Beirut

9:00 AM — Departure from Beirut Your driver picks you up from your Beirut hotel and heads north through the Dog River valley — its canyon walls carved with inscriptions left by Egyptian pharaohs and Roman emperors — toward Jeita Grotto.

Jeita

Jeita Grotto — underground and completely worth it Walk into the mountain and the world changes. Jeita Grotto is a UNESCO tentative World Heritage Site and a top-five finalist in the New 7 Wonders of Nature — and for good reason. The upper cave is explored on foot through an elevated walkway where stalactites and stalagmites up to 8 metres tall create formations that look impossible and took millions of years to build. The lower cave is navigated by silent electric boat along an underground river through chambers of extraordinary natural beauty where the only sound is water dripping in the dark. It is one of those places that looks better in real life than in photos — which is saying something, because the photos are already incredible. Do not skip this one.