A day in the Afrin valley: from Ain Dara to Cyrrhus

The two sites northwest of Aleppo fit into a single day, but there is mountain road between them. Ain Dara to Cyrrhus is 42 kilometres by car and an hour and a half: the distance is short, the road is not. This route builds the day around that. An Iron Age temple in the morning, a Roman city in the afternoon, and between them the place where a Roman tomb tower was attached to a mosque.

The route

Head northwest out of Aleppo. Ain Dara is 50 kilometres away, but the road runs through hills; by car it takes an hour and a half, long for the distance. The mound rises from the plain and the temple sits on the upper town; vehicles stop below and the last stretch is on foot. Coming back down, keep north. The 42 kilometres towards Sharan are mountain road again, dropping to a single lane in places. The first stop is not the main site: the Nebi Huri Mosque and the hexagonal tomb tower beside it are 1 kilometre south of it, so go there first. Then carry on north. The road into the site crosses one of the Roman bridges, which means the first Roman work you see is the bridge you drive over. The grid plan of the city, the line of the colonnaded street and the theatre outside the walls are all here.

Timing

Leave Aleppo at 08:00. You reach Ain Dara around 09:30, and two hours on the mound is enough. Look at the footprints in the paving of the porch in the morning — by afternoon the light comes down steeply and the shadow inside the cuts disappears. Get back on the road at 11:00 and you are at the Nebi Huri Mosque around 12:30. The relation between tower and mosque reads quickly; half an hour will do. Enter the main site at 13:00 and stay until 15:30: the theatre, the colonnaded street and the two bridges take no less. The return to Aleppo is about 70 kilometres by the direct road, and it is worth setting off before dusk.

Take care

This route runs through an area where access can change. Before setting out for the Afrin region, ask about the current state of the road and of entry; no visiting schedule is posted, and at both sites the fee is decided at the gate. Ain Dara was badly damaged in 2018; part of the site is not what it was, and what you see includes that. There is no public transport, so build the day around your own car or a driver. Filling stations are sparse on the mountain road between the two sites: fill up in Aleppo. The ground is stony and uneven, so wear solid shoes. In summer there is no shade on the mound or in the ruins; carry water. In winter, rain makes the mountain road harder.