8:30 AM — Departure from Beirut Your guide meets the group at your hotel. The tour starts immediately — Pigeon Rocks is five minutes away.

Pigeon Rocks, Corniche & Zaitunay Bay The limestone sea stacks off Raouche — Beirut's most photographed natural landmark. Then along the Corniche seafront promenade and a stop at Zaitunay Bay marina. Your guide frames the city before the downtown walk begins.

Drive past the Holiday Inn — its Civil War facade deliberately unrepaired, a 26-storey record of the conflict that shaped modern Beirut.

Downtown Beirut — guided landmarks circuit Your guide leads the group through Beirut's most essential downtown stops — all within walking distance of each other, each with its own distinct story. Mohammad Al-Amin Mosque · 10 min Al-Omari Mosque · 10 min ⛪ Saint George Cathedral · 10 min Martyrs' Square · 5 min Place de l'Étoile · 5 min Beirut Souks · 30 min Roman Baths · 5 min

Beiteddine Palace — the presidential palace of Lebanon Built between 1788 and 1840 by Emir Bashir II — the ruler who unified the Lebanese mountain factions — Beiteddine is the most significant palace in the Chouf and today the official summer residence of the Lebanese President. Three interconnected courtyards with hand-cut geometric tilework and carved cedar-wood ceilings. Beneath the palace: Lebanon's finest collection of Byzantine mosaics — floor panels of extraordinary colour housed in an underground museum that surprises virtually every visitor.

Deir el Qamar — Lebanon's first capital Meaning "Monastery of the Moon" — a honey-stone Ottoman village that served as Lebanon's first capital under the Ma'an dynasty and has been remarkably well preserved. The central square is framed by 17th and 18th-century mansions. A mosque and a church share the same hillside — four centuries of coexistence in a single view.

Fakhreddine Mosque & Saydet el Tallé Church The 17th-century mosque of Emir Fakhreddine II — the Druze ruler who built an empire from the Bekaa to the Sinai — and the hilltop Maronite church with panoramic views over the Chouf valleys. Both within metres of each other. Your guide explains why this proximity matters to Lebanese identity.

Lunch in Deir el Qamar — included Traditional Lebanese mountain mezze at a local Deir el Qamar restaurant — grilled meats, fresh bread, and Chouf valley views. Fully included in the tour price.

Return to Beirut — approx. 5:30–6:30 PM Drop-off at your Beirut hotel — Beirut's city landmarks and the Chouf Mountains' finest destinations covered in a single guided day.