South Lebanon Coast

South Coast Lebanon runs from Beirut's southern suburbs to the Israeli border at Rosh HaNikra, encompassing Sidon, Tyre, and the fishing villages that have worked these waters since Phoenician times. Tyre, now a UNESCO World Heritage city, was once the greatest trading port in the Mediterranean world, and its fishermen still launch from a harbour adjacent to ancient Roman ruins. Sidon's sea castle, a Crusader fortress built on an offshore islet, remains a landmark for every boat navigating this coast. The Mediterranean tidal regime is micro-tidal — ranges of 0.1 to 0.4 metres — but seasonal and meteorological sea level variations can reach 0.5 metres in exceptional conditions. The coast faces south-west, catching winter swells from the west that push into the shallow bays with moderate energy. Fishing is by longline, net, and trap from small diesel-powered wooden boats, with catches of sea bream, grouper, mullet, and octopus sustaining coastal communities despite decades of political instability.