Tourism in Lebanon - Old Towns

Old Towns

Old towns still form the center or core of many Lebanese cities and towns. The majority of these old towns dot the coastline of Lebanon, with only a small number of them found in the country's interior. This reflects the nature of the Lebanese people who were a maritime culture largely involved in trade and commerce.

• Tripoli is the second largest city in Lebanon, and is the capital of the North Governorate. Dating back to 14th century BCE, the city was the center of a Phoenician confederation between Tyre, Sidon and Arados, hence the name "Tripoli" meaning "Triple City" in Greek. It was the capital of the last Crusader state in the Levant the County of Tripoli in the 12th century. Tripoli continues to be the second largest city, after Cairo, in Mamluk architecture. Tripoli was a major trading Port city between Europe on one hand, and Aleppo & Damascus on another. The Old Town of Tripoli is home to numerous historical sites like the Citadel of Raymond de Saint-Gilles, Taynal Mosque, Mansouri Great Mosque and several other Hammams, Madrasas, and caravanserais. All of which are present inside the Souks of Tripoli, an expansive maze of Sandstone alleyways and narrow streets in compact urban forms. The Old City is decorated with elaborate ornaments, Arabesque designs, hexagonal cornices, molded door and window frames, and many other beautifying features. Elegant facades with decorative effects on elevations and around openings mark the entrances to old prayer halls, galleries, and courtyards. Simple cupolas or ribbed domes can be found over conspicuous and important spaces like tomb chambers, mihrab, and covered courtyards. Muqarnas and inscriptions, honeycomb moldings, and fishscale models decorate the minarets, portals, window exteriors, mihrab, qiblah wall... etc.

• Batroun is a coastal city in Lebanon and the capital of the Batroun District in the North Governorate. The name Batroun derives from the Greek, Botrys (also spelled Bothrys), which was later Latinized to Botrus. Historians believe that the Greek name of the town originates from the Phoenician word, bater, which means to cut and it refers to the maritime wall that the Phoenicians built in the sea to protect them from tidal waves. Other historians believe that the name of the town is derivative of the Phoenician words, "beit truna", which translates to house of the chief. The Phoenicians founded Batroun on the southern side of the promontory called in Antiquity, Theoprosopon and during the Byzantine Empire, Cape Lithoprosopon. Batroun is said to have been founded by Ithobaal I (Ethbaal), king of Tyre, whose daughter Jezabel married Ahab. The city belonged under Roman rule to Phoenicia Prima province, and later after the region was Christianized became a suffragan of the Patriarchate of Antioch. In the 551 Beirut earthquake, Batroun was destroyed, and mudslides and cracks occurred at the Cape Lithoprosopon. Historians believe that Batroun's large natural harbor was formed during the earthquake. One of Batroun's medieval archaeological sites is the Crusader citadel of Mousaylaha which is constructed on an isolated massive rock with steep sides protruding in the middle of a plain surrounded by mountains. Under Ottoman rule, Batroun was the center of a caza in the mutessariflik of Lebanon and the seat of a Maronite diocese, suffragan to the Maronite patriarchate. Since 1999 it has been the seat of the Maronite eparchy. Today, Batroun is composed of an old town with numerous old stone churches and winding alleyways, all assembled around the old Phoenician harbor.

• Deir el Qamar is a village in south-central Lebanon, five kilometres outside of Beiteddine, consisting of stone houses with red-tiled roofs. During the 16th to 18th centuries, Deir el Qamar was the residence of the governors of Lebanon. It is also notable for its 15th century Fakhredine Mosque, Fakhreddine II Palace, and other historical palaces and administrative buildings. The 17th century Deir el Qamar Synagogue is also in the village, although closed to the public. During its peak, the city was the center of Lebanese literary tradition. It was the first village in Lebanon to have a municipality in 1864, and it is the birthplace of many well known personalities, such as artists, writers, and politicians. It was the capital of the Druze Cancimat of Lebanon (1840-1860). One of the most important historical and religious site in Deir El Qamar is Our Lady of the Hill known as Saydet El Talle. This Maronite church goes back to the 15th century. The legend says that there was a Druze Emir in Baakline looking at the hill of Deir El Kamar. He saw a light coming out of the hill. He gathered his soldiers and ordered them to go in the morning and dig in the land. He said to them: 'If you find an Islamic symbol, build a mosque. If you find a Christian symbol, build a church." The soldiers went in the morning, dug in the land and found a rock with a cross on it and under the cross there was the moon and venus. That was the sign that long time ago, there was a temple dedicated to the moon and venus and later it became a church. Earthquakes and wars might be the reason for its disappearance." The rock discovered by the soldiers can be found above the old gate of the church. A Byzantine column can be found inside the church.

• Zahleh is the capital and largest city of the Bekaa Governorate in east Lebanon. It is situated 55 km (34 mi) east of the capital Beirut, close to the Beirut-Damascus road, and lies at the junction of Mount Lebanon and the Beqaa valley, at a mean elevation of 1000 m. Zahlé is known as the "Bride of the Beqaa" and "the Neighbor of the Gorge" due to its geographical location and attractiveness, but also as "the City of Wine and Poetry" It is famous throughout Lebanon and the region for its pleasant climate, numerous riverside restaurants and quality arak. Its inhabitants are predominantly Greek Catholic and known as Zahlawis. Zahlé is built upon a series of foothills of the Lebanon mountains, with Mount Sannine towering above it at a height of 2,628 metres (8,622 feet). Zahlé was founded in the early 18th century, in an area whose past reaches back some five millennia. It enjoyed a brief period as the region’s first independent state in the 19th century, when it had its own flag and anthem. Due to its relative geographic isolation from the local centers of power in Mount Lebanon and Syria, the town did not have any significant allies in the region to fall back on in case of conflicts or attacks. Zahlé was burned in 1777 and 1791, and it was burned again and plundered in 1860 during a conflict between the Christian population of the town and the Druze of the neighboring areas. The construction of the railroad line between Beirut and Damascus in 1885 brought prosperity to Zahlé, which became a freight hub on the trade route between Lebanon, Syria and Iraq, while continuing to serve as a regional agricultural center. The town is a vast collection of white-limestone houses covered with red-tiled-roofs. It houses several Ottoman era buildings, several old churches, the Our Lady of Bekaa shrine, and a big serail. However, the most important attraction in Zahleh remains a 300 m (984 ft) promenade along a local river. Sheltered between the ravine's limestone cliffs, it is lined up with outdoor restaurants, cafes and playrooms, and shaded by trees.

• Sidon is the third largest city in Lebanon and the capital of the South Governorate. It lies on the Mediterranean sea, 40 km north of Tyre and 40 km south of the capital Beirut. Sidon has been inhabited since very early in prehistory. It was one of the most important Phoenician cities, and may have been the oldest. From here, and other ports, a great Mediterranean commercial empire was founded. Homer praised the skill of its craftsmen in producing glass, purple dyes, and its women's skill at the art of embroidery. It was also from here that a colonizing party went to found the city of Tyre. Like other Phoenician city-states, Sidon suffered from a succession of conquerors. At the end of the Persian era in 351 BC, it was invaded by the emperor Artaxerxes III and then by Alexander the Great in 333 BC when the Hellenistic era of Sidon began. Under the successors of Alexander, it enjoyed relative autonomy and organized games and competitions in which the greatest athletes of the region participated. The historical core of Sidon is a Mamluk-era old city that extends between the Sea Castle and the St. Louis Castle. Located on a promontory jutting into the sea, this walled medieval city is very well preserved and is still inhabited today. The old City resembles a vaulted maze with narrow alleyways and winding streets. Arched pathways connect the different neighborhoods of the city. On street level, numerous souvenir shops and mini-markets can be found with old-fashioned bakeries making crunchy whole wheat bread, called "Kaak". A lot of the alleys take the name of their residents' occupations like the "Carpenters' Alley" and the "Tailors' Alley". Several mosques dating back to the Umayyad Era are still preserved and are open to the public. Sidon's Old City is home to many ancient churches and old stone mosques that were built above pagan temples. Sidon was used as the official port of trade by Damascus and Mount Lebanon for the import and export of goods with Egypt and Europe. Sidon's mercantile community was portrayed in its infrastructure: a large number of caravanserais, the biggest of which is "Khan El Franj", old harbors with multiple quays, and the Sidon Sea Castle, a fort that guards the port.