Algiers

Known for centuries as El-Bahdja (The Joyous) and Alger la Blanche (Algiers the White), Algeria's capital rises in a dramatic natural amphitheatre from the turquoise curve of the Bay of Algiers. Along the water's edge, 19th-century limestone arcades and Haussmannian balconies face the Mediterranean; directly above them climbs the triangular labyrinth of the UNESCO-listed Casbah, while the southern and northern ridges are crowned by the Martyrs' Memorial above the Jardin d'Essai du Hamma and the clifftop basilica of Notre-Dame d'Afrique.

Because Algeria sees only a fraction of the visitor numbers of its neighbours, exploring Algiers feels refreshingly uncommercialised and genuine. Start with our before-you-go briefing and top things to do in Algiers.

Houari Boumediene International Airport (ALG) lies 17 kilometres east of central Algiers and connects to Gare de l'Agha in the city centre via a modern SNTF rail link as well as taxis and the local Yassir ride-hailing app. Once in town, underground Metro Line 1 links Place des Martyrs (at the foot of the Casbah) with the Grande Poste and the Jardin d'Essai, while aerial cable cars climb straight up the steep hills. See how to get to Algiers and around.

Staying in Alger Centre along Rue Didouche Mourad or near the Grande Poste puts cafes, bookshops and Metro stations right outside your door, while the hillside district of Hamma and El Madania offers five-star garden views over the bay and upscale Hydra provides quiet diplomatic streets. Compare bases in where to stay in Algiers.

Descend through the cedar-supported alleys and tiled Ottoman mansions of the Casbah to Ketchaoua Mosque and Bastion 23, admire the Neo-Moorish plasterwork of the Grande Poste and ride the cable car up to Notre-Dame d'Afrique, and pair the giant dragon trees of the Jardin d'Essai du Hamma with the Fine Arts Museum and Maqam Echahid. Full list in things to do in Algiers.

Algiers is proud of its distinct Algérois culinary repertoire: silky hand-rolled rechta noodles steamed over a white chicken, chickpea and turnip broth perfumed with cinnamon and orange-blossom water, rich chorba frik green-wheat soup, crisp cigar-shaped bourek pastries, hot street slices of chickpea garantita, and fresh Mediterranean red mullet and sardines at the port of El Djamila. Read more in our gardens and food overview.

Built over the Phoenician and Roman trading post of Icosium and refounded in 944 AD by Buluggin ibn Ziri as El-Djazair (The Islands, named after four rocky islets off the harbour), the city became a formidable Mediterranean naval Regency under Ottoman corsair admirals (the Barbarossa brothers and later the Deys) before 132 years of French rule and the 1954 to 1962 War of Independence forged modern Algeria.