Routes
Tested itineraries, from half a day to a full week.
100 Routes
Bosra on the Hajj road: a walk from the pilgrims’ pool to the Mamluk bathhouse
A two-hour walk through Bosra’s pilgrim-caravan stop: the Ayyubid pool, a madrasa dated 1225, a Mamluk minaret and the caravan’s bathhouse. Under 800 metres.
2 hours · 0.8 km · 4 stops · Easy
Bosra’s Roman bridges: a half-day loop to Gemarrin and Kharaba
Two Roman bridges over the Wadi Zeidi north of Bosra fit into one morning: the stripped arches at Gemarrin and the intact span at Kharaba. A 21-kilometre loop.
4 hours · 20.5 km · 3 stops · Moderate
Jebel Barisha’s northern slope in a day: Khirbet al-Khatib to Ksejbe
Five Dead Cities on the north of Jebel Barisha: Khirbet al-Khatib, Deirouni, Dar Qita, Ba’uda and Ksejbe. Inscriptions from 392 to 537, six hours by car and on foot.
6 hours · 10.4 km · 5 stops · Moderate
Walking Bosra’s main street: from Bab al-Hawa to the Nabataean Arch
A walk along Bosra’s Roman main street from the west gate to the Nabataean Arch, stepping into Bab al-Qandil and two bath complexes. 1200 metres, five stops.
3 hours · 1.2 km · 5 stops · Easy
A day in the Qalamoun: Saydnaya, Maaloula and Jubb’adin
120 kilometres north of Damascus: a monastery on top of a rock, the two villages where Aramaic is still spoken, and the 6 kilometres of road between them.
10 hours · 120 km · 3 stops · Moderate
A day around the edge of Damascus: the Panorama, the Ghouta and Qasioun
41 kilometres outside the old city: the round museum at the north entrance, the apricot orchards east of town, and a terrace that shows you both at once.
8 hours · 41 km · 3 stops · Easy
Half a day in Damascus: west of the citadel to the Tawba Mosque
1200 metres north from the west side of the Damascus citadel: a Mamluk portal, a vaulted hardware souk, a mosque on the Barada and an Ayyubid court in Aqiba.
3 hours · 1.2 km · 4 stops · Easy
Half a day in Damascus: a second walk through Salihiyya
1200 metres on the slope of Mount Qasioun, four stops: an Ayyubid madrasa with fluted domes, the city’s first Ayyubid mosque and the tomb of Ibn Arabi.
3 hours · 1.2 km · 4 stops · Easy
A day from Idlib to Jabal Barisha: the museum and three dead cities
116 kilometres around Idlib: a museum open with two halls, a house church inside a Roman house, a dated market building and one facade stone in an olive grove.
10 hours · 116 km · 4 stops · Moderate
Two days across the Jazira: from Hasakah to Qamishli and the Tigris plain
480 kilometres in north-east Syria over two days: two mounds at the sources of the Khabur, a third in the Khabur triangle, and a lone arch on the Tigris plain.
16 hours · 480 km · 4 stops · Moderate
A day in the Valley of the Christians: the villages, the monastery and Krak des Chevaliers
110 kilometres west of Homs: a green valley holding 32 villages, a monastery with a chapel below its courtyard, and Krak des Chevaliers in afternoon shade.
9 hours · 110 km · 3 stops · Easy
Half a day in Aleppo: from Jdeydeh to Ouroubah
1400 metres through north Aleppo, four stops: a church sharing a courtyard, a two-towered front in Aziziyeh, a dome in Ouroubah and four round minarets.
3 hours · 1.4 km · 4 stops · Easy
