A day among the monasteries north of Damascus: Saidnaya, Maaloula and Deir Mar Musa

The three monasteries north of Damascus fit into one day, but it is a long one: 200 kilometres of road and 11 hours door to door. Saidnaya sits on the rock above its town. Maaloula is 26 kilometres further on, a village pressed against a cliff. Deir Mar Musa stands on the slope of a desert valley, and the last stretch is 350 steps. A car is essential; no regular public transport links the three. So is the order, because the pilgrim crowds and the midday heat sit at opposite ends of the day.

The route

Leave Damascus heading north. Saidnaya is 29 kilometres out on a mountain road that steepens at the end; the monastery stands above the town and you enter by a stair cut into the rock. From there it is 26 kilometres to Maaloula along the Qalamoun ridges, about an hour. At Maaloula you leave the car below: the gorge is walked, and a monastery stands at each end of it. The next leg is the longest of the day — 52 kilometres from Maaloula through Nebek to Deir Mar Musa. The final kilometres are unpaved and narrow and end at a car park; the monastery is reached on foot from there. The way back joins the motorway at the mouth of the valley: 93 kilometres to Damascus.

Timing

Leave Damascus at 07:30. Reach Saidnaya at 08:30 and the chapel is empty; the pilgrim coaches come in the afternoon, and by then the queue runs out of the door. Be at Maaloula by 10:15 and walk the gorge before the midday sun heats the rock. Back on the road at 12:30, you reach Mar Musa around 14:30. That hour suits the climb: the slope has moved into shade and the steps have cooled. Two hours at the monastery is enough, and the frescoes need time for your eyes to adjust. You are back in Damascus by 18:30.

Take care

Deir Mar Musa receives visitors but asks to be told in advance, and there is no phone signal on the track — call before you leave Damascus. All three stops require covered shoulders and knees. The steps are dusty and have no handrail, so shoes with grip make a difference. Carry water: nothing is sold in the Maaloula gorge or on the road to Mar Musa. The frescoes belong to 11th century and 12th century layers; no flash. Winter brings snow and fog to the Qalamoun, and summer middays leave you without shade. From April to June and from September to October every part of the day runs easily.