This 10-day Grand Syrian Odyssey is more than a tour; it is a symphony of stone and spirit. In 2026, as the “New Syria” reveals itself, you are invited to witness a country reclaiming its seat at the head of world civilization. With six UNESCO World Heritage sites as our anchors, we move through a landscape where the atmosphere is charged with a wonderful, newfound peace.
The Imperial Governorates: A Historical Tapestry
Damascus & Rif Dimashq: The beating heart. Damascus is the world’s oldest continuously inhabited capital, a limestone masterpiece where Roman urban grids provide the foundation for Islamic artistic genius.
Daraa (Bosra): The southern gateway of black basalt, where Nabataean traders and Roman legions left a fortress of architecture that remains frozen in time.
Homs & Hama: The verdant spine of Syria. Here, the Orontes River gave life to Hellenistic dreams, Crusader fortresses, and the massive wooden waterwheels that have hummed for centuries.
Aleppo: The indestructible Silk Road nexus. A city of merchants and poets, boasting the world’s most formidable citadel and a culinary tradition that is the envy of the Middle East.
Idlib (The Dead Cities): A ghostly, beautiful landscape of hundreds of abandoned Byzantine settlements that whisper the secrets of early Christendom.
Latakia & Tartus: The Mediterranean soul. The Phoenician cradle where the first alphabet was carved into clay and where the sea air carries the scent of ancient cedar and salt.
A Note on Flexibility: The following itinerary is a curated prototype—a starting point for your imagination. At Syria Caravans, every journey is a bespoke creation. You may extend or shorten your stay, hand-pick your preferred accommodation style, or swap activities between our various programs. This is your caravan; we simply provide the map.
Itinerary
Step onto the ancient cobblestones and let the scent of roasted coffee and jasmine pull you inward. We begin in the Ancient City, drifting through the Christian and Jewish Quarters where the walls themselves seem to breathe history. We pause at Al-Qishleh Café, a local sanctuary where the rhythm of Damascene life—clacking backgammon tiles and rising laughter—welcomes you home. We conclude at the legendary Al-Nofara, sipping cardamom-infused coffee as the sun sets behind the Umayyad minarets.
We journey south to Bosra, a city carved from black volcanic basalt that glows like obsidian. You will walk through the Nabataean Gate and stand in the center of the Roman Theater, the most complete on earth, where the acoustics still carry a whisper from the stage to the highest tier. After exploring the Roman Baths and the Winter Market, we share a home-cooked meal with a local family before paying respects at the ancient Ezra’a Church and the radiant, blue-tiled Sayyida Zeinab Shrine.
Today, we become part of the city’s living fabric. We board the local transit to reach the National Museum, a treasure house of antiquity, and the neo-classical Hejaz Railway Station, a monument to Ottoman ambition. We cross into the walled city to the Azm Palace, where striped stone and fountains define Levantine luxury, before entering the Umayyad Mosque—a golden miracle of marble. We finish at the House of Ananias, deep underground, before diving into the city’s sophisticated modern social scene.
We ascend into the Qalamoun Mountains to the Lady of Saidnaya Monastery, where the smoke of incense has risen for nearly 1,500 years. In Maaloula, you will hear the Lord's Prayer in Aramaic, the guttural and melodic tongue of Christ. We descend into the plains of Homs, visiting the Virgin’s Girdle Church, which houses a relic of the Mother of God, and the towering Khalid ibn al-Walid Mosque, before resting in the emerald-green valley of Al-Mishtaya.
Rising above the morning mist is the Krak des Chevaliers, the "Castle of Castles." You will explore its massive vaulted halls and defensive ramparts, feeling the weight of the Crusades in every stone. We continue to Hama, where the giant Wooden Norias groan as they lift the waters of the Orontes, just as they did in the Middle Ages. Our final stop is Apamea, where you will walk the breathtaking 1.8km Great Colonnade, a forest of pillars that stretches toward the horizon, before we reach the storied gates of Aleppo.
The Aleppo Citadel dominates the sky, a limestone giant that has never truly been conquered. We descend from its heights into the Ancient Covered Souks, the longest vaulted bazaars in the world. The rhythm here is the strike of the copper-smith’s hammer and the scent of laurel oil at the Khan al-Saboun. You will witness crafts that have been passed from father to son for a thousand years, ending the night with a feast of Aleppo’s world-famous cherry kebabs and artisanal sweets.
We explore the haunting beauty of the Dead Cities, visiting Bara and Serjilla, where Byzantine villas stand perfectly preserved in the silence of the hills. We stand before the Church of Saint Simeon Stylites, where a hermit lived atop a pillar for decades, and the Qalb Lozeh Cathedral, the architectural inspiration for Notre Dame. We then cross the mountains to the Citadel of Salah Ed-Din, a UNESCO masterpiece carved directly out of the living rock, before the Mediterranean blue of Latakia greets us.
At Ugarit, you will walk through the royal palace where humanity first moved from pictures to letters—the world's first alphabet. We then trade the shore for the sea, taking a boat to the Island of Arwad. On this tiny, inhabited rock, Phoenician walls still defy the waves. We explore the sea-facing fortress and the coastal ruins of Amrit, where the ancient stadium and temple still overlook the water, before returning to the mountain peace of Al-Mishtaya.
We journey into the heart of the Syrian Desert to find Palmyra, the "Bride of the Desert." The Temple of Bel and the Tetrapylon rise from the sand like a golden dream. You will walk the Colonnaded Street and stand on the stage of the Palmyra Theater, feeling the ghost of Queen Zenobia’s empire. As the stars emerge, we share an authentic Bedouin feast in a desert tent, the silence of the sands providing a wonderful atmosphere of timelessness.
We return to the cradle. Spend your final morning in the quiet alleys of Old Damascus, reflecting on the journey while selecting last-minute artisanal treasures—brocades, woodwork, and spices. With hearts full and spirits renewed by the resilience and beauty of the "New Syria," we provide your professional transfer to the airport or border, ensuring your transition home is as smooth as your journey has been profound.
