Montaza Palace & Park
The Montaza Palace, located in the coastal city of Alexandria, was built in 1892 by Khedive Abbas II and was originally used as a hunting lodge and residence. The Palace, which has a distinct Turkish and Florentine architectural style, was later improved upon by King Fuad I in 1932, who added the palace’s gardens and the larger Al-Haramlik Palace.
The Palace and its surrounding area were used by Egypt’s last king, King Farouk, as a summer getaway.
The Montazah Palace was built under the monarchy by Abbas the 2nd, the last khedive of Egypt, around 1900 on a low plateau east of central Alexandria overlooking a beach on the Mediterranean Sea. It lent design ideas from both the Ottoman Empire and Florence in Italy. The Al-Haramlik (Montazah Palace) is a public museum of the Muhammad Ali Dynasty family history and objects d’art. The Salamlek Palace is now an adjacent hotel.
It’s a favored tourist spot on account of its sizable gardens and palaces left by its royal heritage; the Egyptian government charges a nominal fee to enter it. The palace is closed to the public. The former expansive royal gardens of 150 acres (61 ha), are open as a public landscape park and forest reserve, the surrounding gardens and the beach are open for a small admission fee.
Al-Montaza also plays host to a noted clock tower and two old hotels (the Helnan Palestine and Salamlek Palace). The Sheraton Montazah is actually across the street from the park.
