The Port of Beirut is Lebanon's biggest city, capital, and main seaport. Lying at the foot of the Lebanon Mountains, it is about 67 kilometers south-southwest of the Port of Tripoli and some 100 nautical miles southeast of Cyprus' Port of Famagusta. Until the mid-1970s, many Westerners viewed the Port of Beirut as the most westernized city of the Arab Middle Eastern states. Unfortunately, 15 years of civil war created terrible physical and cultural damage to the community. In spite of the violence, the Port of Beirut still has a tolerant liberal atmosphere. In the 1990s, the Port of Beirut began to rebuild, and tourists are beginning to return to this jewel of the Mediterranean. In 2003, almost 1.2 million people lived in the city, and over 1.7 million called the urban area home.

The Port of Beirut is one of the biggest seaports in the Mediterranean region. The Port of Beirut's central location and deep waters accommodate the largest of modern vessels. Tourism, especially among Arabs, thrives, and the Port of Beirut is investing significantly in new tourism-oriented infrastructure. The Port of Beirut is the seat of Lebanon's government, and it plays a vital role in the country's economy. Many corporate headquarters and banks are located in the Port of Beirut, and its redesigned city center, nightlife districts, and marinas attract tourists from around the world. The New York Times listed the Port of Beirut as the best place to visit in 2009.

Archeological excavations in the downtown Port of Beirut have uncovered layers of artifacts from ancient Phoenician , Greek , Roman , Arab , and Ottoman cultures. First mentioned in Egyptian writings dating to the 15th Century BC, the Port of Beirut has been inhabited since that time. In 1994, a dig proved that one of the city's modern streets still follows an ancient Greek and Roman road.

"Beirut" comes from the Canaanite Be'erot, describing the underground water table still in use. The Port of Beirut was given the status of Roman colony in 14 BC, and it had fashionable suburbs during Roman times. The Roman city was destroyed by earthquakes and a devastating tidal wave in 551, and it remained in ruins until conquered by Muslims in 635 AD.

Muslims reconstructed the city into a walled garrison with an insignificant role until the 10th Century. The Port of Beirut was taken by the Crusaders in 1110 and made a fief of the Latin kingdom of Jerusalem. Under that rule, the Port of Beirut enjoyed thriving trade with Italian cities. The Mamluks ended the Crusaders' rule in 1291, when the Port of Beirut was Syria's chief port for Venitian spice merchants.

Passing to Ottoman rule in 1516, the Port of Beirut's commercial importance declined. But by the 17th Century, it became an important exporter of Lebanese silk to Europe. Though technically under the rule of the Ottomans, the Port of Beirut fell to Ma'n and Shihab emirs for decades during the 18th Century. The Port of Beirut suffered greatly during the Russo-Turkish War and declined to the status of a village of 6000 souls.

The modern Port of Beirut was born with Europe's Industrial Revolution . Conquest of the area by Egypt brought a new era of commercial growth. By the middle 19th Century, population of the Port of Beirut had grown to 15 thousand and military conflicts brought refugees from the mountains.

In 1887, the Ottoman rulers granted the concession of the Port of Beirut to an Ottoman company called the "Compagnie du Port, des Quais et des Entrepots de Beyrouth." The concession was strengthened when the company gained the sole rights to store and carry all goods through the Customs. Construction was undertaken to expand the existing port, and the new Port of Beirut was opened in a large celebration in 1894.

In 1888, the Port of Beirut became the capital of a new province that included coastal Syria and Palestine and, by 1900, it had a population of 120 thousand. Protestant and Roman Catholic missionaries were active in the Port of Beirut. In 1866, what later became the American University of Beirut was established. The missionaries brought printing presses to the Port of Beirut that stimulated the publishing industry. By 1900, the Port of Beirut was the center for Arabic journalism, and when intellectuals pushed for a revival of Arabic culture, Beirut became the first voice for modern Arab nationalism.

Occupied by the Allies after World War I, the Port of Beirut was made capital of the State of Greater Lebanon and the later Lebanese Republic (1926). Resenting Christian-dominated Lebanon, Beirut Muslims loyalty to Pan-Arabism led to conflict between the two religious groups. Added to social tensions due to rapid growth was the flood of Palestinian refugees after 1948. Open fighting in the Port of Beirut broke out first in 1958 and again, more violently, between 1975 and 1990. During the latter violence, the Port of Beirut was divided, and its long-standing foreign community largely fled the city. Lebanon has been rebuilding the city since 1990. Despite regional strife, by 2006, it was regaining its reputation as a popular Middle East tourist, intellectual, and cultural center.

While the Port of Beirut has long functioned as a center for trade and naval activity, the current port was founded at the end of the 19th Century. In 1887, the Ottomans gave the concession to an Ottoman company that fortified their property. In 1925, control of the Port of Beirut passed to France. In 1960, a Lebanese company won the concession. The private operations ended in 1990 when Lebanon gave control to a temporary committee to manage the Port of Beirut.

The Gestion et Exploitation du Port de Beyrouth (GEPB) is the port authority for the Port of Beirut. In the 1990s, the Port of Beirut was rehabilitated and expanded. The container terminal opened in 2005, and it has already reached capacity.

In 2008, over two thousand vessels called at the Port of Beirut. Through July, the number of vessels calling at the Port of Beirut increased from 1192 in 2008 to 1402 in 2009 (an 18% increase). In 2008, the Port of Beirut handled a total of 5.7 million tons of general goods and containers (in 527.2 thousand TEUs), 96.8 thousand cars, and 2694 passengers. Through July 2009, the Port of Beirut had handled 3.7 million tons of general goods and containers ( a 9% increase over the same time in 2008), and 340.7 thousand TEUs (an 18% increase over the same time in 2008). In July 2009, the Port of Beirut had handled 56.5 thousand cars (a 47% increase over the same time in 2008) and 2124 passengers (compared to no passengers through July of 2008).

The Port of Beirut covers an area of 120 hectares, and its water basin covers one hundred hectares of water surface. The Port of Beirut contains over 5 kilometers of quays, including 1.6 kilometers of general cargo quays with depths from 8 to 10.5 meters and 1.3 kilometers of container quays with depths from 10.5 to 13 meters. The new container quay, No. 16, is 600 meters long with alongside depth of 15.5 meters, and the bulk quay is 220 meters long with alongside depth of 13 meters.

The Port of Beirut contains four warehouses covering more than 25.5 thousand square meters for general cargo, three warehouses covering almost 20.5 thousand square meters for groupage operations, three warehouses of almost 18 thousand square meters for automobiles, and one hazardous goods warehouse of 5.2 thousand square meters.

The Port of Beirut's Duty Free Market covers 11.2 thousand square meters of modular shops and contains three industrial buildings totaling 32.4 thousand square meters. The Port of Beirut's silo has capacity for 120 thousand tons. It includes 48 big cells, each with capacity for 2500 tons, and 50 small cells with 500-ton capacity. The silo suction speed is 600 tons per hour.

The Port of Beirut has ample equipment to handle large volumes and a wide variety of cargoes. Equipment for handling containers in the Port of Beirut includes six 255- to 300-ton capacity mobile cranes, 13 125- to 165-ton capacity mobile cranes, 33 top loaders for full containers, and 16 forklifts for empty containers. The Port of Beirut also has 35 mobile cranes of 50- to 90-ton capacity for steel and 12 25-ton mobile cranes for general cargoes.

The container terminal in the Port of Beirut has a 365 thousand square meter stacking area with capacity for 745 thousand TEUs and 440 reefer points. The Beruit Container Terminal Consortium (BCTC) seeks to provide an efficient, cost-effective multi-modal container facility serving the Eastern Mediterranean region. The BCTC supports local economic growth and acts as a base for cargo distributions into the central Arab Peninsula.

The City of Beirut has a five-thousand year history made up of Canaanites, Phoenicians, Persians, Romans, Byzantines, Omayyads, Abbassids, Crusaders, Mumlukes, and Ottomans. Its name was first written in cuneiform in the 14th Century BC, and it was a Roman colony in the first Century BC. Arab conquerors controlled the Port of Beirut from the 6th Century AD until the Crusaders arrived in the early 12th Century. After the Crusaders came the Mamlukes and the Turks. After World War I, the French ruled the area for a time. In 1943, Lebanon won its independence, and the modern era began with the Port of Beirut as the nation's capital.

Today, the modern city is a mysterious and romantic place to visit. The Port of Beirut is bathed in sunlight over 80% of the time. In the winter, the nearby mountains are covered with a glistening blanket of snow. What was not long ago a destroyed town center is once again alive and active, and the Port of Beirut has again become the crossroads between the continents of Europe, Asia, and Africa. The Port of Beirut's old downtown boasts hundreds of ancient and historic structures and memories of times long past. Visitors to the Port of Beirut have unlimited opportunities to enjoy history, nature, and a dazzling nightlife. For details on the many things to see and do in the Port of Beirut, please visit the city's tourism website.

The Port of Beirut has a subtropical Mediterranean climate that is hot and dry (but humid) in the summer and cool, mild, and rainy in the winter. Snow is rare and does not normally accumulate when it does fall. Spring and autumn are the most comfortable times of year, although the rainy season begins in the middle of the fall. Temperatures range from an average high of 29 °C (85 °F) in August to an average low of 5 °C (50 °F) in January.

Though it's one of the most historically rich cities in the world, the Port of Beirut is famous for its nightlife. There are endless choices of restaurants and cafes in the downtown district, including traditional Lebanese cuisine as well as choices from all of the world's fine kitchens. Monnot and Gemayzeh are busy areas in the Port of Beirut for an exciting nightlife, offering new restaurants, nightclubs, and pubs every day. However, these are not the only districts where party people find places enjoy the night. Outside the city is the Casino Du Liban with slot machines, gaming rooms, and plenty of entertainment.

For natural wonders, the Jeita Grotto is about 15 kilometers northeast of the Port of Beirut. The Jeita Grotto is the longest cave structure in the Middle East, a set of inter-connected limestone caves with a river running through the lower cave and the upper galleries. At 300 meters above sea level, explorers have ventured almost seven thousand meters from the entry of the lower grotto to the deepest part of the underground river and another two thousand meters into the upper galleries. In the upper galleries are stalagmites, stalactites, columns, ponds, mushrooms, draperies, and curtains that have formed over millennia. The world's longest stalactite hides in the White Chamber of the Jeita Grotto. Illuminated with electric lighting, the Jeitta Grotto will carry visitors from the world of sun and sand to a magical world of breathtaking beauty and mystery.

The National Museum of Beirut is one of the most popular attractions in the Port of Beirut and a virtual tour through thousands of years of Lebanese (and world) history. Its collections cover prehistory; the Bronze and Iron Ages; the Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine periods; and the period of Arab conquest to the Mamlukes, including the era of the Crusaders. The Prehistory collection tells of the time when the first inhabitants of the Port of Beirut area settled on the coast with displays of lithic tools, scrapers and burins, flint tools, pottery, and copper fishing hooks used by early man. The Bronze Age collection tells the story of urbanization and man's first writing. During this period from 3200 to 1200 BC, the first Lebanese villages were fortified and commercial and maritime trade began with Syria, Palestine, and Mesopotamia. The Iron Age collection, covering 1200 BC to 400 BC, displays artifacts and information about the emerging city-states and dominance from Assyrian, Babylonian, Persian, and the Phoenician conquerors who brought their cultures to the Port of Beirut area.

The Hellenistic collection, covering 333 BC and the victory of Alexander the Great over Persian King Darius III through the period of Greek colonialism when local craftsmen copied work imported from the Aegean world and the Semitic and Greek cultures produced a new style of art and architecture.

The Roman collection tells of Roman general Pompey's conquest of the area of the Port of Beirut and the arrival of the Roman world, bringing a new era of prosperity to the region of the Port of Beirut. Roman city planning, public entertainment, aqueducts, fountains, and baths brought a new level of sophistication to life in the Port of Beirut as well as new trades and crafts like silversmiths, glassmakers, and ceramics manufacturers. The Byzantine collection tells of the time between the late 4th Century AD and the Arab conquest of the middle 7th Century when many Lebanese were converted to Christianity which became the state religion. New basilicas with complex mosaics and religious themes appeared in the city, and urban development and expansion continued in the region. The collection addresses the terrible 551 AD earthquake and tidal wave that destroyed the Port of Beirut and the subsequent reconstruction.

The Arab to Mamluk period collection illustrates the time when the Arabs conquered Lebanon in 637 AD, and the harbors and shipyards became busy commercial centers. New fortifications arose as dynasties changed and Islam spread throughout the Arab world. The Crusaders ruled for a time from the late 11th to the late 13th Centuries, and they built citadels and palaces from Tripoli to Tyre. The Mamluk sultan Baibars drove the Crusaders out of Lebanon, and the Mumluks constructed many religious and civic buildings.

No trip to the Port of Beirut is complete without a trip to the Hippodrome Du Parc De Beyrouth where Arabian thoroughbreds race and people enjoy a tradition that dates back many centuries. (Relics of the old Roman hippodrome of Beirut can be found in the Beirut National Museum.) The modern Beirut Hippodrome was founded in 1885 in a suburb of Beirut and moved to Residence des Pins in 1920. The hippodrome is managed by the non-profit Society for the Protection and Improvement of the Arabia Horse in Lebanon (SPARCA). The hippodrome was created to preserve the integrity of the Arabian horse, and the sandy racetrack is a great place to demonstrate this remarkable animal's stamina and speed. One weekly meeting of eight races occurs each Sunday when from ten to twelve horses compete in each race. This is a definite must-do for visitors to the Port of Beirut.