Beirut's hangover from the civil war has long subsided, and the place dubbed the Paris of the Levant has picked up the pieces to become one of the best party destinations in the Middle East, with serious cuisine, clubs and even ski resorts. It seems nothing can stop the Lebanese zest for life or their sense of hospitality. Yet only now, 14 years after the end of a brutal civil war, is the country starting to recreate its legendary holiday-destination style. The heart of Beirut's reconstruction is Centre Ville, the old downtown which was virtually flattened during the 15 years of fighting. Despite Beirut's fascinating history and obvious charms, few British visitors venture here, unless they have a connection with the place. But they are missing out; Beirut is a city rich in heritage, architecture and intellect. Go before it becomes too popular again.

Always consult the Foreign Office before travelling.

HOTEL ALBERGO
137 Abdel Wahab El Inglizi Street, Ashrafieh (00 961 1 339 7 97; www.albergobeirut.com). Boutique hotels are still a novelty here; the Albergo is the only one of its kind and the Lebanese love it. Tucked away in a dusty side street of the old quarter (just above the newly built centre ville) and surrounded by the fashionable party streets of Monot and Gemayzeh. It is an old mini-mansion done up in both chic Ottoman and 18thcentury French styles. No two rooms are the same here, you could be in the Kasbah on one floor or in a toile de Jouy, Marie Antoinette bed chamber on the next. The communal areas are a bit like the Hotel Costes in Paris but the top-floor bar, which is popular with Lebanese society for pre-dinner cocktails, is pure Middle Eastern drama with its mother-ofpearl inlay furniture and oversized antique coffee pots. The rug-covered and jasmine-scented roof terrace has 360 views over the city. The breakfasts consist of thyme croissants, local cheeses and thick, granular Arabic coffee. £££

HOTEL ALEXANDRE
Adib Ishak Street (00 961 1 325 736; www.hotelalexandre.com). Decent mid-price hotel close to the National Museum. £

HOTEL MONROE
Kennedy Street, Ain El-Mreisseh (00 961 1 371 122; www.monroebeirut.com). A new retro boutique hotel near the Corniche, with a trendy bar and a decent Lebanese restaurant. £

INTERCONTINENTAL PHOENICIA BEIRUT
Minet El-Hosn Street (00 961 1 36 91 00; www.intercontinental.com). This pre-war legend has been resurrected but without the old romance. Now it's in-your-face, five-star glamour. Clientele include Gulf Arabs spending their petrodollars. ££

LE VENDOME INTERCONTINENTAL
PO box 13, Ain Mreysseh (00 9611 369 280; www.intercontinental.com). One of the best hotels in the city, the InterContinental Le Vendome is a chic boutique hotel with 73 luxurious rooms and suites. Set on the famous Beirut corniche, overlooking the Mediterranean Sea, the hotel is well located near downtown, and a few minutes from the airport. The popular rooftop Sydney's Club Bar and Restaurant offers breakfast, lunch and dinner, afternoon tea and late night snacks. ££££

MOVENPICK HOTEL & RESORT
General de Gaulle Avenue, Raouche (00 961 1 869 666). Superbly located hotel with its own marina. £

SHERATON CORAL BEACH
Jnah Avenue (00 961 1 859 000). A seafront five-star hotel. £

ABDEL WAHAB
51 Abdel Wahab El Inglizi Street (00 961 1 200 552). Classic Lebanese fare at reasonable prices.

CAFE D'ORIENT
Corniche, Ain El-Mreisseh (00 961 1 366 222). Chic fish restaurant by the sea.

COCTEAU
Sodeco (00 961 1 616 617). The chic Lebanese head for dinner at Cocteau, the prettiest restaurant in Beirut, where the walls are covered with the French artist's doodles and there's a waiter per person.

ELEMENT
Damascus Road (00 961 3 080099). The current hotspot is this restaurant, which serves French-Lebanese fusion.

GEORGES
The ladies who lunch brigade come to this typical French brasserie in fashionable Gemayzeh, for its plentiful showing-off opportunities.

KARAM
Souk Bazerkane Street, Atrium Building, Downtown (00 961 1 991 222). Smart new joint offering mezze and grills.

SULTAN IBRAHIM
Minet el hosn-Starco (00 961 4 989 989). Lots of politicians come here for robust Lebanese food, animated chat and puffs on apple-scented hookahs. It's the best fish restaurant in town and a Beirut landmark.

BO18
Charles Helou Street, Karantina (00 961 380 0018). This spooky underground bunker with gothic decor isn't somewhere for the claustrophobic. The roof opens up at night like an aircraft carrier's deck. The crowd is young, the dress code decadent. Hardened clubbers stick it out until the early hours and beyond.

CRYSTAL
243 Monot Street (00 961 332 523). At midnight, everyone starts dancing on tables, this place couldn't be more Nikki Beach if it tried.

ELEMENT
This corrugated iron bunker is the in-spot of the moment. Queues of beautiful people plead with the clipboard girls to let them in. Inside its one long, black, sexy, wooden warehouse. As you enter, everyone stops to stare, clocking every last designer detail (the ultimate form of flattery in Beirut). The DJs are flown in from Paris, Ibiza and London and 80s hits are projected on a huge screen.

GEMAYZE STREET
For after-dinner drinks, the glamorous crowd aims for Gemayzeh, a long, thin street of at least 30 tiny, smoky bars, each seats no more than 20 people. This is the boho quarter, the Lebanese Rive Gauche.

METIS
(Tel: 00 961 333 880). Situated in the fashionable area of Monot, the chicest Beirutis start their nights here, and the club is always full. Try the blossom martinis, they are the best in town.

MUSIC HALL
Starco Building, Central District (00 961 380 7555). This is the best new music venue, 'Beirut's live music stage', in the Starco building near the central district. Local promoters have converted an old cinema into a cabaret theatre with a mix of local ad foreign acts singing in Arabic, French and English.

SKY BAR
Palm Beach Hotel, Ain El Mreiseh (00 961 393 9191). Trendy and very popular with a young crowd, Skybar has magnificent views across the Mediterranean. Go for a drink after work and see the sunset over the sea.

ZINC
37 Seifeddine el-Khatib Street, Sodeco, Beirut (00 961 161 2612). This terraced villa displays work by local artists. Plays acid jazz, blues, hip-hop.

BAALBECK
For those who are interested in history, an excursion to Baalbeck is essential. The ruins there are spectacular and virtually devoid of tourists. It is 70 miles from Beirut: you can book an organised tour or simply negotiate a deal with a taxi for the round-trip. To get there, you have to cross the lush Bekaa valley (home to the wineries Château Ksara and Château Kefraya) and negotiate Syrian troop roadblocks but the journey is worth it. The complex of Roman temples is one of the most important ancient sites in the Middle East. The presence of Hezbollah posters in the local town adds flavour to the experience.

BEACHES AND BEACH CLUBS

The Mediterranean in Lebanon is warm enough for swimming from May to early November. There are no decent beaches in central Beirut, although smart hotels such as the Movenpick and Sheraton Coral Beach have their own oceanside swimming pools and terraces. Otherwise you should head north or south of the city for about 20 minutes to one of the beach clubs. For a fee of around US$9 you get access to changing rooms, lavatories, showers, restaurants and bars as well as the clean seas and sandy beaches. Try the following:

LA VOILE BLEUE
Byblos (00 961 979 6717). All the beautiful people from Beirut gather here at weekends to sunbathe by the Mediterranean before heading back to the city at night to continue the party.

OCEANA
Rmeileh (00 961 133 0933).

MUSEUMS

AMERICAN UNIVERSITY OF BEIRUT (AUB)
Bliss Street (00 961 135 0000). This university is west of the city, and its campus is of great importance to the Lebanese, who value education highly. It bears a striking resemblance to universities in the American Midwest, which is not surprising as it was founded, and is still partly funded, by US philanthropists. Indeed, despite its political turmoil and lack of natural resources, Lebanon still boasts one of the highest literacy rates in the Middle East. Open Mon to Thurs; 10am to 4pm. Entry free.

BEIRUT NATIONAL MUSEUM
Museum Square, Avenue Abdallah Yafi (00 961 142 6703). Slightly less energetic is a tour around Beirut's National Museum, at the junction of Damascus Road with Fouad I, in the Hotel Dieu district, next to the world's best collections of Phoenician art and archaeological artefacts from other periods such as the Byzantine Empire. Open daily 9am to 5pm.

MUSEE SURSOCK
Sursock Street, Ashrafieh (00 961 120 1892). Another worthwhile trip is to Sursock Street, in Ashrafieh. There you will find a wonderful gallery called Musée Sursock and opposite a wonderful 19th-century private house and gardens called Sursock Palace. This is still owned by Lady Cochrane, a remarkable grande dame who campaigns to preserve older Lebanese buildings. Open only during exhibitions. Entry is free.

WINERIES

CHATEAU KEFRAYA
Zahlé (00 961 864 5333). Tastings available if booked in advance. Open daily from 10am to 3pm.

CHATEAU KSARA
Zahlé (00 961 880 1662; www.ksara.com.lb). The oldest winery in the Middle East. Tastings and tours by arrangement. Open daily from 10am to 2pm.

FARAYA SKI RESORT
(00 961 377 1211; www.skileb.com). Lebanon's ski resorts are an hour or two from the capital in the mountains to the east, are evocative of the Alps. Faraya is a 50-minute drive from Beirut and has good snow until May.

AISHTI
(ww.aishti.com). This multi-floored department store is a Harvey Nichols lookalike. Owners Tony and Ilham Salame will tell you that the waiting lists for the latest It bags by Jimmy Choo, Chloé and Balenciaga are so long that they can barely keep up.

ARTISANS DU LIBAN ET D'ORIENT
(www.artisansduliban.com). Kaftans in Beirut are surprisingly hard to find. For authentic, artisanal clothes, jewellery (beaten silver and gold cuffs) and artefacts, visit this whitewashed warren of rooms tucked away behind an unmarked passage on the seafront opposite the Hotel Vendôme. In the bay-leaf-strewn rooms, you will find beautiful and original kaftans. Mostly made of silk and cotton, they are jewel-coloured and hand-embroidered with shells or threaded with gold. Don't haggle here as you would elsewhere: just ask politely for 'your best possible price' and they'll usually knock off at least 10 per cent.

PLUM
At the Matches of Beirut, it's all about smaller, edgier labels and its own eponymous Marni-like collection (mentioned by French Vogue as a label to watch and which for the moment you can't buy anywhere else but here).

AIRPORT
The newly refurbished Beirut International Airport, 5km from the city centre, is Lebanon's only airport.

AIRLINES
Middle East Airlines (020 7467 8000; www.mea.com.lb) flies daily, except Fridays and Mondays (October to May). British Airways operated by British Mediterranean Airways (0870 850 9850; www.ba.com) flies daily from Heathrow to Beirut.

CAR HIRE

AVIS
(08700 100287; www.avis.co.uk); Hertz (08708 448844; www.hertz.co.uk).VISAS

Visas are necessary and can either be bought in advance from the Lebanese Embassy (15 Palace Garden Mews, London W8 (020 7229 7265; www.lebanon.embassyhomepage.com) or purchased upon arrival in Lebanon.

www.downtownbeirut.com/Tourists.html; destinationlebanon.com; whatsuplebanon.com

Beirut rarely gets cold, but it can be rainy in winter. Visit in April, when the weather is dry and you can ski at Faraya and sunbathe on the coast on the same day.