Private Sidon, Tyre & Maghdouche Day Tour from Beirut

9:00 AM — Departure from Beirut Your private English-speaking driver collects you from your Beirut hotel and heads south along the Mediterranean coastal highway — the ancient Phoenician road that once connected the greatest trading cities of the ancient world.

Begin at Sidon's most iconic landmark — a 13th-century Crusader fortress built on a small island just off the coast, connected to the shore by a narrow stone causeway. As you walk through its towers and vaulted halls, your driver-guide recounts the dramatic story of the Crusader occupation, the Mamluk sieges, and the Phoenician harbour that once made Sidon one of the most powerful trading cities of the ancient Mediterranean world. The sea views from the ramparts are among the finest on the Lebanese coast.

Wander the labyrinthine alleyways of one of Lebanon's most authentic traditional markets — still trading as it has for centuries, with spice vendors, coppersmiths, fabric merchants, and sweet shops spilling onto the cobblestones. Unlike the restored souks of Beirut, Sidon's old market is the real, living, breathing thing — a genuine window into daily Levantine life that most visitors to Lebanon never find.

Visit the world's only museum dedicated to the ancient art of olive oil soap-making — a Sidonian craft practiced continuously for over a thousand years. Housed in a beautifully restored khan within the old city, the museum traces the full journey from olive grove to finished soap cake, with exhibits showing the traditional pressing, cooking, and cutting methods that made Sidon's soap famous across the Mediterranean and as far as Europe. A genuinely unique cultural experience found nowhere else in the world.

Step into the grand 17th-century caravanserai commissioned by Emir Fakhreddine II to accommodate European merchants trading along the Silk Road. The wide arcaded courtyard, vaulted galleries, and carved stone facades make Khan el Franj one of the finest examples of Ottoman-era architecture in Lebanon — and one of the most photogenic spots in Sidon. Your guide explains the role this khan played in the commercial life of the Levant during Lebanon's golden age of trade.