceless collection of knowledge – about 8 million books, among which are ancient writings, as well as books on digital media. In addition, it has a huge reading room with 2000 seats, museums, a planetarium, and research institutes. This library can rightfully be considered one of the greatest in the field of literature.

Be sure to take a stroll along the Corniche, where you will have lunch at one of the local restaurants, before heading to the Palais de Montaza. It was built in 1932 as the summer residence of the Egyptian royal family, and today is partly a museum with a collection of some of the royal items. It looks like a fairytale castle and is a mixture of Turkish and Florentine architecture. The palace is surrounded by the beautiful Montaza Garden, where numerous plants, trees, flowers grow and is located on the coast. Enjoy a quiet oasis in the middle of a huge metropolis!

Now you will take a step back in time and find yourself in a time when Alexandria was a Roman province. Pompey‘s Column  is a Roman triumphal column built in 297 AD and is carved from pink Aswan granite and is about 27m tall and weighs about 285 tons! It is considered to be one of the largest monolithic columns ever erected.

The last stop of your trip will surprise you a little, but no less fascinating: the catacombs of Kom el-Shokafa, a huge ancient necropolis where the Alexandrians buried the dead. A spiral staircase down will lead you to some tombs (all famous and noble people of the time), where you will see statues and other archaeological objects from the pharaonic periods.

In the evening you will depart with our driver back to your cruise, to the port of Alexandria.