Lebanon holidays, small group tour
| country: | Lebanon |
| departures: | 2010: 27 Feb, 25 Sep, 23 Oct, 4 Dec 2011: 26 Feb, 19 Mar, 23 Apr, 23 Jul, 27 Aug |
| price: | From £1022 - £1053 (9 days) including flights from the UK, from £599 - £625 excluding flights. |
| more info: | Price includes: 5 nights hotel, 1 night monastery in dormitories, 1 night guesthouse, 1 night local home stay; 8 breakfasts & 3 lunches included. Single room option £139. Group size 16 - 20. |
| vouchers: | Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday |
the amazing things you'll be doing
A close look at fascinating Lebanon highlighting several periods, this trip is ideal for travellers interested in exploring Middle Eastern history, culture and heritage, combined with discovering nature reserves with the local community.
Beirut; A Capital of Modern & Traditional Cultures
Once a playground for the rich and famous Beirut, Lebanon's capital, has in recent years again blossomed into one of the eastern Mediterranean's great cities, regaining its stature as the region's most vibrant city. After exploring the National Museum, we travel to Sidon which was a major Phoenician trading port on the Mediterranean Sea. We visit the renovated khans and the old souks of the city before continuing to the village of Baadarane to have lunch with the local villagers. We then continue to Deir el Qamar, the former residence of the Lebanese governors until the end of the 18th century, which features some traditional Lebanese stone houses.
Mountains, Temples & Palaces
We climb into the mountains to the Ottoman Palace of Beiteddine for a viewing of the ancient mosaics and Heritage Museum. We continue on to Aanjar, an Ommayad site from the 8th century which was a commercial centre on the Silk Road. After a tour of the site, we drive through the fertile Bekaa Valley to the city of Baalbek and its magnificent Roman temples. Here, amid the vast sea of fallen marble and porphyry columns, we explore the Temple of Bacchus and Venus and gaze in wonder at the monumental colonnade of the Temple of Jupiter with its spectacular mountain backdrop.
Qadisha Valley & Crusader Castles
Continuing our journey, we spend a day walking among the churches and monasteries of the beautiful Qadisha Valley. This region is also one of the last bastions of Lebanon's famous cedar trees, treasured for their durable, sweet-scented wood. The following day includes another gentle walk through the nature reserve of Tannourine to discover local flora and fauna with a forest ranger. Continuing with a drive along the Mediterranean coast to Byblos, we discover a gem of a town with a rich history and wonderful setting while fishing boats bob in a traditional harbour backed by Crusader fortifications. We complete the tour with a visit to the Cathedral of Harissa, from where we can enjoy panoramic views of the bay of Jounieh before returning to Beirut.
Featured highlights:
Explore a diverse country filled with rich culture Be captivated by the aromatic landscapes & wonderful antiquities Understand a people who scribed the world's first written alphabet
Beirut; A Capital of Modern & Traditional Cultures
Once a playground for the rich and famous Beirut, Lebanon's capital, has in recent years again blossomed into one of the eastern Mediterranean's great cities, regaining its stature as the region's most vibrant city. After exploring the National Museum, we travel to Sidon which was a major Phoenician trading port on the Mediterranean Sea. We visit the renovated khans and the old souks of the city before continuing to the village of Baadarane to have lunch with the local villagers. We then continue to Deir el Qamar, the former residence of the Lebanese governors until the end of the 18th century, which features some traditional Lebanese stone houses.
Mountains, Temples & Palaces
We climb into the mountains to the Ottoman Palace of Beiteddine for a viewing of the ancient mosaics and Heritage Museum. We continue on to Aanjar, an Ommayad site from the 8th century which was a commercial centre on the Silk Road. After a tour of the site, we drive through the fertile Bekaa Valley to the city of Baalbek and its magnificent Roman temples. Here, amid the vast sea of fallen marble and porphyry columns, we explore the Temple of Bacchus and Venus and gaze in wonder at the monumental colonnade of the Temple of Jupiter with its spectacular mountain backdrop.
Qadisha Valley & Crusader Castles
Continuing our journey, we spend a day walking among the churches and monasteries of the beautiful Qadisha Valley. This region is also one of the last bastions of Lebanon's famous cedar trees, treasured for their durable, sweet-scented wood. The following day includes another gentle walk through the nature reserve of Tannourine to discover local flora and fauna with a forest ranger. Continuing with a drive along the Mediterranean coast to Byblos, we discover a gem of a town with a rich history and wonderful setting while fishing boats bob in a traditional harbour backed by Crusader fortifications. We complete the tour with a visit to the Cathedral of Harissa, from where we can enjoy panoramic views of the bay of Jounieh before returning to Beirut.
Featured highlights:
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | Fly Beirut. |
| Day 2: | Walking tour of Beirut which has blossomed into one of the eastern Mediterranean's great cities. |
| Day 3: | Drive to Sidon to explore the renovated khans and the old souks. |
| Day 4: | Local home stay Visit Beiteddine Palace and museum before travelling on to Deir el Ahmar via Aanjar to stay at the WADA (Women Association of Deir el Ahmar). |
| Day 5: | Baalbek Visit Baalbek exploring the Temple of Bacchus and Venus and the monumental colonnade of the Temple of Jupiter. Lunch with locals in Deir el Ahmar and then on to the village of Bcharreh. |
| Day 6: | Qadisha Valley Tour of monastery and walk through Qadisha Valley. Overnight in a monastery in the valley. |
| Day 7: | Tannourine Walk in the Tannourine Nature Reserve discovering the local flora and fauna. Drive to Byblos. |
| Day 8: | Byblos Byblos is rich in history including the Crusader fortifications and Cathedral of Harissa. We return to Beirut for our final evening. |
| Day 9: | Fly UK. |
Please note in the winter season (December to May) Day 5 will include visits to Hermel, Qammouaa and Akkar as there are no lunches with the local community during this time. Also in the winter season we may stay at a hotel rather than the monastery on Day 6.
small group cultural tours
Typically you will be sharing your experiences with between 4-20 like minded travellers (depending on the trip, operator and how many others are booked on the trip) and you'll have a group leader with you. Whether you are travelling alone or with friends it's good value, and a great way to meet new people! While itineraries are pre-planned there is some flexibility and you'll have plenty of privacy. This trip will appeal to travellers of all ages who enjoy meeting new people as well as experiencing new cultures.award winner
This tourism business won an Award in our 2008 Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards - organised by responsibletravel.com in association with The Daily Telegraph, World Travel Market, Geographical Magazine, of the Royal Geographical Society and BBC World News.Since 2004, the Awards has recognised individuals, companies and organisations in travel making a big commitment to the culture and economies of local communities and helping to conserve biodiversity.
how this holiday makes a difference
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Community:
Our tour to Lebanon is a fascinating insight into a culture both ancient and modern. Naturally we’ll show you the scenic and historic wonders but few tours to this beautiful country offer as many opportunities to meet the people as we do. In Baadaran village we take lunch with the local weaver, Baz, and learn about his ancient craft. We also lunch in a women’s co-operative in Deir el Amhar where we can meet the women and buy some of their delicious preserves. In Tanourinne we actually get the chance to eat in local people’s homes and learn first hand about family life in Lebanon. All these visits are hugely important in helping support local incomes in rural areas so local people can stay in their homes, rather than migrate to the cities, so you know your visit is really making a difference to them. Lebanese people are some of the most hospitable in the world and are tremendously welcoming to visitors and these are incredible experiences for us. Another great experience is our stay at the monastery in the Qadisha Valley. We take great care on this, and indeed all our visits to respect the local culture and customs so that our visits are welcomed. Our tour leaders are well trained and help explain about the local norms so that our visits are more enjoyable for all involved. Our partners in Lebanon are passionate about operating responsibly and have developed their own foundation to support training and development for vulnerable communities. Environment: On the environmental side, our strict responsible tourism policy helps us to minimise our impact in this area and to support conservation, such as supporting the nature reserve in Tannourine, minimising our use of water and disposing of waste responsibly. As there is no recycling in this area, we encourage you to carry water purification filters and water bottles. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |