Lebanon Tour

10.00 am Meeting at the İnternational Terminal Departure Hall of Ataturk Airport
12.25 pm Departure with Turkish Airlines TK 824 to Beirut
Right after landing in at 01.15 pm local time, we start our city tour. Following a brief ride, we head to Solidere (downtown), which reminds Paris streets with fancy cafes, restaurants and brand stores. Solidere is, in fact, the name of the company that undertook the construction and zoning works of the region, which was later named after the company. During the construction excavations, the company unearthed Roman-era remnants and ruins, which were later displayed for visits. We will visit this site on foot and continue our walk to see the clock tower, Neimeh Square, the historical Orthodox Church, ruins of the Roman baths, the Parliament and the PM office complex, which was originally built as the military quarters in the Ottoman era. Then we will visit the tomb of ex-PM Rafiq Hariri, who played a key role in the reconstruction of the city, along with Mohammed Al-Amin Mosque. After visiting the NationalMuseum, we will be transferred to our hotel. We will have some free time before dinner, organized at a local bistro. We will spend the night in Beirut. 

After the breakfast at the hotel, we leave for our daily tour to Jeita & Byblos. We head to Jeita Grottos, located near Al - Kalb valley and river, on the skirts of Lebanon mountains, 20 km away from Beirut. Jeita grotto, is comprised of two major karstik limestone caves. Our visit starts with a cable car ride starting at the car park. Discovered in 1958, the upper cave is 2200 meter-long. Only 750 meters of it is open for visits through w walk trail. Although inhabited in prehistoric ages, the lower grotto was not rediscovered until 1836. For the lower cave tour. the visitors take electric boats. After visiting both galleries, we either walk down or take mini-trains to get back to our bus and head to Harissa. Within approximately 15-20 minutes, we arrive at Jounieh, a coastal city, neighboring Beirut. Depending on the weather conditions, we will take 2 different cable-cars to climb up to Harissa at 650 m altitude. At the hilltop, we will be welcomed by the 15-ton St. Mary statue, erected on a small chapel in 1908. Standing behind the statue is a cathedral, very impressive for its architecture, the winner of a project competition. The basilica resembles a cedar tree from outside and a Phoenician ship from inside. Then we will ride back to Jounieh and leave for Byblos, an antique Phoenician port city. 

After the breakfast at the hotel, we leave for our daily tour to Baalbek & Anjar. First, we will visit Baalbek, laying 90 km Northeast of Beirut on Bekas Valley, across Lebanon mountains. Dating back about 9.000 years, Baalbek, also known as Heliopolis, was the second largest polytheist center following the capital, Rome. Reflecting the power and magnificence of the empire, the city had its golden days until the legitimization of Christianity by Constantine in the 4th century. The city houses three temples, dedicated to Venus, Jupiter and Bacchus, which stands as the best-preserved Roman temple to date. The Temple of Jupiter, on the other hand, has unfortunately got worn out in time and only 6 of its 54 Corinthian style columns survived. Eight of these columns were used in the construction of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, which was built in 532-537, ordered by Byzantine Empire Justinian. The first excavations of the city were started in 1898 during German Kaiser Wilhelm II upon a permission granted by the Ottoman Empire. Countinuing our journey through Bekas Valley, we leave for Anjar. In this town, today intensely inhabited by the Armenian diaspora, we will visit the old town, the only Umayyad heritage in Lebanon built during the region of Khalifa Al Walid ibn Abdel in the 8th century. After the town tour, we will get back to our hotel. The dinner will be served at a local restaurant. We will spend the night in Beirut.

After the breakfast, we will check-out and leave the hotel for the Beiteddine Palace. Built upon the order of Emir Bashir in late 18th century, the Palace was inspired by Ottoman architecture. The large palace complex offers a large garden housing Arms, Costume, Jewelry and Archeology Museum as wall as a Byzantine Mosaics Museum. Following the palace tour, we will visit Dear Al-Qamar village. The historical center, which was once the capital of Mt. Lebanon, is full of markets, mosques and churches. After walking on the streets of this beautiful town, offering many well-protected historical buildings and charming examples of old-style Lebanese architecture, we will be transferred to the airport for our flight to Istanbul. Following the ticket and check-in procedures, we will take Turkish Airlines flight TK 825 at 02.45 pm. We will land at 05.45 pm, which marks the end of another tour. We hope to see you again in another SOFOS organization...
12.30 pm Heading to Rafiq Hariri International Airport
02.45 pm Taking Turkish Airlines TK 825 flight to Istanbul
05.45 pm Arrival