A gorgeous hike leads from the Mar Elisha monastery to the Saydet Hawqa monastery. From the Mar Elisha monastery, follow the asphalt road down until a gravel road leads you to the right (to the left you find the road back up to Bcharre). Follow this gravel road for about 1.5 hours. After about one hour, ignore the left road down and continue until the road narrows to a concrete path leading to the left and passing the outdoor Abu Joseph restaurant. Shortly after, you will find a path signposted to the right leading up to the Qannoubine monastery (a five minute’ walk).

After exploring the Qannoubine monastery (open Wednesday through Sunday), continue on the small path up to the right, leaving directly from the lower gate of the monastery. After a few minutes, you will reach the small and charming Sanctuary of St Marina. Continue to follow the path passing the left side of the sanctuary, which will soon lead you through the pleasant landscape of the valley. After another 1.5 hours, you will reach a large and dark blue sign for the Saydet Hawqa monastery (The Hermitage of Hawka). From there, the left path leads to the entrance gate of the monastery. The monastery (carved in rocks) is inhabited by a monk, who is usually found standing or sitting silently in the chapel. 

After walking back to the large blue sign, you have two options: return to the Deir Mar Elisha the same way you came, or continue on the rocky stairs up to Hawqa. The latter requires climbing a steep set of stairs for roughly 20 minutes, yet the view on the valley is worth it. Once in Hawqa, you will have to be creative to find your way back to Bcharre, as taxis can be hard to find. From Hawqa back to the main road, it is a 15 minute’ walk up.

The walk from Deir Mar Elisha to Saydet Hawqa monastery takes about three hours.