Alexandria Cruise Port Guide — Ships, Excursions & Tips

Currency

Egyptian pound (EGP); USD widely accepted at major tourist sites and licensed tour operators. ATMs available but USD cash is more convenient.

Language

Arabic; English widely spoken at tourist sites, licensed tour operators, and major hotels.

Time in Port

Ships dock at Alexandria Cruise Terminal, usually from 7am. Cairo day trips require 8+ hours ashore — negotiate departure no later than 8am.

Pier Location

Alexandria Cruise Terminal is in the western port area. Taxis and licensed guides meet ships at the gate; confirm pricing before entering a vehicle.

Best For

The Pyramids and Sphinx day trip, ancient Greco-Roman heritage, the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, and Egyptian Mediterranean culture

About Alexandria

Alexandria was the intellectual capital of the ancient Mediterranean — the seat of the legendary Library, the Pharos lighthouse (one of the Seven Wonders), and the court of Cleopatra VII. Founded by Alexander the Great in 331 BC and ruled for centuries by the Greek Ptolemaic dynasty, it became the world's greatest city before Rome eclipsed it. Modern Alexandria is Egypt's second city and its main Mediterranean port, a sprawling, salt-bleached metropolis where Greco-Roman catacombs sit below apartment blocks, and the rebuilt Bibliotheca Alexandrina rises on the very site of the ancient library. For most cruise passengers, Alexandria also serves as the gateway for the single most iconic day trip in the world — the Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx, 220km south.

💡

Insider Tip

The Pyramids day trip is achievable but demands a tight plan: leave the ship by 7:30am, drive to Giza (arrive ~10:30am), spend 2.5 hours at the site, skip entering the chambers (lines kill time), and return to Alexandria by 5pm. Do not wait for a group tour — a private car with a licensed guide is faster, more flexible, and barely more expensive when split among two or three people.

Highlights

🛕
Pyramids of Giza & the Great Sphinx
The last surviving ancient Wonder of the World: the Great Pyramid of Khufu (built 2560 BC), Khafre, and Menkaure, plus the recumbent limestone Sphinx guarding the plateau. Alexandria to Giza is 220km each way by road — a 2.5-hour drive in each direction, leaving about 3 hours at the site in a long port day. Book a licensed private car with a guide, not a taxi.

📚
Bibliotheca Alexandrina
The 21st-century reincarnation of the ancient Library: a breathtaking tilted-disc building on the Mediterranean waterfront, housing 8 million books, four museums (including a manuscript museum), and the world's largest reading room. On the site where the ancient Library once stood.

🏛
Kom el-Shoqafa Catacombs
A 2nd-century AD underground tomb complex that blends Egyptian, Greek, and Roman funerary traditions in a uniquely Alexandrian synthesis — carved three stories into the bedrock, discovered accidentally in 1900 when a donkey fell through the roof. One of the finest Greco-Roman archaeological sites in Egypt.

🏰
Qaitbay Citadel
A 15th-century Mamluk fortress built directly on the foundations of the ancient Pharos Lighthouse (the stones used to construct it are from the fallen lighthouse) — it guards the harbour entrance and has excellent views over the eastern harbour and the Mediterranean.

🗿
Pompey's Pillar & Serapeum
A 30-metre red granite column erected in 297 AD in honour of Emperor Diocletian, standing in the ruins of the ancient Serapeum temple complex — the spot where the last scholars of the ancient Library made their final stand.

Local Food & Drink

Hamam mahshi — slow-roasted pigeon stuffed with freekeh wheat and caramelised onions; an Alexandrian specialty with ancient roots, served at traditional restaurants near the eastern harbour.
Fattah — a layered dish of toasted bread, rice, and slow-cooked lamb or beef in tomato broth topped with fried garlic; the Egyptian celebration meal.
Koshary — Egypt's beloved street-food staple of rice, lentils, macaroni, tomato sauce, and crispy fried onions; eaten at any street koshary shop for the equivalent of 50 US cents.
Alexandrian seafood mezze — the city's Greek and Mediterranean inheritance shows in its seafood culture; fresh calamari, sea bass, and mezze spreads at a fish restaurant on the corniche.

Shore Excursion Ideas

1 Pyramids of Giza and Sphinx full-day trip — the non-negotiable Egypt experience; requires an early start and a long port day. Book a private licensed car with a qualified Egyptologist guide.

2 Egyptian Museum in Cairo addition — the Giza Pyramids trip can include 90 minutes at the Egyptian Museum on Tahrir Square (the world's greatest ancient Egyptian collection, including the Tutankhamun treasures).

3 Alexandria half-day circuit — Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Kom el-Shoqafa Catacombs, Qaitbay Citadel, and Pompey's Pillar with a licensed local guide; all can be done in 5–6 hours without going to Cairo.

4 Catacombs and citadel self-guided — the two main Alexandria sites are within a taxi ride of each other; the corniche walk between them along the Mediterranean is pleasant.

5 Saqqara Step Pyramid alternative — for a shorter Cairo excursion, Saqqara is 40 minutes closer than Giza and has the world's oldest pyramid (Djoser's Step Pyramid, 2650 BC), far fewer crowds, and the ancient Memphis ruins nearby.

Sailings to Alexandria

Upcoming Royal Caribbean & Celebrity cruises that visit Alexandria

View all →

Royal Caribbean

Greece, Egypt & Cyprus Cruise

Rhapsody of the Seas · 7 nights

Athens (Piraeus) · May 21, 2027

From $1,585/pp

Royal Caribbean

Greece, Egypt & Cyprus Cruise

Rhapsody of the Seas · 7 nights

Athens (Piraeus) · June 11, 2027