Sidon, Tyre & Maghdouche | Budget Small-Group Tour From Beirut

5.0 (9 reviews) 8 hours Free cancellation

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5.0

Sidon, Tyre & Maghdouche | Budget Small-Group Tour From Beirut — Photos: the activity supplier, via Viator

Sidon, Tyre & Maghdouche | Budget Small-Group Tour From Beirut, photo 2 — Photos: the activity supplier, via Viator

About this activity

This is the no-frills version of the Sidon, Tyre & Maghdouche day trip — same three destinations, same small group of maximum 12, but without a professional guide and without included tickets or lunch. The most affordable way to cover south Lebanon's 5,000 years of history in a single day from Beirut.

South Lebanon is the part of the country most first-time visitors skip — and the part experienced Lebanon travelers consistently say deserves more time. Sidon: a 13th-century Crusader sea castle, the world's only olive oil soap museum, a living medieval souk, and a Silk Road caravanserai. Tyre: a UNESCO World Heritage Site where the Al-Bass complex — triumphal arch, colonnaded necropolis street, and a Roman hippodrome built for 20,000 spectators.

Maghdouché: the hilltop sanctuary of Our Lady of Mantara, revered by Christians and Muslims for two millennia. Your knowledgeable driver covers the key facts at each stop. You explore at your own pace.

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At a glance

Duration: 8 hours
Confirmation: Instant confirmation
Ticket: Mobile or paper ticket accepted
Group: Up to 12 people
People per booking: 1–9
Guide: English
Operated by: Beirut Daily Tours

Ages: Adults (0–99 years)

What is included

Included

Included: Tour Leader
Included: Hotel Pick up & Drop off
Included: In-vehicle air conditioning: Air-conditioned vehicle
Included: Brief explanation about each site

Not included

Not included: Meals
Not included: Gratuities

Itinerary

Beirut

Passing by

8:30 AM — Hotel pickup

Your driver meets the group at your Beirut hotel and heads south along the Mediterranean coastal highway toward Sidon.
Crusaders Sea Castle

30 min Admission not included

Sidon Sea Castle — Crusader fortress on the water

A 13th-century Crusader fortress on a small island just off the coast, connected to shore by a stone causeway with open sea on both sides. Phoenician traders were using this harbour 3,000 years before the Crusaders built here. Your driver covers the layered history at the entrance — you explore at your own pace.
Sidon Souks

one hour

Sidon Old Souks — not renovated, not curated, just real

Stone-vaulted alleyways where spice merchants, goldsmiths, and artisan workshops have traded for centuries — functioning exactly as they always have. Your driver points out what makes Sidon's market different from every other souk in Lebanon.
Stop 4

30 min Admission not included

Soap Museum — the only olive oil soap museum on earth

Sidon has been producing olive oil soap for over a thousand years. This museum — the only one of its kind anywhere — tells the complete story from grove to finished bar. A stop most travelers did not know they wanted until they are inside it.
Khan al-Franj

15 min

Khan el Franj — the Silk Road caravanserai

A 17th-century caravanserai built by Emir Fakhreddine II for European Silk Road merchants — arcaded courtyards, vaulted galleries, carved stone facades. One of the finest Ottoman buildings in Lebanon.
Al-Bass Archaeological Site

one hour Admission not included

Tyre — UNESCO World Heritage Site

Al-Bass Archaeological Complex — Roman Tyre at full scale

Enter through a triumphal arch standing after two thousand years. Walk a colonnaded street flanked by ancient sarcophagi. Reach the Tyre Hippodrome — one of the largest in the Roman world, built for 20,000 spectators on a 480-metre track. Your driver covers the key facts at the entrance. You explore the full site at your own pace.
Tyre

one hour

Lunch in Tyre — optional

Fresh Lebanese mezze and seafood at a local Tyre restaurant — Mediterranean right there, ancient city as backdrop. Optional and at your own expense.
Stop 8

15 min

Basilica of Our Lady of Mantara — where she waited

Mantara means "the one who waits" in Arabic. Christian tradition holds that the Virgin Mary waited here while Jesus preached in Sidon below — a place of pilgrimage for two millennia, revered equally by Christians and Muslims. Panoramic views over the southern Lebanese coast. A quiet close to a day that covered 5,000 years of history.
Beirut

Passing by

Return to Beirut — approx. 5:30–6:30 PM

Drop-off at your Beirut hotel. South Lebanon's 5,000 years of Phoenician, Crusader, Roman, and sacred history — at the most competitive price on this route.