Algeria · Mediterranean Coast
Algiers
A Mediterranean capital with an Ottoman Casbah and almost no tourists.
Algiers climbs from a wide Mediterranean bay in tiers of white French-era boulevards, earning its old name, Alger la Blanche. Above the port sits the Casbah, the UNESCO-listed Ottoman medina of stairways and courtyard palaces, and around it the city layers Almoravid mosques, a basilica on the cliffs, a hilltop independence memorial and one of Africa's great botanical gardens. Few foreign tourists come, so it feels like a working capital rather than a destination, with Roman Tipaza an easy run along the coast.
Suggested stay
2–4 days
Language
Arabic, French
Currency
DZD
Timezone
UTC+1
Why you'll love Algiers
The Casbah Steep lanes, Ottoman palaces and hidden courtyards tumbling down the hill to the sea
Alger la Blanche Arcaded white boulevards and the neo-Moorish Grande Poste give the centre a grand colonial face
Views over the bay Cable cars and hilltop lookouts at Notre-Dame d'Afrique and the Martyrs' Memorial frame the whole curve of the harbour
Few tourists Museums, gardens and old quarters you share mostly with Algerians
Best time to visit
Dec-Oct
17-33° days
36.773° N, 3.059° E
UTC+1 · Africa/Algiers
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Weather & when to go to Algiers
Month by month: typical highs and lows, rainfall and rain days.
✓ Best Dec-Oct
Cards tinted by calculated verdict · big number = typical daily high, small = low · hover for conditions
When to avoid Algiers
November is the one month that misses, as the autumn rains set in. July and August are the beach months, when Algerians head for the coast and the resorts west of the city fill up. During Ramadan many cafes and restaurants close by day and the city comes alive after sunset.
Top things to do in Algiers
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The Casbah of Algiers - walk the Ottoman medina
history culture arts ⭐ Highly recommendedA UNESCO-listed tangle of stairways, arches and whitewashed houses dropping from the old citadel to the sea, with restored Ottoman mansions such as Dar Mustapha Pacha and Dar Khdaouedj el Amia. Go with a local guide: the lanes are confusing and parts are crumbling.
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Notre-Dame d'Afrique - the basilica above Bologhine
history scenic 👍 PopularA 19th-century neo-Byzantine basilica on a clifftop west of the centre, known for the inscription above its apse asking Our Lady to pray for Christians and Muslims alike. The terrace looks across the whole bay, and a cable car climbs up from Bologhine.
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Maqam Echahid - the Martyrs' Memorial
history scenic 👍 PopularThree giant concrete palm fronds rise over the city from the Riadh El Feth heights, marking the war of independence, with an eternal flame and the Museum of the Moudjahid, telling the story of the war, beneath. Ride the cable car up from the Jardin d'Essai.
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Jardin d'Essai du Hamma - the botanical garden
nature wildlife scenic ⭐ Highly recommendedLaid out in the 1830s as an experimental garden, it runs from the seafront up to the hill in long alleys of plane trees, palms, dragon trees and giant fig trees. The National Museum of Fine Arts looks down over it from the slope above.
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The Grande Poste and Rue Didouche Mourad - the white city
culture arts history 👍 PopularThe neo-Moorish central post office, with its arches and domed hall, anchors the colonial centre. From here walk the arcaded Boulevard Khemisti and the long shopping street of Rue Didouche Mourad, lined with balconied Haussmann-style blocks.
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Djamaa el Kebir and Ketchaoua - the old mosques
history culture artsThe Great Mosque near the Place des Martyrs dates to the Almoravids in the 11th century, its plain arcades among the oldest buildings in the city. Ketchaoua, at the foot of the Casbah, was an Ottoman mosque turned cathedral under the French and returned to a mosque in 1962.
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Djamaa El Djazair - the Great Mosque of Algiers
culture artsA vast modern mosque on the bay at Mohammadia, east of the centre, with a minaret that is the tallest in the world and visible from across the city.
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Bardo Museum - prehistory in a Moorish villa
history culture artsThe national museum of prehistory and ethnography fills an Ottoman-era villa with tiled courtyards and fountains, showing finds from Saharan rock-art sites alongside costumes and crafts from across Algeria.
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Palais des Rais - the seafront Ottoman palaces
historyAlso called Bastion 23, a cluster of restored Ottoman palaces and fishermen's houses on the waterfront below the Casbah, the last surviving piece of the old lower town.
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Algerois food - rechta, chorba and karantika
foodTry rechta, fine hand-cut noodles in a chicken and turnip broth that is an Algiers speciality, chorba frik soup, mhadjeb flatbreads from street stalls, and karantika, a chickpea flan sold warm by the slice.
Best areas to stay in Algiers
$ Budget $$ Mid-range $$$ Premium
City centre (Grande Poste and Didouche Mourad)
First-time visitors $$Busy colonial boulevards near the port
Explore hotels in City centre (Grande Poste and Didouche Mourad) →
Hydra
Business and quiet $$$Leafy hilltop district of embassies
Explore hotels in Hydra →
Sidi Fredj
Beach and families $$Marina resort on the western coast
Explore hotels in Sidi Fredj →
Live nightly prices from Booking.com, Agoda and others, centred on Algiers
Getting to & around Algiers
Getting there
Fly into Algiers (ALG), about 20 km east of the centre by train or taxi
Flight
Houari Boumediene Airport (ALG)
A suburban train runs from the airport to Agha station in the centre, and taxis take around 30-45 minutes depending on traffic along the coastal motorway.
Ferry
Port of Algiers
Car ferries from Marseille and Spanish ports dock right below the city centre
Train
Algiers station
Mainline trains link the capital with Oran to the west and Constantine to the east
Coach
Caroubier bus station
The main intercity coach station, south-east of the centre, with services to cities across the country
Getting around
Metro
One line runs from the Grande Poste south-east through the Jardin d'Essai area and on to El Harrach
TBC
Cable car
Short lines climb the hills, including up to Notre-Dame d'Afrique and from the Jardin d'Essai to the Martyrs' Memorial
TBC
Tram
Serves the eastern suburbs along the bay, useful for the Great Mosque area
TBC
Taxi
The practical way to reach the hill districts and Sidi Fredj; agree the fare first if there is no meter
TBC
Day trips from Algiers
Tipaza
Full dayRoman ruins by the sea
Punic, Roman and early Christian ruins spread among pines and wildflowers on headlands over the sea, a UNESCO site Albert Camus wrote about. Stop at the Royal Mausoleum of Mauretania, a huge stone drum tomb on the ridge above.
Getting there
car | tour
About 1-1.5 hours west by car or tour
Cherchell
Full dayRoman capital
Once Caesarea, capital of King Juba II's Mauretania, with a small museum of fine Roman statuary and mosaics and scattered ruins in a quiet harbour town. Easy to pair with Tipaza.
Getting there
car
About 1.5-2 hours west by car, beyond Tipaza
Chrea National Park
Full dayCedar forest mountains
Atlas cedar forests in the mountains above Blida, cool when the coast is hot, with walking trails, Barbary macaques and snow on the heights in winter.
Getting there
car
About 1.5 hours south by car via Blida, then up the mountain road
A little history of Algiers
Phoenician traders used the islets off this shore as a harbour, and the Romans knew the town as Icosium. In the 10th century the Zirid prince Bologhine ibn Ziri founded El Djazair, 'the islands', on the site. After the Barbarossa brothers seized it in the 16th century it became the seat of an Ottoman regency and a corsair base feared across the Mediterranean, its walled Casbah climbing the hill above the port.
France captured the city in 1830 and built the white boulevards of the modern centre below and around the old town. The Casbah was a centre of resistance during the war of independence, most famously in the 1957 Battle of Algiers, and the city became the capital of independent Algeria in 1962.
Phoenician trading post, later the Roman town of Icosium
Bologhine ibn Ziri founds El Djazair on the old site
The Almoravids build the Great Mosque, Djamaa el Kebir
Aruj Barbarossa takes the city
Hayreddin Barbarossa captures the Spanish fort on the islets and joins them to the shore, founding the harbour
French forces capture Algiers
The Battle of Algiers is fought in the Casbah
Algeria becomes independent, with Algiers as its capital
The Casbah is inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site
Know before you go
Payment
Cash preferred
English
Limited
Wifi
Workable
Power
Type C / F
230 V, 50 Hz
Dialing
+213
FAQs about Algiers
▸ When is the best time to visit Algiers?
Most of the year works. Spring and early autumn are the easiest for walking the Casbah's stairways, summer is beach season along the coast, and winter is mild if sometimes showery. November is the month that misses, as the autumn rains arrive.
▸ Do I need a visa for Algeria?
Most nationalities need a visa arranged in advance through an Algerian consulate, usually with a hotel booking or invitation. Rules vary by passport and change over time, so check with the consulate well before you travel.
▸ Should I visit the Casbah with a guide?
Yes, ideally. The lanes are a maze, many houses are fragile, and a local guide can open doors to restored palaces and explain the history, including the sites linked to the Battle of Algiers.
▸ What languages are spoken in Algiers?
Algerian Arabic is the everyday language and Tamazight is also official. French is widely understood in the capital and used on many signs and menus, and it gets you a long way. English is less common outside business hotels.
▸ Is Algiers safe to visit?
The city centre and main sights are generally calm, with a visible police presence and checkpoints on roads in and out of the capital. Carry your passport, take care with photography near official buildings, and check your own government's current advice, especially for travel outside the city.