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Sights & Activities

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The construction of the Beiteddine Palace (+961 (0)5 500 077 / 503 650) started in 1806, when Emir Bashir Shehab II, the governor appointed by the Ottomans, decided to leave Deir el-Qamar and move to a safer haven in Beiteddine. He hired Italian architects and artisans from all over Syria and after 30 years of construction, the palace was finished in 1818. Emir Bashir Shehab II kept residence there until 1840, when he was forced into exile to Turkey after turning against the Ottomans.


From 1842, the palace was used as a governmental building, first by the Ottomans and later by the French. After Lebanon gained its independence in 1943, the palace was restored and became the president’s summer residence, which it remains to the present day. In 1947, the ashes of Emir Bashir Shehab II were transported there from Turkey, where he died in 1850.

Destroyed during Israeli invasions, the palace was renovated in 1984, a process initiated by Walid Jumblatt, who renamed it The Palace of the People. 

The palace and its rooms and courtyards feature beautiful arcades, fountains, facades, carved cedar wood ceilings, antique furniture, inlaid marble and fine mosaics and contains a well-preserved hammam complex. Situated behind this hammam is the tomb of Emir Bashir Shehab II and his wife. In the stables beneath the palace is an impressive selection of fifth and sixth-century Byzantine mosaics discovered in Jiyyeh, north of Saida. Although Beiteddine Palace functions as the president’s summer residence, the main areas can still be visited in summer, except during the Beiteddine festival (see below). 

The best time to visit the palace is in spring and autumn, when the weather is still good and all areas of the palace generally are open to visitors. Allow yourself between two and three hours for a full exploration of the premises. The palace is open daily and the entrance fee is 10,000 LBP (5,000 LBP for students and 2,000 LBP for children). 

 

Check the map below for an overview of all Cultural locations across Lebanon.