Chicago to Algiers, Algeria from $548.0

🌍 About Algiers, Algeria

Algiers climbs a steep amphitheatre above its bay, which is why colonial-era France called it Alger la Blanche — tiers of whitewashed buildings stacked up the hillside. The thing to see is the Casbah, the Ottoman hilltop medina (UNESCO since 1992): a maze of stepped lanes, courtyard houses and the Ketchaoua Mosque, best walked with a guide since it's a lived-in neighbourhood, not a museum. For food, skip the tourist couscous spots once and try garantita — a baked chickpea-flour flan sold hot from street stalls, plain and weirdly addictive. Come in April or May: warm, dry, the sea is calm and the Casbah isn't baking. Avoid July and August, when coastal heat and humidity make the climb miserable. October is pleasant too but wetter.