Quick answer
Abu Qir Bay, about 25 km east of central Alexandria, is where Nelson destroyed Napoleon’s fleet at the Battle of the Nile in 1798, and where the ancient cities of Heracleion (Thonis) and Canopus lie under the sea. There is no underwater site ordinary tourists can visit, but the finds are in museums and the fishing town of Abu Qir is Alexandria’s favourite place for a seafood lunch.
What happened at the Battle of the Nile?
On the evening of 1 August 1798 a British fleet under Rear-Admiral Horatio Nelson found the French fleet that had carried Napoleon to Egypt anchored in Abu Qir Bay, attacked at once and by the next morning had captured or destroyed almost all of its ships of the line. Some British ships slipped between the French line and the shallows, so the French were attacked from both sides.
Around 10pm the French flagship L'Orient caught fire and exploded, a blast seen and heard far along the coast; Admiral Brueys was already dead. The defeat left Napoleon's army stranded in Egypt. Abu Qir saw two more battles: Napoleon routed an Ottoman landing here in July 1799, and a British army came ashore in March 1801 to end the French occupation. Our guide to Napoleon in Egypt tells the whole campaign.
What are the sunken cities of Heracleion and Canopus?
Heracleion, known to the Egyptians as Thonis, was the main customs port at the Canopic mouth of the Nile before Alexandria rose; Canopus, nearby, was a famous religious and pleasure town. Both slid beneath the sea gradually, through subsidence, earthquakes and the liquefaction of the Delta's clay, and by around the 8th century AD they had disappeared.
From the 1990s, underwater surveys led by the French archaeologist Franck Goddio, working with Egypt's antiquities authorities, located and mapped both sites several kilometres offshore, at depths of roughly 5–10 metres. Divers have raised colossal red granite statues of a king, a queen and the Nile god Hapy, temple stelae, sphinxes, ritual vessels, gold coins and the wrecks of dozens of ancient ships. Wrecks from Nelson's battle and the graves of British sailors on Nelson's Island in the bay have been studied too.
Can you dive or snorkel the sunken cities?
No: at the time of writing the Abu Qir archaeological zones are protected and not open to ordinary tourists or recreational divers. The sites lie well offshore in murky water, and excavation is by permit only.
A long-proposed underwater museum for Alexandria has been discussed for years but, at the time of writing, has not opened; check before you go. Some Alexandria dive centres run trips to submerged ruins in the Eastern Harbour near the Citadel of Qaitbay, where conditions and rules vary, so ask about permits and visibility.
Where can you see the finds?
In museums: the Alexandria National Museum has a section of underwater finds, and major pieces from Heracleion and Canopus have gone to Egypt's national collections. Some of the most famous objects, including the colossal statues, toured international exhibitions in the 2010s, so displays move; check which museum holds the pieces you want to see before you travel.
The Grand Egyptian Museum and the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir also hold Late Period and Ptolemaic sculpture that helps put the sunken cities in context. Our Ptolemaic Egypt guide explains the world they belonged to.
Visiting Abu Qir today: seafood and the waterfront
Abu Qir is a working fishing town, and most visitors come for lunch: choose your fish, prawns or calamari from the display, pay by weight and have it grilled or fried. Long-running restaurants, such as the Greek-founded Zephyrion on the waterfront, have been serving Alexandrians for generations. Expect sea bream, sea bass, red mullet and crab, with rice, salads and tahini; see our guide to seafood in Egypt.
Abu Qir is about 30–45 minutes by car from central Alexandria, 10–15 minutes beyond Montaza Palace, so the two pair well. It also lies on the road east to Rashid. A suburban train runs from central Alexandria, but it is slow and crowded; a car is easier. From the corniche you look out over the bay where the battle was fought, though nothing of it is visible; your guide can point out the direction of the French line and Nelson's Island.
How to fit Abu Qir into an Alexandria stay
Treat it as an easy half-day: Montaza in the late morning, a long seafood lunch at Abu Qir, then the drive back along the corniche at sunset. If you are seeing the finds from the sunken cities, visit the Alexandria National Museum the same morning or the day before, so the bay means more when you look out over it.
History enthusiasts can extend it into a full day by continuing east to Rashid, about an hour further on, where the French found the Rosetta Stone a year after the battle. Lunch is the main event, so book ahead on Fridays and in summer, when Alexandrian families fill the restaurants; weekdays outside July and August are calmer. Our guide to an Alexandria day trip from Cairo explains why Abu Qir rarely fits into a single day from the capital.
Abu Qir Bay: FAQs
Can tourists visit Heracleion?
Not at the time of writing. The sunken city lies offshore in a protected archaeological zone with no public dives. You can see finds in museums such as the Alexandria National Museum.
Where is Abu Qir Bay?
On the Mediterranean about 25 km east of central Alexandria, past Montaza, roughly 30–45 minutes by car.
Why is it called the Battle of the Nile if it was at sea?
The bay lies near the old Canopic mouth of the Nile, and the British named the victory after the river. The French call it the Battle of Aboukir.
Is Abu Qir good for seafood?
Yes. It is Alexandria’s best-known seafood town, with restaurants where you choose fish by weight and have it grilled or fried.
Is there anything from the Battle of the Nile to see?
Not on land in Abu Qir itself. Archaeologists have studied wrecks in the bay, and objects recovered from the battle and the sunken cities appear in museums and exhibitions from time to time.