Krak des Chevaliers (“Castle of the Knights”) is a fortress built by European crusaders in Syria. It is one of the most important preserved medieval castles in the world, and one of the best examples of medieval military architecture. Krak was built by the Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, who held it from 1142 until 1271, when it was captured by the Mamluks who added further construction. UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Bosra is a major archaeological site in Syria, with ruins from Roman, Byzantine, and Muslim times. The most impressive of all is the magnificent perfectly preserved Roman amphitheater, built in the second century.

Palmyra is an ancient city in present day Syria. The city is mentioned in texts dating as early as the 19th century BCE, as a caravan oasis, but it reached its heights during Roman times, when it was an important link on the trade routes between the Roman Empire and Persia, India and China.

Palmyra is on the UNESCO World Heritage List: "An oasis in the Syrian desert, north-east of Damascus, Palmyra contains the monumental ruins of a great city that was one of the most important cultural centres of the ancient world. From the 1st to the 2nd century, the art and architecture of Palmyra, standing at the crossroads of several civilizations, married Graeco-Roman techniques with local traditions and Persian influences."(quote from whc.unesco.org/en/list/23/)

Parts of Palmyra have been destroyed by ISIS during the Syrian civil war.

The Ancient City of Damascus in Syria is the oldest inhabited capital in the world. The Ancient City of Damascus is on the UNESCO World Heritage List: "Founded in the 3rd millennium B.C., Damascus is one of the oldest cities in the Middle East. In the Middle Ages, it was the center of a flourishing craft industry, specializing in swords and lace. The city has some 125 monuments from different periods of its history – one of the most spectacular is the 8th-century Great Mosque of the Umayyads, built on the site of an Assyrian sanctuary." (quote from whc.unesco.org/en/list/20/)