Free cancellationFull refund up to 24 hours before
Instant confirmationYour booking is confirmed right away
TicketMobile or paper ticket accepted
LanguagesArabic, English
Private tourOnly your group will participate
Pickup offeredSee the meeting and pickup details below
Overview
This is Lebanon's most epic day trip — and it only runs for six months of the year. Start at the Qadisha Valley, one of the most dramatic gorges in the Middle East, where Christian monks have been carving their monasteries into sheer limestone cliffs since the 4th century. Walk among the Cedars of God at 2,000 metres above sea level — ancient trees that built Phoenician ships, Solomon's Temple, and Egyptian palaces. Then cross the Lebanese mountains via a spectacular high-altitude road that opens in May and closes when the snow comes — dropping you directly into the Bekaa Valley and the greatest Roman temples on earth at Baalbek.
Three UNESCO-worthy destinations. One mountain crossing that most Lebanon visitors never get to make. Entirely private, entirely your own pace.
What's included
Knowledgeable English-speaking driver
Hotel pickup and drop-off in Beirut
Private air-conditioned vehicle
45-minute walk through the Cedars of God grove
Lunch in Baalbek (optional — at own expense)
Gratuities (optional)
What to expect
Beirut
Pass by
8:30 AM — Departure from Beirut
Your driver picks you up early and heads north along the coastal highway before climbing steeply into the Lebanese mountains toward Bcharre — the temperature dropping and the landscape shifting from Mediterranean coast to cedar-forested peaks as you gain altitude.
Qadisha Valley
30m
Qadisha Valley — the gorge that hid a civilisation
Pull over at the rim of the Qadisha Valley and take a moment — because this view hits differently. One of the most dramatic gorges in the Middle East drops hundreds of metres below you, its sheer limestone walls dotted with ancient monastery caves and hermitages carved directly into the rock face. Qadisha means "Holy" in Aramaic — earned over seventeen centuries of Christian communities choosing these inaccessible cliffs specifically because nobody could easily reach them to cause trouble. In the early morning the valley often fills with mist, monastery towers emerging slowly from the fog like something from a film set. Multiple photo stops along the rim give you every angle. One of those places in Lebanon that genuinely stops people in their tracks.
The Cedars of God
45m
Walk among the Cedars of God — a UNESCO-protected grove of ancient cedar trees at 2,000 metres above sea level, some over 1,000 years old, their massive trunks stretching more than 14 metres in circumference. These are the descendants of the forests that built Phoenician ships, Solomon's Temple, and Egyptian palaces — and standing among them at the roof of Lebanon, with the Bekaa Valley beginning to appear on the other side of the mountain ridge, is one of those genuinely special moments that makes you glad you got up early. A 45-minute walk through the grove at your own pace — no steep terrain, just ancient trees and mountain air — before the mountain road east begins.
20m
Stone of the Pregnant Woman — 1,000 tonnes, going nowhere
Before the temples, stop at the ancient Roman quarry where the Stone of the Pregnant Woman still lies exactly where it was cut 2,000 years ago — a single limestone block 21 metres long weighing an estimated 1,000 tonnes, abandoned and never moved. Standing next to it before you enter the temple complex puts everything in perspective. If the Romans left this behind in the quarry — what on earth are the temples going to look like?
Baalbek Temple
1h 30m · Admission ticket not included
Baalbek Temple Complex — the biggest Roman temples on earth
Welcome to the greatest Roman temple complex ever built. The Temple of Jupiter stands on Trilithon stones each weighing over 800 tonnes — the largest dressed stones in human history — six columns still standing at 22 metres tall. The Temple of Bacchus next door is larger than the Parthenon and almost entirely intact after two thousand years. The circular Temple of Venus completes a complex that has outlasted every empire that worshipped, conquered, and camped here. After a morning in a UNESCO gorge and among thousand-year-old trees, ending the day at Baalbek feels like Lebanon saved its biggest punch for last.
Baalbeck
1h
Lunch in Baalbek — optional
Local Bekaa Valley mezze, grilled meats, fresh flatbread in a town that has been feeding travellers for two thousand years. Optional — but you will be hungry after a day this big.
Beirut
Pass by
Return to Beirut — approx. 6:00–7:00 PM
Back to Beirut via the Damascus highway — completing a day that went from a 4th-century monastic gorge to ancient cedars to the greatest Roman temples on earth, via a mountain road that only exists for six months of the year.
Meeting and pickup
Pickup details
We pick-up travelers from any Hotel, Airbnb or Residence in Beirut
Additional information
Specialized infant seats are available
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Cancellation policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
