One day in Beirut – Food & Activities for your day in the city Beirut
We will show you how one day in Beirut can look like, where to eat and drink, what activities to do and which sights to visit. That day will be a packed with a lot of wonderful things to do!
9am – Let’s start the day with Breakfast
We start the beautiful and sunny day at 9am with a traditional and a known spot for great Manakish or also called Manousheh for breakfast. At The Lebanese Bakery in Ashrafieh you can enjoy a wide varity of Manousheh, Kaak, Bite-size bakes, tipical lebanese sides, hot pans and some sweet Manousheh. For you understanding, Manousheh is a known lebanese flatbread and one of the most popular breakfast items in lebanese culture. It is a tipical streetfood with the famous flatbread as the base, cheese, meat or zaatar (thyme) as a spread on your Manousheh and that will be topped with a variety of different vegetables, most commonly mince, olives, tomatoes and cucumber.
PlacetoBeirut Tip: Our favorite kind of Manousheh is the half Zaatar, half Jibne (Cheese) Manousheh with the tipical sorts of vegetables as toppings. Refreshing, filling and of course delicious lebanese Breakfast!
Short visit in Downtown
As we are just 10 minutes from the Martyrs’ Square in Downtown Beirut, we visit recommend to visit the Mohammed-al-Amin-Mosque, St. George Cathedral, the Roman baths ruins and the Place de l’Étoile.
Also worth to have a look at is the Beirut Souks Mall.
1pm – Lunch and a visit at Sursock Palace
It’s 1pm and of course we are hungry again, after walking around Downtown and the famous Saifi village. The Rue Gouraud in Gemmayze is just a few steps away. You can expect a colorful street with loads of Cafe’s, Bars and Restaurants.
You will find really nice buildings from middle eastern and french architectural heritage, that reminds you of streets in Paris with a twist of the Levante. It’s lunchtime and there are countless spots to go in Gemmayze area and the great Rue Gouraud. We can recommend Dar Beirut, Salata, SIP Cafè, Ginette or The Barn to have something good but light for lunch and a nice coffee afterwards. You can choose to sit in- or outside and enjoy the lively street. Sursock Palace and the Museum is near, so feel free to visit!
4pm – Raouche and a sweet lebanese speciality
Next up we need to call a Taxi or a car sharing app like Uber (which is also commonly used) to go to our next spot: Raouche Rocks 4pm and a great way to spend a nice and sunny day, is to have a nice walk at the Manara of Beirut, enjoy the mediterrenean sea and take some nice photos at the symbol of Beirut, the Raouche Rocks. Definitely a must-visit spot in Beirut and a stunning piece of nature right in the ocean. Right at the spot, we can also recommend to try the famous lebanese desserts: Halawet el Jibn or a sweet and flaky piece of Shaibiyat. Just to mention two of the amazing countless options of lebanese sweets. At the place Ahmad Aouni Hallab – Pastry near Raouche, you can enjoy an arabic coffee and something sweet to round up the successfull afternoon.
7pm – Zaitunay Bay and an amazing Lebanese Mezze for Dinner
It’s 7pm and the day is nearly over, but we need to visit one more must-visit spot in Beirut. The stunning Zaitunay Bay area with the nice Marina of Beirut, the luxurious neighbourhood of Minet el Hosn with amazing architectural buildings like the Beirut Terraces, the famous Phoenicia Hotel and countless of nice Restarants, Bars and Cafès to go out and enjoy the evening.
Of course the day needs to end with a tipical lebanese mezze for Dinner and we can recommend countless of great Restaurants to go in that area. You can find a top list here: Lebanese Restaurants in Beirut If you wonder what is a lebanese mezze? A mezze is common in middle eastern countries and also Turkey. The mezze is served with a wide selection of warm and cold appetizers in the beginning, always with some bread, a sald and dips. As a main course it’s mostly served a platter of different grilled meat, rice or french fries, lebanese bread, tomatoes, parsley and onions. Also served with some Hummus and garlic paste as side.
9pm and to round up the evening with a minted tea or turkish coffee and a common Nargile for all smokers.
We are exhausted from that long and active day, but if you are still not finished, we can recommend to go to Mar Mikhael to enjoy some amazing Bars and the Beiruti nightlife.
Amazing day in Beirut!
That was a stunning, active and really interesting day in Beirut, Lebanon and we hope you enjoyed it, as we did! Of course, your day can be planned completely different. Just enjoy the vibrant city of Beirut with everything it has to offer!
You can find multiple recommendations and the best spots to stay, eat and a lot of activities on PlacetoBeirut!