Lebanon
Country: Lebanon
Highlights: Gastronomy ★★★, Art / Museums ★★, Historical sites ★★★★★, Natural Beauty ★★★, Shopping 0; Sports/Adventure ★, Geographic extremes 0, Glamour ★
When to go: Mid-Seasons
Where to go: Beirut, Bekaa Valley and Byblos
Downside: Some lack of tourism infrastructure. Some unsafe regions.
Our Experiences: The Lebanese seashore is a nice Mediterranean land. If close your eyes and reopen it you may feel somewhere in south France. The Corniche ( General De Gaulle st.) in Beirut overlooks the Mediterranean Sea with luxury buildings and hotels. It is still in a reconstruction process since de 80´s, but already very attractive. The same about the Place d´Étoile in downtown almost all reconstructed. There you can find many nice restaurants and luxury shops. The best for us however was the historic site of Byblos. This Phoenician city is the world´s oldest continuous inhabited place, along with Damascus in Syria. In the Bekaa Valley where they make wine, lies the huge, imponent and well preserved temple of Baalbek. It is simply wonderful! The gastronomy is superb and we have tried many of the original Lebanese food wonders.
PS. It is such a pitty that this country has suffered from religious wars! It has never meant to fight anyone and even helped the neighbours, homing war refugees. Big mistake. These refugees became itself a force and a target for the surrounding enemies. The country was then devastated. Almost all the Christians ( over 60% of the population ) fled away.
Hotels we love and recommend: Four Seasons ( Beirut )
