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The best things to do in Constantine are walking the bridges over the Rhumel gorge, touring the Palace of Ahmed Bey and seeing the Numidian and Roman finds in the Cirta museum. We'd give the city two full days: one for the bridges and the old town, one for the museums, the Emir Abdelkader Mosque and the view from the Monument aux Morts.

Constantine was Cirta, capital of Massinissa's Numidian kingdom in the 2nd century BC, and later the seat of an Ottoman bey until the French took it in 1837. Today it is Algeria's third-largest city after Algiers and Oran (464,219 people at the 2008 census). The old town sits on a rock plateau about 690 m up, with the gorge on its north and east sides, which is why most routes into it cross a bridge and why it's called the City of Bridges.

It isn't a polished tourist city. English is rarely spoken (French helps a lot), tourist services are thin, and parts of the old medina are run-down. If that doesn't put you off, it's one of the most rewarding stops in northern Algeria.

Below are the sights we'd put first, followed by food, getting around, where to stay and when to go. Planning the rest of your trip? Our Algeria travel guide takes it from there.

A short history of Constantine

As Cirta, the city was the capital of Numidia under Massinissa (about 238 to 148 BC). In AD 311 it was destroyed during a war between rival Roman emperors, and Constantine the Great had it rebuilt in 313 under his own name.

Under the Ottomans it was the seat of the bey of eastern Algeria, and Salah Bey rebuilt much of it in the late 18th century. The last bey, Hadj Ahmed, held off a French assault in 1836, but the city fell on 13 October 1837. In 2015 the Arab League's cultural organization (ALECSO) named Constantine Arab Capital of Culture, and part of the old town was restored for the occasion.

Plane, train, bus or car from Algiers

Historical landmarks in Constantine

Palace of Ahmed Bey

Hadj Ahmed Bey, the last Ottoman bey of Constantine, built this palace between 1825 and 1835. He lived in it for only two years: his forces beat off a first French assault in 1836, but the city fell in 1837.

The palace is built around courtyards and two gardens, one of palm trees and one of orange trees, framed by arcades on marble columns. The marble came from Italy, and the cedar for the woodwork from the Aurès and Kabylie.

About 47,000 glazed tiles of 167 different types line the walls up to mid-height, brought from Tunisia, Italy, Marseille, Syria and Holland. The long frescoes show the cities on Ahmed Bey's pilgrimage route to Mecca, among them Tunis, Alexandria and Cairo.

Restored from 1982 and opened to the public in 2009, the palace is now a museum (since 2010 the national museum of arts and traditional cultural expressions), so you can walk through the rooms and courtyards. Allow about an hour.

It's open roughly 9:00 to 17:00, and most listings give Friday as the closing day, so check locally before you go. Entry costs a few hundred dinars at most: Algeria's national museums charge 200 to 300 DZD, about €1.30 to €2 at the official rate (autumn 2026).

Cirta National Museum

The Cirta National Museum covers the region from prehistory through the Numidian, Roman and Islamic periods. The city's archaeological society started the collection in 1852, and the present building opened in 1930 as the Musée Gustave Mercier. It took the name Cirta in 1975.

It holds more than 17,000 objects, plus a fine-arts section of around 450 paintings.

The archaeology rooms are the reason to go. They hold finds from the Numidian kingdom whose capital this was, along with Roman sculpture and mosaics from Constantine and the surrounding region.

Look for the bronze winged Victory of Constantine. The statue on top of the Monument aux Morts is modeled on it.

Opening hours vary through the week (Sunday to Thursday they are listed as about 8:30 to 16:30), and entry is in the usual 200 to 300 DZD range for national museums.

Monument aux Morts and the view over the gorge

The Monument aux Morts stands on Sidi M'Cid hill, at about 695 m above sea level, looking down on the gorge, the Sidi M'Cid bridge and the old town.

The French inaugurated it on 7 May 1930, during the centenary of French rule. The 21 m arch honors more than 800 men from Constantine, Muslims, Christians and Jews, who died in World War I. Their names are on bronze plaques.

The arch copies the Roman Arch of Trajan at Timgad, and the winged Victory on top is a copy of the bronze Victory in the Cirta museum.

It's an open-air site with no ticket. On foot, the easiest approach from the old town is across the Sidi M'Cid bridge.

Constantine's bridges

The Rhumel river runs through a deep gorge right below the old town, and the bridges are the city's main sight. You can walk all four historic ones below in half a day.

The newest crossing is the Salah Bey viaduct, a cable-stayed bridge about 1.1 km long, opened in July 2014. It carries traffic, so it's better seen than walked.

Sidi M'Cid Bridge, the highest in Constantine

The Sidi M'Cid suspension bridge is the highest in the city: its deck hangs 175 m above the Rhumel.

It opened in 1912 and was designed by the French engineer Ferdinand Arnodin, with a main span of 164 m.

It links the Kasbah end of the old town with Sidi M'Cid hill, where the city's main hospital and the Monument aux Morts stand.

The walk across takes a few minutes. If you don't like heights, look at it from the Monument aux Morts instead.

Bab El Kantara Bridge

Bab El Kantara is the oldest crossing point on the gorge. The Romans built here first, and in 1792 Salah Bey had a stone bridge of four arches put up on the same spot.

That bridge collapsed in 1857. The French replaced it between 1860 and 1863 with today's cast-iron arch, 128 m long and about 125 m above the river.

It still carries road traffic between the old town and the east bank of the gorge.

Stroll across Mellah Slimane Bridge

This footbridge, formerly the Passerelle Perrégaux, opened in 1925. It is 125 m long but only 2.4 m wide, and it links the train station area with the city center.

It's for pedestrians only, and the narrow deck gives you a clear view straight down into the gorge and across to the medina.

Like Sidi M'Cid, it was designed by Ferdinand Arnodin.

Sidi Rached Bridge

The Sidi Rached viaduct is 447 m long with 27 arches. The largest arch spans 70 m over the gorge, and the deck stands more than 100 m above the river. It was built between 1908 and 1912, finished to a design by the French engineer Paul Séjourné, and was one of the largest stone bridges of its day.

It carries the main road between the city center and the train station.

Below the bridges runs the Chemin des Touristes, a 2.5 km path with tunnels, stairs and footbridges cut into the gorge walls between 1843 and 1895. It has been closed to the public since 1958. A rehabilitation project was relaunched in late 2024, but no reopening date had been announced when we checked in October 2026, so don't book a tour that promises it.

Walking the old town: Souika and the souks

Souika is the old medina on the rock, on the gorge side of the city. Its main street is rue Mellah Slimane, the former rue Perrégaux. Below it, lower Souika runs down toward the ravine in a tangle of stepped lanes; above it, the upper quarter reaches rue Larbi Ben M'hidi.

Copper and brass were Constantine's signature crafts, and the coppersmiths (dinandiers) once filled whole streets around Souika. Only a few workshops are left, but you can still find trays, pots and coffee sets for sale on rue Mellah Slimane.

Many houses in lower Souika are in poor repair, and the 2015 restoration covered only part of the quarter. Go in the morning, when the shops are open and the lanes are busy, and skip Friday, when most stay shut until after the midday prayer. A local guide is worth it here: the lanes double back on themselves, and a guide knows which ones are safe to walk and which houses can be visited.

Religious and ancient sites in Constantine

Emir Abdelkader Mosque

The Emir Abdelkader Mosque stands next to the Emir Abdelkader Islamic University in Constantine.

It opened in 1994 and is one of the largest mosques in Algeria, with room for about 15,000 worshippers. Its two minarets are about 107 m tall.

Inside, the decoration is marble, carved wood, stained glass and calligraphy.

Go outside prayer times and dress modestly (women should bring a headscarf). Non-Muslim visitors should ask at the entrance whether they can go in that day.

Grand Mosque of Constantine

The Grand Mosque (Djamaa El Kebir) in the old town is much older. It was built around 1136 under the Hammadid dynasty, on the site of a Roman temple, and it's the only mosque in the city that predates the Ottomans.

Roman columns and Corinthian capitals were reused in the prayer hall, and some columns near the mihrab still stand where the temple builders put them. Salah Bey restored the mosque in the 18th century.

Entry is free. Dress modestly, avoid prayer times, and ask before you go in or take photos.

Numidian royal mausoleum at El Khroub

The Soumaâ of El Khroub, about 15 km southeast of Constantine, is a Numidian royal tomb from the second half of the 2nd century BC. It's often called the Tomb of Massinissa, but archaeologists think it may belong to one of his successors, such as his son Micipsa.

It is a square stone tower on a hill above the town, and it is one of the few Numidian royal monuments still standing.

Get there by car or taxi, and pair it with a half-day drive out of the city.

Nature in and around Constantine

The gorge is the city's main natural sight, and the bridges and the terrace of the Monument aux Morts give the best views of it.

You can't hike inside the gorge while the Chemin des Touristes stays closed, so for walks head out of town.

The Djebel El Ouahch forest, about 10 km north of the city at 880 to 1,120 m, is where locals go to hike, jog and picnic. The French began planting it in 1906 as a trial ground for trees from around the world, and it still has pines, cedars and oaks.

It has four small lakes created in the 1860s. Two have mostly dried up, and people line-fish in the other two.

Day trips from Constantine

Three Roman sites are within reach. Tiddis (ancient Castellum Tidditanorum), about 35 km northwest of the city, is a small Roman town built in terraces on a steep hillside. It is the quickest of the three and fits in a half day.

Djemila, ancient Cuicul, is about 120 km west, roughly 2 to 2.5 hours each way on mountain roads. Few Roman towns in North Africa have survived as well, and this one sits at about 900 m; UNESCO listed it in 1982.

Timgad is about 120 km south, roughly 2 hours each way. Trajan founded it in AD 100, and its grid of streets is still almost complete. Entry at both sites is in the usual 200 to 300 DZD range (2026).

Public transport to the sites is slow, so most visitors hire a car with a driver for the day; we can arrange one, with a guide, from Constantine.

What to eat in Constantine

Constantine cooks in the eastern Algerian way: semolina, flatbread and slow-cooked tomato sauces. A plate in a popular restaurant costs roughly 600 to 1,200 DZD (autumn 2026).

Start with jari, the local name for chorba frik, a soup of green cracked wheat that is the staple of every Ramadan table.

Mhadjeb (also spelled mhajeb) are thin semolina crêpes folded around a tomato and onion filling, sold as street food.

Constantine's best-known main course is chakhchoukha: torn pieces of thin semolina flatbread in a spiced tomato sauce with meat. Trida, small squares of steamed pasta served in sauce, is the other local specialty.

Couscous is on every menu, usually with vegetables and meat. Since 2020 it has been on UNESCO's intangible heritage list, as a joint entry with Algeria's neighbors.

Tamina, toasted semolina with butter and honey, is made for births and at Mawlid.

Makroud are diamond-shaped semolina pastries filled with dates. Kalb el louz, a semolina and almond cake soaked in orange-blossom syrup, is an Algiers specialty you'll also find here. The sweet Constantine is known for is jouzia, a honey and walnut nougat made for Eid and family celebrations.

Have them with mint tea or strong Algerian coffee.

Don't count on wine with dinner. Most restaurants don't serve alcohol, and drinking in public is illegal, though some hotels have licensed bars.

Malouf and Constantine's culture

Constantine is the main home of malouf in Algeria, the classical Andalusian music brought to the Maghreb by Muslims and Jews leaving Spain. It is played on the oud, violin and percussion, and it is still sung at weddings and family celebrations in the city.

The easiest way to hear it is the International Malouf Festival. Its 13th edition ran from 20 to 24 September 2025 at the regional theater, with musicians from about a dozen countries. Dates change from year to year, so check close to your trip.

How to get to Constantine

By air. The fastest way in is the hour-long Air Algérie flight from Algiers to Mohamed Boudiaf airport (CZL), about 10 to 12 km south of the center. From there, Yassir or another ride-hailing app saves haggling; with a regular taxi, settle the fare first.

By train. On the 2026 SNTF timetable, a direct train leaves Algiers Agha station at 06:30 on Saturdays, Mondays and Wednesdays and takes about 7 hours. Trains back to Algiers leave Constantine at 06:40 on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. Buy your ticket a day ahead.

By road. From central Algiers it is about 390 km, almost all on the A1 East-West motorway via Sétif. Allow 4 to 5 hours in a car. Intercity buses take about 5 hours, and shared taxis (taxis collectifs) leave from the main intercity stations once every seat is filled.

Getting around Constantine

Buses and shared taxis are the cheapest way around the city, but they get crowded at rush hour. You won't wait long for a private taxi; fix the price with the driver up front.

The tramway opened in 2013 and was extended in 2019 and 2021. It runs from the center out to Zouaghi and the new town of Ali Mendjeli. The cable car (télécabine) crosses the gorge in about six minutes; it reopened in April 2025 after several years out of service.

Rent a car if you want to reach El Khroub or Djebel El Ouahch on your own. Expect police checkpoints on main roads and keep your passport with you.

The old town and the bridges are close together, so walking is the best way to see them. The streets are steep in places.

Where to stay in Constantine

The Constantine Marriott is the top-end choice. Novotel and Ibis Constantine are the mid-range international chains, and the Hôtel Cirta is the historic hotel in the city center.

We haven't quoted room rates because they change often. Compare prices a few weeks before you travel, and book well ahead for summer and the Eid holidays, when Algerian families travel. Stay in the center, near the bridges and the old town, rather than in Ali Mendjeli, the new town at the end of the tram line, unless you have business there.

Bring cash. Outside the big hotels, Constantine runs on dinars. A card or ATM gets you the official rate, about 150 dinars to the euro (autumn 2026), while the informal market gives roughly 275, so anything you pay by card costs around 80% more. Changing informally is technically outside the law, though it happens openly: have your guide or host connect you with a changer they know personally, change modest amounts and count the notes.

When to go to Constantine

Come in spring (March to May) or autumn (September to November), when walking the bridges and the old town is most comfortable.

In spring the countryside around the city is green and the days are mild.

Autumn suits day trips to El Khroub or Djebel El Ouahch without the summer heat.

Winter is colder than many visitors expect. The city stands at over 600 m, January nights average about 3°C, and it snows on a few days a year. July afternoons average around 34°C, so in summer walk early in the morning and in the evening.

Bridges, the name and day trips from Constantine

Why is Constantine called the City of Bridges? Because the old town stands on a rock plateau ringed by the Rhumel gorge, and almost every way in crosses a bridge. The best known are Sidi M'Cid (175 m above the river, 1912), Bab El Kantara, Sidi Rached and the Mellah Slimane footbridge. The Salah Bey viaduct, opened in 2014, is the newest.

Why is it named after Emperor Constantine? Because Constantine the Great rebuilt Cirta in 313, after it was destroyed in AD 311 during a war between rival Roman emperors, and gave it his own name, which has stuck through the Arab, Ottoman and French periods to today.

How far is Constantine from Algiers? About 390 km by road: 4 to 5 hours by car or about 5 by bus. The direct train takes about 7 hours on the 2026 timetable, and the flight about an hour.

Can you visit Timgad or Djemila from Constantine in a day? Yes, with a car and an early start. Djemila is about 120 km west (2 to 2.5 hours each way) and Timgad about 120 km south (about 2 hours). Doing both in one day is too much; pick one, or sleep in Batna for Timgad.

What language is spoken in Constantine? Algerian Arabic (Darja) day to day, with French widely understood, especially by older people and in shops, hotels and offices. Outside the big hotels English is rare, so a few words of French or Arabic and a translation app help a lot.

Is Constantine worth visiting?

Yes, if you like history and cities with a strong character and don't mind limited English and few tourist services. Two days covers the main sights; add a third for El Khroub and Djebel El Ouahch.

Travelers who visit with us often say Constantine felt friendlier and calmer than they had expected. As in any busy city, watch for pickpockets in crowds. Our guide to safety in Algeria is worth ten minutes before you go.

Going on to other cities? We rank Algeria's best cities in a separate guide, from Tlemcen in the west to Annaba in the east. For the capital and the west, see our guides to top attractions in Algiers and best activities in Oran.

If you want a guide for the old town or a driver for El Khroub, WildyNess can fit Constantine into a custom Algeria itinerary.