How many days do you need in Qamishli?
The city itself is half a day: the line of churches, the market and the avenues. What there is to see in Qamishli is less its buildings than the story of how it was founded, so half a day is an honest figure. The second day is the tells: west in the morning, 24 kilometres out to Tell Mozan; south-east in the afternoon, 34 kilometres out to Tell Leilan. You have to come back through the city between them, which makes 114 kilometres in all and closes the day comfortably. The Ain Diwar Bridge will not fit into it — that is 112 kilometres east and a day on its own.
- Suggested length
- 2 days
- Total visiting time across these places
- 11 hours 45 minutes
- Best season
- April–May, September–October
Ready-made routes
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By car · 1 dayA day from Qamishli to Amuda: two cathedrals, Urkesh, Mor Elias and Chagar Bazar
A 104-kilometre day from Qamishli: two city cathedrals, Urkesh, holy city of the Hurrians, Mor Elias in Amuda, reopened in 2017, and Mallowan's mound, Chagar Bazar.
By car · 1 dayAgatha Christie’s Khabur: Chagar Bazar, Tell Brak and Tell Barri from Qamishli
In the footsteps of Max Mallowan and Agatha Christie's digs of 1935-1937: Chagar Bazar, Tell Hazna, Tell Brak and Tell Barri on a 144-kilometre day from Qamishli.
By car · 1 dayUrkesh and Shubat-Enlil: a day out of Qamishli
West in the morning to Urkesh, the holy city of the Hurrians, south-east in the afternoon to Shamshi-Adad's capital. 114 kilometres, an unhurried day.
What to see
- Qamishli · 3rd–2nd millennium BC
Tell Mohammed Diyab
A large mound 7 kilometres south-east of Tell Leilan, dug by a French team from 1987: a town of the land of Apum, a stop for Assyrian merchants, four settlements.
- Al-Malikiyah · reservoir
Safan Reservoir and Hayaka Nature Reserve
The reservoir on the Safan River west of Al-Malikiyah and its Hayaka reserve: 48-49 million cubic metres of water, poplar woods, the border 3 km away, and access.
Qamishli · since 1925St Jacob of Nisibis Syriac Orthodox Cathedral, Qamishli
Qamishli's Syriac Orthodox cathedral: a mud-brick church in 1925, the present building in 1947, a centenary in 2025 and a service led by the patriarch in 2026.
- Amuda · 1927-1928
Mor Elias Syriac Orthodox Church, Amuda
Amuda's Syriac Orthodox church opened in 1927-1928, stood shut for over 40 years and reopened in 2017. The feast held every 20 July, and what to know before going.
- Qamishli · al-Malikiyah area
Mount Karachok
The only high ground in the north-east corner of the Jazira plain: a basalt ridge 45 km long and 770 metres high. Its geology, oil history and what to watch for.
- Qamishli · a cathedral since 1954
St Joseph’s Armenian Catholic Cathedral, Qamishli
The Armenian Catholic cathedral of Qamishli since 1954. How a community from Mardin regathered here, where the church stands, what happened in 2019, who remains.
Transparency
- How this was chosen
- The answer on this page is written by hand. The lists are built from published records tied to this city and grow on their own as records are added.
- Facts checked
- September 2026
- Last updated
- September 15, 2026