Here are my travel stories from Lebanon, part of an extensive collection of informative and entertaining stories I have been writing to document my experiences during a lifetime of exploring the world. Browse hundreds of inspiring travel stories grouped by location or activity from the site’s secondary menu above.
These stories are excerpts from my book Backpacking Lebanon, a short travelogue wherein I recount my adventures during a month of wandering around this captivating country on foot, by public transport, and by hitchhiking.
From Beirut to Baskinta
Our immediate destination was a village called Baskinta, at an elevation of 1200 meters on the western slope of Mount ...
Baskinta to Faraya: Trekking the Lebanon Mountain Trail
An owl’s persistent, mellow and melodious hooting preceded the alarm and aroused us before the crack of dawn. We snoozed ...
Three Days in Beirut
It was bang on midnight, and the airport corridors weren’t that busy. Still, given the insufficient number of clerks, a ...
Faraya to Afqa: Trekking the Lebanon Mountain Trail
We were up at dawn. Before the sun crested the ridge, we were packed and gone. As agreed last evening, ...
Afqa to Aaqoura: Trekking the Lebanon Mountain Trail
The daybreak was approaching, warming the nightly frigid interior of the cave and encouraging me to quit the sleeping bag ...
Aaqoura, Baloue Balaa, Chatine: Trekking the Lebanon Mountain Trail
Human chatter awoke us at dawn. I went out to inspect. Its source unseeable, it came from within the bordering ...
Tannourine: Trekking the Lebanon Mountain Trail
The lack of shade and water compelled us to set out very early. Natch, five minutes into our course, we ...
Tannourine Cedar Reserve: Trekking the Lebanon Mountain Trail
Waking in such a heavenly setting, we ought to loll for the better part of the morning. Then, a contingency ...
El Arz, Cedars of God: Trekking the Lebanon Mountain Trail
The sun reached our tent early and forced us to pack and go quickly. This morning, for the first time ...
Bsharri, Qadisha Valley: Trekking the Lebanon Mountain Trail
A large animal, likely a boar, that hung around our tent at dawn was gone by sunrise, leaving the grove ...
Qadisha Valley to Ehden: Trekking the Lebanon Mountain Trail
Following a calm morning, we continued through the gorge. The river and the road gradually deviated until the former receded ...
Two Days in Tripoli and Mina, Lebanon
The road was empty, and the quiet reinstated when I got up at dawn and settled on the bench for ...
Two Days in Batroun, Lebanon
The tuk-tuk dropped me off right in front of the van’s door. I hopped onto the latter after making one ...
Two Days in Byblos, Lebanon
Seduced by the comfort of the egg chair and the serenity of the sea view, I dallied over my coffee ...
Two Days in Baalbek, Lebanon
A week had gone by on the searing and crowded coast. Now I would return to the cooler and uncongested ...
One Day in Anjar, Lebanon
Reflecting the area’s perennial prominence at the core of civilization, another distinguished archeological site in the Beqaa Valley is the ...
