Dead Sea
The lowest place on earth, the Dead Sea (431m below sea level) brings together breathtaking natural beauty, compelling ancient history and modern mineral spas that soothe and pamper every fibre of your body. The jagged bluffs of the Judean Desert, cleft by dry canyons that turn into raging tan-coloured torrents after a cloudburst, rise from the cobalt blue waters of the Dead Sea, heavy with salt and oily with minerals.
In oases such as Ein Gedi, year-round springs nourish vegetation so lush it’s often been compared to the Garden of Eden. Atop the bluffs lies the arid moonscape of the Judean Desert; in the valley, human beings have been hard at work for millennia, building Masada and Qumran (where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found) in ancient times and, more recently creating kibbutzim (Jewish communal settlements often opened as guesthouses), luxury hotels, hiking trails and bike paths.
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Top attractions
These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Dead Sea.
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Masada National Park
The plateau atop Masada, which measures about 550m by 270m, is some 60m above sea level – that is, about 490m above the surface of the Dead Sea. The easiest way up is by cable car, though you can also hoof it – up the Roman siege ramp from the western side or up the Snake Path from the eastern side. On the ruins, black painted lines divide reconstructed parts (above) from the original remains (below).
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Ein Gedi Nature Reserve
This reserve consists of two roughly parallel canyons, Wadi David and Wadi Arugot, each of which has its own entrance complex and ticket office. It is also home to an ancient synagogue. When you buy your ticket, you receive a colour-coded map-brochure that has invaluable details on the area’s trails (indicated using the same colours as the trail markings), how long each route takes, and the times by which you need to begin each circuit to finish by closing time.
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Masada Museum
An outstanding and remarkably vivid introduction to Masada’s archaeology and history, this museum combines 500 evocative artefacts unearthed by archaeologists (one coin and four papyri are replicas). There are presentations on key Masada personalities – Herod the Great, who built a palace here in the 1st century BCE, turncoat historian Josephus Flavius and Jewish commander Eliezer ben Yair – to make the dramatic events of 73 CE seem close enough to touch. Visitors receive an audio headset, available in eight languages.
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Qumran National Park
World-famous for having hidden the Dead Sea Scrolls for almost 2000 years, Qumran was the site of a small Essene settlement around the time of Jesus – specifically, from the late 1st century BCE until 68 CE, when it was destroyed by the Romans. From an elevated wooden walkway, you can see the aqueduct, channels and cisterns that ensured the community’s water supply.
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Wadi Arugot
Generally less crowded but no less lovely than Wadi David, Wadi Arugot has a couple of streamside trails, rich in vegetation, that afford hikers an excellent introduction to the oasis' geography and ecosystems. Some routes are quite challenging, especially so in the midday heat. Most people linger in the small pools rather than push themselves to the top.
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Wadi David
Ein Gedi Nature Reserve’s most accessible – and popular – pools and waterfalls are situated along Lower Wadi David (Nahal David Tachton), ie the area downstream from David’s Waterfall (Mapal David; one hour return). The entrance pavilion has bathrooms where you can change into your bathing suit, free lockers (ask staff for a key) and free cooled drinking water.
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Ein Bokek Beach
Running the length of Ein Bokek's hotel zone, this broad, clean beach – refurbished as a free, fully public amenity – is gloriously sandy. Arguably, the best Dead Sea beach in Israel, it has an attractive promenade, lifeguards (7am to 6pm, to 4pm in winter), shade shelters, open-air showers, gym equipment, changing rooms, bathrooms and night-time lighting. Facilities such as beach chairs are reserved for hotel guests.
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Ein Feshkha
Fed by crystal-clear springs, this lush oasis stretches for 6.5km along the base of the escarpment that forms the western edge of the Dead Sea valley. Shaded paths take you to several slightly brackish wading pools (open Friday and Saturday late March to November, daily July and August), including the lovely Poplar Pool, surrounded by salt-resistant vegetation, including tamarisks.
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The Human Condition
Atop a bluff overlooking the Dead Sea Works stands this modern sculpture, a rusted-steel column with old steel railway ties striving to climb it like desperate worms.