This spiritual journey will lead you through paths carpeted with wildflowers and olive groves, whose perfumes interlace with a delicate scent of incense… You will emerge into a magic atmosphere which reigns in the sumptuous Islamic capitals of Damascus and Aleppo.

Syria also played an important role in the development of Christianity. Christianity spread very early among the gentiles and Damascus was the city where St. Paul first preached the Gospel of Christ. In the ancient Damascus the names and places you encounter directly remind of the events described in the New Testament: in the proximity of the Straight Street and the Ananias Chapel you may still hear the echo of the steps of St.-Paul slipping silently along and see the window carved in the wall of the Citadel through which he escaped the Roman… Syria has preserved a large number of ancient churches and chapels, monasteries and ruins of settlements dating back to the Byzantine era, which are linked with the famous Syrian saints and martyrs (St. Takla, St. Sergius, and St. Simeon).

You will be charmed by the antique, very early Christianized cities of Rasafeh and Bosra as well as by the picturesque villages perched in the rocks: Maaloula, where Aramaic, the language of Jesus, is still spoken, and Saidnaya home to the famous Monastery with the holly icon painted by St. Luke. The impressive Franc castles will remind you of the tormented era of the Crusades (the Krack des Chevaliers, the Saladin castle).
Syria is an ancient land and you will have the occasion to visit as well its most famous highlights that stretch far back beyond Islamic and Biblical times: Palmyra, Ugarit…

day 1 : Arrival at Damascus Arrive at the Damascus airport, meet and greet, transfer to hotel Overnight and dinner in Damascus. day 2 : Kawkab, Damascus Excursion to the Kawkab, church built in memory of the conversion of Saint Paul, and to the National museum, visit to the Umayyad mosque with a famous shrine in the centre of the mosque built over the head of St. John the Baptist, Saladin mausoleum, Azem Palace. A walk through the picturesque Christian quarter, visit to Bab Sharki, St Ananias Chapel, St. Paul window and the vibrant Hamidiyeh souk. In the evening drive to the Kassioun Mountain to enjoy the splendid panorama of Damascus Dinner and overnight in Damascus. day 3 : Saidnaya, Maaloula, Krack des Chevaliers, St. George, Tartus, Lattakia Short drive to Saidnaya, picturesque village spread out over a hill top end surrounded by Vineyards and Olive groves famous pilgrimage site, known for the St. Mary Convent associated with miracles enveloping the image of the Virgin allegedly executed by St.-Luke the Evangelist. Continue to Maaloula, visit of the 4th Century St Sergius monastery and 10th century St. Takla Convent reachable through the miraculous mountain crack. Next visit leads to the Krack des Chevaliers indicating the presence of the forces of Christendom from the first crusade. It is the largest and the best preserved Crusader Castle in the Middle East. In its proximity excursion to the St George monastery dating back to the 6th century to the time of the Emperor Justinian. En route to the coast stopping in Tartus, ancient port known for its early cult of the Virgin. According to a legend it was Saint Peter himself, who consecrated the city’s first church. Visit to the ancient Cathedral of Our Lady of Tortosa, now a museum, which owns its large fortifications to Crusaders. Continue to the famous coastal town of Lattakia. Dinner and overnight in Lattakia day 4 : Ugarit, Saladin Castle, St.-Simeon, Aleppo En route to Aleppo, visit of Ugarit, kingdom on the Mediterranean coast, where the first alphabet was found. A short drive will bring you to another reminiscence from the tormented period of the Crusades, the Saladin castle. After the visit you will cross the mountains and drive north, to the breathtaking site of St-Simeon Monastery. Here this Stylite lived more than 42 years perched on top of a pillar. The remains of this column are still available. Excursion to some of other Dead Cities nearby. These are ruins of Christian settlements dating from the Byzantine era, which were abandoned in the 7th century by the Christian population feeing the seism and an approaching army. Dinner and overnight in Aleppo day 5 : Aleppo Entire day dedicated to Aleppo. Hiding a labyrinth of medieval souks and richly ornamented houses Aleppo boasts a remarkable heritage of Islamic and Christian monuments: Great Mosque, Madrassa Halawiye, Maronite and Armenian churches….This beautiful Oriental city of churches and minarets is dominated by the gigantesque Citadel (after the legend this was the spot where Abraham used to milk his cow, this legend is also the source of Aleppo's Arabic name, Halab, derived from the Arabic for milk). Dinner and overnight in Aleppo . day 6 : Rasafeh, Euphrates River, Deir ez-Zor Drive east, through the desert to the region of the mythical Euphrates. The numerous sites spread all along its banks belong to all periods of history, visit of a famous pilgrimage site Rasafeh named under the Byzantine rule ‘Sergiopolis’ in honor to the martyrdom of Sergius (a Roman soldier who refused to bring sacrifice to god Jupiter). You will admire large water cistern like immense subterranean cathedrals. Departure to Deir ez-Zor. Dinner and overnight in Deir ez-Zor . day 7 : Palmyra Continue through desert to Palmyra, the pride of the Syrian Desert and one of the most important highlights of the tour in Syria. Visit of its astonishing Temple of Bel, which is almost identical in its structure to the temple, built by Herod in Jerusalem, also of agora, theatre,the mysterious Valley of tombs.... Dinner and Overnight in Palmyra day 8 : Palmyra, Damascus Morning drive to Damascus, afternoon free to explore or shop. Dinner and overnight Damascus day 9 : Bosra, Shahba, Damascus A day trip south to the black basalt region of Hauran, defined by the mountains of Jebel Druze which are in the Psalms referred to as 'Mount Bashan'. Visit of Bosra, a Nabatean city with the extraordinary well preserved huge Roman theatre. According to the tradition, it was here, that accompanying a caravan of his uncle,the Prophet Mohammad met the Christian moan Bahira, who initiated Mohammad to monotheism and predicted his prophecy. On the road back to Damascus you will stop in Shahba to visit its museum which houses a beautiful collection of splendid Roman mosaics. Return to Damascus. Dinner and overnight in Damascus. day 10 : Departure from Damascus Departure.