At the foot of Saladin’s Citadel, Alkan Holding is betting EGP 15 billion that Cairo’s most historic district is also its most undervalued. Its chairman Khaled Nosseir on heritage, hospitality, and why the location chose itself.
Citadel Plaza represents an EGP 15 billion investment in one of Cairo’s most historically significant districts. What was the strategic thinking behind choosing Historic Cairo as the location for this development?
Honestly, the location chose itself. You’re standing east of the Citadel of Saladin, in the geographic center of Cairo, with one of the most historically loaded backdrops in the world, and the area has been significantly underserved for decades. That gap between the district’s significance and its economic reality was the opportunity. We’ve worked closely with the National Committee for the Protection and Development of Historic Cairo and the Cairo Governorate to make sure that it abides by the needs of the area and its historic significance. To Alkan, this is a long-term investment in one of the most important parts of the city.
Tourism-led urban development is gaining momentum across the region. How do you see projects like Citadel Plaza contributing to broader economic growth beyond the hospitality sector?
Undoubtedly, hotels are the anchor, but the broader goal is to create sustained economic activity for artisans, small businesses, F&B operators, and entertainers within a single destination that keeps people engaged long enough to spend meaningfully. Egypt’s tourism numbers are strong, but average spend per visitor and length of stay in Cairo remain below their potential. Citadel Plaza is designed to address that directly, and through Darb El Fenoun, we’re giving Egyptian makers and creative entrepreneurs a genuine commercial platform that helps them showcase their work and talent. Coupled with 550 hotel rooms and 70 serviced apartments, this provides a steady footfall of both tourists and residents. Additionally, throughout construction and operations, we are adding thousands of jobs to the local economy.
Developing at scale within a UNESCO-recognised historic environment comes with unique responsibilities. How did Alkan navigate the balance between commercial ambition and heritage preservation?
To us, the starting point was staying away from treating commercial ambition and heritage preservation as opposing forces. The project sits adjacent to Historic Cairo, so we intently focused on making sure that the architecture, the scale, and the materials used all responded to that context. We worked within the frameworks set by the National Committee for the Protection and Development of Historic Cairo and in line with UNESCO standards, and we brought in Chapman Taylor to make sure the execution matched the intent. The honest answer is that the location’s heritage is the project’s greatest commercial asset. Compromising it would have undermined the whole investment case.
The project integrates hotels, serviced apartments, cultural spaces and entertainment under one destination. What does this mixed-use model tell us about how visitor expectations are evolving?
People don’t want to check into a hotel and then figure out what to do. They want to arrive somewhere that already has the answer. Citadel Plaza brings together hotels across three segments, serviced apartments, cultural spaces, entertainment, F&B, and offices. In Layman’s terms, there’s a reason to be here at 9am and a different reason at 9pm. Darb El Fenoun adds an experience that feels distinctly Egyptian, not interchangeable with any other destination, which is very difficult to replicate anywhere else. That authenticity is increasingly what differentiates a project in a competitive market.
Citadel Plaza is positioned as a platform for Egyptian artisans and creative entrepreneurs. How central is the cultural economy to the long-term commercial success of the development?
The cultural economy is the core of why Citadel Plaza works as a destination. Darb El Fenoun is a commercial platform for Egyptian artisans and designers, structured around Souq Darb for craft and Sofret Darb for food and dining. We brought in Communitas, a cultural design studio, specifically to make sure this aspect is well-programmed, well-curated, and genuinely integrated into the visitor experience. A cultural platform that keeps evolving gives people a reason to come back. That’s what sustains a destination even after its opening year.
Governments across the region are increasingly looking to heritage districts as engines of tourism growth. How do you see the public and private sectors working together to unlock this potential?
The model here is fairly clear. The state sets the framework, which includes the planning rules, the infrastructure investment, and the regulatory clarity. On the other end, the private sector brings the capital and the operational commitment to make it real. What has worked with Citadel Plaza is that both sides have had a consistent vision for what the district should become. That alignment matters enormously. Without it, you get either over-regulated projects that can’t get built, or developments that ignore context and damage the very thing that made the location valuable. Neither serves anyone’s interest.
As Chairman of a conglomerate with diverse interests, what does this project signal about Alkan Holding’s broader vision and appetite for large-scale destination development going forward?
To us, Citadel Plaza is a statement conveying that we’re serious about destination development as a long-term business. Alkan has operated across telecoms, technology, automotive, and manufacturing for over 50 years. We know how to run complex, long-term projects. Real estate is a natural extension of that. Citadel Plaza is the flagship, but we’ve already acquired a few land plots for development in West Cairo and will be announcing that in due course. The common thread is that we find locations that matter, commit properly, and build something that holds its value over time. Egypt’s fundamentals right now make that a compelling proposition.
