Alexandria Private Day Tour From Cairo: Ancient Sites With Guide

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Free cancellationTravelers' pick

1/49

Duration8h–10h

GroupPrivate

LanguagesEN

PickupAt your hotel

Catacombs, a fortress on the Mediterranean, and a Roman theatre in one day from Cairo

A private day tour from Cairo to Alexandria takes you through the city's layered history with a local guide and air-conditioned transport. You visit the Catacombs of Kom el Shoqafa, an underground burial site blending Egyptian, Greek, and Roman styles; Pompey's Pillar, a 30-meter Roman column; the Citadel of Qaitbay, a 15th-century fortress on the coast; and the Roman Theatre, one of Egypt's best-preserved Roman structures. Hotel pickup and drop-off are included; you can add an Egyptologist guide, entrance fees, and lunch at checkout, or book transport and driver only.

8h–10h

Step-by-step itinerary

Full day tour of Alexandria

Pickup from hotel in Cairo
Drive 2.5 hours to Alexandria
Visit Catacombs of Kom el Shoqafa
See Pompey's Pillar from outside
Explore Citadel of Qaitbay
Visit Bibliotheca Alexandrina and museums
Tour Roman Amphitheatre
Drive 2.5 hours back to Cairo

The Experience

The day starts with pickup from your Cairo or Giza hotel at 7 a.m., then a two-and-a-half-hour drive north to Alexandria. The Catacombs of Kom el Shoqafa are your first stop — an underground complex of tombs and chambers carved into bedrock in the 2nd century AD and used for burials through the 4th century. The site is a collision of cultures: statues wear Egyptian bodies with Roman hairstyles, and the architecture mixes all three traditions. A circular staircase descends into the tunnels where you walk among the tombs and artifacts that survived until the site's rediscovery in 1900.

From there, you pass Pompey's Pillar, a 30-meter red granite column standing on a rocky hilltop in central Alexandria. Despite its name, it has nothing to do with the Roman general — it's a triumphal monument built for the Emperor Diocletian in 300 AD. You view it from outside, so there's no entrance fee and no time lost at the gate. Next is the Citadel of Qaitbay, a 15th-century defensive fortress built by Sultan Al-Ashraf Sayf al-Din Qa'it Bay in 1477 on the eastern edge of Pharos Island, where it overlooks the Mediterranean and the Eastern Harbour. The Roman Theatre rounds out the tour — Egypt's only surviving Roman amphitheatre, a well-preserved structure from the era when such buildings dotted the empire.

You'll also pass the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, the modern library built as a tribute to the ancient world's knowledge center, and have the option to visit its open courtyard to see statues of Ptolemy the First and Alexander the Great recovered from underwater. The library is closed Fridays and legal holidays, and entry to the reading section requires a separate ticket. The return drive to Cairo takes another two and a half hours. Throughout the day, you travel in an air-conditioned vehicle with bottled water provided. Your guide — if you've selected that option — is a qualified Egyptologist who speaks English and shares the history as you move between sites.

What’s included

Hotel pickup and drop-off from Cairo or Giza.
air-conditioned private vehicle for the full day.
bottled water throughout.
a qualified Egyptologist guide (if selected at checkout).
entrance fees to the Catacombs of Kom el Shoqafa, Citadel of Qaitbay, and Roman Theatre (if selected).
and lunch (if selected).

Good to know

Easy physical levelStroller friendlyInfant seats availablePublic transport nearby

Operated by Egypt tours Gateway

Is this one for you?Choose the option with guide and entrance fees if you want the history explained as you stand in front of each site — the Catacombs' blend of three cultures, the Citadel's position on the coast, the Theatre's rarity in Egypt. If you prefer to move at your own pace and skip the commentary, book the car and driver alone and pay for tickets as you go.