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Biskra

Biskra () is the capital city of Biskra Province, Algeria. In 2007, its population was recorded as 307,987. Biskra is located in northeastern Algeria, about from Algiers, southwest of Batna and north of Touggourt. It is nicknamed "The Queen of the Zibans", "The Door of the Desert" or "The Saharan Nice" because of its location at the beginning of the Sahara Desert. Due to its geographical location, its climate and natural resources, particularly farming, Biskra has always been a crossroad between the cities in the north and south. It has seen the passage of several civilizations, from the Roman

OverviewAI-generated

Biskra is a city and commune in Algeria, situated within the Biskra District and Constantine Department. It serves as the capital of both the Biskra Province and the Biskra District. The city has a population of 204,661 and covers an area of 127.55 square kilometers. Its elevation above sea level is recorded at 87 meters, with other sources citing figures of 115 and 118 meters. Biskra shares a border with Branis and is located in the UTC+01:00 time zone.

The city has historical ties to France and is identified as a Roman city. A significant event associated with the area is the Siege of Zaatcha. Biskra is twinned with Maubeuge and Makhachkala. It is described in sources including the Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary and the Encyclopædia Britannica 11th edition.

Synthesized by Vinony from 47 facts across 7 sources: Wikidata, Open Meteo, Openweathermap, OpenStreetMap, GeoNames, Vinony graph, Geo. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.

Weather now

cached 20h ago

37°overcast clouds

18% 8.8 m/s OpenWeatherMap

7-day forecast

via Open-Meteo

Place details

Locality: Biskra ⵜⵉⴱⴻⵙⴽⴻⵔⵜ بسكرة
Region: بسكرة ⵜⵉⴱⴻⵙⴽⴻⵔⵜ
Country: ⵍⵣⵣⴰⵢⴻⵔ الجزائر
Population: 204,661
Timezone: Africa/Algiers

via OpenStreetMap · GeoNames

Air quality

54US AQIModerate

PM2.5: 9.0 µg/m³
PM10: 20.2 µg/m³

As of 2026-08-11 02:00 · Open-Meteo

Key facts

Settlement.name: Biskra
Settlement.official_name: City of Biskra
Settlement.type: City and commune
Settlement.nickname: Queen of the Zibans
Settlement.mapsize: 180px
Settlement.map_caption: Location of Biskra, Algeria within Biskra Province
Settlement.pushpin_map: Algeria
Settlement.pushpin_map_caption: Location of Biskra within Algeria
Settlement.subdivision_type: Country
Settlement.subdivision_type1: Province
Settlement.subdivision_name1: Biskra Province
Settlement.subdivision_type2: District
Settlement.subdivision_name2: Biskra District
Settlement.seat_type: District seat
Settlement.leader_title: PMA Seats
Settlement.leader_name: 33
Settlement.unit_pref: Metric
Settlement.area_total_km2: 127.55

via Wikipedia infobox

Travel guide

Understand

Biskra is the capital city of Biskra Province, Algeria. In 2007, its population was recorded as 307,987. Biskra is located in northeastern Algeria, about 248 miles from Algiers, 71 miles southwest of Batna and 137 miles north of Touggourt.

See

Biskra is stunning because of its beautiful nature. And there are a lot of sights to see. Most popular ones are:

Les gorges d'El Kantara: Historical landmark in El Kantara. Musée lapidaire d'El Kantara: An open museum.

Do

Biskra has a lot of water parks, Most in the country. Most popular and top rated ones are:

Les Jardins des Ziban. Aqua Palm Biskra. Jardin Landon.

Buy

Biskra’s date is one of The best in the world. And buying date here worth the money. Biskra’s date is being sold in some popular countries such as United States, Italy, And France.

Eat

Biskra’s couscous is one of the best in the country. It’s flavorful, healthy, and delicious. It’s usually served with vegetables like chickpea, carrots, and potatoes. And also served with meat.

Cafeterias in Biskra serve a lot of desserts and fruits. From French desserts like Millefeuille and Lemon Tart to Turkish desserts like Baklava and Turkish delights to Algerian dessert like Kalb-el-louz and Griwech.

Drink

Eating a dessert isn’t complete without the Algerian tea (Atay). It can come as either sweet or bitter. And it can keep you awake too when working at late nights or early morning.

Stay safe

Even though Biskra is somewhat safe, a few tourists experience some problems. A very important thing you need to be alert to is the risk of getting scammed. When people find out that you’re a tourist they will try to increase the bills, even in hotels or motels. Taxi drivers will also charge a high price. So try to look less like a tourist and don’t show a large amount of cash or wear expensive accessories. Hide your valuables.

Stay healthy

As with Algeria in general, medical staff are decent and very well educated, but the public hospitals are usually basic. If you get ill, try to get to a private clinic — these are better-equipped and more modern - charges are modest by European standards.

Respect

As in all of North Africa, the dominant religion in Algeria is Islam, and appropriate religious prohibitions and attitudes should be in order. If visiting a mosque, for example, be sure to be dressed conservatively and remove your shoes before entering. Drinking alcohol in Biskra isn’t illegal, but it’s disliked. So make sure to drink alcohol only in bars or restaurants or at your residence.

Travel guide from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0)

~18 min read