The Best of Libya
13-Day : North African Adventure

Here's the best way to see the best of North Africa : Libya in two weeks

Tour starts in Tripoli , weekly on Monday , year round
Compare with 12-Day Tunis and Libya tour or the 14 day Edition Libya & Cairo

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Be among the first to rediscover Libya .Explore the key sites both within the city and nearby in the old-new land of Libya We'll sample not only the ancient sites rich in temples, amphitheaters and mosaics, but the warm hospitality offered by Libyans in modern lodging places, modest hilltop Berber villages, and in timeless desert encampments under a million stars. You'll discover a country that's completely unexpected . . . and completely enchanting. You may add or combine with any of our tours of Egypt , Greece, Italy , Tunisia , or Spain

DAY 1 - Tripoli / ARRIVAL IN LIBYA/ Benghazi - Monday (BLD)
Arrive at Tripoli Airport . After you clear the customs and immigration formalities, our Libyan personnel will take you in hand and board your air conditioned van , take a good look around at the blend of traditional and modern as you motor into town: street merchants, haggling, and shiny modern buildings.
Check on weather in Tripoli . The climate of Tripoli is Mediterranean with hot dry summers, cool winters and some modest rainfall. Weather can be variable, influenced by the Sahara Desert and the Mediterranean Sea which moderates daily temperature ranges. Lunch is included at a local restaurant .
We head back to the airport and board a flight to Benghazi , and your five stars hotel: Tybesti . Dinner is included at the hotel.

Day 2 - Tokera , Al Baida ( BLD)
After breakfast, check-out from the hotel and drive to Tokera ruins (60 km) the city of Spartan origin that was ruled by the Ptolemaic dynasty and later became a Greco-Roman settlement and most important Byzantine site in Cyrenaica., Lunch box will be served enroute.
On to visit Ptolemaic ruins (45 km) founded in the 3 rd century B.C., one of the important sites of Penta-Polis. Dinner and overnight at : Qasr Libya or Loaloaa ( Tourist class hotel) (100 km).

Day 3 - Cyrene, Apollonia (BLD)
Breakfast, drive to visit Cyrene (Shahhat) founded in 631 B.C. by the group of settlers who had fled the famine that was ravaging the island of There : 16 kilometer . After lunch moving to visit Apollonia 25 km (the original port of Cyrene that became the capital of region in 5 th Century AD Dinner and overnight at your four stars hotel : Al Manara

Day 4- Slunta, Qaser Libya , Tripoli (BLD)
After breakfast, check-out from the hotel, transfer to visit Slunta cave, Libyan Hellenistic civilization (about 50 km) and Qaser Libya ( where the Byzantine church 5 th Century AD). Lunch on road Continue to visit the Museum of Mosaics, then transfer back to Benghazi. Dinner, late flight to Tripoli and overnight at a five star hotel : Bab el Bahr or Grand Hotel or Al Mahari ( Upgrade to Corinthia Hotel for $ 150 USD per person per night)

Day 5 - Gharyan , Ghadames (BLD)
Drive to Gharyan 50 km far from Tripoli . Lunch at a local restaurant .
Continue to Ghadames 570 km from Gharyan (passing of some Barber old cities through old caravan way.

We descend from the highlands after breakfast, toward Kabaw , Gharyan , where we'll visit the granaries-more evidence of the surprising variety and wealth of this land. In the afternoon, we'll reach the oasis outpost of Ghadames with its intertwined dwellings, and settle into our lodgings at the modest and welcoming Kafila/Winzrik Hotel. But we won't tarry long! Four-wheel-drive vehicles await. We'll embark on an excursion up, over, and between the rolling sand dunes to sample the life, the views, and the spectacular sunsets of the Sahara. Of course, we'll make camp, where our hosts will brew mint tea, bake fresh and delicious flat bread over the coals, and offer camel rides to the willing. At your option, your dinner may also be prepared in the desert before your return to the hotel at Ghadames : Al Diwan ( Tourist Class )

Day 6 - GHADAMES (BLD)
We wander the old quarters of Ghadames this morning, making our way through souks (traditional markets) along winding lanes, and continuing to the town museum. There will be time to stop and haggle for and acquire select local treasures, including brass ware, rugs, and the utilitarian items fashioned from camel skins. Dinner at the hotel in Ghadames.

Day 7- Tripoli (BLD)
After breakfast, drive back to Tripoli 570 km, passing of another barber old cities through the old caravan way (Lunch on road). Arrival Tripoli, Dinner and overnight at your five stars hotel in Tripoli : Bab el Bahr or Grand Hotel or Al Mahari ( Upgrade to Corinthia Hotel for $ 150 USD per person per night)

Day 8 -Tripoli - Full Day Tour (BLD)
Founded by the Phoenicians in 1000 B.C. Tripoli was later conquered by the Romans.
After breakfast, we'll take you for a drive to the Tripoli Museum, housing treasures of Libyan history from Roman times and earlier. We'll venture into the Old Town, and along the winding lanes of the souks, where in age-old fashion, merchants and customers haggle over local handicrafts and produce, treasures from across the desert, and practical items from over the seas. We'll see the venerable arch of the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius, the Gurgi Mosque, and the Karamanly Museum. The Green Square, Algeria Square Cathedral. Lunch at a local restaurant Continue to visit Church of Santa Maria, the 18 th Century British Consulate, the 17 th Century French Consulate. Afterwards, you'll be free to explore on your own, and possibly to return to the souks to try your hand at bargaining for some of the crafts and treasures that you spied earlier.

Day 9 - Sabratha (BLD)
Return to Tripoli, dinner and overnight.

Today after an early breakfast , we'll make our way out of the capital, and into the heart of Libya. Our first stop will be Sabratha ( 67 KM west of Tripoli) , an ancient Roman outpost. We'll tour the well-preserved ruins and visit the museum, where we'll learn of Libya's key position on ancient trade routes. Amongst all of Libya's many archaeological sites, Sabratha stands out as the most majestic. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, Sabratha was founded by the Canaanites, ruled by Carthage, Phoenicia, Numedia and then Rome in 46 B.C. Lunch on the road. The most spectacular structure in Sabratha is the Theatre, probably built during the reign of the Emperor Commodus (161-192 AD). Other monuments and areas of interest include the Temple of Liber Pater, the Basilica of Justinian, the Mosaics of the House of Jason Magnus, the Capitolium and the Temples of Serapis, Hercules and Isis. Then it's back to Tripoli, and dinner at your hotel

Day 10 - Leptis Magna (BLD)
Leptis Magna ruins (132 km east of Tripoli) . Originally a Phoenician settlement founded in the 6 th Century BC under the aegis of Carthage, Leptis Magna became a great metropolis under the Romans, particularly during the reign of Septimus Severus (193-211 AD), who was born in the city. We visit the imposing public monuments including the Theatre, Forum, Baths, Sports Ground, Nymphaeum, Temples and the Arch of Septimus Severus.

We'll spend most of today at Leptis Magna. This UNESCO World Heritage Site is considered the best-preserved Roman city in Africa. The enormous amphitheater and the remains of fine buildings testify to the city's former importance. After gaining insights into the old city at the ruins and in the museum, we'll continue to the delightful and largely intact Roman villa at Silin, with its remarkably lifelike mosaics and frescoes.

Lunch box or at a local restaurant. Drive back to the hotel in Tripoli .
Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

Day 11 - Sebha (BLD)
Breakfast at the hotel Flight from Tripoli–Sebha, then transfer by 4 x 4 to Germa, visiting old city of Germa and its museum. Lunch on road Drive to the lakes (Qaber oun lake, mandara lake, Om elma lake, Mafo lake) Famous lakes which surrounded by large dunes. Dinner with Folkloric show and overnight in the tent.
If you prefer to be in a hotel instead please let's know in advance ( Al Mahari -Tourist class )

Day 12 - Sebha / Tripoli (BL)
Breakfast, Tour in the lakes and BBQ lunch. Transfer to Sebha airport to flight late back to Tripoli and connect to you International flight . Bab el Bahr or Grand Hotel or Al Mahari ( Upgrade to Corinthia Hotel for $ 150 USD per person per night)

Day 13 - Departure (B)
Breakfast, we escort you back to the airport. Bon Voyage.

In Libya, surprises are the order of the day! An invitation to a refreshing glass of mint tea while you browse in a shop . . . an encounter with a humble desert dweller . . . a gust of wind and a swirl of sand, followed by perfect stillness, and vistas under an endless blue sky.

You'll find sometimes that your tour schedule will be switched to accommodate changes in conditions. You might even start with your last day and proceed resolutely to the first! Your hotels will have facilities that match their ratings, and idiosyncrasies in service on the upside and downside, but always with a warm welcome.

It's all part of the experience and privilege of going where few have gone. Be flexible and ready for surprises. If that's not you, don't worry, we offer myriad options elsewhere tailored to your requirements and expectations.

Rate per person in USD :Fall / Winter (September to April ):

Due to the very busy itinerary, this tour may not be suitable for small children

International airfare is not included from / to your home country
Tour starts first Monday of each month in Tripoli.

Rate Includes :

• Hotel accommodation as listed with breakfast daily and tax .
• Meals : Continental breakfast daily.
  During sightseeing : Lunches and dinners will be provided as a lunch box or at a local restaurants.
• English speaking guide for all the sightseeing as listed .
• All transfers in Libya.
• All entrance fees and touring as per itinerary .
• Economy class air tickets for the domestic flights in Libya as per itinerary
• Guided sightseeing including all entrance fees as per itinerary , always by air conditioned sedan/van or mini bus / van depending on the numbers

• Pre set meals as listed including B = Breakfast, (or cB, Continental Breakfast), L = Lunch, D = Dinner
• Tunisia & Libya and travel guide books.

Not Included :

• Any International Airfare from/to your home country
• Tips.
• Beverages with meals
• Travel Insurance ( we'll be glad to mail you the flyer)
• Visa for Libya , please secure your visa prior to arrival . Libya will not issue a visa to you if your passport has any Israeli visa stamps.
  

Five-star Corinthia Bab Africa in Tripoli (www.corinthiahotels.com)

Here are some more things to keep in mind for your Libyan discovery:

Museums are closed on Mondays, but open on Fridays, the Muslim holy day (when banks and government offices are closed).

On occasion, the government may requisition a hotel on short notice for official use, especially in Tripoli and Benghazi. Guests should be aware of this possibility, and must accept as a precondition that there is no recourse in such cases. This is simply a fact of life when demand outpaces the supply of hotel rooms. We'll confirm your hotel shortly before your arrival. If necessary, we and our representative will work hard to find alternative accommodations, and may even amend your itinerary to obtain the same level of accommodations on an alternative date, though this will not always be possible.

We always put the safety and comfort of our guests first. Groups have a police escort, as required by law. During periods of high heat, from May to September, we may curtail desert activities, such as camping. Wear lightweight clothing that covers you, just as the locals do. Skimpy outfits-shorts and tank tops-are frowned on by locals, and put you at risk for sunburn. And remember that visitors must respect the local ban on alcohol.

Tripoli hotels ( Five Stars ) :

Corinthia ( Bab Africa ) ( Five star Superior)

Al Mahari . Al Kabir . Bab Al Bahr.