Syria Off The Beaten Path

 
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  •   Off The Beaten Path
    by Robin020
  •   Off The Beaten Path
    by Robin020
  •   Off The Beaten Path
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Most Viewed Off The Beaten Path in Syria

126.

Jebel Qassioun   Damascus

Jebel Qassioun, Damascus

 6 Reviews  They shine at night, they seems to be so far from us, standing up on this mountain...Drinking a hot tea, my eyes lost in yours, no words are needed cause our hearts are talking already...Oh God, i... 

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127.

day trips   Aleppo

day trips, Aleppo

 40 Reviews  The Church of St. Simeon (or Qala Siman as it is known to the Syrians) is about 1 hour out of Aleppo. It is the site of where St. Simeon chose to lead the religious life alone as a hermit monk. But... 

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128.

covered souq   Aleppo

covered souq, Aleppo

 20 Reviews  You will have a signal pointing to this hammam inside the Nahhasin Souq, on the right handside when you are exiting the Citadel. Although hammam is in the middle of the souq, it is not that difficult... 

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Ugarit

by MalenaN

The ancient site of Ugarit (Ras Shamra) is situated 15 km from Latakia but it can easily be reached with a microbus. The microbus leaves from a side street behind Saaht al-Sheikh Daher and the fare is 5 SP. The site was inhabited already from the 6th century BC, but it was during the period after 2000 the city was on its peak, until 1200 when it was sacked and never recovered.An important find is the archives with the many tablets with cuneiform texts in several languages. They give information of Ugarits religion and myths, diplomatic correspondence, the kings of the kingdom, economy and trade.There are also tablets written with the Ugarit alphabet, the first alphabet! In the Ugaritic alphabet there are only 30 symbols where each symbol represents one sound.Entrance fee to the archaeological site is 150 SP.

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Latakia

by MalenaN

Latakia is a city by the Mediterranean Sea, with Syria’s biggest port.You can feel it is a coast town. Here you find roads lined with palm trees, many cafes, restaurants and bars and trendy people.North of the town are some really nice beaches. And close are the historical and interesting places Ugarit and Qala'at Salah ad-Din (Saladin Castle).

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Mosques

by dr.firas

As I said before mosques are beautiful beaten paths as well, this one I guess is the oldest in the city of Dayr az zawr, to visit you shall take the road stright from the main street square passing the souk!

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Qala'at Salah Ad-din - The Needle

by MalenaN

As you approach the castle the serpentine road turns sharply to the right and you enter a narrow canyon with vertical sides. The canyon is about 150 metres long and 20 metres wide. 30 metres above, to the right, is the castle. The canyon is man-made, cut out by hand to separate the castle from the ridge. It’s incredible and must have been hard work for many. Left in the middle of the road is a needle of stone (28 metres high). It used to support the drawbridge.

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Qala'at Salah Ad-din

by MalenaN

The Saladin Castle is one of the most impressive castles in Syria. It is built on a mountain ridge with two sharp ravines to its sides. Most of what can be seen of the castle today belongs to the construction made by the Crusaders who took the place in early 12th century. In 1188 Saladin and his men stormed the castle and got control of it.There are several towers with stairs inside to climb, first to the first floor and then on to the second floor at the top.The view from the towers is very nice over the castle and surrounding landscapes.To go to Saladin Castle you take a microbus from Latakia to al-Haffa. It takes about 30 minutes and the fare is 10 SP. From al-Haffa the microbus driver offered to drive us to the castle for 100 SP (all together). Which was very good as it is to long to walk.For a tourist, without student card, the entrance fee to the castle is 150 SP.

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Most beautiful view of the trip

by dr.firas

This was the most beautiful view of our trip, but the heat was unbearable, and we were Malena and I melting and steaming under the heat of the hellish weather and cruel Sun of 54 degree in the shadows!

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Beehievedwellings

by global_explorer

On the dry plains east of Hama, the green jewel of the Orontes valley, there is several villages with strange beehieveshaped clayhouses. This is the traditional houses of the region, its thick walls are perfect for keeping cold during winter and heat during summer outside. Sadly from a photo graphers point of wiew there is fewer and fewer of those houses, but still many villages have nice clusters. Sarouj are one of the villages often visited by tourists, here they have designated one of the inhabited buildings for touristvisits, and in there you are free to take photos. Getting there by public transport, unless you are lucky, will be timeconsuming. Hotel Cairo in Hama can organice private transport. It is reasonable priced and the drivers are nice people. Along the way you will see countrylife, that will, at certain times at least, include tentdwelling nomads.

Beehievedwellings

by global_explorer

On the dry plains east of Hama, the green jewel of the Orontes valley, there is several villages with strange beehieveshaped clayhouses. This is the traditional houses of the region, its thick walls are perfect for keeping cold during winter and heat during summer outside. Sadly from a photo graphers point of wiew there is fewer and fewer of those houses, but still many villages have nice clusters. Sarouj are one of the villages often visited by tourists, here they have designated one of the inhabited buildings for touristvisits, and in there you are free to take photos. Getting there by public transport, unless you are lucky, will be timeconsuming. Hotel Cairo in Hama can organice private transport. It is reasonable priced and the drivers are nice people.

Dead cities

by global_explorer

Between the cities of Hama and Aleppo there is a vast numbers of socalled dead cities, ruins from the byzantine era abandoned 1500 yearsa ago. The reason was probably change in tradingroutes and that sort of things. They were not destructed in warlike aktions They range in size from single buildings to big villages. Some buildings are so well preserved that it looks more likely that they was abandoned just a few years ago. Serjilla, Ruweiha and Al bara are some of the more seeworthy. In some places people still grow the farmland, it is still as fertile as it was in the bysantine era, and some ruins are even in use for both people and annimal. In Serjilla there is still clear water in omne of the wells, you hear the occational scream from a child, the gobling from hens and maybe a donkey. This makes the experience even more special. Getting around py public is said to be possible, but it...

The desertmonastery

by global_explorer

Deir Mar Musa is a christian monastery situated high up in a cliffside on the fringe of the syrian desert. Its history goes back morew than 1500 years, but it havent been populated constantly. now it is in a way in a rewakeningphase with only an handfull of monks, and interestingly, also some nuns tied to it. It is an interesting philosophy here, it talks about peacefull coexistence and cooperation between all religions and Mar Musa trie actively to solve the frictions between christians and muslems in the area. The monastery welcomes visitors who can eat and stay for free, it is right to giver a donation tough. Mar musa is easiest reached by bus and/or chartered transport from Damascus.

Unique Places in Syria

Top 3 Hotels in Syria

Beit Al Mamlouka  Damascus

 4 Reviews and 83 Opinions  Rooms & Suites Rooms offer exceptional grace and comfort and all give views over either the hotel’s... 

 Hotels in Damascus

Jdayde Hotel  Aleppo

 50 Opinions

 Hotels in Aleppo

Cairo Hotel  Hamah

 4 Reviews and 46 Opinions  Hama's Cairo Hotel is one of the great travellers' hotels of the Middle East. It is nothing much to... 

 Hotels in Hamah

101 Hotels in Syria
 
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Reviews and photos of Syria attractions posted by real travelers and locals. The best tips for Syria sightseeing.

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Off The Beaten Path: Cities in Syria
  1. Damascus Off The Beaten Path
  2. Aleppo Off The Beaten Path
  3. Latakia Off The Beaten Path
  4. Palmyra Off The Beaten Path
  5. Busra ash Sham Off The Beaten Path
  6. Hamah Off The Beaten Path
  7. `Afrin Off The Beaten Path
  8. As Suwayda' Off The Beaten Path
  9. Dayr az Zawr Off The Beaten Path
  10. Hims Off The Beaten Path
  11. Apamea Off The Beaten Path
  12. Qanawat Off The Beaten Path
  13. Kassab Off The Beaten Path
  14. Qal`at as Sim`an Off The Beaten Path
  15. Khirbat Serjilla Off The Beaten Path
  16. Al Yahudiyah Off The Beaten Path
  17. Jazirat Arwad Off The Beaten Path

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Popular Regions in Syria

Muhafazat Dimashq Off The Beaten Path  Muhafazat Halab Off The Beaten Path  Muhafazat Hims Off The Beaten Path  Muhafazat al Ladhiqiyah Off The Beaten Path  Muhafazat al Qunaytirah Off The Beaten Path  Muhafazat Hamah Off The Beaten Path  Muhafazat Dar`a Off The Beaten Path  Muhafazat as Suwayda' Off The Beaten Path  Muhafazat Rif Dimashq Off The Beaten Path  Muhafazat Tartus Off The Beaten Path  Muhafazat al Hasakah Off The Beaten Path  Muhafazat Dayr az Zawr Off The Beaten Path 

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Questions and Answers

Chatistatistor profile photo

Q:  Was planning for an overland trip with our own cars from Cairo to Istanbul passing by jordan and syria via the old classical... 

stevemt profile photo

A: Syria is not somewhere I would be going near right now, really not safe at all. Most governments have strongly advised all their citizens to get out of Syria as soon as... 

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