9:00 AM — Departure from Beirut Your English-speaking driver collects you from your Beirut hotel and heads north through the Dog River valley — its canyon walls carved with inscriptions left by Egyptian pharaohs, Assyrian kings, and Roman emperors — toward Jeita Grotto.

The day begins beneath the earth. Jeita Grotto is a UNESCO tentative World Heritage Site and a top-five finalist in the New 7 Wonders of Nature — two interconnected limestone caves stretching 9 kilometres beneath the Lebanese mountains. The upper cave is explored on foot through a soaring world of stalactites and stalagmites, some over 8 metres tall, formed over millions of years. The lower cave is navigated by silent electric boat along an underground river — a journey through chambers of extraordinary natural beauty where the silence is almost complete. It is one of the most visited and most memorable natural attractions in Lebanon, and rightly so.

From underground to above the clouds — board the Harissa Téléférique at the Jounieh seafront and ride 650 metres above sea level, the Mediterranean spreading out below as the Lebanese mountains rise ahead. The aerial views over Jounieh Bay on the ascent are among the most photographed in Lebanon — and the cable car ride itself is one of the most exhilarating experiences the country offers.

At the mountaintop, stand before the iconic bronze statue of Our Lady of Lebanon — 8.5 metres tall, arms outstretched toward the sea, visible for miles in every direction. Surrounded by the Maronite Basilica and neighbouring churches, Harissa is one of the most important Christian pilgrimage sites in the Middle East — a place where faith and natural beauty exist in perfect balance, and where the view alone would justify the journey even without the shrine.

The most moving stop of the day — and for many visitors, the most unforgettable experience of their entire time in Lebanon. The Monastery of Saint Maron at Annaya is where Saint Charbel Makhlouf — Lebanon's most beloved saint and one of the most venerated figures in the Catholic world — chose to spend the last 23 years of his life as a hermit, withdrawing from the monastery to live in a small hermitage in the mountains above. He died here on Christmas Eve 1898 and was canonised by Pope Paul VI in 1977 — the first Middle Eastern saint to be canonised in the modern era. His tomb in the monastery church draws millions of pilgrims annually — believers who report healings, answered prayers, and an overwhelming sense of peace in this remote mountain place. The hermitage where he lived — a tiny stone cell on the mountainside — is also open to visitors. Whether you come as a pilgrim or simply as a traveller drawn by the story, Annaya is a place that changes people. Very few leave unchanged.

Lunch in Byblos — optional On the drive back toward Beirut, make an optional stop in Byblos — one of the oldest cities on earth — for a relaxed lunch at a waterfront restaurant overlooking the ancient fishing port. Fresh Lebanese mezze and grilled fish with medieval city walls and Mediterranean views. After a day of natural wonders and spiritual depth, this is the gentlest possible way to return to the world.

Return to Beirut — approx. 5:00–6:00 PM Drop-off at your Beirut hotel after a day that moved from the depths of the earth to a mountaintop shrine to one of the most sacred pilgrimage sites in the Middle East.