Mosul

No reviews yetCity Nineveh, Iraq

شارع علي ابن ابي طالب الموصل (26220), Mosul, Nineveh, Iraq

Mosul Wall Nineveh 02, Mosul, Nineveh, Iraq

Saint Elijah's Monastery 1, Mosul, Nineveh, Iraq

About Mosul

Mosul faces the ruins of ancient Nineveh across the Tigris, and the two together hold almost three thousand years of history. Nineveh was the capital of the Assyrian Empire under kings such as Sennacherib, while Mosul grew on the west bank into a great trading city of northern Mesopotamia, famous for its fine cotton cloth and for a skyline of minarets, domes and church towers.

The old city suffered terrible destruction during the occupation by Islamic State and the battle to retake it in 2017. Since then a long recovery has been under way. The Great Mosque of al-Nuri, with its leaning al-Hadba minaret, and the churches of al-Tahera and al-Saa'a have been rebuilt in a UNESCO-led project, and the Mosul Museum has been restored with international help.

Visitors today walk the restored lanes of the old city, cross the Old Bridge over the Tigris, explore the Assyrian gates and mounds of Nineveh and drive out to Mar Mattai Monastery on Mount Alfaf. Check current travel advice before planning a trip, and consider travelling with a local guide.

Best seasonMarch-April and October-November; summers are extremely hot

Ideal stay2 days with a local guide

ArrivingMost visitors come by road from Erbil; check current travel advisories first

Mosul Has So Much to Discover: 12 Highlights

Temples and Shrines 4

Great Mosque of al-Nuri

Founded in the twelfth century by the ruler Nur al-Din Zangi, the Great Mosque of al-Nuri was famous for al-Hadba, its leaning bri...

Al-Tahera Church Mosul

Al-Tahera, the Church of the Immaculate Conception, is a historic Syriac Catholic church in the old city, a short walk from the al...

Al-Saa'a Church

Al-Saa'a, Our Lady of the Hour, is a Dominican church in Mosul's old city whose clock tower gave it its name; the clock is traditi...

Mar Mattai Monastery

Mar Mattai Monastery clings to the slopes of Mount Alfaf north-east of Mosul and is one of the oldest Christian monasteries still...

History 4

Ancient Nineveh

On the east bank of the Tigris, grassy mounds and long lines of earthen wall mark ancient Nineveh, capital of the Assyrian Empire...

Nabi Yunus Mound

Nabi Yunus is one of the two main mounds of Nineveh, long crowned by a mosque honouring the prophet Jonah. The shrine was blown up...

Bash Tapia Castle

Bash Tapia is the ruin of Mosul's medieval citadel, perched above the west bank of the Tigris at the northern edge of the old city...

Qara Serai

Qara Serai, the Black Palace, is the remnant of a thirteenth-century palace associated with Badr al-Din Lu'lu', who ruled Mosul in...

Museums 1

Mosul Museum

The Mosul Museum is Iraq's second great archaeological museum after Baghdad, known for Assyrian and Hatra sculpture. Islamic State...

Landmarks 1

Old Bridge Mosul

The Old Bridge is the oldest of Mosul's crossings over the Tigris and links the historic west bank with the eastern side of the ci...

Viewpoints 1

Mosul Corniche

The Corniche is Mosul's riverside promenade along the Tigris, where families stroll, sit at cafes and picnic on the banks once the...

Shopping 1

Bab al-Saray Souq

Bab al-Saray is the historic market quarter of Mosul's old city, a warren of lanes where traders sell spices, dried fruit, fabrics...

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Photo credits

Photo: الدبوني, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Abdulsalam Al Dabbagh, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Doug, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Abdulsalam Al Dabbagh, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Duha masood, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Faisal Jeber (FJ), Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Younis ziyad, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Haubi|Gerhard Haubold, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: الدبوني, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Levi Clancy, Wikimedia Commons, CC0

Photo: JoAnn S. Makinano, U.S. Air Force, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain

Photo: Omar Siddeeq Yousif, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Roland Unger, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0

Photo: Eng Omer Akram, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Levi Clancy, Wikimedia Commons, CC0

Photo: maybe Mohammed Makiya, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain

Photo: الدبوني, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Abdulsalam Al Dabbagh, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: الدبوني, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0