The hook
A dazzling white city tumbling down to the Mediterranean, crowned by the Casbah, a steep, ancient labyrinth of Ottoman-era lanes, palaces, and mosques that has witnessed pirates, empires, and a revolution.
01Why it's worth it
Algiers, "Alger la Blanche" (Algiers the White) for its whitewashed buildings rising in tiers above the bay, is a grand, atmospheric, and little-visited Mediterranean capital. Its historic soul is the Casbah, a UNESCO-listed old town that spills down a steep hillside in a dense, mysterious maze of narrow stepped alleys, hidden courtyards, Ottoman palaces, and old mosques, a place layered with history: a corsair stronghold, an Ottoman citadel, and, famously, the warren where the Algerian resistance fought during the war of independence, immortalised in the film "The Battle of Algiers." Wandering it (ideally with a guide, as it is easy to get lost and it is a living, sometimes rundown neighbourhood) is an evocative journey through centuries. The wider city adds grand French-colonial boulevards, the ornate Notre-Dame d'Afrique basilica, and monuments, while along the coast lie superb Roman ruins at Tipaza, overlooking the sea. Algeria remains well off the tourist track, which lends Algiers a genuine, undiscovered feel for the curious traveller.
02How to experience it
Explore the Casbah with a local guide for the Ottoman palaces, mosques, and independence-war history, and see the French-colonial city and Notre-Dame d'Afrique. Take a day trip along the coast to the Roman ruins of Tipaza. Spring and autumn are kindest, and the city rewards curiosity in a country few visit.