LEBANON 7N/8D PACKAGE

Breakfast served at the hotel. 09.00hrs, Gather at the lobby to meet with your accompanying guide & start the excursion. Visit Beirut the capital, the largest city of Lebanon & one of the oldest cities in the world. The culture of Beirut has evolved under the influence of many civilizations. The visit of the ancient ruins in the newly renovated city center is very impressive. A visitor can see old mosques, ancient churches, the grand serail, and Roman baths, along with both modern & old shops, buildings, restaurants and hotels. Drive through the Lebanese mountains to reach Beiteddine, a small town being the administrative capital of the Shouf District.

The town is well known for the Beiteddine Palace, which hosts a famous international summer Festival. The palace visit includes a mosaic Exhibition, the Arms Museum, some very distinguished royal rooms, royal gardens and much more. The day continues towards Deir al Qamar "Monastery of the Moon” a nearby village consisting of stone houses with red-tiled roofs. Deir al Qamar was previously the capital & the residence of the governors of Lebanon. It is also notable for its 15th-century Fakhreddine Mosque being the oldest mosque in Mount Lebanon, Saydet el Talle Maronite church going back to the 15th century, Fakhreddine II Palace, & many other historical palaces and administrative buildings. Deir al Qamar is a known as the Capital of Emirs. People from all religious backgrounds lived there & the town had a mosque, synagogue and Christian churches. The Shouf Mountains are famous to have remarkable natural & historical sceneries, and his excursion day is always well admired by our guests. Return to the hotel, free time. Dinner & Overnight at the hotel in Beirut.

Breakfast served at the hotel. Gather at the lobby to meet with your accompanying guide & start the excursion. Head towards the city of the sun, Baalbek located around 87km from Beirut, with almost 2:10 hrs drive. Baalbeck, counted among the wonders of the ancient world, hosts still the largest & most noble Roman temples ever built, they are also among the best preserved.

The visit includes the temples of Jupiter, Bacchus & Venus, the stone of the pregnant woman (the largest stone of all times), a list of Roman monoliths, and a list of ancient architectural records. Proceed to visit Anjar, around 47km from Baalbeck, with almost 55 min drive. It is completely different from any other archaeological experience you'll have in Lebanon. Anjar is exclusively one period, the Umayyad. You can see The Tetra-pylon, a monumental entrance with four gates, the public baths, The Cardo-Maximus lined with shops and additional runes & attractions. On the return back to Beirut, a stop at a winery to taste some Lebanese produced wine, original of the Bekaa area. Return to the hotel, free time. Dinner & Overnight at the hotel in Beirut.

Gather at the lobby to meet with your accompanying guide & start the excursion. Head towards Jeita Grottoes located around 21 km from Beirut, with almost 45 min drive. The Jeita Grottoes are a system of two separate, but interconnected, limestone caves spanning an overall length of nearly 9 kilometers (5.6 mi). The lower cave can only be visited by boat since it channels an underground river that provides fresh drinking water to more than a million Lebanese. In 1958, Lebanese speleologists discovered the upper galleries 60 meters (200 ft) above the lower cave which have been accommodated with an access tunnel and a series of walkways to enable tourist’s safe access without disturbing the natural landscape. The upper galleries house the world's largest known stalactite. The galleries are composed of a series of chambers the largest of which peaks at a height of 120 meters (390 ft).Aside from being a Lebanese national symbol and a top tourist destination, the Jeita grotto plays an important social, economic and cultural role in the country.

Proceed to visit mount of Harissa, where stands the statue of our Lady of Lebanon, being one of the most important shrines in the world honoring the Virgin Mary. The shrine is highlighted by a huge, 15-ton bronze statue of the Immaculate Conception, Mother of God. It is 8.5 m high, and has a diameter of five meters. The Virgin Mary stretches her hands towards Beirut. The shrine of Our Lady of Lebanon draws millions of faithful both Christians and Muslims from all over the world. The 50th jubilee in 1954 was also the hundredth anniversary of the establishment of the Immaculate Conception. The saint Pope John Paul II visited Our Lady of Lebanon in 1997. Head back to Beirut, to visit the national museum englobing treasures from the sites you have already visited, and from many other smaller sites & treasures spread around the Lebanese land, in the mountains, in the valleys, and near by the sea shores. Return to the hotel, free time. Dinner & Overnight at the hotel in Beirut.

Breakfast served at the hotel. 08.00hrs Gather at the lobby to meet with your accompanying guide & start the excursion. Head towards the Cedars forest, located around 115km from Beirut, with almost 02.40hrs drive. It is one of the last vestiges of the extensive forests of the Cedar that once thrived across Mount Lebanon in ancient times. Simply known as "The Cedars of the Lord", this resort settlement in Lebanon's highest range is one of the most dramatically beautiful spots in the country. Its centerpiece is an ancient grove of cedars, a tree synonymous for millennia with Lebanon itself. Just below the Cedars, lies the beautiful town of Bcharreh, birth & burial place of Gibran Khalil Gibran, Lebanon’s famous poet, philosopher & paint.

A stop on the way to have a panoramic picture of the majestic Qadisha valley englobing many natural caves that have been used as shelters & burial places back as far as the Paleolithic period. Early Christian communities fleeing persecution found refuge in the Qadisha. In 1998, UNESCO added the valley to the list of World Heritage Sites because of its importance as the site of some of the earliest Christian monastic settlements in the world, and its continued example of early Christian faith. Proceed to visit St Anthony monastery, the most impressive Maronite convent in the Qadisha offering a unique spiritual and historical experience. Return to the hotel, Free time. Dinner & Overnight at the hotel.

Breakfast served at the hotel. 08.00hrs, Gather at the lobby to meet with your accompanying guide & start the excursion. Head towards Tyre, located around 84 km south of Beirut, founded at the start of the third millennium B.C. It is known to be the birth place of “Europa”, her brothers “Cadmus” and “Phoenix”, as well as Elissa, founder & queen of “Carthage”. Tyre originally consisted of a mainland settlement & a modest island city that lay a short distance off shore. The visit of the city shows the main colonnaded street, sarcophagus, ancient columns, the public baths, the Triumphal Arch, the hippodrome & much more treasures. Proceed to visit Sidon, located around 35km from Tyre.

Sidon is one of the famous names in ancient history, and the most mysterious, for its past has been tragically scattered and plundered. Sidon's Sea Castle is the most important thing to see, it was built by the crusaders as a fortress of the holy land. It is one of the most prominent archaeological sites in the port city of Sidon. It is a busy commercial center with the pleasant, conservative atmosphere of a small town. Since Persian times this was known as the city of gardens and even today it is surrounded by citrus and banana plantations. From the famous other things to see is the Soap Museum, Visitors can see a demonstration of how traditional olive oil soaps are made and learn about the history of the "hammam" (bath) traditions. Return to the hotel, Free time. Dinner & Overnight at the hotel.

Breakfast served at the hotel. Free time is given till pick up time for return transfer to the airport. 1200hrs, Check out from hotel, luggage can be stored in the hotel (if needed) until movement to catch your flight back home. Transfer to Airport for flight back.