Corner room, valley sideSnoubar
Sleeps two, one double bed
- Balcony over the gorge
- Wood stove and extra quilts
$72 per night
6,408,000 LL
Ehden, North Lebanon
Sleep above the clouds.
1,450m.
A small stone house on the ridge above Ehden, where the mist sits below you at dawn and the pines smell of resin all afternoon. Three rooms, five beds, one long terrace facing the valley.
Ahla w sahla
A house on the ridge, run by one family since the road was still gravel.
We sit just above the Horsh Ehden reserve, a ten minute walk from Midan square. Our grandmother wakes before the rest of us to light the saj, and the coffee is on the terrace by the time the valley below fills with cloud. You will not find a lift or a lobby here. You will find quiet, a fireplace, and mornings that start higher than the birds.
1,450melevation above the sea
The rooms
Three rooms, each with its own window on the mountain.
Corner room, valley side
Under the eaves, pine sideDeir
Sleeps three, one double and one single
- Sloped ceiling and skylight
- Best light in the house at sunrise
$88 per night
7,832,000 LL
Ground floor, terrace doorSindyan
Sleeps four, two doubles
- Own door onto the terrace
- Steps from the oak and the swing
$120 per night
10,680,000 LL
The days here
Nothing is scheduled. The mountain does the scheduling.
Ridge trail at 5:40am
One
The sunrise hike
Bassam knocks softly before dawn for anyone who wants it. We climb the old shepherd path toward Qornet as Sawda side of the ridge, twenty five minutes of switchbacks, and reach the lookout as the first sun breaks over the cedars. On a clear morning you can see the sea past Tripoli. We carry thermoses and stop when someone is out of breath. No rush, ever.
Two
Breakfast on the long terrace
Back down by eight, the table is already set. Labneh with mountain zaatar, eggs cooked in olive oil from Zgharta, tomatoes, warm markouk off the saj, and figs when the season gives them. Coffee keeps coming. This is the meal people talk about after they leave, so sit long and let the cloud burn off the valley while you eat.
Terrace table, morning sun
The stone hearth after dark
Three
The winter fireplace
When the snow closes the higher road, the whole house gathers in the one warm room. We light the hearth by four, mull wine with cinnamon and orange, and someone always brings out cards. Our grandmother roasts chestnuts on the coals. The wind can shout outside all it likes. In here it is oak smoke and quiet talk until the fire settles to embers.
Right now in Ehden
The mountain sets the calendar here.
Snow and the fire in deep winter, the melt and the wild peonies in spring, long dry light and loud cafes in summer, apples and wood smoke in autumn. Whatever month brings you up, the terrace faces the same valley and breakfast is still warm off the saj. Ask us what the season is doing when you write and we will tell you what to pack.
Noted from the terrace, in every season.Around the house
A few corners of the place.
Stone facade, west wall
Reading nook
Valley filling with cloud
Saj bread, morning
Terrace at golden hour
The oak and the swing
Snow on the ridge, January
Hearth and firewoodBook a stay
Tell us your dates and we will hold a room.
We reply the same day, usually within a couple of hours. Send your dates by email and we will sort the rest. Groups larger than four take two rooms, and we will pair them for you.
On the ridge above Midan square, Ehden
Check in from 2pm, breakfast until 10am