Small Group Tour - Baalbeck,Cedars & St Antoine Kozhaya - Day trip from Beirut

Itinerary
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Stop At: Baalbek Roman Ruins, Baalbek, Lebanon

As early as 9000 BC, Baalbek was a place for worship and became a cornerstone of ancient civilizations. Located in modern day Lebanon, the ruins stand tall as an archaeological wonder with towering monuments and impressive columns.

Duration: 1 hour 30 minutes

Stop At: The Cedars of God, Bcharre Lebanon

The Cedars of God are located in Bsharri, are one of the last vestiges of the extensive forests of the Lebanon cedar that once thrived across Mount Lebanon in ancient times. Their timber was used by the Phoenicians, Israelites, Egyptians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Romans, and Turks. The wood was prized by Egyptians for shipbuilding; the Ottoman Empire used the cedars in railway construction.



Duration: 1 hour

Stop At: Monastery Saint Antoine Kozhaya - Lebanese Maronite Order دير مار أنطونوي قزحيا - الرهبنة اللبنانية المارونية, Deir Mar Antonios Qozhaya is in the northern section of the Qadisha valley between the villages of Hawqa and, Lebanon

Qozhaya is considered to be one of the oldest monasteries of the valley of Qadisha. Several hermitages are attached to it and at a certain period (probably the 12th Century AD), it has been the See of the Maronite Patriarch. In 1584, the first printing press of the Middle East was installed in this monastery.

In 1708, it was handed down to the newly formed Lebanese Maronite Order. It still belongs to this important Order. Qozhaya was at its pinnacle in the first part of the 19th Century with more than 300 monks belonging to it.

With its large properties in the valley, Qozhaya is one of the richest monasteries of the Order. It contributes financially to the maintenance of the less fortunate monasteries of the Order.


Duration: 1 hour

Stop At: Temples of Baalbek, Baalbeck Lebanon

Baalbek is an ancient Phoenician city located in what is now modern day Lebanon, north of Beirut, in the Beqaa Valley. Inhabited as early as 9000 BCE, Baalbek grew into an important pilgrimage site in the ancient world for the worship of the Phoenician sky-god Baal and his consort Astarte, the Queen of Heaven (the name `Baalbek' means Lord Baal of the Beqaa Valley). The centre of the city was a grand temple dedicated to Astarte and Baal and the ruins of this early temple remain today beneath the later Roman Temple of Jupiter Baal. Baalbek is listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.

Duration: 1 hour 30 minutes