Lovely site for a monestary. Beautiful setting, just too bad there is so much development on the opposite slopes. The monestary is being renovated but in a nice way.

there are not many places on the planet that pack up such a history. Standing in a place that once stopped the armies of Alexander, is a great place to be. Quiet, serene, and full of picturesque views.

We had hoped to trek some of the lebanese mountain trail during our visit to Lebanon. I contacted all of the companies on the Lebanese mountain trail website - only had a few replies, of which Liban trek was way ahead in terms of providing good quality information. Michel the owner of the company responded to all of my queries and questions very promptly. We were in frequent email contact in the weeks preceding our trip. He offered general advice to help plan all of our trip and make our stay in lebanon a success. He has good local knowledge and was able to help us construct an itinery that was personalised to our requests. Michel organised for us to have a 2 day trek in the qozhaya and qadisha valley, with an overnight stay in a homestay ('Homestay in a wild environment within the Qadisha. Isolated house in Qannoubin hamlet, inaccessible to cars. Family of 4: mother, son, spouse & child. 2 twin rooms at your disposal, with beds, sheets & covers. Toilets & hot shower contiguous to the house.') we stopped to visit monastries on the way, and also visited the Hermit's cave - a columbian man Father Dario Escobar, who has lived in a cave/church in the qadisha valley alone for 12 years! He was a surprisingly funny and friendly man, and very intelligent. Our guide Rafi, was very friendly and relaxed, he was happy to talk with us and share his knowledge throughout the trek. He was also very responsive and keen to gain our feedback on the experience as we were going to ensure that the trip was what we had hoped for. He gave us several options of routes as we were trekking. The hike was well paced with enough time to enjoy the environment. We are experienced trekkers - so we didn't think it was too difficult. We appreciated the relaxed pace to take in the beautiful scenary and talk. The trek was enhanced by his relationship with many locals - who invited us in to their homes for coffee stops on the way - a great way to meet local people.

The homestay was in a very tranquil environment in the valley, the family were friendly - they did not speak any English, but our guide translated for us. They prepared delicious home cooked traditional lebanese food. At night we could see the sky filled with stars, the house electricity was off for 3 hours - but this provided a perfect atmosphere with candles to enjoy our evening. The house was warmed by a wood burning stove.

I would definately recommend Liban trek - we thought it was a worthwhile experience and were impressed with the organisation and help provided by the company.

If you are not religious, the sheer beauty of the Qadisha Valley makes it a wonderul place to trek. If you are, like me, religious, its past and current religious history only adds to the majesty of the place.
Make sure you visit St Simeon's hermitage from Bqar Qacha.