# Roman Amphitheatre (Kom el-Dikka), Alexandria > The Roman Amphitheatre is Egypt's only known Roman theatre: 13 marble tiers from the 4th century in the Kom el-Dikka dig opposite Misr Station, with lecture halls, baths and the Villa of the Birds mosaics around it. Foreigners pay 200 EGP, students 100 EGP. Open daily from 9:00, last entry 16:00. Allow 45 minutes. Web page: https://yesgo.io/egypt/alexandria/kom-el-dikka - City: [Alexandria](https://yesgo.io/egypt/alexandria), Egypt - YesGo score: 38/100 (Yes, if nearby) - Time on site: 45 min - Entry: 200 EGP, students 100 EGP - With kids: Fine with kids - Foreign visitors: 200 EGP - Students: 100 EGP, aged 24 or under with a valid student ID - Children: Free under 6 - Hours: Daily from 9:00, last entry 16:00 (15:00 in Ramadan) - Villa of the Birds: Sources disagree on whether it's included — ask at the ticket office - Where to buy: Ticket office at the gate or the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities' official system (Egymonuments) - Payment: Visa and Mastercard accepted - Photos: Free with a phone - Getting there: 15-minute walk from Saad Zaghloul Square, 5 minutes from Misr Station - Address: Omar Toussoun Street, Kom el-Dikka, opposite Misr Station, Alexandria - Coordinates: 31.19461, 29.90410 - Facts checked: 03.11.2026 ## Key facts - **13 tiers** — of white and grey marble seating, with a front row of red granite (source: Wikivoyage; Polish Wikipedia; Ancient Theatre Archive (Whitman College)) - **Only one** — Roman theatre found anywhere in Egypt so far (source: Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities (egymonuments.gov.eg); Polish Wikipedia) - **4th century** — when it was built; around AD 500 it was roofed over with a dome (source: English Wikipedia; Ancient Theatre Archive (Whitman College)) - **1960** — Polish-Egyptian excavations began under Kazimierz Michałowski (source: English and Polish Wikipedia) - **≈ 600–800** — spectators it could seat — estimates differ (source: Wikivoyage; Ancient Theatre Archive (Whitman College)) - **≈ 20** — lecture halls of a late-antique school — at least twenty found (source: English Wikipedia; Rambulatory) - **500–600** — students the halls could hold at once, 20–30 per room (source: English Wikipedia; Rambulatory) - **2017** — the year the dig opened to visitors as an archaeological park (source: English and Polish Wikipedia) - **Villa of the Birds** — 1st–3rd-century house with mosaics of a peacock, pigeon, quail and moorhen (source: English Wikipedia; ARCE; Egyptian Streets; History Hit) - **Blues and Greens** — Greek graffiti on the seats cheering chariot-racing factions (source: English Wikipedia; Ancient Theatre Archive (Whitman College)) > **Last entry is 16:00 (15:00 in Ramadan)** The site closes at 17:00, but the Ministry asks visitors to arrive at least an hour before. It opens every day. The dig sits below street level with almost no shade, so in summer come at 9:00 with water and a hat. ## How much are tickets to the Roman Amphitheatre? Foreign visitors pay **200 EGP**; students aged 24 or under with a valid ID pay 100 EGP, and children under 6 go free. These are the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities' official prices. The ticket covers the whole archaeological park: the theatre, the lecture halls, the baths and the open-air display of finds from the harbour floor. The Villa of the Birds is the grey area. The Ministry lists a single ticket for Kom el-Dikka, but some guidebooks mention an extra fee for the villa. If the mosaics matter to you, ask at the ticket office whether they're included and carry a little cash just in case. You can pay at the gate or buy ahead through the Ministry's official system, Egymonuments, or its Experience Egypt app. Online tickets are dated and non-refundable, but queues here are rare. Officially, Visa and Mastercard are accepted at ticket offices as well as online. Keep small Egyptian pound notes for taxis and tips. Phone photography is free. ## Opening hours and the best time to go The site is open **daily from 9:00**, with last entry at **16:00** and closing at 17:00. During Ramadan, last entry moves to 15:00. There is no weekly closing day, so it works for a Friday when some other sights in the city are shut. Morning is best. The dig lies several metres below the street and has very little shade, so by midday in summer the marble throws back the heat. October to April is far more comfortable for wandering between the ruins. Visitors usually aren't allowed onto the tiers, so the clearest view is from the steps at the top edge of the dig. Plan the theatre first and the villa last, when you're already at the lower end of the site. ## Amphitheatre or theatre? What Kom el-Dikka actually is Despite the name, it isn't an amphitheatre. Amphitheatres are oval arenas built for gladiators; this is a semicircle of **13 marble tiers**, closer to a small odeon for music and speeches. It was built in the 4th century, and around AD 500 it was remodelled with a dome on columns and turned into a roofed hall. Locals and the Ministry still call it the Roman Amphitheatre, so look for that on signs and in ride-hailing apps. The name Kom el-Dikka is usually translated as "mound of rubble" — kom means hill in Arabic. When the mound was cleared for new building, the Roman and Byzantine city turned up beneath it; the theatre was found in the 1960s. A Polish-Egyptian mission has been digging here since 1960, and the site opened as an archaeological park in 2017. ## What to see at Kom el-Dikka - **The theatre** — a horseshoe of white and grey marble with a front row of red granite. Look closely at the seats: Greek graffiti cheers the Blues and the Greens, the chariot-racing factions. Two tall red granite columns stand beside it. - **The lecture halls (auditoria)** along the colonnaded street — around twenty small rooms with stepped benches for 20–30 listeners each, thought to be part of a late-antique school where up to 600 students studied between the 5th and 7th centuries. - **The Roman baths** — a red-brick complex from the 4th century with furnaces, a pool and hot and cold rooms, the main bathhouse of the late Roman city. - **The cistern** — a large above-ground water tank that fed the baths. - **The Villa of the Birds** — a house of the 1st–3rd centuries whose floor has nine framed panels, each with a different bird: peacock, pigeon, quail, moorhen. They're among the few Alexandrian mosaics you can see where they were laid. - **Finds from the Eastern Harbour** — a sphinx, statues and column pieces raised by underwater archaeologists, displayed in the open along the top of the dig. ## How to get to the Roman Amphitheatre 1. From Saad Zaghloul Square on the Corniche, the site is about 850 m due south — a 15-minute walk. Head down pedestrian Nabi Daniel Street, cross Horreya (Fouad) Road and carry on to Shohada Square in front of Misr Station: the dig is behind the fence on the north side of the square. 2. Uber takes 5–10 minutes from the centre depending on traffic; search "Roman Amphitheatre" or "Kom El Dikka". Careem needs an Egyptian phone number. With a street taxi, agree the fare before you get in — meters are rarely used. 3. Coming by train from Cairo? Misr Station is about 300 m away: walk out onto the square and over to the fence opposite, 5 minutes on foot. It's an easy first stop straight off the train. 4. The Raml tram and the city tram network are currently closed for rebuilding, so don't plan around them. 5. Afterwards, the Graeco-Roman Museum is a 10-minute walk north, and the [Alexandria National Museum](https://yesgo.io/egypt/alexandria/alexandria-national-museum) about 20 minutes north-east. ## Is the Roman Amphitheatre worth visiting? Yes, if you're interested in Roman Alexandria — it's the most complete slice of the ancient city still above ground, and it's right in the centre between the station and the sea. The theatre, halls, baths and villa take about **45 minutes**, or an hour if you read every panel. Be realistic about scale: the theatre is small. If you've seen theatres in Turkey, Jordan or Italy, its size won't impress — what's special is that it's the only one in Egypt and that a late-antique campus survives next to it. It isn't worth crossing the city for on its own, but if you're in the centre or arriving by train, it's the best 45 minutes near the station. ## Before you go - [ ] I'll make the last entry at 16:00 (15:00 in Ramadan) - [ ] Card or an online ticket - [ ] Some Egyptian pound notes for a possible villa fee and taxis - [ ] Student ID if I have one - [ ] Water and a hat — the dig has hardly any shade - [ ] Comfortable shoes for the steps down into the site ## Kom el-Dikka vs Pompey's Pillar vs Kom el-Shoqafa | | Kom el-Dikka | Pompey's Pillar | Kom el-Shoqafa | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | What it is | Roman theatre, lecture halls, baths, mosaics | Roman column and Serapeum ruins | Underground Roman necropolis | | Foreign adult ticket | 200 EGP | 200 EGP | 200 EGP | | Last entry | 16:00 | 16:00 | 16:00 | | Where | Centre, opposite Misr Station | Karmouz, ≈ 1.5 km from the theatre | Karmouz, ≈ 2 km from the theatre | | Time needed | ≈ 45 min | ≈ 45 min | ≈ 1 h | Prices and hours are the Ministry's official figures. All three stop letting people in at 16:00, so start early: the catacombs and the pillar are next to each other, and the theatre is on your way back into the centre. ## Historic Alexandria: compare and choose Every historic site in Alexandria rated by YesGo. - [Citadel of Qaitbay](https://yesgo.io/egypt/alexandria/qaitbay-citadel) — YesGo score 45/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · 200 EGP, students 100 EGP - [Bibliotheca Alexandrina](https://yesgo.io/egypt/alexandria/bibliotheca-alexandrina) — YesGo score 45/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · 150 EGP, 300 EGP with museums - [Abu al-Abbas al-Mursi Mosque](https://yesgo.io/egypt/alexandria/abu-al-abbas-mosque) — YesGo score 43/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 20 min · Free, between prayer times - [Catacombs of Kom el-Shoqafa](https://yesgo.io/egypt/alexandria/kom-el-shoqafa) — YesGo score 42/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · 200 EGP, students 100 EGP - [Roman Amphitheatre (Kom el-Dikka)](https://yesgo.io/egypt/alexandria/kom-el-dikka) — YesGo score 38/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 45 min · 200 EGP, students 100 EGP - [Pompey's Pillar](https://yesgo.io/egypt/alexandria/pompeys-pillar) — YesGo score 37/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 45 min · 200 EGP, students 100 EGP - [Alexandria National Museum](https://yesgo.io/egypt/alexandria/alexandria-national-museum) — YesGo score 36/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 15 min · 220 EGP, students 110 EGP - [Royal Jewelry Museum](https://yesgo.io/egypt/alexandria/royal-jewelry-museum) — YesGo score 29/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 15 min · 220 EGP, students 110 - [Montaza Palace and Gardens](https://yesgo.io/egypt/alexandria/montaza-palace) — YesGo score 22/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · ≈ 50 EGP, gardens ## Roman Alexandria in a day Catacombs and the pillar in Karmouz in the morning, then the theatre by the station, the National Museum and the library on the seafront. Add it to your route and YesGo works out the timing and walks. 1. [Catacombs of Kom el-Shoqafa](https://yesgo.io/egypt/alexandria/kom-el-shoqafa) — YesGo score 42/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · 200 EGP, students 100 EGP 2. [Pompey's Pillar](https://yesgo.io/egypt/alexandria/pompeys-pillar) — YesGo score 37/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 45 min · 200 EGP, students 100 EGP 3. [Roman Amphitheatre (Kom el-Dikka)](https://yesgo.io/egypt/alexandria/kom-el-dikka) — YesGo score 38/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 45 min · 200 EGP, students 100 EGP 4. [Alexandria National Museum](https://yesgo.io/egypt/alexandria/alexandria-national-museum) — YesGo score 36/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 15 min · 220 EGP, students 110 EGP 5. [Bibliotheca Alexandrina](https://yesgo.io/egypt/alexandria/bibliotheca-alexandrina) — YesGo score 45/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · 150 EGP, 300 EGP with museums ## Don't confuse Kom el-Dikka is not Kom el-Shoqafa: they're separate digs about 2 km apart, and Kom el-Shoqafa is an underground catacomb. Nor is this an arena like the Colosseum, Pula or El Jem — Alexandria's "amphitheatre" is a small semicircular theatre, not a gladiator ring. ## Tips - Arriving by train from Cairo? Start here — the dig is opposite Misr Station, a 5-minute walk. - For the full view of the 13 tiers and the columns in one frame, shoot from the steps at the top edge of the dig. - Look for Greek letters scratched into the seats — 6th-century graffiti from chariot-racing fans. - Ask about the Villa of the Birds when you buy your main ticket — walking back to the gate later is a hassle. - Students aged 24 or under pay half with a valid ID — bring it. - Finish by the sea: the [Corniche](https://yesgo.io/egypt/alexandria/alexandria-corniche) is about 15 minutes' walk north through the centre. ## Questions ### How much is the ticket to the Roman Amphitheatre in Alexandria? 200 EGP for foreign adults and 100 EGP for students aged 24 or under with ID; children under 6 go free. These are the official Ministry prices. ### What are the Roman Amphitheatre opening hours? Daily from 9:00, last entry 16:00, closing at 17:00. During Ramadan the last entry is 15:00. There's no weekly closing day. ### How do I get to the Roman Amphitheatre? Walk 15 minutes from Saad Zaghloul Square down Nabi Daniel Street, or 5 minutes from Misr Station. Uber from the centre takes 5–10 minutes. ### Is the Roman Amphitheatre in Alexandria worth visiting? Yes if you're in the centre or arriving by train — it's Egypt's only Roman theatre, five minutes from the station. It's small, so don't cross the city just for it. ### How long do you need at Kom el-Dikka? About 45 minutes for the theatre, lecture halls, baths and villa; an hour if you read every panel. ### Is the Villa of the Birds included in the ticket? The Ministry lists one ticket for the whole site, but some guidebooks mention an extra fee for the villa. Check at the ticket office and carry a little cash. ### Is it an amphitheatre or a theatre? A theatre — a semicircle of 13 tiers, not an oval arena. It was roofed with a dome around AD 500. "Amphitheatre" is simply the traditional name. ### Can I pay by card? Officially, yes — Visa and Mastercard are accepted at ticket offices and online. Keep cash for taxis and tips. ### What else is near the Roman Amphitheatre? The Graeco-Roman Museum is a 10-minute walk, the Alexandria National Museum about 20 minutes, and Pompey's Pillar a short taxi ride south-west. ## How we checked Prices, hours and rules (student age limit, free entry under 6, phone photography) come from the theatre's page in the Ministry's official ticketing system; the 17:00 closing from the Ministry's site; card payment from the ticketing system's FAQ. History was checked against English and Polish Wikipedia, Wikivoyage and the Ancient Theatre Archive. Seating capacity differs between sources (600 to 800), so we give the range; the number of lecture halls is "at least twenty" in one source and 22 in another. A separate Villa of the Birds ticket isn't listed by the Ministry; History Hit says villa tickets are sold at the same office, and a Frommer's search snippet mentions an extra ticket (the page blocks bots, so we didn't open it) — marked as checking. Wikivoyage's 150 EGP price is out of date. Walking and taxi times are estimates from OpenStreetMap and Wikidata coordinates and are marked as checking. ## Sources - Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, official ticketing system (Egymonuments): Ancient Roman Theatre — prices, hours and rules - Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, egymonuments.gov.eg: Kom El-Dikka — site components, closing at 17:00 - Egymonuments: Serapeum of Alexandria and Kom el-Shoqafa Catacombs — prices and hours for comparison (as checked by YesGo authors) - English Wikipedia: Kom El Deka; Polish Wikipedia: Kom el-Dikka; Wikidata Q12236559 - Wikivoyage: Alexandria — Kom el-Dikka (unofficial) - Ancient Theatre Archive, Whitman College — commentary on the Alexandria theatre - ARCE — The Villa of the Birds - History Hit — Villa of the Birds; Egyptian Streets — article on the Villa of the Birds - Rambulatory — Ancient Alexandria: Kom el Dikka and the Roman amphitheater - OpenStreetMap — address, Misr Station and distances --- This is the Markdown version of a YesGo page for AI assistants. 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