The Beirut Campus
Getting there
The Beirut campus is in the Koraytem district, four blocks south of Hamra Street.
As of 8 a.m., traffic is usually heavy in the area. You could spend about 30 minutes within Koraytem or Hamra to reach the university or find a parking spot.
If you’re coming by taxi, most service taxi drivers know the university as either “LAU” or “BUC” (as the university was known until the 1990s).
Directions
If you’re walking down Hamra street in the direction of traffic, you can turn left one block after the Crowne Plaza Hotel; keep going straight (uphill) until you reach LAU’s lower gate.
Another way to reach LAU is via Koraytem’s main road. For example, if you’re coming by car from the coastal boulevard, you can turn inland at KFC, near the Pigeon Rock (Raouche). Drive uphill on that winding road, past the Safir Heliopolitan hotel and Future TV and you’ll reach the main Koraytem artery. Turn left and keep going until you reach an intersection. From there you can walk to the lower gate, about 50 meters against traffic direction. (The intersection is also reachable from Sadat street, which runs north-south starting on Bliss street, and cuts Hamra street at its end.)
The upper gate is on a narrow street that is easily accessible to pedestrians from Madame Curie Street. To get on Madame Curie Street, turn right on the main Koraytem road just before the Saudi embassy. Then turn left and follow the winding road that takes you around the School of Business and Library buildings; you can keep going to reach the lower gate.
Parking
You can park on the streets around the university in areas marked with parking meters, for a fee that ranges between 250 LBP for 15 minutes and 2,000 LBP for four hours. Excess time will be penalized by a fine of 10,000 LBP, issued by parking meter attendants. However, it’s usually difficult to find such space, and occasionally parking is forbidden in certain places for security reasons.
There are several privately operated parking lots in the area. They are generally open from 7 a.m. to 7 or 8 p.m. Some charge monthly fees as high as $80, others charge L.L. 5,000 per day.
The Beirut campus has an underground parking facility below the Business Building for faculty and staff. There is also an external parking lot facing College Protestant on the Upper Campus, mainly accommodating students and visitors, and two parking lots for LAU shuttles and authorized personnel facing the lower gate.
Office hours, holidays
Regular office hours are 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., with a lunch break from 12:30 to 1:00 p.m. The cashier at the Business Office opens to the public from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.
In summer (June-August), offices open on a shorter schedule: from 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. The cashier at the Business Office opens to the public from 9:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Labs and libraries operate on different schedules.
The university closes during the official holidays listed on the academic calendar. Additional closure days that may arise throughout the year are announced here as soon as they’re decided.
Finding offices and people on campus
Key offices, services and facilities are listed on this page.
You can also view the campus map to identify the place(s) you are visiting.
If you’d like to contact a staff or faculty member, you can find their phone extensions and email addresses in the directory.
Where to eat
The campus cafeteria offers a variety of fast food and daily meals, catering to students, faculty and staff whose lunch time is usually short. Catering services are provided by Sage and Savvy. An LAU-appointed nutritionist monitors cooking methods and ingredients.
The cafeteria is in Nicol Hall ground floor. It opens from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Numerous restaurants, cafés and snack bars are found within walking distance of LAU.
You can also grab a quick bite at the cyber-café adjacent to the cafeteria, operated by Barista, and offering light snacks, sandwiches and refreshments.
Payphones, cash machines, etc.
There are two payphones on campus—on the south entrance of Irwin Hall and on the sidewalk outside Malik’s Bookshop by the lower gate. These phones work with calling cards that can be purchased at several stores around campus.
The closests ATMs are: at Byblos Bank (about 20 meters from the lower gate) and at SGBL, Bank of Beirut and Fransabank on Sadat Street.
Hotels near campus
LAU has arrangements with a number of nearby hotels. For options, rates, and other information please contact the Hospitality Department at extensions 1414 and 1740, or by email: hospitality.department@lau.edu.lb.
About this campus
The Beirut campus is nestled amid a cluster of high-rises on a hillside, just steps away from the stimulating cultural, social, educational and recreational opportunities of Lebanon’s capital.
This is the university’s foundation site as a women’s college in the early 20th century. The first building on the site was Sage Hall, erected in 1933.
To support the needs of our expanding university, we supplement the capacity of our many historic and modern buildings on campus by acquiring and renting other premises nearby.
Plans for the coming decade include new campus buildings and significant improvements to circulation areas and infrastructure.