With great research we present to you 14 of the oldest cities in the world that still exist. So, for your future vacation plans consider visiting some of the cities in the list but only after researching the prevailing conditions and permissions with your respective government and administration.
Some of the listed cities are very old and date back to thousands of years. Many cities were demolished during invasions and some are lost to nature’s anger. The old cities that still exist today are deemed as world’s heritage sites and are being continuously protected by UNESCO.
1) Jericho, Palestinian Territories
Image Credit: Dmitrij Rodionov
Jericho is deemed to be the oldest city of all existing cities in today’s world. The fact that it’s the oldest is agreed by many historians and the roots of the city are dated back to as old as 9000 BC. Jericho is a Palestinian city situated near the Jordan River in the West Bank.
The main attraction of the city is a stone tower which is deemed to be the oldest in the world. The city has seen all ages known to man starting from Stone Age to Bronze and Iron Age. Administrative control of the city was handed over to Palestine in 1994 by Israel. Before Israel, Jericho was under the control of Jordan.
The city has been destroyed and rebuilt multiple times in the past. The popular tourist attractions of Jericho include Shalom al Yisrael Synagogue; Mount of Temptation, Hisham’s palace and of course the stone tower.
2) Aleppo, Syria
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Aleppo is the largest Syrian city. Archaeologists and historians believe Aleppo has been inhabited since 6000 BC. Aleppo was known for its proficiency in its military tactics. Therefore, Aleppo survived from so many wars and attacks. Some of them were fought as recently as 2011.
The city survived the World War I and Syrian civil war in 2011. After the Syrian civil war, Aleppo quickly revived and is currently one of the fastest growing cities in the Middle East. The population of Aleppo is currently over 2 Million.
Historians observe the mixed architectural styles of the Aleppo and credit them to Ottomans, Romans and Byzantines control over the city in its history.
3) Varanasi, India
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Often referred to as Kashi or Kasi by Indians and Benares by the west, Varanasi is the most visited spiritual city in India. Varanasi is one of the oldest cities in India located on the banks of River Ganges. Varanasi is famous for the stone slabs all over the city with flight of steps leading to the banks of holy river Ganges, which are also referred to as Ghats.
Hindu mythology and spiritual gurus believe Varanasi was founded by The Lord Shiva. Varanasi is also famous for its harmonious religious blend with both the Hindu and Muslim communities living and working together. The Hindu festival of Holi is celebrated with much pomp and gaiety for which thousands of travelers flock to Varanasi from all over the world.
Varanasi is famous for its culture, sculptures, silk fabrics, ivory works and perfumes. The local cuisine of the city is definitely a treat for your taste buds. In the words of popular American author and humorist Mark Twain, “Benares is older than history, older than tradition, older even than legend, and looks twice as old as all of them put together”.
4) Jerusalem, Israel
Jerusalem is one of the most iconic cities in the world. Jerusalem is considered to be holy city to Christians, Muslims and Jews although majority of the population in the city follow Jewish faith. Jerusalem is capital to both Israel and Palestine. It is one of the major issues that rise in any Israeli- Palestinian conflict.
The history of Jerusalem is dated back to almost 4500 years. Popular sites to visit in Jerusalem includes Temple mount, the Western Wall, Al-Aqsa Mosque, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the Dome of the Rock and the Garden Tomb. Sadly for Jerusalem, the city was under attack many times and is also an endangered city as announced by UNESCO.
5) Byblos, Lebanon
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Byblos is a very old city in Lebanon. The first inhabitancy of Byblos is dated back to as old as 5000 BC. UNESCO considers Byblos a world Heritage site for its wide range of civilizations. The city was considered to be named by Greeks.
The Arabic name of Byblos is Jubayl. The city is pretty close to Beirut, which is the capital and another popular tourist city. Some of the iconic monuments have fallen during Alexander’s regime. Currently Byblos is rising as upscale vacation spot with its open air bars, popular outdoor cafes and its high-end restaurants.
The tourist attractions of Byblos include medieval city wall, Byblos castle, wax museum, mosque and St. John’s Baptist church. Visit Byblos for its vast history, Mediterranean views, picturesque mountains and modern living.
6) Athens, Greece
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Athens is the capital and the largest city of Greece. Athens is a perfect blend of ancient history and cosmopolitan culture. Known for its shipping, culture, arts, entertainment, tourism and education, Athens is deemed a global city. Athens is not only home to many famous philosophers, writers and artists but also birth place to democracy.
Athens has been a dream destination of travellers for its ancient history, wide culture, modern infrastructure and most importantly arts and music venues. Athens hosted Olympic Games in 2004. Acropolis in Athens is a very popular citadel which has lots of tourist destination known for their structure and history such as The Parthenon.
The city also has so many museums worth visiting which is exactly why Athens is rated as the third best tourist spot in Europe for 2015. Known for its arts and entertainment, Athens has some of the best universities for arts. The University of Athens is a first choice to many international students for studying arts and commerce.
7) Gaziantep, Turkey
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Gaziantep is one of the oldest cities of Turkey which is often referred to as Antep. The city was destroyed multiple times in many wars, popular being Arab-Byzantine war. Gaziantep is the economic capital for Turkey.
There are so many castles and fortresses that attract thousands of tourists every day. The locals of Gaziantep always welcome the tourists warmly making the city a very tourist friendly city.
Gaziantep is also famous for its pistachio cultivation, vineyards and carpets. The popular tourist attractions of this ancient city are Armenian Church, sirvani mosque, Gaziantep citadel, museum of Gaziantep among many others.
8) Beirut, Lebanon
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Beirut is the biggest city and capital city of Lebanon. The city is very old and has been inhabited from 5000 years. Beirut survived invasions of so many empires making the city very historic. After World War II France made Lebanon independent with Beirut as its capital.
The locals of Beirut are very social and friendly. They accompany tourist to show the places around which makes Beirut a very tourist friendly place. Today’s Beirut is very modern with the standards of metropolitan European cities.
The popular tourist places in Beirut are Jeita Grotto, Martyr’s statue, solidere clock tower, pigeon rocks along with so many museums. Beirut was majorly roughed up during the Lebanese civil war but was quickly reconstructed to its former glory after it.
9) Cholula, Mexico
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Cholula has been inhabited from at least 2nd century BC. Cholula is famous for its pyramid and is considered the biggest pyramid in both South and North Americas and is also the largest pyramid in the world by volume.
The pyramid is called The Great pyramid of Cholula, obviously. The city is one of the major tourist attractions for Mexico. Tourists visit the city for its active night life and lip smacking Mexican cuisine.
There is an annual pyramid festival celebrated on top of The Great pyramid of Cholula. The festival is attended by more than 350,000 tourists.
10) Plovdiv, Bulgaria
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With a population of around 350,000 people Plovdiv is the second largest city in Bulgaria. Plovdiv has been inhabited since 6th millennium BC. It is located in on the banks of the river Maritsa. The city is famous for international fair hosting. Plovdiv is also known as “The city of seven hills” as the city was once spread along seven hills.
The major tourist attractions of Plovdiv are an ancient theatre in Roman city, an ancient stadium, 200 plus archaeological sites, churches, museums and so many others which bring in so many tourists to the city. Like in most European cities Plovdiv is famous for its cultures and arts.
11) Luoyang, China
Luoyang is one of the oldest cities in Central China. It is located around two rivers, Luo River and Yellow River. With a current population of over six Million people, Luoyang is also referred to as Loyang.
The main attractions of this city are Longmen Grottoes, The Grand Canal, silk Roads, Yanshi Shang city site. With cultures ranging from Shang dynasty, Wei dynasty, Tang dynasty and Xia Dynasty, It is often said that no other city in China survived through such history of dynastic rule.
Luoyang has a mixed cultural blend. It is also famous for its Water Banquet cuisine, music and many cultural sites. Each cultural site has a historic story to tell and makes the visit to Luoyang very interesting.
12) Zurich, Switzerland
Zurich is the largest city of the most beautiful country Switzerland. The population of the city is about 400,000. Historians observed Zurich to be founded by Romans around 15 BC, and then they called it Turicam. Even though it has low population Zurich is among the world’s largest financial centres making it a truly global city.
Many leading banks have made Zurich their home. The city is famous for its museums and theatres; the popular ones being Swiss National Museum and the Kunsthaus. Zurich has an influence of the Romans although today it has become a very urban city.
Not just for its history, Zurich attracts the tourists for its cosmopolitan culture too. Zurich has so many museums and so many churches which were built hundreds of years ago.
13) Giza, Egypt
Located on the bank of River Nile, Giza is the third largest city in Egypt. Known for the Great pyramids of Giza and Great Sphinx, the city has a number of temples and other pyramids. The great pyramids and the Great Sphinx are the major attractions of the city and they attract tens of thousands of tourists every year.
The history of Giza dates back to as old as the year 2500 BC. The area in Giza served as capital to many Pharaohs who ruled over Ancient Egypt. While the culture of the city of Giza is something to learn about, Giza also has pretty old and impressive architectural monuments.
The Sphinx is just a great example for the astounding architectural values of Giza. Giza is truly a must visit.
14) Lisbon, Portugal
Lisbon is the largest city of Portugal and is also the capital. The population of Lisbon is over 550,000. It is the oldest city of Western Europe and considered one of the oldest cities of the world. Though Lisbon has so much history with inhabitancy dated back to before 1st Millennium BC, today it is deemed a global city.
Lisbon survived the Romans and the Muslim forces. Lisbon today is knows for finance, entertainment, arts, international trade tourism and education making it one of the most visited global cities.
The night life of Lisbon attracts young travellers while for the history lovers, it is a natural choice. Lisbon is definitely worth visiting city to experience age old history and new age lifestyle.
Time travel for now might just be a thing to be witnessed on the silver screen in sci-fi movies. But for those of you, who can’t wait to cop a feel of travelling in time, there is a workaround. Plan a trip to some of the oldest cities in the world which have managed to escape the wrath of time and you might witness some glimpses of the life in the time gone by.
These cities have so much to offer in terms of civilizations, architecture, cultures, religious beliefs and history. There are documented evidences which prove that there are so many differences from one civilization to another and from one culture to another. Knowing these cities and understanding the old cultures is always refreshing and learning the history makes us wonder what it would be like living in ancient times in these cities.
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