Qadisha Valley and Cedar Forest
Day trip from Tripoli to the UNESCO World Heritage Qadisha Valley, where ancient cedar trees, dramatic canyon scenery, and medieval monasteries carved into cliff faces create one of Lebanon most sacred landscapes.
- 1
Cedars of God
Visit the Cedars of God at Bsharri, one of the last remaining groves of ancient Lebanese cedar, the trees that built the temples of Solomon and the palaces of Egypt now protected in this mountain reserve above the Qadisha Valley.
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Qadisha Gorge
Look down into the Qadisha Gorge, the Holy Valley of Lebanese Christianity, where a river has carved a 1,000-meter-deep canyon into the Lebanon mountains, the cliff faces dotted with hermit caves and ancient monasteries.
- 3
Qozhaya Monastery
Visit the Monastery of Saint Anthony of Qozhaya, one of the oldest monasteries in the Qadisha Valley, where Maronite Christian monks have maintained a monastic community in the cliff-face retreat since the 4th century.
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Gibran Museum
Visit the Gibran Museum in Bsharri, the childhood home of Kahlil Gibran and now a museum dedicated to the Lebanese-American poet and artist, the collection of his paintings and manuscripts displayed in the mountain village he immortalized.
- 5
Canyon Hiking Trail
Hike the Qadisha canyon trail through the gorge floor where the river rushes between limestone walls, passing hermit caves, ancient water mills, and the extraordinary rock formations of this sacred natural landscape.
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Mountain Village
Explore a traditional Lebanese mountain village in the Qadisha area where the terraced cultivation of apple orchards, the stone houses with red tile roofs, and the church-centered community reveal the culture of Lebanon's Christian mountain heartland.