Lebanon Exploration: UNESCO World Heritage Sites of Tyre, Sidon and Maghdouche
4.5
44 Ratings
Beirut
Embark on a full-day exploration of Lebanon's UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Tyre, Sidon, and Maghdouche. Discover the rich cultural influences and marvel at the beautifully preserved towns. Immerse yourself in history and spirituality on this captivating trip from Beirut.
Duration: 8 hours
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Tyre - Visit the Castle of Tyre
  • Crusaders Sea Castle - Visit the Sea Castle of Sidon
  • The Great al-Omari Mosque - Visit the old souks and the soap museam
  • Maghdoucheh - Visit Our Lady of Maghdouche ( Saydet El Mantara)
What's Included
  • All-day tour with a professional licensed guide fluent in English and French
  • Complimentary on-board WiFi
  • Bottled water provided
  • Includes lunch
  • Pickup and drop-off service from Beirut City hotels (excludes hostels, Airbnb, or private apartments)
  • Free entrance to all scheduled program sites
  • Comfortable in-vehicle air conditioning
What's Not Included
  • Gratuities
Additional Information

Embark on a day-long journey from Beirut to the intriguing Lebanese cities of Tyre (a UNESCO World Heritage site), Sidon, and Maghdouche. Guided by a local expert, you’ll explore three of Lebanon’s most well-preserved towns and uncover a rich tapestry of cultural influences. Marvel at extraordinary architectures such as the Crusader Cathedral in Tyre, the Sea Castle of Sidon, and Maghdouche’s Al-Saydeh Ancient Church. Dive into a vibrant world of historic richness and spirituality on this full-day trip departing from Beirut.

  • (Except Mondays Excluding Lunch)
Location
Beirut
Alternatively, we offer pick up and drop from Hotels located in Beirut City Only. (No Pick up from Hostels, airbnbs, or private residences). You must provide hotel name upon booking.
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.5
(44 Ratings)
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Sonaa821
Jan 19, 2020
Enriching experience - Very informative and enriching experience. Though it was raining, the tour was so interesting, the group enjoyed it much. Our guide Lucy was very caring, knowledgeable, and cheerful.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Leonardoa160
Jan 4, 2020
Beyond Beirut - Super prepared and friendly staff. Guide knew everything about her country's ancient and contemporary history, and beyond. We had a great time and we saw and learn stuff you miss if you stay just in Beirut. Also a good chance to meet people if you're a lonely traveler as me. Next time I'll take the Bekka valley tour for sure!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Simonbr4136tt
Dec 22, 2019
Tyre and Sidon - The medieval castle in Sidon and the walk through the old town was most enjoyable but the highlight was the Roman remains in Tyre especially the hippodrome. Look out for the monumental Roman arch, gateway to the ancient but also remains of the Roman road with its arcades and the remains of the aqueduct. The other site in Tyre is on the headland and equally worth a visit with its view over the open sea.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Natlane
Oct 10, 2019
A tour of ancient civilisations and political unrest - Over the years, Lebanon has been invaded by so many civilisations. This is very apparent on this tour. Our tour guide, Lucia, was passionate about archaeology and very knowledgable about her country’s history. She was a delight to listen to and answered questions with complete professionalism. You start at Sidon with a wander around the crusaders’ fortress. Then you go through the Souks to the soap factory before visiting a church linked to St Peter and St Paul. Then it’s to visit the site of the caravanserai. If I’m honest, I would have forgone the soap factory for some free time in the Souks. Onwards from there to Tyre to a couple of archaeological sites. Take a hat as there’s not a lot of shade. The second site gives you the opportunity to wander down to the sea front. Be prepared to see a number of Palestinian refugee camps on this trip. After Tyre, it’s up into the hills for a great lunch of cold mezze and fish with dessert and coffee before visiting Maghdouche, a shrine to the Virgin Mary and a statue to climb. This was the second tour we did with Nakhal and can’t fault them on their organisation; from the pre trip confirmations, to the hotel pick up and their knowledgeable tour guide (and very patient drivers). The tours sound expensive, but when you factor in all the entrance fees, lunch, travel, wages etc, it’s very good value. Highly recommended.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Lena
Jul 2, 2019
perfect getaway - We had a great time in ! must visit when in Lebanon. Swimming in The Mediterranean sea was so refreshing. We had our dinner at Maghdouche, a restaurant right near the sea excellent food .
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Eduardobh7630ev
Jun 8, 2019
A journey to the south! - The only one of the tours I did in southern Lebanon that satisfied my curiosity. Saida and the cruzader Castle of the Sea is lovely, walking through the Souks is most than interesting. Each merchant showed kind even you will not buy his merchandise. The basilica divided between Orthodox and Catholic attracts my attention and is a reason to return. Already in Sour, the archaeological site of Tire impresses with its arch and the amount of sarcophagi of the necropolis. Already in the part that was the island that was conquered by Alexander the Great, impress me to imagine how before it was separated from mainland. The columns remind us how wonderful it was in the Roman era, with the Phoenicians should be equally impressive. A delicious lunch was offered, the Mezze was plentiful and good service. The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Mantara and its peace, a good ending to a day full of history and emotions.
Review provided by Viator
Taoyuan1
Jan 17, 2020
Good tour/guide. Office staff could be better - Had a very nice day tour with this company. The guide Walid was great — strong English skills, good knowledge base, and a nice person throughout the tour. In fact, he even went out of his way to help the others on my tour, and I was very impressed with his work all day long. That said, I knocked off one star because the company wouldn’t pick me up at a residential address (their competitors would), and managed to fumble the pickups of the other two people, such that they also had to go to the main office. The lady working at the main office was not interested in helping figure out where to go.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Simon_w
Oct 5, 2019
Great introduction to the history of southern Lebanon - My wife and I did this as an easy introduction to important historical cities on the south coast of Lebanon. Our guide Waleed was very knowledgeable and friendly, and gave a good commentary as we moved from sight to sight. My only minor complaint was that the bus got very hot on some legs of the trip. Other than that I would have given 5 stars for the trip.
Review provided by Viator
Marco_d
Aug 14, 2019
Nice guide, good locations - The tour was well organised and the guide quite knowledgeable. Lunch was satisfying and in a great location. I'm only not much impressed by Sidon, but Tyre was worth it.
Review provided by Viator
Freddy_on_trips
Oct 29, 2019
Average tour due to Jacques - 12 Sep 2019 - We booked this tour with Viator. On the day of the tour we went to the main branch for pick up. The tour started on time: it included lunch and entries to different attractions. Since the tour started around 8 am we assumed that they would take a small coffee or breakfast break however it wasn’t the case. Jacques (the guide) failed to advise us regarding that point; we could have gotten some coffee while waiting for the bus since there is a small convenience store next to the departure location. Our first stop was at Sidon at the Crusaders’ fortress; it was very enjoyable and not too many people (rating 4/5). Next, we ventured sadly very quickly in the food souk to reach the Soap Factory which was an average visit (rating 3/5) with a very expensive coffee shop (5000L.L. (3.5$ US) for a tiny lemonade glass and 3500L.L. (2.25$ US) for a Turkish coffee). We then walked through the souks very briefly (pity would have been much better than the soap factory) and visited the St Nicholas orthodox church (rating 4/5). Our last stop in Sidon was Khan El Franj for a brief visit before we left to Tyre. Our 1st stop there was the Tyre Hippodrome which was amazing (rating 5/5) and our 2nd stop was Al Mina site which is also beautiful to visit (rating 5/5). Once we were done we were taken to Maghdouche for lunch at the Arc restaurant where we were served a Lebanese mezza. The main dish to our disappointment was chicken with mushroom and cheese (not a Lebanese dish). Furthermore, alcohol was not included in the price and was very expensive as a 250 ml Beer was 4$ (pure rip-off). The service was good though. Once done our final stop was the lady of Maghdouche. We visited the new church (rating 3/5) and the old church in the cave (rating 4/5). The peak of the visit is the statue and it is highly recommended to go up to the top if opened. The view is breathtaking and is well worth the climb. Overall: • No stop for breakfast - it should have been indicated in the voucher. • The tour is overall interesting but Jacques our guide had a fast pace in walking (some people weren’t able to follow) and he was rushing everything. He even skipped the Christian portion in the city of Sidon after he had told us we would visit it. • Additionally, according to my wife, Jacques was giving false historical information. I advise you strongly to go with another tour guide. • The restaurant is a letdown. • In terms of the tour, they should have offered each person a bottle of water for the journey.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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June 2024
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