Visiting Palmyra   Temples Theater Tombs Museum Desert Palaces   The ruins of the old city, spread out over a very large area, at an altitude of 405 m., are grouped between the Temple of Bel to the east and the foot of the hills to the west, on both sides of a street with porticos containing various monuments. These ancient monuments are spread at the foot of a limestone range of hills, oriented southwest-northeast, bare and eroded, with funeral towers here and there. There is an old Arab castle overlooking the ruins. Near the city itself, there is a necropolis of great archaeological interest. You need practically a whole day to visit Palmyra. Or better: two half-days should be earmarked for it in your program. The ideal schedule is to arrive early in the afternoon and depart the next day before sunset. In a one-day visit you would have to restrict yourself to the following monuments: the Temple of Bel, the Colonnade and its neighboring monuments, the Temple of Baalshamin, and the apogee of the Three Brothers, the one of Atenatan in the south-west necropolis, and the tower of Jamblic in the Valley of the Tombs. You could also include a visit to the museum at the entrance of the village. A two-days visit will allow you to make a thorough visit including the castle (by car) early in the morning a little before sunrise or at the end of the day, and to walk in the oasis with its palm and olive groves and its gardens separated by irrigation canals - a nice walk during the cool hours of the day (in summer).     Previous - Next
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