Cheap Car Rentals in Alexandria (ALY)

Bibliotheca Alexandrina

Bibliotheca Alexandrina is an artistically recreated version of the ancient Great Library of Alexandria, Egypt. It is built in the shape of a giant sun disk that towers over the waterfront Corniche. This library is home to some museums and 6 smaller, specialized libraries that can together hold a max of 8 million copies at a time. Some of the museums here are Manuscript Museum (it has 30000 rare manuscripts and 50000 documents), the Antiquities Museum (it contains Graeco-Roman antiquities that were discovered during an underwater exploration in Egypt) and a children-centric Science Museum and Planetarium. Also of note here are some permanent exhibitions and personal collections.

Alexandria National Museum

The Alexandria National Museum is housed inside a former Italianate mansion in Alexandria. It is home to about 1800 artifacts that tell a beautiful story of the city’s rise from the prehistoric times till date. The museum is focused on collections related to Ancient Egyptian and the Muslim world though it also has collectibles related to the Hellenistic period until the 20th century. Some of the highlights here include figures of Medusa, Islamic clothing, jewelry, weapons, statuary, numismatics and glassware, some ancient ruined shards and more.

Qaitbay Citadel

The nearly 550-year old Qaitbay Citadel in Alexandria ranks as one of the most important defensive strongholds along the entire Mediterranean Sea coast. This citadel is situated at the entrance of a harbor on the Pharos Island and was erected on the former site of Lighthouse of Alexandria, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Qaitbay Citadel has been witness to the rise and fall of some of the most notable Egyptian ruling dynasties like Mameluke and Ottoman. Qaitbay Citadel was later turned into a maritime museum after the famous July 23 revolution in 1952.

Catacombs of Kom Kom El Shoqafa

The Catacombs of Kom Kom El Shoqafa (or the ‘Mound of Shards’) in Alexandria is the largest known Roman burial site in Egypt and one of the Seven Wonders of the Middle Ages. They derive their name from the fact that this area had a large pile of terra cotta shards that consisted of household objects made of clay. It was accidentally discovered in 1900 when a donkey had fallen into an unnoticed passage here. This royal necropolis consists of several Alexandrian tombs, statues and personal belongings of Roman aristocratic class. The Catacombs of Kom El Shoqafa are a mix of Roman, Greek and Egyptian architectural features.