Grand Tour of Syria
13 Nights ~ From £2495 per person based on shared accommodation.London • Damascus • Ma’loula • Krak Des Chevalier • Amrit • Tartous • Lattakia • Ugarit • Sal a din • Aleppo • Dead Cities • Halabiye • Rasafa • Deir Ez Zohr • Palmyra • Damascus • LondonDay 1. London to Damascus Fly from London Heathrow on a British Midland flight. Meet and assist on arrival with transfer by a chauffeur-driven air-conditioned Vehicle to your hotel. Check in at your Hotel for a 3-night stay. Day 2. Damascus Fully guided to of Damascus with a guide with entry to the National Museum, the Ummayad Mosque and the Azem Palace and a chance to explore the markets of the old town. Day 3. Damascus Head south to see the Roman City of BOSRA, the ancient Nabatean Kingdom, with its magnificent amphitheatres built from the unique black rock of the area. Bosra's Arab citadel largely built in the 13th Century to defend the Ayyubids from the crusaders. Making our way through the massive outer walls, climbing huge boulder steps and you will eventually emerge into the sunlight in what should have been a 13th-century keep, but instead is the gods of a Roman theatre. Centuries of sand have preserved one of the finest and largest theatres in the Roman world Day 4. Damascus to Krak Des Chevalier via Ma’loula Check out and head north from Damascus to the predominantly Christian villages of Sednaya which is home to the sixth-century Convent of Our Lady, where a miracle-inducing icon of the Virgin Mary, said to have been painted from life by St Luke, has drawn pilgrims for more than 1,000 years. Ma’loula is one of the few places where they still speak Aramaic, the language of Christ. It is home to the Convent of St Tekla and the Greek Catholic monastery of St Sergius. Continue to a hotel near Krak Des Chevalier for an overnight stay. Day 5. Krak Des Chevalier to Lattakia Today you visit the imposing Crusader castle Krak Des Chevalier, where we will spend some time in the hands of a local guide. Next you head towards the coast and visit the Phoenician site of Amrit before a brief visit to Tartous and it’s Medieval Basilica. You have an overnight stay in Lattakia. Day 6. Lattakia to Aleppo An early morning start to head east into the interior of the country to the stunning location of Salah a Din Castle nestling in thick forest the ramparts can be made out from the road as you approach. Passing east through the coastal highland thick with orange grooves we enter the fertile plane of the Orontes valley which leads us to the Roman ruins of Apamea. After our visit there we head north again for a three-night stay in Aleppo. Day 7. Aleppo Along with Damascus claims to be the oldest inhabited city on earth, still feels like a hub of the Silk Route. All day and half the night, goods that have been traded here for centuries pass through the souks: silk, spices, tea, cloth, jewels, herbs, rope. The ancient caravanserai (large inns), with their carved arches and shady courtyards are still the storerooms of the souks. Wandering through the cobbled streets, you could be in any time since Mohammed. We see the Citadel, Aleppo museum, The grand Mosque, The Khans of Wazir and Sabon the Ancient Souk. Day 8. The Dead cities Today we head north west from Aleppo into the area known as The Dead Cities. Roman’s fled this area as the threat of invasion from the north grew leaving behind a world suspended in time. Here is the famous Basilica of San Simeon dedicated to a hermit monk who lived out his life on top of a pillar. Day 10. Aleppo to Deir Ez Zohr Leaving Aleppo today you head west along the Euphrates Valley towards the city of Deir Ez Zohr. On the way there is a chance to stop at two sites linked to Palmyra. Halabiye nestles of on the banks of the Euphrates forming the forward positions against the Persians. Rasafa is a desert outpost that serves the same purpose and is home to the Basilica of St Sergius, a Roman soldier martyred after converting to Christianity. You have an overnight stay in Deir Ez Zohr Day 11. Deir Ez Zohr to Palmyra via Dura Europos and Mari Today your first visit is to the Roman outpost of Dura Europos. Abandoned after a Sassanian siege and the site of some remarkable finds including the Jewish Synagogue in the national Museum in Damascus. Next is Mari, the ancient Sumerian city that flourished in the 3rd century BC. Finally you head to Palmyra for a 2-night stay. Day 12. Palmyra This morning we start the day by touring the tower tomb before continuing on to the rest of the site that includes the Temple of Bel, The Agora and the Theatre. A relaxing afternoon at our hotel the Zenobia Cham Palace which is right on the fringes of the Roman. Day 13. Palmyra to Damascus After a leisurely check out from the hotel head straight to Damascus where you have the opportunity to explore the city in the afternoon. Overnight stay in Damascus. Day 14. Damascus Fly Damascus to London Heathrow on British Midland.
If you wish to travel from any other country outside UK please contact us and we will give you the cost of the holiday without international flights relevant to your travel dates.
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