Cairo
Cairo International (CAI) is Egypt's main hub and the only major airport in North Africa with serious lounge programmes. Egypt's Muslim majority shapes the drinking landscape — alcohol is available airside but the breadth of options is narrower than at most international hubs. The EgyptAir Lounge in Terminal 3 is the best of them: proper Champagne service, a respectable Lebanese wine list (Château Musar, Massaya), and a small Egyptian beer rotation (Stella, Sakara). Star Alliance Gold or EgyptAir Business required.
Zamalek · $$$
Cocktail bar inside a Zamalek villa.
Zamalek · $$
Wine bar with one of Egypt's tightest natural-wine lists and a small kitchen.
Downtown · $$
Belle-époque heritage bar from the 1930s.
Downtown · $$
Live-music bar with rotating local jazz and oriental bands.
Plays for Cairo Airport: post-security, pre-security, lounges, and the airport-hotel cheat code.
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Looking beyond Cairo? See our guide to the best airport bars worldwide, or compare airport bars city by city.