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Alexandria · Central and southwestern Alexandria
Three Roman-era sites in Alexandria: catacombs that mix Egyptian, Greek and Roman art, the 27-meter column misnamed Pompey's Pillar, and the theater at Kom el-Dikka.
Alexandria's main Roman-era remains are three sites a few minutes' drive apart: the Catacombs of Kom El Shoqafa, a burial complex cut into the rock; Pompey's Pillar, a column beside the ruins of the Serapeum temple; and Kom el-Dikka, an open-air museum whose centerpiece is the Roman Theater. Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities calls the theater the only example of its kind in Egypt.
The sites date from the 2nd to the 6th centuries AD, when Alexandria was a Roman and then Byzantine city. The catacombs in particular mix Egyptian, Greek and Roman art: there the Egyptian god Anubis wears the dress of a Roman legionary. Egypt put the city's ancient remains on its UNESCO Tentative List in 2003.
A spiral staircase leads down into a tomb cut 20 m deep on three levels, with a rotunda, a banquet hall (triclinium) for meals in honor of the dead, and galleries of burial niches. Reliefs mix Egyptian and Greek beliefs: guarding the chapel, Anubis wears a Roman soldier's dress and a serpent's tail.
A single column about 88 feet (27 meters) high, one of the few classical monuments still standing in Alexandria. Two Ptolemaic sphinxes found nearby stand beside it, and a rock-cut tunnel with niches runs under the ruins of the Serapeum.
Tiered marble seats and mosaic-lined galleries, ringed by a double colonnade of Aswan granite and marble from Anatolia. Around it are the Villa of the Birds, with bird mosaics on its floors, the Roman baths and a row of lecture halls.
| Summer and winter (all three sites) | 9:00 am · last entry 4:00 pm |
|---|---|
| Ramadan (all three sites) | 9:00 am · last entry 3:00 pm |
For the Roman Theater, the Ministry's monuments website gives 9:00 am to 5:00 pm daily.
Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities ticketing portal, checked August 2026
| Adult | Student | |
| Catacombs of Kom El Shoqafa | EGP 200 | EGP 100 |
| Pompey's Pillar (Serapeum) | EGP 200 | EGP 100 |
| Roman Theater (Kom el-Dikka) | EGP 200 | EGP 100 |
Prices in Egyptian pounds, as of August 2026
| From your Alexandria hotel to the Catacombs | 3.8 km · about 6 min |
|---|
Without traffic, from our tours' map routing
Our Alexandria day tour starts at the Catacombs, then drives 2.7 km, about 5 min, to the Roman Theater. Pompey's Pillar, near the Catacombs, comes after the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, 4.9 km away. Entrance fees to all the sites on the program are included.
The coolest months are December to February.
World Meteorological Organization climate normals (monthly averages, not forecasts)
They date from the end of the 1st or the beginning of the 2nd century AD and were used until the 4th century AD. Britannica dates them to the reign of Hadrian, in the 2nd century.
No. The column was dedicated to the Roman emperor Diocletian around 297 AD; the name is a long-standing mistake.
About 88 feet (27 meters), per Encyclopaedia Britannica.
Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities describes it as the only example of its kind in Egypt. It was uncovered in 1959 at Kom el-Dikka.
Each of the three sites costs EGP 200 for foreign adults and EGP 100 for foreign students, as of August 2026. On our Alexandria day tour the entrance fees are included.
All three open at 9:00 am, with last entry at 4:00 pm, or 3:00 pm in Ramadan, per the Ministry's ticketing portal.
Sources: Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities; Encyclopaedia Britannica; UNESCO World Heritage Centre; UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office; World Meteorological Organization.
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