Sidon Lebanon
Halal Travel Guide: Sidon, Lebanon - Mosques, Old City and Food
Articles • ali2007fr posted the article • 0 comments • 33 views • 2026-05-20 08:14
Reposted from the web
Summary: Sidon, also known as Saida, is shown through its old streets, mosques, sea views, markets, and local food. This account follows the original day trip south from Beirut while keeping the place names and photos in order.
We took a minibus from the southern suburbs of Beirut and traveled 40 kilometers south to reach Sidon, the third-largest city in Lebanon. Sidon has a history of over 6,000 years and is one of the oldest cities in the world. It played a key role in Mediterranean trade and is now a well-preserved Sunni ancient city on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean.
Castle
The landmark of the ancient city of Sidon is the Sea Castle (Qalaat al-Bahr) located on a small island to the north. It was built by the Crusaders in 1228 and connects to the mainland via an 80-meter-long bridge. The Sea Castle was destroyed many times and was repaired and expanded during the Mamluk and Ottoman dynasties. Today, the Sea Castle consists of two towers. You can see many Roman-era stone columns on the outer walls, and there is a small domed mosque built during the Ottoman period on the roof.
Opposite the Sea Castle, there is a Land Castle on a hill in the southern part of the ancient city. They guard the safety of the ancient city from both ends.
The Land Castle is also called the Castle of Mu'izz or the Castle of Saint Louis. It was ordered to be built in the late 10th century by the fourth Fatimid Caliph, al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah (reigned 953-975), and was named the Castle of Mu'izz.
In 1253, King Louis IX of France (known as Saint Louis), the leader of the Seventh Crusade, ordered the reconstruction of the walls of Sidon. The Land Castle was also rebuilt during this period and has since been called the Castle of Saint Louis. Fakhr al-Din II, the Druze Emir who ruled Lebanon in the 17th century, rebuilt the castle again, but it later fell into ruins, and parts of the walls collapsed in the late Ottoman era.
In 1948, when Israel carried out a mass expulsion of Palestinians, the Land Castle served as a shelter for Palestinian refugees. To persecute Palestinian refugees, Israel ruthlessly shelled the Land Castle, causing further damage. These scars have become a witness to the suffering of the Palestinian people.
Streets
Entering the labyrinthine streets of the ancient city from the north gate, many houses are built over the streets, forming tunnels. People set up stalls in these tunnels, selling a wide variety of goods, which makes the area feel very lively.
Market
In the market inside the ancient city of Sidon, you can buy fresh dates, which have a soft, powdery texture and taste great. You can also buy traditional clothing here, which feels very unique.
Food
On the shore next to the Sea Castle is a very famous restaurant called Saida Rest House. The restaurant preserves an Ottoman-era inn (Khan) with exquisite inlaid marble and colorful carvings, and the lighting inside is excellent.
Have a mint lemonade at Bab Al Saray Cafe in the small square in the center of the old city of Sidon. It is one of the oldest cafes in Sidon, and People say their brunch is also very authentic.
The famous falafel shop in the ancient city is Falafel Abou Rami. They opened in 1988 and are very famous in Lebanon. Their falafel is made from a mixture of chickpeas and fava beans, and it is fried fresh to order. You can add pickled cucumbers, pickled tomatoes, and yogurt to make a salad, or wrap it in flatbread (bing). We bought one wrap and it was enough for two people; the portion is huge!
Mosque
El Kikhia Mosque was built in 1625 by Mahmoud Kitkhuda and is a representative Ottoman-era mosque in Lebanon. This mosque is famous for its six domes, and the main hall features a white marble pulpit (minbar).
Across from El Kikhia Mosque is Al-Qtaishieh Mosque, where we performed our afternoon prayer (asr). Al-Qtaishieh Mosque was built in the 16th century by Sheikh Ali Ibn Mohammad Qtaish and houses beautiful Ottoman tiles.
The Great Mosque of El-Omari is the main mosque in the old city of Sidon, and it is where the Eid prayer is held. The Great Mosque of El-Omari is located on a hillside on the west side of the old city of Sidon and is built of massive sandstone over a meter thick.
The architecture of the Great Mosque of El-Omari dates back to the Crusader era; in the 13th century, the Knights Hospitaller built it as a military fortress, including a dining hall, a church, and stables. In 1291, the Mamluk Sultan Al-Ashraf Khalil (reigned 1290-93) conquered the Crusader castles, including Sidon, ending the Crusader states that had existed for nearly two hundred years. The Mamluk dynasty then built the Great Mosque of El-Omari on the foundation of the Knights Hospitaller fortress.
The main hall of the Great Mosque of El-Omari retains the style of the Crusader church, with a ten-meter-high ceiling supported by five sturdy buttresses. The Mamluk dynasty changed the orientation of the main hall from east-west to north-south, added a prayer niche (mihrab) and a pulpit (minbar) on the south side, and added an outer courtyard with a water room and a school on the north side. In the late 19th century, the Ottoman Empire renovated the Great Mosque of El-Omari and built the current minaret.
During the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon, the Great Mosque of El-Omari was hit by artillery fire multiple times and was severely damaged. The Hariri Foundation led the restoration of the site in 1986, and it received the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 1989.
Al-Bahr Mosque was built in 1373 with a donation from Hassan bin Sawah; it features Mamluk-era architectural styles, including thick walls and cross-vaults, and uses granite columns from the ancient Roman period.
El Barrane Mosque is at the entrance to the northern market. Many mosques in Lebanon only open for the five daily prayers and are locked at other times. This mosque was built in the late 16th and early 17th centuries during the reign of the Druze Emir Fakhr al-Din II. Barrani means "outside," because at that time, this mosque was located outside the north gate of the old city, the Beirut Gate.
Inn
From the Hammam Al Jadeed bathhouse, head west through the intricate alleys to reach the massive Ottoman caravanserai, Khan al-Franj. Khan al-Franj inn was built in the late 16th century by order of the Ottoman Grand Vizier Sokollu Mehmed Pasha, who served from 1565 to 1579. The inn has a large courtyard, with the ground floor used for storing goods and the second floor for travelers to live in, which is the typical structure of an Ottoman caravanserai.
The inn served as the residence for the French consul in the early 17th century, which is why it is called the French Inn. The property is currently owned by France, and the French Cultural Institute is located here. The Hariri Foundation leased the space for 35 years, restoring the heritage site and opening it as a cultural center that hosts various events from time to time.
You can buy handicrafts made by local Lebanese women at the inn, and we bought a hand-woven hat. This is part of the Hariri Foundation's effort to create jobs for local women and promote tourism and handicrafts in Sidon.
Entering the old city of Sidon from the north, the first attraction is the underground Khan Sacy Archaeological Museum. Khan Sacy consists of several arched rooms, which date back to stables and warehouses from the Crusader period (1099-1291). Since 2010, archaeological excavations at Khan Sacy have uncovered two bathrooms from the Mamluk period (1201-1517), three wells of different architectural styles, and a multi-purpose oven from the Ottoman period (1517-1918).
Hammam
Continuing south along the main road of the old city of Sidon, you can see the largest Turkish bath in the old city, Hammam Al Jadeed. Hammam Al Jadeed was built in 1720 by the Moroccan merchant Mustafa Hammoud and is a representative example of a Turkish bath in Lebanon during the Ottoman period. The bathhouse consists of 10 rooms, including bathing, massage, and sauna areas, each connected by corridors and decorated with unique marble floors and skylights.
This bathhouse was used until 1948, when it closed due to the spread of tap water pipes. The bathhouse was later used as a carpentry workshop and warehouse, and it was damaged during the Lebanese Civil War (1975-1990). During the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982, one of the domes of the bathhouse was shelled and has not been repaired to this day. In 2018, Said Bacho, founder and president of the Sharqy Foundation for Cultural Development and Innovation, acquired the Hammam Al Jadeed bathhouse. In 2019, the bathhouse, which had been closed for 71 years, reopened as a historical site.
Workshop
After leaving the Great Mosque of Omar, we went to visit the Sidon Soap Museum. The soap workshop where the museum is located was built by Hammoud in the 17th century, taken over by the Audi family in the 1880s, and had a residence added upstairs. In the 1950s, the Audi family left Sidon for Beirut, and the building became a school. It was abandoned during the Lebanese War in the 1980s, and refugees lived on the first floor. The Audi Foundation began restoring the workshop in 1996 and opened it as a soap museum in 2000.
At the soap museum, you can learn how traditional olive oil soap is made and see the remains of the workshop's plumbing from the 17th to 19th centuries. The museum's gift shop is worth a visit. You can buy traditional olive oil soap there, as well as a variety of creative scented soaps. view all
Summary: Sidon, also known as Saida, is shown through its old streets, mosques, sea views, markets, and local food. This account follows the original day trip south from Beirut while keeping the place names and photos in order.
We took a minibus from the southern suburbs of Beirut and traveled 40 kilometers south to reach Sidon, the third-largest city in Lebanon. Sidon has a history of over 6,000 years and is one of the oldest cities in the world. It played a key role in Mediterranean trade and is now a well-preserved Sunni ancient city on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean.
Castle
The landmark of the ancient city of Sidon is the Sea Castle (Qalaat al-Bahr) located on a small island to the north. It was built by the Crusaders in 1228 and connects to the mainland via an 80-meter-long bridge. The Sea Castle was destroyed many times and was repaired and expanded during the Mamluk and Ottoman dynasties. Today, the Sea Castle consists of two towers. You can see many Roman-era stone columns on the outer walls, and there is a small domed mosque built during the Ottoman period on the roof.
Opposite the Sea Castle, there is a Land Castle on a hill in the southern part of the ancient city. They guard the safety of the ancient city from both ends.
The Land Castle is also called the Castle of Mu'izz or the Castle of Saint Louis. It was ordered to be built in the late 10th century by the fourth Fatimid Caliph, al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah (reigned 953-975), and was named the Castle of Mu'izz.
In 1253, King Louis IX of France (known as Saint Louis), the leader of the Seventh Crusade, ordered the reconstruction of the walls of Sidon. The Land Castle was also rebuilt during this period and has since been called the Castle of Saint Louis. Fakhr al-Din II, the Druze Emir who ruled Lebanon in the 17th century, rebuilt the castle again, but it later fell into ruins, and parts of the walls collapsed in the late Ottoman era.
In 1948, when Israel carried out a mass expulsion of Palestinians, the Land Castle served as a shelter for Palestinian refugees. To persecute Palestinian refugees, Israel ruthlessly shelled the Land Castle, causing further damage. These scars have become a witness to the suffering of the Palestinian people.
Streets
Entering the labyrinthine streets of the ancient city from the north gate, many houses are built over the streets, forming tunnels. People set up stalls in these tunnels, selling a wide variety of goods, which makes the area feel very lively.
Market
In the market inside the ancient city of Sidon, you can buy fresh dates, which have a soft, powdery texture and taste great. You can also buy traditional clothing here, which feels very unique.
Food
On the shore next to the Sea Castle is a very famous restaurant called Saida Rest House. The restaurant preserves an Ottoman-era inn (Khan) with exquisite inlaid marble and colorful carvings, and the lighting inside is excellent.
Have a mint lemonade at Bab Al Saray Cafe in the small square in the center of the old city of Sidon. It is one of the oldest cafes in Sidon, and People say their brunch is also very authentic.
The famous falafel shop in the ancient city is Falafel Abou Rami. They opened in 1988 and are very famous in Lebanon. Their falafel is made from a mixture of chickpeas and fava beans, and it is fried fresh to order. You can add pickled cucumbers, pickled tomatoes, and yogurt to make a salad, or wrap it in flatbread (bing). We bought one wrap and it was enough for two people; the portion is huge!
Mosque
El Kikhia Mosque was built in 1625 by Mahmoud Kitkhuda and is a representative Ottoman-era mosque in Lebanon. This mosque is famous for its six domes, and the main hall features a white marble pulpit (minbar).
Across from El Kikhia Mosque is Al-Qtaishieh Mosque, where we performed our afternoon prayer (asr). Al-Qtaishieh Mosque was built in the 16th century by Sheikh Ali Ibn Mohammad Qtaish and houses beautiful Ottoman tiles.
The Great Mosque of El-Omari is the main mosque in the old city of Sidon, and it is where the Eid prayer is held. The Great Mosque of El-Omari is located on a hillside on the west side of the old city of Sidon and is built of massive sandstone over a meter thick.
The architecture of the Great Mosque of El-Omari dates back to the Crusader era; in the 13th century, the Knights Hospitaller built it as a military fortress, including a dining hall, a church, and stables. In 1291, the Mamluk Sultan Al-Ashraf Khalil (reigned 1290-93) conquered the Crusader castles, including Sidon, ending the Crusader states that had existed for nearly two hundred years. The Mamluk dynasty then built the Great Mosque of El-Omari on the foundation of the Knights Hospitaller fortress.
The main hall of the Great Mosque of El-Omari retains the style of the Crusader church, with a ten-meter-high ceiling supported by five sturdy buttresses. The Mamluk dynasty changed the orientation of the main hall from east-west to north-south, added a prayer niche (mihrab) and a pulpit (minbar) on the south side, and added an outer courtyard with a water room and a school on the north side. In the late 19th century, the Ottoman Empire renovated the Great Mosque of El-Omari and built the current minaret.
During the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon, the Great Mosque of El-Omari was hit by artillery fire multiple times and was severely damaged. The Hariri Foundation led the restoration of the site in 1986, and it received the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 1989.
Al-Bahr Mosque was built in 1373 with a donation from Hassan bin Sawah; it features Mamluk-era architectural styles, including thick walls and cross-vaults, and uses granite columns from the ancient Roman period.
El Barrane Mosque is at the entrance to the northern market. Many mosques in Lebanon only open for the five daily prayers and are locked at other times. This mosque was built in the late 16th and early 17th centuries during the reign of the Druze Emir Fakhr al-Din II. Barrani means "outside," because at that time, this mosque was located outside the north gate of the old city, the Beirut Gate.
Inn
From the Hammam Al Jadeed bathhouse, head west through the intricate alleys to reach the massive Ottoman caravanserai, Khan al-Franj. Khan al-Franj inn was built in the late 16th century by order of the Ottoman Grand Vizier Sokollu Mehmed Pasha, who served from 1565 to 1579. The inn has a large courtyard, with the ground floor used for storing goods and the second floor for travelers to live in, which is the typical structure of an Ottoman caravanserai.
The inn served as the residence for the French consul in the early 17th century, which is why it is called the French Inn. The property is currently owned by France, and the French Cultural Institute is located here. The Hariri Foundation leased the space for 35 years, restoring the heritage site and opening it as a cultural center that hosts various events from time to time.
You can buy handicrafts made by local Lebanese women at the inn, and we bought a hand-woven hat. This is part of the Hariri Foundation's effort to create jobs for local women and promote tourism and handicrafts in Sidon.
Entering the old city of Sidon from the north, the first attraction is the underground Khan Sacy Archaeological Museum. Khan Sacy consists of several arched rooms, which date back to stables and warehouses from the Crusader period (1099-1291). Since 2010, archaeological excavations at Khan Sacy have uncovered two bathrooms from the Mamluk period (1201-1517), three wells of different architectural styles, and a multi-purpose oven from the Ottoman period (1517-1918).
Hammam
Continuing south along the main road of the old city of Sidon, you can see the largest Turkish bath in the old city, Hammam Al Jadeed. Hammam Al Jadeed was built in 1720 by the Moroccan merchant Mustafa Hammoud and is a representative example of a Turkish bath in Lebanon during the Ottoman period. The bathhouse consists of 10 rooms, including bathing, massage, and sauna areas, each connected by corridors and decorated with unique marble floors and skylights.
This bathhouse was used until 1948, when it closed due to the spread of tap water pipes. The bathhouse was later used as a carpentry workshop and warehouse, and it was damaged during the Lebanese Civil War (1975-1990). During the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982, one of the domes of the bathhouse was shelled and has not been repaired to this day. In 2018, Said Bacho, founder and president of the Sharqy Foundation for Cultural Development and Innovation, acquired the Hammam Al Jadeed bathhouse. In 2019, the bathhouse, which had been closed for 71 years, reopened as a historical site.
Workshop
After leaving the Great Mosque of Omar, we went to visit the Sidon Soap Museum. The soap workshop where the museum is located was built by Hammoud in the 17th century, taken over by the Audi family in the 1880s, and had a residence added upstairs. In the 1950s, the Audi family left Sidon for Beirut, and the building became a school. It was abandoned during the Lebanese War in the 1980s, and refugees lived on the first floor. The Audi Foundation began restoring the workshop in 1996 and opened it as a soap museum in 2000.
At the soap museum, you can learn how traditional olive oil soap is made and see the remains of the workshop's plumbing from the 17th to 19th centuries. The museum's gift shop is worth a visit. You can buy traditional olive oil soap there, as well as a variety of creative scented soaps. view all
Reposted from the web
Summary: Sidon, also known as Saida, is shown through its old streets, mosques, sea views, markets, and local food. This account follows the original day trip south from Beirut while keeping the place names and photos in order.
We took a minibus from the southern suburbs of Beirut and traveled 40 kilometers south to reach Sidon, the third-largest city in Lebanon. Sidon has a history of over 6,000 years and is one of the oldest cities in the world. It played a key role in Mediterranean trade and is now a well-preserved Sunni ancient city on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean.
Castle
The landmark of the ancient city of Sidon is the Sea Castle (Qalaat al-Bahr) located on a small island to the north. It was built by the Crusaders in 1228 and connects to the mainland via an 80-meter-long bridge. The Sea Castle was destroyed many times and was repaired and expanded during the Mamluk and Ottoman dynasties. Today, the Sea Castle consists of two towers. You can see many Roman-era stone columns on the outer walls, and there is a small domed mosque built during the Ottoman period on the roof.
Opposite the Sea Castle, there is a Land Castle on a hill in the southern part of the ancient city. They guard the safety of the ancient city from both ends.
The Land Castle is also called the Castle of Mu'izz or the Castle of Saint Louis. It was ordered to be built in the late 10th century by the fourth Fatimid Caliph, al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah (reigned 953-975), and was named the Castle of Mu'izz.
In 1253, King Louis IX of France (known as Saint Louis), the leader of the Seventh Crusade, ordered the reconstruction of the walls of Sidon. The Land Castle was also rebuilt during this period and has since been called the Castle of Saint Louis. Fakhr al-Din II, the Druze Emir who ruled Lebanon in the 17th century, rebuilt the castle again, but it later fell into ruins, and parts of the walls collapsed in the late Ottoman era.
In 1948, when Israel carried out a mass expulsion of Palestinians, the Land Castle served as a shelter for Palestinian refugees. To persecute Palestinian refugees, Israel ruthlessly shelled the Land Castle, causing further damage. These scars have become a witness to the suffering of the Palestinian people.
Streets
Entering the labyrinthine streets of the ancient city from the north gate, many houses are built over the streets, forming tunnels. People set up stalls in these tunnels, selling a wide variety of goods, which makes the area feel very lively.
Market
In the market inside the ancient city of Sidon, you can buy fresh dates, which have a soft, powdery texture and taste great. You can also buy traditional clothing here, which feels very unique.
Food
On the shore next to the Sea Castle is a very famous restaurant called Saida Rest House. The restaurant preserves an Ottoman-era inn (Khan) with exquisite inlaid marble and colorful carvings, and the lighting inside is excellent.
Have a mint lemonade at Bab Al Saray Cafe in the small square in the center of the old city of Sidon. It is one of the oldest cafes in Sidon, and People say their brunch is also very authentic.
The famous falafel shop in the ancient city is Falafel Abou Rami. They opened in 1988 and are very famous in Lebanon. Their falafel is made from a mixture of chickpeas and fava beans, and it is fried fresh to order. You can add pickled cucumbers, pickled tomatoes, and yogurt to make a salad, or wrap it in flatbread (bing). We bought one wrap and it was enough for two people; the portion is huge!
Mosque
El Kikhia Mosque was built in 1625 by Mahmoud Kitkhuda and is a representative Ottoman-era mosque in Lebanon. This mosque is famous for its six domes, and the main hall features a white marble pulpit (minbar).
Across from El Kikhia Mosque is Al-Qtaishieh Mosque, where we performed our afternoon prayer (asr). Al-Qtaishieh Mosque was built in the 16th century by Sheikh Ali Ibn Mohammad Qtaish and houses beautiful Ottoman tiles.
The Great Mosque of El-Omari is the main mosque in the old city of Sidon, and it is where the Eid prayer is held. The Great Mosque of El-Omari is located on a hillside on the west side of the old city of Sidon and is built of massive sandstone over a meter thick.
The architecture of the Great Mosque of El-Omari dates back to the Crusader era; in the 13th century, the Knights Hospitaller built it as a military fortress, including a dining hall, a church, and stables. In 1291, the Mamluk Sultan Al-Ashraf Khalil (reigned 1290-93) conquered the Crusader castles, including Sidon, ending the Crusader states that had existed for nearly two hundred years. The Mamluk dynasty then built the Great Mosque of El-Omari on the foundation of the Knights Hospitaller fortress.
The main hall of the Great Mosque of El-Omari retains the style of the Crusader church, with a ten-meter-high ceiling supported by five sturdy buttresses. The Mamluk dynasty changed the orientation of the main hall from east-west to north-south, added a prayer niche (mihrab) and a pulpit (minbar) on the south side, and added an outer courtyard with a water room and a school on the north side. In the late 19th century, the Ottoman Empire renovated the Great Mosque of El-Omari and built the current minaret.
During the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon, the Great Mosque of El-Omari was hit by artillery fire multiple times and was severely damaged. The Hariri Foundation led the restoration of the site in 1986, and it received the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 1989.
Al-Bahr Mosque was built in 1373 with a donation from Hassan bin Sawah; it features Mamluk-era architectural styles, including thick walls and cross-vaults, and uses granite columns from the ancient Roman period.
El Barrane Mosque is at the entrance to the northern market. Many mosques in Lebanon only open for the five daily prayers and are locked at other times. This mosque was built in the late 16th and early 17th centuries during the reign of the Druze Emir Fakhr al-Din II. Barrani means "outside," because at that time, this mosque was located outside the north gate of the old city, the Beirut Gate.
Inn
From the Hammam Al Jadeed bathhouse, head west through the intricate alleys to reach the massive Ottoman caravanserai, Khan al-Franj. Khan al-Franj inn was built in the late 16th century by order of the Ottoman Grand Vizier Sokollu Mehmed Pasha, who served from 1565 to 1579. The inn has a large courtyard, with the ground floor used for storing goods and the second floor for travelers to live in, which is the typical structure of an Ottoman caravanserai.
The inn served as the residence for the French consul in the early 17th century, which is why it is called the French Inn. The property is currently owned by France, and the French Cultural Institute is located here. The Hariri Foundation leased the space for 35 years, restoring the heritage site and opening it as a cultural center that hosts various events from time to time.
You can buy handicrafts made by local Lebanese women at the inn, and we bought a hand-woven hat. This is part of the Hariri Foundation's effort to create jobs for local women and promote tourism and handicrafts in Sidon.
Entering the old city of Sidon from the north, the first attraction is the underground Khan Sacy Archaeological Museum. Khan Sacy consists of several arched rooms, which date back to stables and warehouses from the Crusader period (1099-1291). Since 2010, archaeological excavations at Khan Sacy have uncovered two bathrooms from the Mamluk period (1201-1517), three wells of different architectural styles, and a multi-purpose oven from the Ottoman period (1517-1918).
Hammam
Continuing south along the main road of the old city of Sidon, you can see the largest Turkish bath in the old city, Hammam Al Jadeed. Hammam Al Jadeed was built in 1720 by the Moroccan merchant Mustafa Hammoud and is a representative example of a Turkish bath in Lebanon during the Ottoman period. The bathhouse consists of 10 rooms, including bathing, massage, and sauna areas, each connected by corridors and decorated with unique marble floors and skylights.
This bathhouse was used until 1948, when it closed due to the spread of tap water pipes. The bathhouse was later used as a carpentry workshop and warehouse, and it was damaged during the Lebanese Civil War (1975-1990). During the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982, one of the domes of the bathhouse was shelled and has not been repaired to this day. In 2018, Said Bacho, founder and president of the Sharqy Foundation for Cultural Development and Innovation, acquired the Hammam Al Jadeed bathhouse. In 2019, the bathhouse, which had been closed for 71 years, reopened as a historical site.
Workshop
After leaving the Great Mosque of Omar, we went to visit the Sidon Soap Museum. The soap workshop where the museum is located was built by Hammoud in the 17th century, taken over by the Audi family in the 1880s, and had a residence added upstairs. In the 1950s, the Audi family left Sidon for Beirut, and the building became a school. It was abandoned during the Lebanese War in the 1980s, and refugees lived on the first floor. The Audi Foundation began restoring the workshop in 1996 and opened it as a soap museum in 2000.
At the soap museum, you can learn how traditional olive oil soap is made and see the remains of the workshop's plumbing from the 17th to 19th centuries. The museum's gift shop is worth a visit. You can buy traditional olive oil soap there, as well as a variety of creative scented soaps.
Summary: Sidon, also known as Saida, is shown through its old streets, mosques, sea views, markets, and local food. This account follows the original day trip south from Beirut while keeping the place names and photos in order.
We took a minibus from the southern suburbs of Beirut and traveled 40 kilometers south to reach Sidon, the third-largest city in Lebanon. Sidon has a history of over 6,000 years and is one of the oldest cities in the world. It played a key role in Mediterranean trade and is now a well-preserved Sunni ancient city on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean.
Castle
The landmark of the ancient city of Sidon is the Sea Castle (Qalaat al-Bahr) located on a small island to the north. It was built by the Crusaders in 1228 and connects to the mainland via an 80-meter-long bridge. The Sea Castle was destroyed many times and was repaired and expanded during the Mamluk and Ottoman dynasties. Today, the Sea Castle consists of two towers. You can see many Roman-era stone columns on the outer walls, and there is a small domed mosque built during the Ottoman period on the roof.
Opposite the Sea Castle, there is a Land Castle on a hill in the southern part of the ancient city. They guard the safety of the ancient city from both ends.
The Land Castle is also called the Castle of Mu'izz or the Castle of Saint Louis. It was ordered to be built in the late 10th century by the fourth Fatimid Caliph, al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah (reigned 953-975), and was named the Castle of Mu'izz.
In 1253, King Louis IX of France (known as Saint Louis), the leader of the Seventh Crusade, ordered the reconstruction of the walls of Sidon. The Land Castle was also rebuilt during this period and has since been called the Castle of Saint Louis. Fakhr al-Din II, the Druze Emir who ruled Lebanon in the 17th century, rebuilt the castle again, but it later fell into ruins, and parts of the walls collapsed in the late Ottoman era.
In 1948, when Israel carried out a mass expulsion of Palestinians, the Land Castle served as a shelter for Palestinian refugees. To persecute Palestinian refugees, Israel ruthlessly shelled the Land Castle, causing further damage. These scars have become a witness to the suffering of the Palestinian people.
Streets
Entering the labyrinthine streets of the ancient city from the north gate, many houses are built over the streets, forming tunnels. People set up stalls in these tunnels, selling a wide variety of goods, which makes the area feel very lively.
Market
In the market inside the ancient city of Sidon, you can buy fresh dates, which have a soft, powdery texture and taste great. You can also buy traditional clothing here, which feels very unique.
Food
On the shore next to the Sea Castle is a very famous restaurant called Saida Rest House. The restaurant preserves an Ottoman-era inn (Khan) with exquisite inlaid marble and colorful carvings, and the lighting inside is excellent.
Have a mint lemonade at Bab Al Saray Cafe in the small square in the center of the old city of Sidon. It is one of the oldest cafes in Sidon, and People say their brunch is also very authentic.
The famous falafel shop in the ancient city is Falafel Abou Rami. They opened in 1988 and are very famous in Lebanon. Their falafel is made from a mixture of chickpeas and fava beans, and it is fried fresh to order. You can add pickled cucumbers, pickled tomatoes, and yogurt to make a salad, or wrap it in flatbread (bing). We bought one wrap and it was enough for two people; the portion is huge!
Mosque
El Kikhia Mosque was built in 1625 by Mahmoud Kitkhuda and is a representative Ottoman-era mosque in Lebanon. This mosque is famous for its six domes, and the main hall features a white marble pulpit (minbar).
Across from El Kikhia Mosque is Al-Qtaishieh Mosque, where we performed our afternoon prayer (asr). Al-Qtaishieh Mosque was built in the 16th century by Sheikh Ali Ibn Mohammad Qtaish and houses beautiful Ottoman tiles.
The Great Mosque of El-Omari is the main mosque in the old city of Sidon, and it is where the Eid prayer is held. The Great Mosque of El-Omari is located on a hillside on the west side of the old city of Sidon and is built of massive sandstone over a meter thick.
The architecture of the Great Mosque of El-Omari dates back to the Crusader era; in the 13th century, the Knights Hospitaller built it as a military fortress, including a dining hall, a church, and stables. In 1291, the Mamluk Sultan Al-Ashraf Khalil (reigned 1290-93) conquered the Crusader castles, including Sidon, ending the Crusader states that had existed for nearly two hundred years. The Mamluk dynasty then built the Great Mosque of El-Omari on the foundation of the Knights Hospitaller fortress.
The main hall of the Great Mosque of El-Omari retains the style of the Crusader church, with a ten-meter-high ceiling supported by five sturdy buttresses. The Mamluk dynasty changed the orientation of the main hall from east-west to north-south, added a prayer niche (mihrab) and a pulpit (minbar) on the south side, and added an outer courtyard with a water room and a school on the north side. In the late 19th century, the Ottoman Empire renovated the Great Mosque of El-Omari and built the current minaret.
During the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon, the Great Mosque of El-Omari was hit by artillery fire multiple times and was severely damaged. The Hariri Foundation led the restoration of the site in 1986, and it received the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 1989.
Al-Bahr Mosque was built in 1373 with a donation from Hassan bin Sawah; it features Mamluk-era architectural styles, including thick walls and cross-vaults, and uses granite columns from the ancient Roman period.
El Barrane Mosque is at the entrance to the northern market. Many mosques in Lebanon only open for the five daily prayers and are locked at other times. This mosque was built in the late 16th and early 17th centuries during the reign of the Druze Emir Fakhr al-Din II. Barrani means "outside," because at that time, this mosque was located outside the north gate of the old city, the Beirut Gate.
Inn
From the Hammam Al Jadeed bathhouse, head west through the intricate alleys to reach the massive Ottoman caravanserai, Khan al-Franj. Khan al-Franj inn was built in the late 16th century by order of the Ottoman Grand Vizier Sokollu Mehmed Pasha, who served from 1565 to 1579. The inn has a large courtyard, with the ground floor used for storing goods and the second floor for travelers to live in, which is the typical structure of an Ottoman caravanserai.
The inn served as the residence for the French consul in the early 17th century, which is why it is called the French Inn. The property is currently owned by France, and the French Cultural Institute is located here. The Hariri Foundation leased the space for 35 years, restoring the heritage site and opening it as a cultural center that hosts various events from time to time.
You can buy handicrafts made by local Lebanese women at the inn, and we bought a hand-woven hat. This is part of the Hariri Foundation's effort to create jobs for local women and promote tourism and handicrafts in Sidon.
Entering the old city of Sidon from the north, the first attraction is the underground Khan Sacy Archaeological Museum. Khan Sacy consists of several arched rooms, which date back to stables and warehouses from the Crusader period (1099-1291). Since 2010, archaeological excavations at Khan Sacy have uncovered two bathrooms from the Mamluk period (1201-1517), three wells of different architectural styles, and a multi-purpose oven from the Ottoman period (1517-1918).
Hammam
Continuing south along the main road of the old city of Sidon, you can see the largest Turkish bath in the old city, Hammam Al Jadeed. Hammam Al Jadeed was built in 1720 by the Moroccan merchant Mustafa Hammoud and is a representative example of a Turkish bath in Lebanon during the Ottoman period. The bathhouse consists of 10 rooms, including bathing, massage, and sauna areas, each connected by corridors and decorated with unique marble floors and skylights.
This bathhouse was used until 1948, when it closed due to the spread of tap water pipes. The bathhouse was later used as a carpentry workshop and warehouse, and it was damaged during the Lebanese Civil War (1975-1990). During the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982, one of the domes of the bathhouse was shelled and has not been repaired to this day. In 2018, Said Bacho, founder and president of the Sharqy Foundation for Cultural Development and Innovation, acquired the Hammam Al Jadeed bathhouse. In 2019, the bathhouse, which had been closed for 71 years, reopened as a historical site.
Workshop
After leaving the Great Mosque of Omar, we went to visit the Sidon Soap Museum. The soap workshop where the museum is located was built by Hammoud in the 17th century, taken over by the Audi family in the 1880s, and had a residence added upstairs. In the 1950s, the Audi family left Sidon for Beirut, and the building became a school. It was abandoned during the Lebanese War in the 1980s, and refugees lived on the first floor. The Audi Foundation began restoring the workshop in 1996 and opened it as a soap museum in 2000.
At the soap museum, you can learn how traditional olive oil soap is made and see the remains of the workshop's plumbing from the 17th to 19th centuries. The museum's gift shop is worth a visit. You can buy traditional olive oil soap there, as well as a variety of creative scented soaps.
Halal Travel Guide: Sidon, Lebanon - Mosques, Old City and Food
Articles • ali2007fr posted the article • 0 comments • 33 views • 2026-05-20 08:14
Reposted from the web
Summary: Sidon, also known as Saida, is shown through its old streets, mosques, sea views, markets, and local food. This account follows the original day trip south from Beirut while keeping the place names and photos in order.
We took a minibus from the southern suburbs of Beirut and traveled 40 kilometers south to reach Sidon, the third-largest city in Lebanon. Sidon has a history of over 6,000 years and is one of the oldest cities in the world. It played a key role in Mediterranean trade and is now a well-preserved Sunni ancient city on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean.
Castle
The landmark of the ancient city of Sidon is the Sea Castle (Qalaat al-Bahr) located on a small island to the north. It was built by the Crusaders in 1228 and connects to the mainland via an 80-meter-long bridge. The Sea Castle was destroyed many times and was repaired and expanded during the Mamluk and Ottoman dynasties. Today, the Sea Castle consists of two towers. You can see many Roman-era stone columns on the outer walls, and there is a small domed mosque built during the Ottoman period on the roof.
Opposite the Sea Castle, there is a Land Castle on a hill in the southern part of the ancient city. They guard the safety of the ancient city from both ends.
The Land Castle is also called the Castle of Mu'izz or the Castle of Saint Louis. It was ordered to be built in the late 10th century by the fourth Fatimid Caliph, al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah (reigned 953-975), and was named the Castle of Mu'izz.
In 1253, King Louis IX of France (known as Saint Louis), the leader of the Seventh Crusade, ordered the reconstruction of the walls of Sidon. The Land Castle was also rebuilt during this period and has since been called the Castle of Saint Louis. Fakhr al-Din II, the Druze Emir who ruled Lebanon in the 17th century, rebuilt the castle again, but it later fell into ruins, and parts of the walls collapsed in the late Ottoman era.
In 1948, when Israel carried out a mass expulsion of Palestinians, the Land Castle served as a shelter for Palestinian refugees. To persecute Palestinian refugees, Israel ruthlessly shelled the Land Castle, causing further damage. These scars have become a witness to the suffering of the Palestinian people.
Streets
Entering the labyrinthine streets of the ancient city from the north gate, many houses are built over the streets, forming tunnels. People set up stalls in these tunnels, selling a wide variety of goods, which makes the area feel very lively.
Market
In the market inside the ancient city of Sidon, you can buy fresh dates, which have a soft, powdery texture and taste great. You can also buy traditional clothing here, which feels very unique.
Food
On the shore next to the Sea Castle is a very famous restaurant called Saida Rest House. The restaurant preserves an Ottoman-era inn (Khan) with exquisite inlaid marble and colorful carvings, and the lighting inside is excellent.
Have a mint lemonade at Bab Al Saray Cafe in the small square in the center of the old city of Sidon. It is one of the oldest cafes in Sidon, and People say their brunch is also very authentic.
The famous falafel shop in the ancient city is Falafel Abou Rami. They opened in 1988 and are very famous in Lebanon. Their falafel is made from a mixture of chickpeas and fava beans, and it is fried fresh to order. You can add pickled cucumbers, pickled tomatoes, and yogurt to make a salad, or wrap it in flatbread (bing). We bought one wrap and it was enough for two people; the portion is huge!
Mosque
El Kikhia Mosque was built in 1625 by Mahmoud Kitkhuda and is a representative Ottoman-era mosque in Lebanon. This mosque is famous for its six domes, and the main hall features a white marble pulpit (minbar).
Across from El Kikhia Mosque is Al-Qtaishieh Mosque, where we performed our afternoon prayer (asr). Al-Qtaishieh Mosque was built in the 16th century by Sheikh Ali Ibn Mohammad Qtaish and houses beautiful Ottoman tiles.
The Great Mosque of El-Omari is the main mosque in the old city of Sidon, and it is where the Eid prayer is held. The Great Mosque of El-Omari is located on a hillside on the west side of the old city of Sidon and is built of massive sandstone over a meter thick.
The architecture of the Great Mosque of El-Omari dates back to the Crusader era; in the 13th century, the Knights Hospitaller built it as a military fortress, including a dining hall, a church, and stables. In 1291, the Mamluk Sultan Al-Ashraf Khalil (reigned 1290-93) conquered the Crusader castles, including Sidon, ending the Crusader states that had existed for nearly two hundred years. The Mamluk dynasty then built the Great Mosque of El-Omari on the foundation of the Knights Hospitaller fortress.
The main hall of the Great Mosque of El-Omari retains the style of the Crusader church, with a ten-meter-high ceiling supported by five sturdy buttresses. The Mamluk dynasty changed the orientation of the main hall from east-west to north-south, added a prayer niche (mihrab) and a pulpit (minbar) on the south side, and added an outer courtyard with a water room and a school on the north side. In the late 19th century, the Ottoman Empire renovated the Great Mosque of El-Omari and built the current minaret.
During the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon, the Great Mosque of El-Omari was hit by artillery fire multiple times and was severely damaged. The Hariri Foundation led the restoration of the site in 1986, and it received the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 1989.
Al-Bahr Mosque was built in 1373 with a donation from Hassan bin Sawah; it features Mamluk-era architectural styles, including thick walls and cross-vaults, and uses granite columns from the ancient Roman period.
El Barrane Mosque is at the entrance to the northern market. Many mosques in Lebanon only open for the five daily prayers and are locked at other times. This mosque was built in the late 16th and early 17th centuries during the reign of the Druze Emir Fakhr al-Din II. Barrani means "outside," because at that time, this mosque was located outside the north gate of the old city, the Beirut Gate.
Inn
From the Hammam Al Jadeed bathhouse, head west through the intricate alleys to reach the massive Ottoman caravanserai, Khan al-Franj. Khan al-Franj inn was built in the late 16th century by order of the Ottoman Grand Vizier Sokollu Mehmed Pasha, who served from 1565 to 1579. The inn has a large courtyard, with the ground floor used for storing goods and the second floor for travelers to live in, which is the typical structure of an Ottoman caravanserai.
The inn served as the residence for the French consul in the early 17th century, which is why it is called the French Inn. The property is currently owned by France, and the French Cultural Institute is located here. The Hariri Foundation leased the space for 35 years, restoring the heritage site and opening it as a cultural center that hosts various events from time to time.
You can buy handicrafts made by local Lebanese women at the inn, and we bought a hand-woven hat. This is part of the Hariri Foundation's effort to create jobs for local women and promote tourism and handicrafts in Sidon.
Entering the old city of Sidon from the north, the first attraction is the underground Khan Sacy Archaeological Museum. Khan Sacy consists of several arched rooms, which date back to stables and warehouses from the Crusader period (1099-1291). Since 2010, archaeological excavations at Khan Sacy have uncovered two bathrooms from the Mamluk period (1201-1517), three wells of different architectural styles, and a multi-purpose oven from the Ottoman period (1517-1918).
Hammam
Continuing south along the main road of the old city of Sidon, you can see the largest Turkish bath in the old city, Hammam Al Jadeed. Hammam Al Jadeed was built in 1720 by the Moroccan merchant Mustafa Hammoud and is a representative example of a Turkish bath in Lebanon during the Ottoman period. The bathhouse consists of 10 rooms, including bathing, massage, and sauna areas, each connected by corridors and decorated with unique marble floors and skylights.
This bathhouse was used until 1948, when it closed due to the spread of tap water pipes. The bathhouse was later used as a carpentry workshop and warehouse, and it was damaged during the Lebanese Civil War (1975-1990). During the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982, one of the domes of the bathhouse was shelled and has not been repaired to this day. In 2018, Said Bacho, founder and president of the Sharqy Foundation for Cultural Development and Innovation, acquired the Hammam Al Jadeed bathhouse. In 2019, the bathhouse, which had been closed for 71 years, reopened as a historical site.
Workshop
After leaving the Great Mosque of Omar, we went to visit the Sidon Soap Museum. The soap workshop where the museum is located was built by Hammoud in the 17th century, taken over by the Audi family in the 1880s, and had a residence added upstairs. In the 1950s, the Audi family left Sidon for Beirut, and the building became a school. It was abandoned during the Lebanese War in the 1980s, and refugees lived on the first floor. The Audi Foundation began restoring the workshop in 1996 and opened it as a soap museum in 2000.
At the soap museum, you can learn how traditional olive oil soap is made and see the remains of the workshop's plumbing from the 17th to 19th centuries. The museum's gift shop is worth a visit. You can buy traditional olive oil soap there, as well as a variety of creative scented soaps. view all
Summary: Sidon, also known as Saida, is shown through its old streets, mosques, sea views, markets, and local food. This account follows the original day trip south from Beirut while keeping the place names and photos in order.
We took a minibus from the southern suburbs of Beirut and traveled 40 kilometers south to reach Sidon, the third-largest city in Lebanon. Sidon has a history of over 6,000 years and is one of the oldest cities in the world. It played a key role in Mediterranean trade and is now a well-preserved Sunni ancient city on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean.
Castle
The landmark of the ancient city of Sidon is the Sea Castle (Qalaat al-Bahr) located on a small island to the north. It was built by the Crusaders in 1228 and connects to the mainland via an 80-meter-long bridge. The Sea Castle was destroyed many times and was repaired and expanded during the Mamluk and Ottoman dynasties. Today, the Sea Castle consists of two towers. You can see many Roman-era stone columns on the outer walls, and there is a small domed mosque built during the Ottoman period on the roof.
Opposite the Sea Castle, there is a Land Castle on a hill in the southern part of the ancient city. They guard the safety of the ancient city from both ends.
The Land Castle is also called the Castle of Mu'izz or the Castle of Saint Louis. It was ordered to be built in the late 10th century by the fourth Fatimid Caliph, al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah (reigned 953-975), and was named the Castle of Mu'izz.
In 1253, King Louis IX of France (known as Saint Louis), the leader of the Seventh Crusade, ordered the reconstruction of the walls of Sidon. The Land Castle was also rebuilt during this period and has since been called the Castle of Saint Louis. Fakhr al-Din II, the Druze Emir who ruled Lebanon in the 17th century, rebuilt the castle again, but it later fell into ruins, and parts of the walls collapsed in the late Ottoman era.
In 1948, when Israel carried out a mass expulsion of Palestinians, the Land Castle served as a shelter for Palestinian refugees. To persecute Palestinian refugees, Israel ruthlessly shelled the Land Castle, causing further damage. These scars have become a witness to the suffering of the Palestinian people.
Streets
Entering the labyrinthine streets of the ancient city from the north gate, many houses are built over the streets, forming tunnels. People set up stalls in these tunnels, selling a wide variety of goods, which makes the area feel very lively.
Market
In the market inside the ancient city of Sidon, you can buy fresh dates, which have a soft, powdery texture and taste great. You can also buy traditional clothing here, which feels very unique.
Food
On the shore next to the Sea Castle is a very famous restaurant called Saida Rest House. The restaurant preserves an Ottoman-era inn (Khan) with exquisite inlaid marble and colorful carvings, and the lighting inside is excellent.
Have a mint lemonade at Bab Al Saray Cafe in the small square in the center of the old city of Sidon. It is one of the oldest cafes in Sidon, and People say their brunch is also very authentic.
The famous falafel shop in the ancient city is Falafel Abou Rami. They opened in 1988 and are very famous in Lebanon. Their falafel is made from a mixture of chickpeas and fava beans, and it is fried fresh to order. You can add pickled cucumbers, pickled tomatoes, and yogurt to make a salad, or wrap it in flatbread (bing). We bought one wrap and it was enough for two people; the portion is huge!
Mosque
El Kikhia Mosque was built in 1625 by Mahmoud Kitkhuda and is a representative Ottoman-era mosque in Lebanon. This mosque is famous for its six domes, and the main hall features a white marble pulpit (minbar).
Across from El Kikhia Mosque is Al-Qtaishieh Mosque, where we performed our afternoon prayer (asr). Al-Qtaishieh Mosque was built in the 16th century by Sheikh Ali Ibn Mohammad Qtaish and houses beautiful Ottoman tiles.
The Great Mosque of El-Omari is the main mosque in the old city of Sidon, and it is where the Eid prayer is held. The Great Mosque of El-Omari is located on a hillside on the west side of the old city of Sidon and is built of massive sandstone over a meter thick.
The architecture of the Great Mosque of El-Omari dates back to the Crusader era; in the 13th century, the Knights Hospitaller built it as a military fortress, including a dining hall, a church, and stables. In 1291, the Mamluk Sultan Al-Ashraf Khalil (reigned 1290-93) conquered the Crusader castles, including Sidon, ending the Crusader states that had existed for nearly two hundred years. The Mamluk dynasty then built the Great Mosque of El-Omari on the foundation of the Knights Hospitaller fortress.
The main hall of the Great Mosque of El-Omari retains the style of the Crusader church, with a ten-meter-high ceiling supported by five sturdy buttresses. The Mamluk dynasty changed the orientation of the main hall from east-west to north-south, added a prayer niche (mihrab) and a pulpit (minbar) on the south side, and added an outer courtyard with a water room and a school on the north side. In the late 19th century, the Ottoman Empire renovated the Great Mosque of El-Omari and built the current minaret.
During the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon, the Great Mosque of El-Omari was hit by artillery fire multiple times and was severely damaged. The Hariri Foundation led the restoration of the site in 1986, and it received the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 1989.
Al-Bahr Mosque was built in 1373 with a donation from Hassan bin Sawah; it features Mamluk-era architectural styles, including thick walls and cross-vaults, and uses granite columns from the ancient Roman period.
El Barrane Mosque is at the entrance to the northern market. Many mosques in Lebanon only open for the five daily prayers and are locked at other times. This mosque was built in the late 16th and early 17th centuries during the reign of the Druze Emir Fakhr al-Din II. Barrani means "outside," because at that time, this mosque was located outside the north gate of the old city, the Beirut Gate.
Inn
From the Hammam Al Jadeed bathhouse, head west through the intricate alleys to reach the massive Ottoman caravanserai, Khan al-Franj. Khan al-Franj inn was built in the late 16th century by order of the Ottoman Grand Vizier Sokollu Mehmed Pasha, who served from 1565 to 1579. The inn has a large courtyard, with the ground floor used for storing goods and the second floor for travelers to live in, which is the typical structure of an Ottoman caravanserai.
The inn served as the residence for the French consul in the early 17th century, which is why it is called the French Inn. The property is currently owned by France, and the French Cultural Institute is located here. The Hariri Foundation leased the space for 35 years, restoring the heritage site and opening it as a cultural center that hosts various events from time to time.
You can buy handicrafts made by local Lebanese women at the inn, and we bought a hand-woven hat. This is part of the Hariri Foundation's effort to create jobs for local women and promote tourism and handicrafts in Sidon.
Entering the old city of Sidon from the north, the first attraction is the underground Khan Sacy Archaeological Museum. Khan Sacy consists of several arched rooms, which date back to stables and warehouses from the Crusader period (1099-1291). Since 2010, archaeological excavations at Khan Sacy have uncovered two bathrooms from the Mamluk period (1201-1517), three wells of different architectural styles, and a multi-purpose oven from the Ottoman period (1517-1918).
Hammam
Continuing south along the main road of the old city of Sidon, you can see the largest Turkish bath in the old city, Hammam Al Jadeed. Hammam Al Jadeed was built in 1720 by the Moroccan merchant Mustafa Hammoud and is a representative example of a Turkish bath in Lebanon during the Ottoman period. The bathhouse consists of 10 rooms, including bathing, massage, and sauna areas, each connected by corridors and decorated with unique marble floors and skylights.
This bathhouse was used until 1948, when it closed due to the spread of tap water pipes. The bathhouse was later used as a carpentry workshop and warehouse, and it was damaged during the Lebanese Civil War (1975-1990). During the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982, one of the domes of the bathhouse was shelled and has not been repaired to this day. In 2018, Said Bacho, founder and president of the Sharqy Foundation for Cultural Development and Innovation, acquired the Hammam Al Jadeed bathhouse. In 2019, the bathhouse, which had been closed for 71 years, reopened as a historical site.
Workshop
After leaving the Great Mosque of Omar, we went to visit the Sidon Soap Museum. The soap workshop where the museum is located was built by Hammoud in the 17th century, taken over by the Audi family in the 1880s, and had a residence added upstairs. In the 1950s, the Audi family left Sidon for Beirut, and the building became a school. It was abandoned during the Lebanese War in the 1980s, and refugees lived on the first floor. The Audi Foundation began restoring the workshop in 1996 and opened it as a soap museum in 2000.
At the soap museum, you can learn how traditional olive oil soap is made and see the remains of the workshop's plumbing from the 17th to 19th centuries. The museum's gift shop is worth a visit. You can buy traditional olive oil soap there, as well as a variety of creative scented soaps. view all
Reposted from the web
Summary: Sidon, also known as Saida, is shown through its old streets, mosques, sea views, markets, and local food. This account follows the original day trip south from Beirut while keeping the place names and photos in order.
We took a minibus from the southern suburbs of Beirut and traveled 40 kilometers south to reach Sidon, the third-largest city in Lebanon. Sidon has a history of over 6,000 years and is one of the oldest cities in the world. It played a key role in Mediterranean trade and is now a well-preserved Sunni ancient city on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean.
Castle
The landmark of the ancient city of Sidon is the Sea Castle (Qalaat al-Bahr) located on a small island to the north. It was built by the Crusaders in 1228 and connects to the mainland via an 80-meter-long bridge. The Sea Castle was destroyed many times and was repaired and expanded during the Mamluk and Ottoman dynasties. Today, the Sea Castle consists of two towers. You can see many Roman-era stone columns on the outer walls, and there is a small domed mosque built during the Ottoman period on the roof.
Opposite the Sea Castle, there is a Land Castle on a hill in the southern part of the ancient city. They guard the safety of the ancient city from both ends.
The Land Castle is also called the Castle of Mu'izz or the Castle of Saint Louis. It was ordered to be built in the late 10th century by the fourth Fatimid Caliph, al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah (reigned 953-975), and was named the Castle of Mu'izz.
In 1253, King Louis IX of France (known as Saint Louis), the leader of the Seventh Crusade, ordered the reconstruction of the walls of Sidon. The Land Castle was also rebuilt during this period and has since been called the Castle of Saint Louis. Fakhr al-Din II, the Druze Emir who ruled Lebanon in the 17th century, rebuilt the castle again, but it later fell into ruins, and parts of the walls collapsed in the late Ottoman era.
In 1948, when Israel carried out a mass expulsion of Palestinians, the Land Castle served as a shelter for Palestinian refugees. To persecute Palestinian refugees, Israel ruthlessly shelled the Land Castle, causing further damage. These scars have become a witness to the suffering of the Palestinian people.
Streets
Entering the labyrinthine streets of the ancient city from the north gate, many houses are built over the streets, forming tunnels. People set up stalls in these tunnels, selling a wide variety of goods, which makes the area feel very lively.
Market
In the market inside the ancient city of Sidon, you can buy fresh dates, which have a soft, powdery texture and taste great. You can also buy traditional clothing here, which feels very unique.
Food
On the shore next to the Sea Castle is a very famous restaurant called Saida Rest House. The restaurant preserves an Ottoman-era inn (Khan) with exquisite inlaid marble and colorful carvings, and the lighting inside is excellent.
Have a mint lemonade at Bab Al Saray Cafe in the small square in the center of the old city of Sidon. It is one of the oldest cafes in Sidon, and People say their brunch is also very authentic.
The famous falafel shop in the ancient city is Falafel Abou Rami. They opened in 1988 and are very famous in Lebanon. Their falafel is made from a mixture of chickpeas and fava beans, and it is fried fresh to order. You can add pickled cucumbers, pickled tomatoes, and yogurt to make a salad, or wrap it in flatbread (bing). We bought one wrap and it was enough for two people; the portion is huge!
Mosque
El Kikhia Mosque was built in 1625 by Mahmoud Kitkhuda and is a representative Ottoman-era mosque in Lebanon. This mosque is famous for its six domes, and the main hall features a white marble pulpit (minbar).
Across from El Kikhia Mosque is Al-Qtaishieh Mosque, where we performed our afternoon prayer (asr). Al-Qtaishieh Mosque was built in the 16th century by Sheikh Ali Ibn Mohammad Qtaish and houses beautiful Ottoman tiles.
The Great Mosque of El-Omari is the main mosque in the old city of Sidon, and it is where the Eid prayer is held. The Great Mosque of El-Omari is located on a hillside on the west side of the old city of Sidon and is built of massive sandstone over a meter thick.
The architecture of the Great Mosque of El-Omari dates back to the Crusader era; in the 13th century, the Knights Hospitaller built it as a military fortress, including a dining hall, a church, and stables. In 1291, the Mamluk Sultan Al-Ashraf Khalil (reigned 1290-93) conquered the Crusader castles, including Sidon, ending the Crusader states that had existed for nearly two hundred years. The Mamluk dynasty then built the Great Mosque of El-Omari on the foundation of the Knights Hospitaller fortress.
The main hall of the Great Mosque of El-Omari retains the style of the Crusader church, with a ten-meter-high ceiling supported by five sturdy buttresses. The Mamluk dynasty changed the orientation of the main hall from east-west to north-south, added a prayer niche (mihrab) and a pulpit (minbar) on the south side, and added an outer courtyard with a water room and a school on the north side. In the late 19th century, the Ottoman Empire renovated the Great Mosque of El-Omari and built the current minaret.
During the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon, the Great Mosque of El-Omari was hit by artillery fire multiple times and was severely damaged. The Hariri Foundation led the restoration of the site in 1986, and it received the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 1989.
Al-Bahr Mosque was built in 1373 with a donation from Hassan bin Sawah; it features Mamluk-era architectural styles, including thick walls and cross-vaults, and uses granite columns from the ancient Roman period.
El Barrane Mosque is at the entrance to the northern market. Many mosques in Lebanon only open for the five daily prayers and are locked at other times. This mosque was built in the late 16th and early 17th centuries during the reign of the Druze Emir Fakhr al-Din II. Barrani means "outside," because at that time, this mosque was located outside the north gate of the old city, the Beirut Gate.
Inn
From the Hammam Al Jadeed bathhouse, head west through the intricate alleys to reach the massive Ottoman caravanserai, Khan al-Franj. Khan al-Franj inn was built in the late 16th century by order of the Ottoman Grand Vizier Sokollu Mehmed Pasha, who served from 1565 to 1579. The inn has a large courtyard, with the ground floor used for storing goods and the second floor for travelers to live in, which is the typical structure of an Ottoman caravanserai.
The inn served as the residence for the French consul in the early 17th century, which is why it is called the French Inn. The property is currently owned by France, and the French Cultural Institute is located here. The Hariri Foundation leased the space for 35 years, restoring the heritage site and opening it as a cultural center that hosts various events from time to time.
You can buy handicrafts made by local Lebanese women at the inn, and we bought a hand-woven hat. This is part of the Hariri Foundation's effort to create jobs for local women and promote tourism and handicrafts in Sidon.
Entering the old city of Sidon from the north, the first attraction is the underground Khan Sacy Archaeological Museum. Khan Sacy consists of several arched rooms, which date back to stables and warehouses from the Crusader period (1099-1291). Since 2010, archaeological excavations at Khan Sacy have uncovered two bathrooms from the Mamluk period (1201-1517), three wells of different architectural styles, and a multi-purpose oven from the Ottoman period (1517-1918).
Hammam
Continuing south along the main road of the old city of Sidon, you can see the largest Turkish bath in the old city, Hammam Al Jadeed. Hammam Al Jadeed was built in 1720 by the Moroccan merchant Mustafa Hammoud and is a representative example of a Turkish bath in Lebanon during the Ottoman period. The bathhouse consists of 10 rooms, including bathing, massage, and sauna areas, each connected by corridors and decorated with unique marble floors and skylights.
This bathhouse was used until 1948, when it closed due to the spread of tap water pipes. The bathhouse was later used as a carpentry workshop and warehouse, and it was damaged during the Lebanese Civil War (1975-1990). During the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982, one of the domes of the bathhouse was shelled and has not been repaired to this day. In 2018, Said Bacho, founder and president of the Sharqy Foundation for Cultural Development and Innovation, acquired the Hammam Al Jadeed bathhouse. In 2019, the bathhouse, which had been closed for 71 years, reopened as a historical site.
Workshop
After leaving the Great Mosque of Omar, we went to visit the Sidon Soap Museum. The soap workshop where the museum is located was built by Hammoud in the 17th century, taken over by the Audi family in the 1880s, and had a residence added upstairs. In the 1950s, the Audi family left Sidon for Beirut, and the building became a school. It was abandoned during the Lebanese War in the 1980s, and refugees lived on the first floor. The Audi Foundation began restoring the workshop in 1996 and opened it as a soap museum in 2000.
At the soap museum, you can learn how traditional olive oil soap is made and see the remains of the workshop's plumbing from the 17th to 19th centuries. The museum's gift shop is worth a visit. You can buy traditional olive oil soap there, as well as a variety of creative scented soaps.
Summary: Sidon, also known as Saida, is shown through its old streets, mosques, sea views, markets, and local food. This account follows the original day trip south from Beirut while keeping the place names and photos in order.
We took a minibus from the southern suburbs of Beirut and traveled 40 kilometers south to reach Sidon, the third-largest city in Lebanon. Sidon has a history of over 6,000 years and is one of the oldest cities in the world. It played a key role in Mediterranean trade and is now a well-preserved Sunni ancient city on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean.
Castle
The landmark of the ancient city of Sidon is the Sea Castle (Qalaat al-Bahr) located on a small island to the north. It was built by the Crusaders in 1228 and connects to the mainland via an 80-meter-long bridge. The Sea Castle was destroyed many times and was repaired and expanded during the Mamluk and Ottoman dynasties. Today, the Sea Castle consists of two towers. You can see many Roman-era stone columns on the outer walls, and there is a small domed mosque built during the Ottoman period on the roof.
Opposite the Sea Castle, there is a Land Castle on a hill in the southern part of the ancient city. They guard the safety of the ancient city from both ends.
The Land Castle is also called the Castle of Mu'izz or the Castle of Saint Louis. It was ordered to be built in the late 10th century by the fourth Fatimid Caliph, al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah (reigned 953-975), and was named the Castle of Mu'izz.
In 1253, King Louis IX of France (known as Saint Louis), the leader of the Seventh Crusade, ordered the reconstruction of the walls of Sidon. The Land Castle was also rebuilt during this period and has since been called the Castle of Saint Louis. Fakhr al-Din II, the Druze Emir who ruled Lebanon in the 17th century, rebuilt the castle again, but it later fell into ruins, and parts of the walls collapsed in the late Ottoman era.
In 1948, when Israel carried out a mass expulsion of Palestinians, the Land Castle served as a shelter for Palestinian refugees. To persecute Palestinian refugees, Israel ruthlessly shelled the Land Castle, causing further damage. These scars have become a witness to the suffering of the Palestinian people.
Streets
Entering the labyrinthine streets of the ancient city from the north gate, many houses are built over the streets, forming tunnels. People set up stalls in these tunnels, selling a wide variety of goods, which makes the area feel very lively.
Market
In the market inside the ancient city of Sidon, you can buy fresh dates, which have a soft, powdery texture and taste great. You can also buy traditional clothing here, which feels very unique.
Food
On the shore next to the Sea Castle is a very famous restaurant called Saida Rest House. The restaurant preserves an Ottoman-era inn (Khan) with exquisite inlaid marble and colorful carvings, and the lighting inside is excellent.
Have a mint lemonade at Bab Al Saray Cafe in the small square in the center of the old city of Sidon. It is one of the oldest cafes in Sidon, and People say their brunch is also very authentic.
The famous falafel shop in the ancient city is Falafel Abou Rami. They opened in 1988 and are very famous in Lebanon. Their falafel is made from a mixture of chickpeas and fava beans, and it is fried fresh to order. You can add pickled cucumbers, pickled tomatoes, and yogurt to make a salad, or wrap it in flatbread (bing). We bought one wrap and it was enough for two people; the portion is huge!
Mosque
El Kikhia Mosque was built in 1625 by Mahmoud Kitkhuda and is a representative Ottoman-era mosque in Lebanon. This mosque is famous for its six domes, and the main hall features a white marble pulpit (minbar).
Across from El Kikhia Mosque is Al-Qtaishieh Mosque, where we performed our afternoon prayer (asr). Al-Qtaishieh Mosque was built in the 16th century by Sheikh Ali Ibn Mohammad Qtaish and houses beautiful Ottoman tiles.
The Great Mosque of El-Omari is the main mosque in the old city of Sidon, and it is where the Eid prayer is held. The Great Mosque of El-Omari is located on a hillside on the west side of the old city of Sidon and is built of massive sandstone over a meter thick.
The architecture of the Great Mosque of El-Omari dates back to the Crusader era; in the 13th century, the Knights Hospitaller built it as a military fortress, including a dining hall, a church, and stables. In 1291, the Mamluk Sultan Al-Ashraf Khalil (reigned 1290-93) conquered the Crusader castles, including Sidon, ending the Crusader states that had existed for nearly two hundred years. The Mamluk dynasty then built the Great Mosque of El-Omari on the foundation of the Knights Hospitaller fortress.
The main hall of the Great Mosque of El-Omari retains the style of the Crusader church, with a ten-meter-high ceiling supported by five sturdy buttresses. The Mamluk dynasty changed the orientation of the main hall from east-west to north-south, added a prayer niche (mihrab) and a pulpit (minbar) on the south side, and added an outer courtyard with a water room and a school on the north side. In the late 19th century, the Ottoman Empire renovated the Great Mosque of El-Omari and built the current minaret.
During the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon, the Great Mosque of El-Omari was hit by artillery fire multiple times and was severely damaged. The Hariri Foundation led the restoration of the site in 1986, and it received the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 1989.
Al-Bahr Mosque was built in 1373 with a donation from Hassan bin Sawah; it features Mamluk-era architectural styles, including thick walls and cross-vaults, and uses granite columns from the ancient Roman period.
El Barrane Mosque is at the entrance to the northern market. Many mosques in Lebanon only open for the five daily prayers and are locked at other times. This mosque was built in the late 16th and early 17th centuries during the reign of the Druze Emir Fakhr al-Din II. Barrani means "outside," because at that time, this mosque was located outside the north gate of the old city, the Beirut Gate.
Inn
From the Hammam Al Jadeed bathhouse, head west through the intricate alleys to reach the massive Ottoman caravanserai, Khan al-Franj. Khan al-Franj inn was built in the late 16th century by order of the Ottoman Grand Vizier Sokollu Mehmed Pasha, who served from 1565 to 1579. The inn has a large courtyard, with the ground floor used for storing goods and the second floor for travelers to live in, which is the typical structure of an Ottoman caravanserai.
The inn served as the residence for the French consul in the early 17th century, which is why it is called the French Inn. The property is currently owned by France, and the French Cultural Institute is located here. The Hariri Foundation leased the space for 35 years, restoring the heritage site and opening it as a cultural center that hosts various events from time to time.
You can buy handicrafts made by local Lebanese women at the inn, and we bought a hand-woven hat. This is part of the Hariri Foundation's effort to create jobs for local women and promote tourism and handicrafts in Sidon.
Entering the old city of Sidon from the north, the first attraction is the underground Khan Sacy Archaeological Museum. Khan Sacy consists of several arched rooms, which date back to stables and warehouses from the Crusader period (1099-1291). Since 2010, archaeological excavations at Khan Sacy have uncovered two bathrooms from the Mamluk period (1201-1517), three wells of different architectural styles, and a multi-purpose oven from the Ottoman period (1517-1918).
Hammam
Continuing south along the main road of the old city of Sidon, you can see the largest Turkish bath in the old city, Hammam Al Jadeed. Hammam Al Jadeed was built in 1720 by the Moroccan merchant Mustafa Hammoud and is a representative example of a Turkish bath in Lebanon during the Ottoman period. The bathhouse consists of 10 rooms, including bathing, massage, and sauna areas, each connected by corridors and decorated with unique marble floors and skylights.
This bathhouse was used until 1948, when it closed due to the spread of tap water pipes. The bathhouse was later used as a carpentry workshop and warehouse, and it was damaged during the Lebanese Civil War (1975-1990). During the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982, one of the domes of the bathhouse was shelled and has not been repaired to this day. In 2018, Said Bacho, founder and president of the Sharqy Foundation for Cultural Development and Innovation, acquired the Hammam Al Jadeed bathhouse. In 2019, the bathhouse, which had been closed for 71 years, reopened as a historical site.
Workshop
After leaving the Great Mosque of Omar, we went to visit the Sidon Soap Museum. The soap workshop where the museum is located was built by Hammoud in the 17th century, taken over by the Audi family in the 1880s, and had a residence added upstairs. In the 1950s, the Audi family left Sidon for Beirut, and the building became a school. It was abandoned during the Lebanese War in the 1980s, and refugees lived on the first floor. The Audi Foundation began restoring the workshop in 1996 and opened it as a soap museum in 2000.
At the soap museum, you can learn how traditional olive oil soap is made and see the remains of the workshop's plumbing from the 17th to 19th centuries. The museum's gift shop is worth a visit. You can buy traditional olive oil soap there, as well as a variety of creative scented soaps.