Beirut, Lebanon

Just a very quick (and rough) search online for some basic travel inforamtion on Beirut. Will come back and refine later..

Some useful facts and tips before travelling:

Driving in Beirut is not to be recommended for much of the day, particularly in the city center.

• Traffic is heavy.
• It can be difficult to find parking
• Renting a car only if you're planing to visit neighboring cities.
• The city is quite compact, walking is one of the best way of getting around.

Taxi

There are two types of taxis in Beirut; the old (often) battered hail-taxis, and the prebooking taxis.

Hail-taxi 

• The most convenient form of transport in Beirut, they are absolutely everywhere.
• Fixed meters aren't provided so ask how much your trip will cost before hopping in. 
• The fare will be charged per destination and not per distance traveled (which is an advantage since traffic is a big problem in the city). 
• A typical journey from one side of Beirut to the other (roughly 3 km) may cost LL10 000 (€5.00). 
• Many taxi drivers speak at least a few words of English and French. Knowing the name of your destination in the local language may solve any misunderstanding.

Prebook taxi 

Generally cost more but are much more luxurious and are normally air conditioned. 

• All hotels should provide you with a taxi directory, if you wish to use this type of service. Taxi prices are considered cheap if compared to US and European taxis. 
• Major taxi companies are: Geryes Taxi (00961-1-332747), Taxi Premiere (Tel 1260 or 00961-1-389222). Allo Taxi (Tel 1213 or 00961-1-366661), 

Bus
There  are currently two public transport companies.

The OCFTC [5] - blue and white city-buses, and

LCC [6] - red and white minibuses.

• Bus fares cost either 500LL (OCFTC bus 24) or 1000LL ($0.33 to 0.67). 
• The service is very efficient and the buses come very often.
• To get onto a bus you must stand at the side of the road and signal with your hand as a bus approaches; the buses will stop anywhere.

Hotels, Eat, Drink and Shop

Here are a few reference points/ districts to help you orientate around Beirut when looking for the modern essentials. Click on the pins to reveal notes that goes with each point.

Lebanon A-Z, places to go:

Outside of Beirut and away from the city glamour, Lebanon has many stunning heritage sites that are worthwhile visiting:

Here is a map that shows the locations.

For some reason, can't get the country boundary highlighted at the same time... a google bug or a feature yet to be added?