El Quseir, Historical Town

• 16 / 5 / 2023

Al Qusayr, Egypt

Al-Qusayr is a city and port in the Red Sea Governorate, Egypt. Its ancient name is Yukos Liman (Greek for white port, Λευκός Λιμήν). Al-Qusayr has a long history spanning more than 5000 years, and from there Queen Hatshepsut began her expedition to Punt.

In the sixteenth century, it was ruled by Sultan Selim I, while it still stands in the form of a statue in the heart of the city, and the short is of strategic importance for war, and today it is considered a quiet tourist resort with its sandy beaches, clear waters, coral reefs, and water sports.

Al Qusayr is 138 kilometers south of Hurghada, 139 kilometers north of Marsa Alam, and 73 kilometers north of Marsa Alam International Airport. It had a population of around 20,000 in 1986, and it now has a population of around 50,000.

The name

It is said that the city was given the name "Al Qusayr" because it is the shortest distance between Upper Egypt and the Red Sea, and it was previously the only road connecting them.

Geography

Al Qusayr Port is located 78 km south of Safaga Port, and it is a small bay open to its southeast.

There are no barriers or industrial gates in the port of Qusayr, it is an open port, and there are 4 buoys in the port, all of which are not lit. There are also 2 hooks on the rocky bottom in front of the berth for the rib.

Tourism

Al-Qusayr was a gathering place for Muslim pilgrims from Egypt, the Maghreb, and Andalusia to spend the Hajj in the Hijaz. There is also a group of Christian and Islamic monuments in the city belonging to different eras, for example, there is a castle built in 1799 AD [2],

as well as the tomb of Sheikh Abi Al-Hassan Al-Shazly, which was established in 1892 AD during the reign of Abbas Hilmi II.

Al Quseir history

Al Qusayr has Coptic and Roman ruins in the old Qusayr area in the north at Km 8, and there are also Islamic monuments, which are the castle, as well as some buildings in the center of the country.

Al Qusayr connects the Nile Valley by a 180 km long road that passes through the Hammamet Valley and reaches the city of Qaft in Qena Governorate. In this valley, pharaonic ruins dating back to the era of Queen Hatshepsut, and a gold mine in Wadi Al-Faoukhir.