Alexandria

Currency budget Egypt

The pound moves, so change small amounts as you go. Bank branches give the official rate and there are plenty of them downtown and along the Corniche. Bring clean, unmarked dollar or euro notes, because torn ones are refused.

ATMs & cards

CIB, Banque Misr, NBE and QNB, inside branches around Raml Station and along the Corniche. Cards work in the better restaurants and hotels; the trams, the cafés and the fish markets are cash. Ask for small notes.

Use machines inside bank branches. Ask for small notes: the trams, the cafés and the tips are all cash.

Wherever you are: if the machine offers to charge you in your home currency, decline. That is dynamic currency conversion and the rate is set by the ATM's operator, not your bank.

Safety all of Egypt

A big working port city where violent crime against visitors is rare, and noticeably less touristy than Cairo, so there is less hustle. The real risks are the Corniche traffic, which does not stop for pedestrians, and summer crowds, when half of Cairo comes for the beach. Women travelling alone report street harassment, as elsewhere in Egypt. The UK FCDO does not advise against travel to Alexandria or the coast west towards Marsa Matruh.

Our own assessment, not a sourced index.

Entry & visa Egypt visa rules

Health & emergencies all of Egypt

Required to enter

• Yellow fever certificate, but only if you are arriving from a country where yellow fever is present

Orientation, not medical advice — entry rules change and what you need depends on your own history. Check with a travel clinic four to six weeks before you go.

Food tip

Fish is the reason to eat here: in the seafood places around Anfushi you choose from the ice, pay by weight and say how you want it cooked. Alexandrian liver sandwiches (kebda iskandarani) are the street food, ful for breakfast, and the old Greek-era patisseries downtown are for the coffee and the room as much as the cakes.

Nightlife

Corniche cafés open until the small hours, a handful of old bars left over from cosmopolitan Alexandria, and a summer evening that is mostly walking by the sea.

• Alexandria Corniche — the cafés and the evening promenade
• Stanley Bridge — lit at night, and the cafés under it
• Raml Station — the old downtown cafés and the few bars that survive

Closing: Cafés past midnight, later in summer; the bars earlier.

Getting around

• Uber and Careem — both work here, and remove the fare negotiation entirely
• Tram — the yellow city trams and the blue Raml line are slow, cost almost nothing, and are among the oldest still running in Africa
• Taxi — the black-and-yellow cabs rarely use a meter; agree the fare first
• Train — two and a half to three hours to Cairo from Misr Station, and the easy way in from the capital
• On foot — the Corniche and the downtown streets behind Raml Station, but crossing the Corniche road takes nerve
• Airport: Borg El Arab (HBE) is about 50 min south-west of the centre; Cairo (CAI) has far more flights and is three hours by road

eSIM

A data eSIM for Egypt, installed before you fly and working the moment you land:Works hereWorks hereRevolutIn the app

Must-see

Nearby day trips

Say a few words

Arabic

• Helloمرحبا — MarhabaMAR-ha-ba
• Pleaseمن فضلك — Min fadlakmin FAD-lak
• Thank youشكرا — ShukranSHOOK-ran
• Yes / Noنعم / لا — Na’am / LaNA-am / la

Inshallah, meaning God willing, follows nearly any statement about the future and is conversational rather than religious.

Religion

Sunni Muslim, with a Coptic Christian minority

Around 90% Muslim and 10% Coptic Christian, one of the oldest Christian communities on earth. Cover shoulders and knees at mosques and churches alike; women cover their heads at mosques.

Do's and don'ts

Do

• Use your right hand for eating, greeting and handing anything over
• Dress modestly away from resorts — shoulders and knees covered, and a scarf for women entering mosques
• Agree a price before accepting any service, including a photograph with a camel
• Carry small notes for baksheesh; it is expected constantly and is part of how the economy works

Don't

• Do not photograph military or police installations, bridges or airports — this is taken seriously
• Do not show the sole of your foot to anyone, or point with your feet
• Do not show public affection beyond hand-holding; it is illegal in some readings and always poorly received
• Do not accept an unsolicited guide at the pyramids who then demands a fee — say la, shukran, firmly and keep walking