The capital
Almost every trip starts in Damascus, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. Its walled Old City holds the Umayyad Mosque, the covered Souq al Hamidiyah, Straight Street, the Azem Palace and dozens of courtyard houses turned into restaurants and small hotels. Plan three or four nights, with a day trip to the mountain village of Maaloula, where a form of Aramaic is still spoken.
The castles and the Valley of the Christians
West of Homs, Krak des Chevaliers is the best preserved crusader castle anywhere, looking down over the green Valley of the Christians (Wadi al Nasara). Stay a night in the valley's villages, visit the Monastery of Saint George and enjoy the cooler hill air.
Hama and the Orontes
Hama is a calm, conservative city on the Orontes River, famous for its giant wooden waterwheels, the norias. It is a good overnight stop between Damascus and Aleppo, and the traditional base for visiting the ruined Roman and Byzantine city of Apamea, after checking current advice for the countryside.
The great northern city
Aleppo was Syria's largest city and one of the great trading towns of the Silk Road. Its citadel rises over an old city that suffered terrible damage during the war and is now being rebuilt stall by stall. Visiting is moving and memorable: the restored souks, the Great Mosque, Armenian quarter restaurants and the city's legendary kebabs and sweets.
The coast
Latakia is Syria's main port and beach city, with a seafront corniche, fish restaurants and day trips to the ancient city of Ugarit, where one of the first alphabets was found, and the forested Saladin Castle. Tartus, further south, has an old crusader quarter and boats to the island of Arwad.
Places that need extra care
Palmyra, Bosra, Deir ez Zor, the Euphrates valley, the north east and areas near the borders and the Golan carry higher risks. Ruins at Palmyra were badly damaged and the desert road can be unsafe. Read your government's current advice region by region before you consider them, and use the free trip planner to shape a careful route.