Is Port Said worth visiting?

Yes, if you enjoy history, architecture and seafood. It has no pharaonic temples, but its colonial buildings, canal views and relaxed pace make it a rewarding day or overnight trip, especially for travelers who have already seen Cairo and Luxor.

Can you see ships passing through the Suez Canal in Port Said?

Yes. The canal entrance is right beside the city, and ships pass close to the Corniche and the Port Fouad ferry. Convoys pass through the canal every day, so there is usually something to watch.

Is Port Said in Africa or Asia?

Port Said itself is on the African side of the canal. Port Fouad, directly across the water, is on the Asian side, on the edge of the Sinai Peninsula, so the free ferry carries you between two continents in about 10 minutes.

What is Port Said famous for?

It is famous for the Suez Canal, its role in the 1956 Suez Crisis, its fresh seafood and its colonial architecture. Egyptians also remember it as the duty-free shopping city of the 1970s and 1980s and for its passionate football club, Al Masry.

Fun Things to Do in Port Said & Its Best Tourist Attractions

Best Tourist Attractions & Things to Do in Lovely Port Said

11 min read | Published: Nov 01, 2026 | Updated: Nov 01, 2026 | TRIPS IN EGYPT

Every few minutes, a tanker or container ship glides past the seafront of Port Said on its way between the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. The city was born with the Suez Canal, and it still watches the world's traffic slide by its balconies. Few places in Egypt feel so tied to a single moment in history, and so little visited by foreign travelers.

This guide covers the best things to do in Port Said, from its canal-front landmarks and museums to the ferry to Port Fouad, the beaches and the fish market. It also explains how to get there, how long to stay and which tours reach Cairo from the cruise port. Here are all things you need to know about Port Said:

Port Said at a Glance: A City Born With the Suez Canal

Port Said City Born With the Suez Canal - Trips in Egypt.webp

Port Said was founded on 25 April 1859, when Ferdinand de Lesseps broke ground on the canal at this narrow strip of sand between the Mediterranean and Lake Manzala. It took its name from Said Pasha, the ruler of Egypt who granted the canal concession. Ten years later, on 17 November 1869, the canal opened, and the town quickly became a meeting point of sailors, traders and travelers from across Europe and Asia.

Greek, Italian, French and British communities built churches, villas and arcaded shops, and Rudyard Kipling reportedly wrote that if you want to find someone who has been traveling, you should sit at either London's docks or Port Said. The 20th century was harder. The city was badly damaged in the Suez Crisis of 1956 and again in the wars of 1967 and 1973.

Year	Event
1859	Port Said is founded as canal works begin
1869	The Suez Canal opens and the lighthouse is completed
1895	The Suez Canal Authority Building is finished
1926	Port Fouad is founded across the canal
1956	The Suez Crisis, and the withdrawal of British and French forces on 23 December
1976	Port Said is declared a duty-free zone

That date of 23 December is still celebrated as the city's National Day. Today, Port Said has more than half a million people, and its economy still runs on the canal, fishing and trade.

Top Landmarks Along the Canal and the Corniche

The easiest way to see Port Said is on foot along the canal and the seafront, where most of its colonial-era landmarks stand within a few blocks of each other.

Port Said Lighthouse. Finished in 1869, just before the canal's opening, this octagonal tower stands about 56 m tall. The French engineer François Coignet built it from reinforced concrete, an early use of the material on such a large structure. It no longer guides ships and is fenced off, but you can see it clearly from the Corniche.

The De Lesseps statue base. A bronze statue of Ferdinand de Lesseps stood at the canal entrance from 1899, marking 30 years since the opening. After the 1956 war, crowds pulled it down, and the statue was later moved to a shipyard in Port Fouad. Only the empty pedestal remains, and whether to return the statue is still debated in the city.

The Suez Canal Authority Building. Built in 1895 with three green domes, this is the city's most photographed landmark. It received guests of the Khedive, served as a British headquarters in World War I, and saw the Egyptian flag raised after Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the canal in 1956. It is still used by the canal authority, so you can admire it only from outside.

Simon Arzt and Casa d'Italia. The Simon Arzt building, opened in the 1920s, is often called Egypt's first department store, with two galleries under a glass roof that once sold goods from ships passing through the canal. Nearby, the Casa d'Italia, inaugurated in 1938, was the community center of the city's Italian residents.

The Corniche and Gomhoreya Street. The seafront promenade runs for several kilometers and is busiest in the evening. A few streets inland, Gomhoreya Street is the old heart of the city, with wooden balconies, cafes, bookshops and Greek and Italian churches. Look out for the colorful 19th-century houses built for canal staff, many still lived in today.

Museums, Mosques and Churches of Port Said

Port Said's museums tell the story of the city's resistance in the 20th century more than its ancient past.

The Port Said Military Museum, opened in 1964 on 23rd of July Street, covers the 1956 Suez Crisis and the wars of 1967 and 1973, with weapons, maps, dioramas and tanks displayed in the garden. The Port Said National Museum, opposite the canal near the city center, has held a collection of about 9,000 objects from the pharaonic to the Islamic periods. Its opening status has changed over the years, so check before you go.

Beneath the Martyrs' Obelisk, a pharaonic-style memorial on 23rd of July Street, the Museum of Modern Art shows works by Egyptian artists about the city's modern history. Small and quiet, it makes a good stop between landmarks.

Port Said also reflects its mixed past through its places of worship. Among them are the Coptic Church of the Virgin Mary, the Roman Catholic Saint Eugenie's Church, named after Empress Eugenie of France, the guest of honor at the canal's opening, and a Greek Orthodox church that recalls the large Greek community of the past. Among the mosques, Al Abbasi Mosque is one of the city's older and best-known mosques. Our pages on Coptic sites in Egypt and Islamic sites in Egypt cover the country's most important churches and mosques.

Cross the Canal to Port Fouad

One of the simplest pleasures in Port Said is the ferry ride across the canal to Port Fouad. The ferries are free, run all day and take about 10 minutes, carrying cars, bicycles and passengers in one busy crossing. From the deck, you get a close view of the Suez Canal Authority Building and the ships waiting their turn to enter the canal.

Port Fouad was founded in 1926 and named after King Fuad I. It sits on the Asian side of the canal, at the edge of the Sinai Peninsula, so the short ferry trip technically takes you from Africa to Asia. The town was planned for canal engineers and staff, and its quiet streets of red-roofed villas and gardens feel very different from busy Port Said. Some villas still house canal employees, while others are being replaced by apartment blocks.

Near the ferry landing, the white Al Salam Mosque, built in 1906 with two tall minarets, is Port Fouad's best-known landmark. At the far end of town, the beaches are calmer and less crowded than those of Port Said. Back on the western side of Port Said, the Ashtoum El Gamil protected area, between Lake Manzala and the sea, draws migrating birds in winter.

Beaches, Seafood and Shopping in Port Said

Port Said is a fishing city first, and food is one of the best reasons to visit.

The fish market. Arrive in the morning, when the catch from the Mediterranean, the canal and Lake Manzala is laid out on ice. You will find shrimp, squid, crab, bolti (tilapia) and barbouni (red mullet). Locals buy their fish, then take it to a nearby restaurant to be grilled or fried for a small fee.

Seafood restaurants. El Borg is the city's best-known fish restaurant, where you choose your catch at the counter. Try sayadeya, the rice cooked with fish and caramelized onions that is a staple of Egypt's coastal cities, or grilled bolti with tahini and salad. Our guide to Egyptian food explains other dishes worth trying.

Cassata ice cream. The Italian community left behind a taste for cassata, a Sicilian ice cream with candied fruit and nuts. Several old shops downtown still serve it, and it is the sweet that locals tell every visitor to try.

The beaches. Port Said's beaches line the Mediterranean, with paid beach clubs offering umbrellas and chairs for a small fee. The most unusual view is from the area where the canal meets the sea, where huge ships pass close to the shore. The beaches are busiest from June to September, when Egyptian families arrive for summer holidays.

Shopping. Port Said was declared a duty-free zone in 1976, and for decades Egyptians came here for imported clothes, electronics and household goods. The duty-free status officially ended in 2002, but the old commercial streets downtown are still lively.

How to Get to Port Said and How Long to Stay

Port Said lies about 220 km northeast of Cairo. By road, the trip takes about three hours via the Ismailia desert road. Trains leave daily from Cairo's Ramses Station and take about four hours, while buses from Cairo run several times a day. Port Said also has a small airport about 6 km from downtown, though it has few scheduled flights.

When to visit. The best months are October to May. Port Said has a mild Mediterranean climate, with winter highs around 18 to 20°C and summer highs around 30°C, cooled by a sea breeze. If you are visiting several regions, our list of Egypt tourist attractions helps you choose, and our guide to the best time to visit Egypt compares the regions.

How long to stay. One full day covers the main landmarks, the ferry and a seafood lunch. Stay overnight if you want to see the Corniche in the evening and visit the fish market at its busiest in the morning. Port Said also combines well with Alexandria, about four to five hours west along the coast, and our list of Alexandria tourist attractions will help you plan that leg.

Arriving by cruise ship. Port Said's cruise terminal is one of Egypt's main Mediterranean ports of call, and many passengers use it to reach the pyramids. Our Pyramids day tour from Port Said from USD 205 takes you to the Giza Pyramids and back on the same day, with time for the Grand Egyptian Museum on longer port calls. The tour to the pyramids and Step Pyramid from Port Said from USD 180 adds Saqqara.

With an overnight stop, our 2-day tour to Cairo and Alexandria from Port Said from USD 315 covers both cities, including the Egyptian Museum, Khan El Khalili and Alexandria's Qaitbay Citadel, and the 2-day Cairo tour with drop-off in Alexandria from USD 295 suits ships that leave from Alexandria. For the temples, the 2-day trip to Luxor and Cairo from Port Said from USD 735 flies you south to Luxor. See all our Port Said shore excursions and wider Egypt shore excursions for more options.

Discover the Unique Allure of Port Said With Trips In Egypt

Port Said is where Egypt's modern story began, a city that rose from the sand with the canal and still watches the ships of the world sail past its door. Spend a day here, and you will see a side of Egypt that most visitors never find. Discover our Egypt tour packages to combine Port Said with Cairo, Alexandria and the Nile, or let us plan a tailor-made tour around your cruise dates. Book us now or contact our operation department today.