Lebanon – Byblos, Jeita, Harissa

Byblos, Jeita and Harissa, Lebanon

Byblos is a crusader castle site, in a seafront town setting with a lively souk for your gift buying – the traders didn’t hassle us, so it was so calm to shop. Jeita has a huge underground network of caves, lakes, stalactites and walkways with a cable car ride to get there along a gushing stream. Harissa is the site of the enormous church overlooking the Med’ with a modernist style architecture and again you get up the mountain by cable car. Book with a tour bus as it will get you here quicker with plenty of time to see the sights with a guide, almost impossible to do otherwise.

I visited seven places in Lebanon as part of my Middle East 3 week tour. Below are the other sites in Lebanon:

Beirut, (click here for info) 

Baalbek, Anjar and Ksara vineyard, (click here for info) 

On this Middle East trip, I also visited five places in Egypt and six in Jordan. Find the places I went to under those countries on my destinations page

Use Beirut as base for day trips out of the city

I stayed in Beirut as a base to explore this interesting country. Although Lebanon is physically not a huge country – it is only 271 km top to bottom and 56 km wide – it is difficult to move around due to its mountainous landscape, underdeveloped infrastructure and lack of good public transport.

Luckily Beirut is pretty central from north to south and on the coastal non-mountainous area so north to south routes to other coastal cities ie Sidon, Tripoli and Tyre are not too bad.

It is when you want to go east, inland that you hit the mountains, deep valleys, and differing communities that have not always got along well, that the communications and travel can be a challenge.

Now that the Syrian Civil/ISIS War has finished the road route into Damascus has reopened. However internal political tensions in Lebanon have resurfaced that threaten to push back gains in many areas made over the last few decades.

You can hire a car or even an expensive car and driver option to take you to many sites around Lebanon but these were time consuming, unreliable and  even scary. The bad conditions of many roads and the many military road blocks in more isolated areas  adds a further challenge to driving here.

How to get around Lebanon. 

There is a real lack of a proper bus network in Beirut let alone a national bus network for anywhere else. Connexions, (click here for website) is about the biggest and best bus company in Lebanon and connects a few main cities north from Beirut to Tripoli but otherwise it is private, unregulated mini-buses that serve the public on these routes.

Taxis form the basis of public transport in Lebanon, which is not an eco- friendly method and can be unreliable and frustrating to barter and organise.  Uber is available in Lebanon and used  extensively but mainly in Beirut. Trains or trams do not exist in Lebanon !

Tour buses

I chose what seems to me the best option – tour buses. There are many operating for the tourists and they are great. The one I chose picks you up from your hotel in a small modern minibus and takes you to the departure point of the company’s coaches in the city.

The coaches are modern, airconditioned, comfortable and safe.

They are not that expensive for what is a whole day trip and includes a guide who will eagerly and expertly show you around the venues, give you great info and answer your questions in good English.

I loved them and after having a similar good experience with this type of day trip coaches in Jordan, I was looking forward to my pre-planned and booked outings.

I used http://www.nakhal.com/ (click here for their Lebanon site)  You can pre-book your seats and trips in advance online (recommended) and pre-pay, knowing that you can sit back and relax, taking in the views till you arrive at each destination.

Mine had several destinations in one trip so the value was considerable, compared to if I had to drive, find them and stay awake at the wheel for a whole day on bad roads myself if I hired a car.

Each trip cost £69 but for that I got a pick up at the hotel, shuttle to the coach point, travel in a great comfy coach, an expert guide in English to the 3 sites on each trip, A good tasty lunch, entrance fees paid, full day adventure and a drop off back at the hotel. I felt it was good value and would certainly recommend them.

Travelling to Byblos.

The minibus picked me up at the hotel and drove us and the previously boarded passengers through the dense Beirut traffic to the avenue office of Nakhal tours. Several other minibuses were there and more arrived and we were quickly sorted into which group was going on which tour and allocated our coach quite efficiently.

As usual I got chatting to a few passengers – Brazilians, French, Angolans and more. The chatting soon stopped however as we all were looking out the big windows at the passing scenery of the Beirut streets and skyline. For many of us, me included, this was my first trip through the city.

Beirut traffic is notoriously heavy any time of the day and the guide even made joking references to it as we struggled to pick up speed.

With no underground Metro, trainlines, tramways or decent bus transportation system, the car (and thus taxi), is king. As we hit the countryside the green hills and valleys stood out and we drove along the coastal route with occasional glimpses of the Med sea to our left and the rising slopes of the nearby mountain range to our right.

We were heading north along what is the main north-south route in Lebanon, a road that if followed further would have taken us to Tripoli, Lebanon’s second biggest city. We were headed for Byblos however, 37 km away.

Due to the normal heavy traffic out of Beirut this, frustratingly, took nearly an hour to travel to.

The city of Byblos has been well set up for the tourist visits. It’s coach station is new, well designed, has toilets and an info centre and a shop. It has plenty of space for the coaches.

History of Byblos

Byblos is over 8000 years old and is noted as one of the oldest continuously inhabited settlements in the world. It has been continuously inhabited for the last 5000 years. The Egyptians knew it in 2600 BC as Kebney and imported timber from here in the then named “Byblos boats”.

The Phoenicians, in the 1st century BC traded here and called it Gebal. Alexander the Great conquered it in 332 BC and called it Byblos. It flourished under the Romans who thought it good enough to build a theatre here and slightly altered the Greek name for the city to Byblus.

The Muslim Arab leader, Saladin, conquered it in 1187 and fortified the city further. It was subsequently taken over by his enemies, the Crusaders, in the 12th century. They then renamed it Gibelet and built, what it is now famous for – the huge Crusader fortified castle and walls. Ottomans took over inthe 1500s and ruled here for 400 years.

Long history, mainly military use and a variety of names, lend it to a colourful history. Now it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its present-day Arabic name is Jibayl …. it’s sixth renaming!

Old roman road into Byblos

The walk from the coach station to the castle is via the ancient Cardo Maximus route lined with marble Roman columns and a flag-stoned walkway. What a great start and introduction to Byblos.

Stopping now and again en route for a few pics, the guide pointed out various architectural styles and a bit of history and it really felt like we were walking into history.

Old Souk and Ottoman Road, Byblos

The roman road ends abruptly at a modern junction and the tourist shops now begin. The area to the citadel archway has been restored and the buildings and pedestrianised roadway is lined with craft shops, bars, restaurants, textile store and artisan workshops.

They are housed in original, small, warehouse fronted buildings with large wooden shutter entrances and stone vaulted ceilings.

It is quite attractively designed and tastefully in keeping with the Ottoman/Mediaeval area we are now walking in. The shop owners and stalls workers were remarkably unaggressive in selling.

It actually made people stop and look, browse and often buy items as we were not continuously harassed by the sellers – maybe they have learned this trick at last.

Byblos Citadel entrance

The entrance to the Citadel itself is via a large fortified arch within an archway, that does not give away the big open square lying behind it. Walk through the arch and you enter into a type of village square with a mosque on one side. On the other side is a church, a large house on the next side and the wide and imposing stairway to the walls of the castle to your left.

The middle of the square has a large square sunken area – part of the original road area. The buildings are crafted from a mixture of wood, small stone blocks, tiles and cobbles stones and lend a genteel peaceful feel to what is a fortified entrance ready for war.

The entrance into the inner keep part of the castle is up a long flight of stone steps and across a small bridge and in through a drawbridge.

Standing on the bridge you can see down to the bases of the high walls and what looks like a drained moat. The guide pointed out the large circular stones in the fortified walls and asked us to guess what they were.

We were flummoxed and she told us that some of the old Roman columns from the road were used as extra stone blocks in the walls when it was built in the 12th century by the Crusaders. They built the castle on top of an original Arab fortified structure.

The interior held a small museum with some interesting artefacts and some large rooms and passageways, but the real wow factors here were the walls and towers that loomed over the site.

Byblos Citadel

The keep itself was an impressive, huge, square block rising high above. We were told there are battlements at the top and the views from the castle ramparts are impressive – and that’s exactly where everyone headed !

The vista from the top was of the nearby town of Byblos, across the grounds to temples and outbuildings, across to the mountains sloping up to the peaks and across the deep blue Med’ Sea.

Fabulous views, but it also showed how much more of the grounds we had yet to visit. I could see the Temple and Theatre in the distance and the large set of bronze age foundations of buildings.

Legs prepared for the long walk, we descended the stairs to the base of the walls and out through a side entrance to stand against the towering walls above us.

The guide lead us along a route circumventing the high walls and towers that really gave us a good impression of just how high and impenetrable these fortifications must have been.

Outer grounds of Byblos Citadel

The outer grounds of the citadel contains several ruined buildings from different periods and all were quite well preserved. Some we could go in to but some, due to the sensitive nature of the columns and walls, were visible only from outside, but still clear enough to enjoy their history.

The Temple of the Obelisks, built between 2150 and 1600 BC, has  26 stone monoliths standing on square stone bases. It was used for religious offerings in the Phoenician period.  I actually saw some of the small obelisks and bronze figurines from here, on another day, at the National Museum in Beirut.

The Temple remains were just some foundations but the Theatre was remarkably intact considering it was built in the 3rd Century AD. We even gathered as a group and sat down here so the guide could address us all for a little more talk on the history of the site.

There is a strange house, just solitary in the middle of the site, badly in need of repair with what must be a fantastic view out to sea but you cannot go inside it. It is rumoured to be the future museum of the site and will be repaired sometime.

If they put an open air café in it, no doubt with its views, it will be the most popular café in Byblos!

As we stood in the grounds of the many ruins in the acres overlooking the sea, the view back to the castle was beautiful. It is probably here that gives the best view of the towers and walls, and the enormity of the whole structure.

Byblos Old Town area

Byblos citadel was now complete and we were free to enjoy some of our own time and wander the city itself before meeting back at the coach. I wandered the old town area, taking a few photos of some grand houses and older buildings, now converted into big restaurants and stores.

The next part was lunch. This is a benefit of this tour as we were booked into a nearby great restaurant with views over the nearby harbour. The food was very Lebanese, fresh, delicious with soft drinks and all we could eat from the many dishes arranged on the large table we sat at.

The food was indeed a welcome addition and it was well chosen for its location, service and standards …. so tuck in if you do this trip!

After re-boarding our coach we headed back towards Beirut but with a turn off towards the mountains. The coach gradually climbed the long sloping sides of the nearby mountain range.

We passed by green forested gorges, deep sloping valleys and several areas of heavily forested land until we arrived at the side of a small valley with a fast flowing stream running along its base.

Jeita Grotto, Lebanon

The coach park was beside the main entrance of a heavily wooded sloping escarpment. We were told here of two major disappointments that we were not expecting.

We were not allowed to take photos inside the caves – why, we were not told.

Also that due to a torrential downpour of rain the previous night the chamber where  we would have taken a boat to float across the green internal lake was flooded too high and thus inaccessible!

A great disappointment as I had read up about the underground huge lake and was really looking forward to this unique experience – I had never been on an underground lake before!

We walked around the entrance area and could see the water escaping the underground cavern with a roar that filled the air, making conversation difficult to hear. The water gushed down into the valley below and formed part of the raging stream that was fast flowing further down the valley.

WOW – a cable car ride to the Jeita Grotto caves

What I was not expecting,, and much to my delight, was that in order to get from the car park to the cave entrance, we would take a cable car over the raging stream we had just been taking photos of. We were given our tickets (entrance price is included remember) and we excitedly awaited our cable car!

The cable cars come along in fours – notice that they are in the colours of the Lebanese flag and boarding is strictly controlled to ensure no accidents, which impressed me. Into the cable cars and we serenely glided out of the station and over the trees, streams, and gradually ascended the side of the mountain.

Fantastic ride in modern, clean and safe carriages that added extra novelty to the visit. The exit higher up was also expertly controlled and we disembarked to begin the next stage into the actual mountainside.

Experience in the caves

So, all I can tell you is that the caves, stalactites, and rock formations inside the caverns were absolutely amazing and I am so gutted at not being able to take pics and show you their magnificence here. They looked like huge alien wax formations and the columns were thick and often several metres tall.

The colours of the different minerals showed through and the caves themselves were …. well ….cavernous. You could build houses inside them. Click here for the official Jeita Grotto website info

The depth was so deep that I could not actually see the bottom of many areas. The walkways were fabulous as they were safe concrete and steel aisles through the caves to one side but often crossing over the gorge. There was the sound of dripping and flowing water and the whole system was lit up beautifully.

I thought I could sneak a few photos in but there were attendants at every turn who were carefully watching everyone, so there was no chance of any pics being taken.

A bit of history and info on the Jeita Grotto

The caves system is actually two sets of caverns, one above the other called, appropriately enough the upper and lower galleries. The lower one (discovered in 1836) is where the lake was and is 9 km long but was closed on my visit as it was flooded.

The upper one (discovered in 1958) is 2.2km long and houses the world’s largest stalactite and has a maximum ceiling height of 12 metres! They have been considered as one of the finalist in the new 7 Wonders of Nature.

We left the Grotto, having walked as far into the caves as we were allowed and marvelled at what we saw. I have included a couple of grainy pics from the brochure we were given and the website of Jeita Grotto itself just to give you an idea of the inside.

Outside were several artistic statues and designs relating to water – one being a statue of Neptune . We boarded our coach to head for our last visit of the day before our return to Beirut.

Cable car ride to Harissa

The coach started its slow ascent of the mountainside and stopped at a point low down next to a cable car station. I hadn’t expected another cable car ride  – never get one for years and now I get two in one day ! yyaaayyy.

The station is quite modern and after joining a short queue and standing watching the gondola cabs arrive every few minutes, load up up and then swiftly carry on out of the station and skywards, it was our turn. The gondolas comfortably carry two people but could accommodate four at a push.

I boarded with a guy from the tour group and we chatted as we started the ascent.

We literally flew out of the station and immediately you are surreally passing over houses, roads and traffic and taking a quite steep ascent upwards. The initial views are towards the sea on one side and the approaching mountain on the other, but look down and we are now passing over apartment blocks.

We soon pass by more tower blocks at the side, almost being able to see inside the flats.

After a few minutes we pass over what is the main highway and it was so strange to be looking down on the road traffic and high rise office buildings lining the highway. Something built-up was visible on the horizon at the sea edge – Beirut? – it certainly got my attention as I thought I was seeing the capital!.

The gondola now enters a more wooded area below with a scattering of houses and small apartment blocks and the unfortunately light rain started. The silence as we climbed was eerie despite what must be constant traffic and people noise we could see below us.

Other gondolas passed us by silently and the only noise that we heard was the occasional metal on metal as we slid over one of the many pylon tops holding the cable lines suspended.

I got in as many photos as I could but unfortunately the rain started to settle on the windows so they were somewhat blurred and obscured by the droplets.

Arriving at the cable station it was surprising to see, as we exited the cabin, another queue for something. This was the next part which was a funicular in a carriage holding about 20 people.

The cab, set at an angle to the mountain, glides up the side of the mountain and arrives at the very top of the plateau some 530 metres above the sea. Here is a splendid view over the surrounding coastline, out to sea and the sprawl of the town below us.

There was even a rainbow forming to greet us formed from the hazy rain that was falling!

Harissa – Shrine of Our lady of Lebanon

The plaza at the top is now a mixed collection of copies of famous Christian religious sites around the world that feature apparitions of Mary eg Lourdes in France and Our Lady of Fatima in Portugal. There are statues to past Popes and of course the original Church or Our lady surrounded by trees.

It is a huge conical shaped stone building with the statue of Mary at the top. You can go inside and pay to go up the cone shaped tower to the top, to get views of the surrounding area.

The original Shrine has now become somewhat eclipsed by the new modernist Church finished in recent years. It is a huge, sloped, cream-coloured wall/roof design with large glass windows that overlook the panoramic view. The design of the structure is strikingly futuristic.

We however arrived at a time when the church was closed. Disappointedly, we  were not able to get pictures of the inside, which I was looking forward to. Click here for info on the Harissa site.

While we had spent time taking the cable car up to the top and then had a long walk around the summit, our coach had taken the long windy road up to meet us. By the time we had finished our summit walkabout. it was waiting, ready nearby to transport us back to Beirut.

We boarded, exhausted from a full days touring with this superb company, and ready to get back to the hotel to relax.

March 2019