Sporting Club Beach Beirut

Sporting is a classic, old-school beach club in Beirut with a $35 entrance fee that lets you lounge and tan all day. I love that it’s kid-friendly without feeling overrun by kids — there’s a small pool with a lifeguard who was very sweet. It’s honestly the most laid-back beach club I’ve been to, so if you’re looking for a chill vibe and not something fancy), I’d definitely recommend it.

I’ll start by saying there is a very beautiful view here, which made our visit somewhat enjoyable despite our experience. We visited Sporting Beach Club with very high hopes — it’s a well-known spot in Beirut, and the name itself was very appealing. We had also read that the club offered a basketball court, tennis court, and racquetball court. Since it was my daughter’s birthday, she was especially excited to play basketball and racquetball with her siblings, so we decided to splurge on the $50 per person entrance fee. Upon arriving, we did find a basketball court, which seemed promising — but we quickly noticed that cars were parking in the court area. After walking around for 20–30 minutes, it became clear that this same space was being used for basketball, tennis, racquetball — and parking — all in one. I asked the front desk about facilities and was told the basketball court/parking lot was it. I spoke with Nasha, the manager, and he repeatedly assured me that within two hours, the entire parking lot would be empty and the kids could enjoy “the basketball court.” However, the parking lot remained full — so much so that it was hard for us to even exit when we finally decided to leave. I’ve attached photos to show the situation. While I understand this may partly have been a mismatch in expectations, the manager’s attitude was extremely disappointing. He was rude and dismissive and did not take into consideration the experience of his guests. I explained that it was my daughter’s birthday, and that we had been there less than an hour, and politely asked for a refund. Instead of understanding, he insisted we had been there longer — even claiming that he had seen us bring in a birthday cake (which we did not). The conversation became absurd at that point. We decided to make the best of it, moved our seats to the oceanfront, and enjoyed some frozen yogurt. In the end, we stayed for a total of 2.5 hours. I won’t even touch on the lack of service- I had to flag a waiter down just for bottled water. I will never go back here again. I would not recommend this club to families.

Just missed the sunset but it was still a delightful experience. The Battata Kousburrah was excellent and garlicky as usual and the Sultan Ibrahim (red mullet) were fresh and tasty as always. Bills can be a bit toppy if you ‘go large’… so we didn’t. Lovely sea breeze kept us well ventilated.

Besides being the best beach club in Beirut, Jihad was so helpful and attentive! I had come alone to enjoy a nice day in the sun and he made sure I had everything I needed.

Unfortunately we had a bad experience with Abed the guy at the towel station. He was super rude and disrespectful. He ruined our day and did not apologize for his behavior even the manager did not apologize or handle the situation appropriately. The situation was not made up for. I come to Lebanon for its good sevices and enjoying my time. However the staff at the beach were very friendly and nice. Adham was a great waiter and very kind. Will not be coming back and very disappointed on how the situation was handled.