It's summer time and we all know what that means... more face time with both the sun and water.
Luckily, areas in the Middle East are fortunate enough to have beautiful bodies of water. You should definitely take advantage and dip into one of these this summer:
The Red Sea is split into three sections: the Red Sea proper, the Gulf of Aqaba and the Gulf of Suez. The countries bordering the Red Sea include Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Egypt, Sudan, Djibouti, Eritrea, Jordan. In addition to the standard geographical definition of the sea, areas such as Somalia are sometimes also described as Red Sea territories.
2. Dead Sea, Jordan
Also called the Salt Sea, the famous salt lake bordered by Jordan to the east and Palestine to the West is a must visit. With a density of 1.24 kg/liter, swimming in this sea is similar to floating.
Its surface and shores are 429 meters (1,407 ft) below sea level, Earth's lowest elevation on land.
3. Nahr Ibrahim, Lebanon
Also known as Adonis River, this small river in Mount Lebanon emerges from a huge cavern nearly 1,500 meters above sea level. The river passes through the town of Nahr Ibrahim before emptying into the Mediterranean Sea.
4. Arabian Gulf, GCC
This body of water is a Mediterranean sea in Western Asia. The basin countries of this sea include GCC countries of the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar (on a peninsula off the Saudi coast), Bahrain (on an island) and Kuwait. Iraq and Iran are also bordered by the sea.
5. Mediterranean Sea, Lebanon
Stretching along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea, its length is almost three times its width. The sea also borders Syria but it's probably not the best time to visit those shores this summer.
6. Khawr al Adaid, Qatar
An inlet of the Persian Gulf, Khor al Adaid is Qatar's famous inland sea. The most common routes to the beach are via Mazrat Turaina and Mesaieed.
7. Black Sea, Turkey
The Black Sea is a body of water between Southeastern Europe and Western Asia, touching Bulgaria, Georgia, Romania, Russia, Turkey and Ukraine. In Turkey, you can dip your toes into the sea in Amasra, a small Black Sea port town in the Bartın Province.