Ismailia is a calm and quiet city that has inherited a reputation for hosting the best mango farms in the region, with a specialty of producing high-quality hygienic mangoes with over 20 different strains that do not exist anywhere else in the world. It has a population, including surrounding rural areas, of approximately 750,000.

It is located on the west bank of the Suez Canal, approximately halfway between Port Said to the north and Suez to the south. The Canal widens at that point to include the Timsah, one of the bitter lakes linked by the canal. As opposed to Cairo, Ismailia is know for being a relaxed city. It also has numerous vacation resorts and getaways.

Ismailia is the origin of a unique kind of folk musical known as ‘El Semsemeya',  which also includes oriental dance.

Ismailia is also home to the Suez Canal University, established in 1976 to serve the region of Suez Canal and Sinai.  The city is approximately a ninety-minute car-drive from Cairo, making it a popular destination for local tourism but not for foreigners.

Football
Ismailia SC enjoys broad support from within the city, with fan bases extending to other Egyptian locations. The club's performance is considered a major political issue, and tends to dictate the city's mood. The team enjoys brief stints of competition on the local and international levels, but its financial situation prevents these stints from extending beyond a few years.

Ismailia have won the Egyptian top-tier title three times (1967, 1991, 2002) and the Egyptian Cup twice (1997, 2000), and were the first Egyptian club to win a continental title when they won the CAF African Champions League in 1969.  The city's most notable players are Ali Abugreisha, Reda, Shehta, Hazem, Mohamed El Yamany and Hosny Abdrabo.