Lebanon

Enhancing the meeting point of East and West, the most seductive thing about Lebanon is the stark contrast between modernity and history. Modest in its proportions, this oriental gem boasts a prestigious heritage, in which the most glorious Mediterranean civilizations have crossed paths.

Proud of its long history, the country of cedar trees stirs the emotions with its cultural diversity and a cosmopolitanism that's unique in the world. As an oasis of hopes and beliefs, nature reigns here, imperial and unrivaled, just as it has for 7000 years. From the Phoenician port of Byblos to the city of Tyre, from the Umayyad site of Anjar, with its splendid colonnades, to Baalbek, the former Heliopolis, with its temple of Bacchus, Lebanon's historical heritage is of an amazing rarity. Standing alongside this magnificent legacy is a myriad of spectacular landscapes, gracefully revealing gentle plains, craggy mountains and immense valleys like the Chouf. Located inland, the region stands out with its forests of centuries-old cedar trees, its picturesque villages and Moorish palaces that seem to spring from nowhere, like Beiteddine. Which makes it hard to say whether it's Lebanon's nature or its historical monuments that are the most remarkable. All the more if you climb up Qurnat al-Sawda, the country's highest mountain, standing just over 10,000 feet tall. It is only when you're back at ground level that you experience the most resplendent part of the Lebanese soul: Beirut, nicknamed the "Paris of the Middle East". Besides the importance of its cultural influence with the National Museum of Beirut or its enchanting coast road, the capital offers a nightlife that is quite unique in the eastern world. Beirut has an unusual festive vibe, whose reputation has long since crossed national borders, the pride of all of Lebanon's people.