Syria – Spring Tour

Itinerary

Saturday 2 March – Beirut – Damascus

• 7:00 AM Meet the group for our departure.
• Lebanon / Syria border crossing.
• Drive to Damascus, the capital of Syria.
• OR: if coming from our Yemen – Hadramaut Tour, flight from Cairo to Damascus.
• Via Straight Street we walk to the House Chapel of Ananias. He was one of the first Christians in Syria.
• Highlight: The Great Mosque, also known as the Omajaden Mosque.
• See the famous Al Hamidieh Grand Bazaar (the Al-Hamidiyah Souk). The perfect place to get acquainted with daily life in Damascus.
• Walk through the old center of Damascus.
• Overnight stay in Damascus.

Sunday 3 March – Damascus – Saydnaya – Maaloula – Krak des Chevaliers

• After breakfast we leave north, towards the Christian villages of Saydnaya and Maaloula.
• Our first stop is Saydnaya, here we’ll visit the incredible Our Lady of Saidnaya Monastery.
• We continue to Maaloula. A beautiful village against the mountains. Here the language of Christ is still spoken (Aramaic).
• We take a look at the famous monasteries Mar Sarkis and Mar Taqla.
• Drive to Krak des Chevaliers.
• Highlight: Visit to Krak des Chevaliers. This famous castle is the symbol of the Crusades and was the base for the Hospitallers.
• Overnight stay in Homs.

Monday 4 March – Krak des Chevaliers – Hama – Apamea – Aleppo

• Drive to Hama.
• Visit to the famous waterwheels in the Orontos River.
• We drive to Apamea, here we’ll visit an ancient Roman & Greek city. A lot of the ruins are still standing, which makes it a very impressive place.
• We take the car to continue towards Aleppo.
• Highlight: Visit to the well-known Aleppo Citadel. A medieval fortress in the middle of the city.
• Overnight stay in Aleppo. 

Tuesday 5 March – Aleppo – Damascus

• Highlight: City tour of Aleppo, one of the oldest cities in the world still inhabited.
• Walk through the old covered souk. It is still being renovated.
• Visit the Al Jdeideh district, one of the most famous neighbourhoods of the city.
• Drive down south towards Damascus. Just before the city we stop in Mar Musa.
• We’ll visit the Monastery of Saint Moses the Abyssinian, an impressive church located on the Anti-Libanon slopes.
• If possible, we will overnight at the monastery. Otherwise, we’ll overnight in Damascus.

Wednesday 6 March – Damascus – Bosra

• Drive to Bosra.
• Highlight: Arrival in Bosra, after which we go to the Roman Amphitheatre. A 45m long and 8,5m deep theatre that is remarkably well preserved.
• Walk through the old centre of Bosra, with e.g. the cathedral and the basilica.
• Drive to Damascus.
• Overnight stay in Damascus.

Thursday 7 March – Damascus – Golan Height – Beit Jin

• Drive towards the Golan Height, and more precisely the city of Al Qunaitera. This city was heavily damaged during the war in 1973.
• We continue to the city of Beit Jin, a beautiful town located in the mountains.
• Highlight: We will make a tour to the hill from where we have a view on the Israel city of Majdal Shams.
• Return to Damascus.
• Overnight stay in Damascus.

Friday 8 March – Damascus – Beirut (Lebanon)

• Drive to the border with Lebanon.
• Border crossing Syria / Lebanon.
• Drive to Beirut.
• End of tour.