Hertzeliya

Herzliya (pronounced Hertselia) is named after the visionary of the Jewish state and founder of the World Zionist Federation - Theodore Herzl. Herzliya has three main features. Its beachfront is one of the most popular among both Israelis and foreign tourists, thanks to the many hotels, abundance of restaurants, beaches with swimming areas and organized marinas.

The city’s industrial zone has a concentration of high-tech companies that provide work for a large percentage of the city’s residents. The city also has many fine stores and restaurants and becomes a vibrant entertainment center at night. The attractive malls and shopping centers serve the local population as well as residents of surrounding urban and rural communities, making Herzliya a city alive with energy and excitement.

Herzliya was founded in 1924 as a moshava: semi-cooperative farming community with a mixed population of Israelis and new immigrants. After Israel’s establishment in 1948, the city grew as immigrants flooded the young country. In 1960 Herzliya was declared a city and had a population of 25,000, less than one third of its population today.

The museum of Herzliya’s history, in one of the city’s original houses on Ha-Nadiv Street, documents the city’s growth. Near this museum is Herzliya Museum of Art, housed in the Yad le-Banim military memorial building on Wolfson St.

West of the city is a Muslim holy site called Sidna Ali, which contains the tomb of Ali ibn Alil, a mosque and a number of buildings. To the northwest is the Tel Arsaf (Arsuf) archeological site, where the Apollonia National Park was established a few years ago. This site, which was inhabited from the Persian period (2500 years ago) until the Crusader period (1,000 years ago), has many impressive architectural remains of the Crusader town of Arsur, its fortress, surrounding wall and encompassing moat. 

The Carmel Mountain

Around the world and festivals in the spirit of the Crusaders including period costumes. Since the days of yore, Mount Carmel has been a symbol of beauty. It is a particularly suitable location for family hikes and recreation pastimes all year round.

Mount Carmel is not particularly high. Its peak only reaches 546 meters above sea level. Mount Carmel is sprawled between the Menashe Plateau in the south, the Haifa Bay in the north and the Jezreel Valley on the east. Its borders are very clear, and create an independent unit that reaches 32 square kilometers.

Its proximity to the sea gives the mountain large quantities of precipitation, which enable the growth of well developed Mediterranean groves. In spring, bloom is especially diverse and colorful: approximately 670 different species of plants grow on this mountain.

During the Carmel’s geological development, many types of rocks were formed. Most of them are marine sedimentary rocks, created as a result of the accumulation of remains of animals in the ancient sea. At that time, when the entire area was submerged in the sea, the Carmel region had several volcanic eruptions that brought Basalt rocks. Next to them, the Carmel also has rocks that were formed by skeletons of marine animals such as shellfish and corals.

The geological fractures that occurred in the area created steep escarpments, the most impressive of which is on the eastern part of the mountain, standing upright over the Jezreel Valley.

Safed beautiful place

A visit to the city of Safed (Tsfat) - with its magnificent mountaintop setting and fresh, clean mountain air, is a heavenly experience.  

The ancient Galilean city is the highest city in Israel, and commands a breathtaking view of the Galilee in the winter with its green mountains and the white snow-capped peak of Mount Hermon. 

Safed is a picturesque city of spiritual people and artists, wrapped in mysticism and mystery, and steeped in sacred atmosphere. Visitors to Safed sense the city’s warm embrace as they wander through its alleyways past charming stone houses with their artists’ studios and workshops. 

Safed is one of the four holy cities in Israel. It has been a spiritual center since the 1600s when it was the center of Kabbala (Jewish mysticism). The Kabbalist mystics lived, studied, taught, and wrote in the city and many of the graves are objects of veneration.  

The ancient picturesque alleyways of the Jewish quarter contain hidden niches and beautiful synagogues whose rich past emanates from the high ceilings, colorful decorations, and ancient Torah scrolls.  

The artists’ quarter is located in what was previously the Arab quarter of Safed.  Artists reside and work in their studios in the ancient and magnificent houses, and their paintings and artifacts fill the display windows and can be viewed while walking through the narrow alleyways. 

Safed also has exciting museums that relate the city’s history, luxurious hotels that preserve its antique character, and a huge Crusader fortress.  It also hosts numerous festivals that are rich in color and atmosphere.  

To visit Safed - with the grapevines growing up the arbors of its stone houses, the decorated iron gates, the beautiful panorama that is visible from the verandas, and the winding cobblestone alleyways, is like strolling through a painting.  It is a city for vacationers and tourists, a city of artists and rabbis, history and tradition.