Small Group Tours - Qadisha Valley, Becharre & Cedars - Day trip from Beirut

Itinerary
This is a typical itinerary for this product

Pass By: Qadisha Valley, 6 Km From Becharre, Bcharre Lebanon

Kadisha Valley is a gorge that lies within the Becharre and Zgharta Districts of the North Governorate of Lebanon. The valley was carved by the Kadisha River, also known as the Nahr Abu Ali when it reaches Tripoli. The valley sometimes called the Holy Valley has sheltered Christian monastic communities for many centuries. The valley is located at the foot of Mount al-Makmal in northern Lebanon.

Stop At: The Cedars of God, Bcharre Lebanon

The Cedars of God are located in Bsharri, are one of the last vestiges of the extensive forests of the Lebanon cedar that once thrived across Mount Lebanon in ancient times. Their timber was used by the Phoenicians, Israelites, Egyptians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Romans, and Turks. The wood was prized by Egyptians for shipbuilding; the Ottoman Empire used the cedars in railway construction.

Duration: 1 hour

Stop At: Gibran Museum, Bcharre Lebanon

Originally, a grotto for monks seeking shelter in the 7th century, the Mar Sarkis (Saint Sergius) hermitage, became Gibran Khalil Gibran's tomb and was later turned into his museum.

By the end of the 17th century, Carmelite monks living in the Qadisha valley, the sacred valley, began construction of a new monastery, which was completed in 1862.

Duration: 30 minutes

Stop At: Monastery Saint Antoine Kozhaya - Lebanese Maronite Order دير مار أنطونوي قزحيا - الرهبنة اللبنانية المارونية, Deir Mar Antonios Qozhaya is in the northern section of the Qadisha valley between the villages of Hawqa and, Lebanon

Qozhaya is considered to be one of the oldest monasteries of the valley of Qadisha. Several hermitages are attached to it and at a certain period (probably the 12th Century AD), it has been the See of the Maronite Patriarch. In 1584, the first printing press of the Middle East was installed in this monastery.

In 1708, it was handed down to the newly formed Lebanese Maronite Order. It still belongs to this important Order. Qozhaya was at its pinnacle in the first part of the 19th Century with more than 300 monks belonging to it.

With its large properties in the valley, Qozhaya is one of the richest monasteries of the Order. It contributes financially to the maintenance of the less fortunate monasteries of the Order.

Duration: 1 hour