Aleppo
The second city of Syria. Stay by the citadel. Walk the mound, then the souq.
Aleppo, Syria: one day on the mound and under it. The citadel if it is open, the covered souq below, the Great Mosque door, evening in Jdeideh. Sleep near the citadel or Jdeideh. You do this without a tour office. Cash pounds in the lanes — a US card is not the souq. Skip the museum; do not taxi there.
Is Aleppo safe to visit?
Visitors walk the citadel and the covered souq on the usual tourist line. Stay on that line. Northwest of here — Idlib — is a different dress code.
UK, US, Canadian and Australian pages still advise against travel to all of Syria. That wording can void a high-street policy. This page is the citadel and the souq, not a second bulletin. The insurance check is the country safety page linked below.
For the mound: water, shoes for the ramps, cash pounds at the gate, a scarf in the bag until a mosque door. Confirm Tuesday at the gate. Skip the museum.
What to see
Getting there
Most people arrive on the M5 from Damascus: about five hours plus checkpoints, garage seat from Harasta or al-Abbasiyeen. A handful of dollars to about fifteen; ask new or old. That garage morning is on Damascus to Aleppo by bus. Royal Jordanian has sold Amman–Aleppo; if you land at ALP, cash taxi, agree before you sit. Inside the old city, walk. YallaGo once you have a Syrian number. Southbound, ask the hotel which bay runs to Homs and Damascus. The seven-day line on this site sleeps here two nights. Getting around Syria has the fares.
A day here
- 1Citadel in the morning if it is open — often closed Tuesday. Water, shoes for the ramps, cash pounds at the gate. Confirm hours there.
- 2Covered souq below the mound after the citadel. No ticket. Soap if you want it; first shops tourist. Not every vault is a shop; walk the ones that are.
- 3Great Mosque door: cover up, shoes off. Restoration still disagrees in 2026; if they wave you in, go. Friday is for prayer first.
- 4Late afternoon in Jdeideh after the mound: churches, courtyards, an evening table. Quieter quarter. Cash pounds; tea and juice.
- 5Do not add Idlib. Northwest of here is a different dress code.
