Iraqi Kurdistan is a semi-autonomous region between Iran and Turkey. The region has its own government, the Kurdish Regional Government. The city Erbil is known to be their unofficial capital. When flying to Erbil from Turkey, you’ll be able to see the natural border between Iraq and Turkey.

Visa Policy

The visa policy is different in Kurdistan region compared to the rest of Iraq. A lot of nationalities are allowed a free visa-on-arrival at Erbil Airport for 30 days. You’ll be able to visit a large part of Iraq that is ruled by the Kurdish Regional Government. The official Iraqi visa, which allows you to go to Mosul and Baghdad, is known to be expensive and is obtained through the embassy. This article will only discuss my trip to Iraqi Kurdistan, which I visited with a visa-on-arrival.

Countries that are entitled to the Iraqi Kurdistan visa on arrival (Source: Wikipedia)

Safety

While some parts in Iraq might not be safe to visit, the situation in Kurdistan is fairly safe. However, I do advise you to check the latest news before going because the safety situation can change. The strong presence of Peshmarga forces in Kurdistan keeps the region as safe as possible. Mosul is possible to visit if you get the right paperwork done but might be less safe because of the presence of sleeper cells.

I felt completely safe travelling in Iraqi Kurdistan. You’ll encounter a few checkpoints during your travels, but everyone is very welcoming and friendly.

Where to sleep

Kurdish people are very hospitable. You might be interested to use Couchsurfing to meet people and stay at their place. If you prefer a hotel, you can find many of them on Booking.com. I stayed at Erbil View Hotel, which was recommended by a friend as it has a nice view of Erbil. On top of that, it is right in front of a mosque, so you’ll have a wake-up call in the morning.

How to get around

Kurdistan has a beautiful nature and culture you would want to discover. As those places are fairly remote, you can get a tour guide to get you around. Erbil is perfectly do-able independently. If you need to do long distances in Erbil, I’d recommend taking a taxi. I advise you to bring screenshots with you because most taxi drivers hardly speak any English. I had a hard time to explain where I wanted to go.

If you are looking for a guide, I would like to recommend Haval Qaraman. I contacted him on Facebook just to arrange the tour. You can tell him what you’d like to visit and he will arrange it. On top of that, he is an amazing guy who knows his country by heart and loves his own culture. On the photo below, you can see me and Haval at one of the many beautiful Canyons in Kurdistan. He has a lot of positive reviews because he is so passionate about his job. If you prefer to cut the costs, you can share the tour. I shared the tour with another travel blogger, Krystal Kelly.

Currency and money situation

The currency in Kurdistan is Iraqi Dinars. ATMs are not reliable. Your best bet is to take an international strong currency. You can easily exchange from British Pounds (GBP), US Dollars (USD) and Euro’s (EUR). The average cost for a good hotel is 50 to 70 euro. The food is very cheap, except if you eat at your hotel. Hiring a driver costs about 130 to 180 euro a day, depending on the driver and the car. (Prices 2019)

Things to do

Sightseeing in Erbil

• Visit the Citadel of Erbil
  Wander around the UNESCO World Heritage Citadel of Erbil which is 6500 years old and has amazing sunset views.
  The citadel is next to Erbil’s main square. You’ll have a nice view from the citadel on the square.

• Shop in the souqs
  Erbil is full of shops. Make sure you stroll around the souqs to spot Currency Exchange offices, traditional products, local drinks and local food!

• Visit a (nargile) bar/café
  Kurdistan without tea wouldn’t be Kurdistan. Kurdish people love to drink tea and coffee. Make sure you visit a traditional tea/coffee bar.

• Try the local food in restaurants
  The Middle East is famous for its lovely food. Mezze is a great way to share small portions of different types of food. Kebab is great for a quick bite. I love the food and every time I make the same mistake of starting to eat without taking a picture, hence why some photos are with half plates.

• Look for the “I Love Erbil” sign

Visit the Holy Site of Lalish

Lalish is a small mountain village in Northern Iraq and contains the holiest temple for Yazidis. It is a very interesting place to visit and to get to know more about the Yazidi faith. Follow the rules to respect the holy place. You’ll have to walk barefoot inside the temple.

Visit one of the Sadam Palaces or other Urban Exploring spots

As most of the palaces of Saddam are destroyed or abandoned, it is an interesting place to visit, especially if you like urban exploring. My guide brought me to one in the Gara mountains with a spectacular mountain view and another one in the town Qaddish, where a lot of excavation occurred to find a treasure of gold, hidden by Saddam. Keep in mind that there are still some mines.

If you haven’t had enough of urban exploration at the Saddam Palaces, you can ask your guide to bring you to other abandoned locations. Another unique spot is a hotel close to Amedi village.

Throughout your travel in the country, you’ll encounter many gas flares, as the oil business is currently booming in the whole country.

Walk around in Amedi Village

Amedi Village is a nice place to stroll around. One of the must-sees in Amedi is the citadel with the Badinan gate. The citadel and the gate were built during the Bahdinan Emirate (14th to 19th century). This is the period when Amedi became a village where Muslims, Jews and Christians could live next to each other in peace. The gate is also called the Mosul gate.

Visit beautiful monasteries near Mosul

Two monasteries you should definitely visit are Mar Mattai Monastery and Rabban Hormizd Monastery. Mar Mattai Monastery is recognized as the oldest Christian monasteries in existence and is located in Mesopotamia.

Embrace the beautiful nature in Kurdistan

Kurdistan is full of wonderful natural places. It is full of green canyons, rivers and waterfalls. Floods can happen during wintertime, but this should not stop you to go. The waterfalls are bigger during the winter. My favourite places are by far Bekhal Waterfall and Rawandoz Canyon. The rain can also be fun in Kurdistan though!

Visit the Red Prison Museum in Sulaymaniyah

Amra Suraka or the Red Prison was a prison that was used to torture and kill thousands of Kurds. It is very sad to see the details of such a genocide. The prison is completely intact and you can see how the prison cells used to be.

I was sick for the last two days in Kurdistan. While I was there I wasn’t in the mood to take pictures of the place. I recommend you to read more about the museum on AtlasObscura.

My video on YouTube

Mleeta is considered as the town of Hezbollah and lays in the south of Lebanon. It is not easily reachable by public transport, but asking someone to be your private driver for a day will get you there easily. If you stay in a hostel you might meet a few people and ask them if they want to share the cost of the driver.

Inside Mleeta is a so-called “Tourist Landmark”, a museum featuring a lot of weapons and captured materials from the Israelis. When you start to get into the South of Lebanon, you’ll see the flag of Hezbollah nearly everywhere, the flag looks like this:

Arabic text translated: Then surely the party of Allah are they that shall be triumphant – The Islamic Resistance in Lebanon

I decided to visit the place and it was quite an interesting experience. If you have plans to visit the place, make sure to check the “official” website if it is open.

On our way to Mleeta, we passed the city Sidon, known for its Sidon Sea Castle, which was built by the Crusaders in the 13th century.

This is “Mleeta Tourist Site”.

We first watched a video of about 30 minutes with footage of the Lebanese war. The explanation is given by Hassan Nasrallah, the current Secretary-General.

In the forest behind the Israeli tanks and remnants of the helicopters, displays show how Hezbollah militants were hiding in the mountains.

A flag inside the woods and a medic kit ready to be used.

Inside the bunkers, you can find long concrete corridors with several rooms such as a cooking place, sleeping room, communication room, weapon room and prayer room.

Some more exhibition of the weapons:

I finish this blogpost with some stunning view from Mleeta over the rest of South Lebanon…

Interested to visit this place? Arrange your trip a day before and not too much in advance. It is easier to arrange transportation or share the costs with others when you’re in Beirut!

When I visited Syria, July 2018, most of the country was government-controlled. As a result, the government-controlled areas were fairly safe to visit as a tourist. Travel advice for Syria has been very strict according to our government: all travels should be avoided and there is a very high risk involved. When I walked around in Damascus at night, I felt safer than in most European cities. Women are not afraid to walk alone in the dark. Harassments are not tolerated by Syrians and passers-by would immediately help people in need. I really liked Damascus. It is a vibrant city with an active nightlife.

To be clear: With all the positive comments I am giving about Syria, I might sound like I am pro-Assad. But, I try to see everything as unbiased as possible and don’t want to involve into politics. I am not a journalist, I am not here to spread pro-Rebel or pro-Assad information. The conflict is too complicated and both sides share biased information to their favoured media. We are not sure about what is fake and what is not. This is a travel blog and you can come here for advice and my experiences in the parts of Syria you can visit as a tourist. Please do not feel offended. Enjoy!

It all started in November 2017. I had booked a flight with Aegean Airlines to Beirut in February 2018 but was interested to visit Damascus. I contacted the Syrian Embassy in Brussels to apply for a visa. As requested, I filled in all documents, sent them a scan of my passport and waited for 12 weeks. Guess what, I have never heard of them and I had to leave to Lebanon without a Syrian visa. I met a few people in a hostel in Beirut. One of them, an Irish guy was brave enough to visit Syria too. However, he went to the border without a visa and was denied to enter the country. I then knew I will never be able to enter Syria without a visa too.

In April 2018, the idea was still in my mind. After finding a fixer, I was told that interaction with the embassy in Belgium wouldn’t even be necessary to get the Syrian visa. All I had to do was send 200$ by Western Union (WU) to him. I know it sounds strange to do but it was my only hope to visit Syria. So I went to the website of WU to send the money. Turns out you can’t just send money to Syria, you have to visit an office.  I managed to send the money but WU took almost 20% (!) commission fee. Weeks passed, and in the meantime, I booked a flight to Beirut again. I was scheduled to visit Syria from 25th until the 31st of July.

A few days before I was flying to Beirut I received a WhatsApp message with a photo of my visa. It was going to happen. I must admit I started to become a little bit nervous. I was scheduled to land at 01:50 AM in Beirut, which means I would cross the border to Syria at around 4 to 5 AM. I was starting to ask myself questions: How will the immigration officer react in Beirut with my travel plans? How will the border crossing be? Is it safe to cross in the dark?

I arrived in Beirut airport and I was standing in the line to enter Lebanon. I received a card on the plane which I had to fill in and hand to the immigration officer. One of the boxes said “Your address in Lebanon“. I just filled in “no overnight in Lebanon” and I’d see what the officer will say. After 15 minutes of standing in the queue, it was my turn. I handed out this card along with my passport and a few seconds later he asked me “where are you going?“. I told him with a cool voice: “To Damascus.“. He didn’t even look at me, stamped my passport gave it back to me. Wow. Much easier than I thought.

As I left the airport, I was scanning the arrival hall for a paper with my name. Bingo. I introduced myself, shook his hand and I followed him to his car. He was a Syrian from the South, but I couldn’t talk with him that much as he only spoke Arabic. “Welcome welcome, my name is Youssef“. He said.

I had too much adrenaline in my system to fall asleep during the drive to Syria. After an hour on the Lebanese roads the driver, Youssef, asked me “Coffee?“. I said yes, so we stopped at a place. “My friend“, he said. Apparently, he knew the people at the coffee shop very well. I asked for sugar but they stared at me as I was speaking Chinese to them. No sugar I guess. I received a small cup of coffee with a very strong taste. This must be the traditional Arabic coffee. I wanted to hand over money but Youssef, my driver started shouting “No money! You, Welcome!” and he handed over some money to the coffee maker.

We proceeded and arrived a few moments later at the Masnaa border. It was fairly busy for being night-time but everything proceeded quickly. I received my Lebanese exit stamp, we proceeded to the Syrian side, handed out my passport and the visa document and received my entry stamp to Syria. Before we enter Syria, the trunk of the car was opened and a few questions were asked about the items that were inside the car (a bag of vegetables of Youssef for example). We left the gate and were officially in Syria. It felt very strange… about 5 kilometres long was a dark road between two mountains and with giant posters of Assad. We then passed our first checkpoint with two soldiers who greeted me and said “Welcome to Syria! Do you like Chai?!” [Chai – Arabic for Tea]. My driver hands out a bill and we progress to Damascus. This happened a few times that he gave some money at the checkpoints.

R.I.P. ESTA – This stamp bans me from the USA ESTA program unfortunately, If I ever want to go to the USA again, I have to go to the US embassy and do the long visa procedure. A ridiculous rule that was opposed by the US government.

I managed to get some Syrian pounds as it is the only accepted currency. During my visit, 1000 Syrian pounds equalled to 1,70€. A bill of 2000 Syrian pounds is the highest bill available and is introduced recently due to inflation.

After three hours of driving, we finally entered Damascus. A few checkpoints later we arrived in Bab Touma, the Christian district of Damascus. I was going to stay at the most prestigious hotel in Damascus: Beit Al-Wali Hotel. I took my luggage, greeted Youssef and walked to my hotel. Surprisingly, even at 5-6 AM, there were still a few people on the streets.

The street to the five-star hotel, Beit Al Wali.

I quickly checked in and went to my room to sleep. The next day will be interesting, as I have a day on my own in Damascus.

After waking up a few hours later and leaving my room, I started to realise how beautiful this hotel actually is.

After breakfast, I was ready to leave the city. The hotel staff advised me to drink some tea first. Syrians love to drink tea all day.

I was ready to walk around in Damascus, mainly in Bab Touma and outside around the district. Don’t get me wrong, I liked to roam through the narrow streets, but Damascus has normal roads too. The streets were empty because it in the middle of the day and therefore the hottest time of the day.

You can find posters of Assad in almost every street of Damascus.One particular street in Bab Touma with beautiful flowers.

Because everyone loves cats right? I bought some street food which I shared with these cats.

Small street for pedestrians and bikers.

This is at the Bab Touma square – on the left is the checkpoint, on the right the police station. Soldiers at checkpoints are not allowed to be photographed so I didn’t take a photo of the checkpoint.

The beautiful hotel courtyard in the eveningAt the entrance of one of the many churches in Bab Touma

The next thing on the plan was to go to Krak Des Chevaliers via Homs. I had a tour guide picking me up with a driver.

The first things you pass when leaving Damascus city is Douma, which is inside district East-Ghouta. The severe destruction that took place recently is very depressing to see. Douma has a very historical point of the Syrian war. It is said to be the first area to rise up against the president, Bashar Al-Assad. Douma was the city with a suspected chemical attack on April 2018. Afterwards, the place was cleared from the rebels and is now back in government’s control.

When we left the districts of Damascus, we were driving in a dessert-like area next to the mountains, known as the Anti-Lebanon. As we come closer to Homs, we pass the mountains and a sudden strong wind hits the car. It was interesting to see all the askew trees on the side of the road, because of the wind coming from the Mediterranean sea. Before heading to Krak Des Chevaliers, we stopped at a road restaurant near Homs with very cheap Syrian food and free coffee or tea.

We proceeded to the castle and the closer we were getting, the more destruction of small villages we started to see. The Krak Des Chevaliers and its surroundings were occupied by Rebels. In 2014, the Syrian Arab Army recaptured the castle and the surroundings. Since then, the castle is being reconstructed. The castle has been recognised by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.

We finally approached the amazing castle, which looks in pretty good condition!

The entrance of the castle – the first armed person without military uniform I see in Syria.
If you haven’t noticed, on top of the castle is a Russian flag.

This is the inside of the castle. This part of the castle was used as a horse stall. It is a strange feeling to walk around and know that a few years ago armed rebels used to live here.Before leaving the castle, A selfie with my guide and driver.
Time to return to Damascus.

We returned to Damascus to look for a local Syrian restaurant. We eventually found a good place and sat down. The amount of food we got was just incredible. We received unlimited flatbread, some hummus and a mix of several vegetables. I then ordered something with chicken and mashed potatoes. Everything was so delicious. When we received the bill, which was about 8000 Syrian Pounds, I decided to pay instead of splitting the bill. We had eaten a ton of food with 3 persons for 8000 SYP or less than 14 euro!

As it was getting dark, I returned to the hotel and checked Couchsurfing if I could meet with a local. Luckily I found a woman from Damascus who would like to meet for a drink. We walked around in Bab Touma to look for a place to eat and drink something, so we ended up in something like a “lounge” where they also serve food. Nevertheless, it was a very interesting experience to talk with a local about Syria :).

The remaining two days I strolled around Damascus, doing some sightseeing, talking with locals, buying souvenirs. I spent one day with a guide and the other day on my own. Some interesting places I visited was the Umayyad mosque, known as the fourth most holy place for Muslims. I also visited several souqs in Damascus with spices, nuts. You can even find a gold souq in Damascus.

Umayyad Mosque in the centre of Damascus

Only a few metres from the mosque you can find the largest souk of Damascus. Look how busy the place is!Tamarind drink is a traditional cold drink that is sold by these guys. It has a very sweet taste and is refreshing on hot days like these. For me, it tasted a little bit like cherry juice.A meeting place for locals to have a drink.

The gold souk.

The spice souk was very interesting. There are also traditional medicine practitioners in the souk. I bought hibiscus, caraway and Aleppo soap from him!

More spices…

This used to be the hammam in Azm palace in Damascus

Damascus is a beautiful city with a lot of history and culture. Everything feels very normal in Damascus. In the city centre, you can’t see any signs of the war. This is only when you leave the centre and see for example Douma / East-Gouta district, as I have shown. Syrians are really very hospitable people and everyone is ready to help you if you have a question. Let’s hope the war will end as soon as possible. Peace to Syria.

Do you want to see more? I’ve made a short video of my trip to Syria. Enjoy!