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The fall of Assad has reopened a coastline previously too dangerous to visit, though questions over security and social freedoms remain
Women are generally unveiled and alcohol is permitted. For many of the coast’s new beachgoers, such sights are completely new Syria’s coast had long been inaccessible for many years, as it was once considered the heartland of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
Wadi Qandil. He picks up a few loose pebbles and slips them into his pocket with a grin. They’re for his collection.in more than a decade.
“It was far too dangerous to come here before,” he says. “People could easily get disappeared at any of the checkpoints. ”They feared being stopped at a checkpoint and disappearing into the regime’s notorious network of secret prisons. Yet since the fall of Assad’s regime in 2024, the country’s beaches are open to all Syrians.
Natalie Harp: The ultra-devoted Trump aide who fascinates and frustrates other people around himPeople play music, smoke shisha and drink as the evening sets in at Wadi Qandil, Latakia. Photograph: Anagha Subhash Nair “Assad created a sectarian war,” says Suleiman’s son, Rawad*.
“He only recruited soldiers from one particular sect, and labelled Sunni Muslims from certain provinces as terrorists ... But we are all just Syrians. ” Previously, the presence of Sunnis coming to the coastal region was deemed suspicious.
“They could stop me on the road and ask: ‘Where are you from? Why are you coming here? What do you want to do? What’s your connection to this place?
’,” Rawad says.with their extended family. A grandson had returned from Austria, giving them an occasion to celebrate.
“Now we can come as often as we like,” Rawad says, laughing. “We have freedom. ” At a roadside stall selling Syrian flatbread, an old rusty van slows to a halt. The occupants - two women wearing skirts and low-cut tops - ask for directions.
“The beach is that way,” shouts the shop owner as the van races off, leaving a cloud of dust behind it. “We’re not used to those types here. This is something new for us. ” Among the Alawite community, women are generally unveiled and alcohol is permitted.
For many of the coast’s new beachgoers, such sights are completely novel. Tony*, the owner of a local beachfront resort, sits in his office, the wood panelling bleached by the sun. He sips a small cup of strong Turkish coffee as guests and employees alike come sporadically with requests and greetings.
“All these people are my friends,” he motions. “I want this place to be like their home. ”“Things are getting better,” he says.
“But we have had some problems. ” In November 2025 local police raided a number of hotels in the area – accusing them of being run by “regime remnants” for the purpose of prostitution. Tony’s hotel was among them.
“They came in and beat up the guests. Imagine,” he says.
“Daughters being hit in front of their mothers, accused of being ‘prostitutes’. ” Tony and his guests were detained at the local police office for three hours before they were released, and returned to find the premises ransacked.
“They stole everything, from the hotel, from my home, even from the guests; it was all gone. ” For locals, such violations raise grim memories. In March 2025, following an armed insurrection on the coast by groups linked to the former regime, forces associated with the new government rampaged through the region, committing a series of massacres, killing about 1,400 people, according to the UN.
After the raid Tony was eventually able to settle his case with the local authorities and reopen, but not all were so fortunate. Nearby, the shutters of “X Beach”, a well-known hotspot for beach parties, remain closed. A beach bar now shuttered on X beach, having been shut down by local authorities. Photograph: Anagha Subhash Nair He recognises that there are certain limits he has to respect.
“We only accept bookings from families. We don’t allow mixed groups or groups of guys. We don’t want any problems. ” On the beach outside, large groups of families crowd around tables laughing and eating barbecued food.
At some they dance to Lebanese pop music and pass around bottles of whiskey and Syrian arakArwa lies back on a sunlounger, while a group of children splash each other in the crystal-blue water nearby. The young woman has come for a weekend break with female friends, hoping to escape the dust and chaos of Damascus’s sweltering summer.
“I try to come every year. I’ve loved it here since I was little,” she says.
“These days you can see people from all over Syria, which is nice. ” People play music, smoke shisha and drink as the evening sets in at Wadi Qandil, Latakia. Photograph: Anagha Subhash Nair “One of the best things now is the tourist police,” she says.
“They’re really good at making sure we feel safe here. ” A new force of specially designated police has been introduced across Syria over the last six months in areas frequented by tourists. At Wadi Qandil they are having a significant impact.
“The co-ordination with the new tourist police is really good,” Tony says. “The head of the local section is a really good guy, very respectful with us. ” “They’re helping keep everything calm here currently. Wadi Qandil is my life.
We don’t want anything except that this place stays open to all. ”Iran and Oman discuss temporary Strait of Hormuz corridor as impasse with US drags onKillarney experiences ‘worst flooding in a lifetime’ as ‘significant’ water levels seen in CabraAndy Burnham in Belfast: Mixing up Donegal and Drogheda, but crystal clear on Border poll‘Nothing underhanded’ in department’s changes to data centre report, says BurkeElectric Picnic 2026: Share your stories
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