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From the Roman cities of Leptis Magna and Sabratha and Greek Cyrene to the oasis town of Ghadames and the rock art of the Tadrart Acacus: the culture and history of Libya.
الثقافة
Libya holds the longest Mediterranean coastline in Africa and some of the finest classical ruins anywhere. Leptis Magna, birthplace of the emperor Septimius Severus, is among the best-preserved Roman cities in the world, with its theatre, basilica and baths by the sea; Sabratha's theatre rises above the shore further west.
In the east, Cyrene was founded by Greeks from Thera around 630 BC and became one of the great cities of the Greek world. Inland, the oasis town of Ghadames, the pearl of the desert, and the rock art of the Tadrart Acacus complete Libya's five UNESCO World Heritage Sites, four of which remain on UNESCO's List of World Heritage in Danger.
This is a page of culture and history. No hotel, restaurant or beach club yet meets our standard. Before planning any visit, check your own government's current travel advice.
| English | Libyan Arabic | Say it |
|---|---|---|
| Hello | السلام عليكم | as-SA-laam a-LAY-kum |
| Please | من فضلك | min FAD-lak (to a woman: min FAD-lik) |
| Thank you | شكراً | SHUK-ran |
| Good evening | مساء الخير | ma-SAA el-KHEYR |
| Nice to meet you | تشرفنا | tshar-RAF-na |
Where to go
The great sites of Libya, each a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The great sites
On the coast east of Tripoli, the birthplace of the emperor Septimius Severus, who rebuilt it in marble: a forum and basilica, a theatre facing the sea, the Hadrianic baths and a harbour, among the best-preserved Roman cities anywhere. The Archaeological Site of Leptis Magna was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982.
West of Tripoli, a Phoenician trading post that became a Roman city, best known for its theatre of the late second century, whose three-storey stage wall of columns stands above the sea. The Archaeological Site of Sabratha was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982.
In the green hills of the east, founded by Greeks from Thera around 630 BC, with the sanctuary of Apollo, a temple of Zeus and a necropolis cut into the hillside; it was one of the great cities of the Greek world. The Archaeological Site of Cyrene was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982.
The "pearl of the desert," an oasis town near the borders with Tunisia and Algeria, built as a maze of whitewashed mud-brick houses linked by covered lanes, with rooftop walkways for the women of the town. The Old Town of Ghadamès was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1986; it was on the List of World Heritage in Danger from 2016 until 2025.
A range of sandstone mountains in the far southwest of the Libyan Sahara, its rock shelters painted and engraved over thousands of years with animals and scenes of life from a once-green Sahara. The Rock-Art Sites of Tadrart Acacus were inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985 and have been on the List of World Heritage in Danger since 2016.
More of the Mediterranean
Customs and etiquette
How Libya does things.
Every list on this page is checked by hand and dated: last checked October 2026. Hotels, restaurants and events link only to their own official websites, where confirmed.
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