One Day in Old Damascus: A Walk from Souq al-Hamidiyeh to Bab Sharqi

Old Damascus is a city for walking. Inside walls whose foundations go back to Roman times, alleys, souqs and courtyard houses fold into one another. You could cross it from west to east in under an hour — but you will need the whole day, because you will stop every few steps. This is a route we have walked many times: the key sights in a sensible order, with time left for coffee and food.

Morning: Souq al-Hamidiyeh and the Umayyad Mosque

Start at Souq al-Hamidiyeh, next to the Citadel. The covered market, with its arched metal roof, runs for about six hundred metres and ends at the Roman columns of the Temple of Jupiter, right in front of the Umayyad Mosque. Go early: the shutters are going up and light falls through the small holes in the roof.

Halfway along, stop at Bakdash for pounded Arabic ice cream thickened with sahlab and rolled in pistachios — yes, even in the morning. Then enter the Umayyad Mosque, one of the oldest great mosques in the world and one of the most beautiful. Give it at least an hour. On its north side, a small garden holds the tomb of Saladin.

Midday: Azem Palace and the spice souq

A few minutes south of the mosque is Azem Palace, built in the mid-eighteenth century for the governor As'ad Pasha al-Azm. It is a textbook Damascene house: wide courtyards, striped black-and-white stone, fountains and rooms panelled in painted wood. Today it houses a museum of popular traditions.

Next door begins Souq al-Buzuriyeh: spices, herbs, sweets, laurel soap and jams, with a smell you will remember long after. Look up inside Khan As'ad Pasha, whose great domed hall is worth the detour.

Afternoon: Straight Street

From the spice souq head east along Straight Street, the Roman road that crosses the old city to Bab Sharqi. It is lined with copper, inlay and brocade workshops, a Roman arch and old churches. Before its end, turn north into Bab Touma and al-Qassaa, where restored courtyard houses have become cafés and restaurants.

Evening: dinner in a courtyard

The best way to end the day is dinner in a Damascene courtyard under a bitter-orange tree, when the heat drops and the fountain starts to sound. These places fill up on Thursday and Friday evenings, so reserve a table.

Quick facts

Route length

About 3 km on foot

Best time

Spring and autumn; start before 10 am

Shoes

Comfortable and flat — the paving is old stone

Money

Carry small notes for the souq and drinks

If you stay longer than a day, sleeping inside or near the old city saves you taxis and lets you see the alleys at night, when they are quiet — see where to stay in Syria. For a day out, Maaloula and Saydnaya are about an hour away by car.