Intercontinental Kfardebian

Skiing in Lebanon ?

Yes it is possible and the Mzaar Intercontinental spa and resort is the absolute best place to stay. In this 5 star hotel, the staff are friendly, service oriented and do there utmost best to assure that your stay is pleasurable. No I do not work for Intercontinental but these guys were fantastic !! One arrives a stranger and leaves having made friends. The Intercontinental restaurants are excellent and I highly recommend the dinner buffets. The skiing was fantastic but best to go in Jan or Feb, while the snow is its freshest.

while one must not forget Lebanon is is not quite Switzerland it is an extremely service oriented country with very kind and friendly people. The Mzaar hotel has a wonderful pool, game rooms, sauna and spa with many added extra pampering services available. It is highly recommended for a ski holiday in Lebanon combined with a visit to the fascinating and stylish Paris of the middle east : Beirut.

Must I add that while Lebanon does have some political instability at the moment, one could still die easier in a traffic accident or be flattened by a bus ! It remains important that foreigners show their solidarity and support to the Lebanese . Lebanon is one of the only true democracies in the middle east !

Getting there - It is Best to fly into Beirut and arrange taxi services before arriving via the Mzaar hotel or your hotel in Beirut ( always make taxi deals before entering a taxi or via hotels ) . Further it is advisable not to attempt to drive in Beirut or anywhere in Lebanon ! Suggested arrangement services are via www.SKILEB.com for an entire ski package to Mzaar combined with a stay in Beirut.

Lebanon is a dollar economy so it is very affordable has a wonderful cuisine, excellent shopping and a great night life ( in Beirut ) . Lastly, always read the latest news before travel to Lebanon due to political changes. For instance, at the moment ( march 2008 ) travel to South Lebanon is not advisable.

My Wife and I live in the USA and went to visit our family in Lebanon in August/September. We took a short vacation within a vacation and spent 2 nights in Intercontinental Mzaar, while leaving our kids with our family. The weekend was great for us. Here is my candid review.

We stayed on the 3rd floor. The view was of the mountain. The view was Ok, but not amazing in the summer. In the Winter I am sure it will be an amazing view. In the summer, since there is no snow, you are looking at a barren mountain and the Ski slope equipment.

When you arrive to your room, a fantastic fruit basket welcomes you. The rooms are rather small, but nice. The balconies are shared with the room next door. There should be clear separation in my opinion, to give more privacy.

Food: EXCELLENT! Top Notch.

The Breakfast Buffet is AMAZING. Best in class! All the foods immaginable are served. WOW!!!! Actually the lunch buffet is also amazing. Best in Class as well.

The Sauna and Turkish bath rooms were very good as well.

The Health Spa is very good, with massages and facials. it is also quite reasonable in price as compared to the US.

The Covered Pool is fantastic, and very very clean.

Beware:

-The drinks in the bar were very expensive, and very small quatities of alcohol!

-Most of the staff is very good and professional, and some of it is not so. However, all are very friendly, and extremely helpfull.

There are a variety of restaurants in the immediate area to try for Dinner mostly. Almost all are Lebanese Style restaurants with excellent food. We tried the Jalsat Al Arzal in Faraya. The Igloo night club is next door, but was closed when we were there.

Overall our experience was excellent. I give the Mzar a 5 star rating because of the overall experience.

I bought my parents a 2 day package to spend a weekend at the resort. They also loved it. If you want a relaxing first class vacation, this Hotel is it!

I've stayed at this hotel a number of times over the last three years. The hotel is beautiful on first impression. The lobby is outfitted in a log cabin style, with big sofas, fireplaces and bookshelves.

But basically the hotel goes downhill from there. Although the staff is generally nice, the service is terrible. Some have the attitude that theirs is the only Intercontinental in the world, and YOU are privileged to be staying there. The ten dollar valet parking charge, or 15 dollars if you're staying there, is just an insult.

The internet rarely works. When it does, it's slow. The staff will still sell you the internet cards for 10 dollars, although they know the internet is not working.

As for the rooms, they need to be re-done -- they do feel a bit like an aged Holiday Inn.

The pool is nice, as is kid-based play stuff: arcade, game room, movie theater, etc. The sauna and gym are not quite up to five star standards.

The food at La Fondue and Italian place are ok. Besides that, La Refuge, bar and room service food are all mediocre, and overpriced. Did I mention the bad service?

I recommend the Intercontinental if you have money to spend, can put up with bad service, mediocre rooms and want to be able to walk out of the hotel and to the slopes. The bottom of the "Refuge" lift is at the hotel's base. But it costs an extra 15 to 30 dollars more than the rest of the mountain to be able to ski in and ski out of the Intercontinental.

There are plenty of hotels in Faraya. Unfortunately SKILEB.COM has a monopoly on most of the web-based access to the hotels. Try the below contacts and websites if you want to try something other than the Intercontinental, and don't want to have to pay the "insurance" and service charge that SKILEB charges:

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We were expecting a 5-star hotel, and I would struggle to give this hotel more than 3 stars. The rooms were reminiscent of an aged Holiday Inn. Small bathrooms. No-name toiletries. King-size bed was two twins pushed together. The staff spoke limited English. The fridge in our room fell over when we opened the door. If you were only there for the skiing, you might be happy enough, but I think the hotel itself is truly lacking. The Italian restaurant was good (great pizza!), and there was plenty to keep children busy (arcade, a cinema open on weekends, indoor pool, playroom). But I think I was most surprised that this is part of the Intercontinental group. There is no comparison between this hotel and the Intercon Beirut Phoenicia.

We traveled from abroad to go to this hotel, but I've heard that it is the best the area has to offer, so I don't think there are many other options.

This is maybe the 10th time i go to this hotel & each time & service & rooms gets worse... this place needs renovation!!!!!!!!!!!! it's a shame they're keeping it this way.... only good service is at the reception.... now the thing that it making me go there over & over again is its quiet location in the mountains & the beautiful gardens they have.... but this is defenitely not a 5***** or an Intercontinental Hotel