We asked four tour guides for their recommendations
“It’s a jungle out there — and it’s full of history and beauty”
Moshe Meyers is owner of IsraelExtreme, a company that runs trips for travelers with a sense of adventure.
His website is www.israel-extreme.com
One of our favorite sites is the Black Canyon (Nakik Hashachor). We take the traveler on a full day adventure in a deep canyon of volcanic stone. This unmarked hike in a closed national park is reserved for licensed tour guides only.
This is in an area with a lot of history and natural beauty. This exhilarating and captivating tour through the wild
jungle of the Golan Heights includes beautiful birds, small animals and lots of water — from ankle knee deep
to swimming level — including rappels through three waterfalls. Hikers need to be in good shape, but don’t need
to be athletic as it’s mostly downhill. We take families with children as young as five. This tour is possible between May and October.
When it comes to natural wonders I could list dozens of places, but one of our very favorites is hiking, rappelling
and spelunking in Fox’s Chimney salt cavern. We start with a hike climbing in a unique part of the desert —
one of the only places in the world with no vegetation due to the fact that the mountains are made of salt. We see breathtaking views of the Dead Sea and the mountains of Moab and Edom in Jordan. Some parts of the hike feel like walking on the moon.
The ground is a layer of dust and sand carried by the wind and weather over time, mixed with quartz that sparkles like shattered crystals. This adventurous hike ends with a steep downhill trail into a narrow canyon that ends at a gigantic mysterious hole in the ground. We rappel down into the hole over 250 feet through a beautiful chimney of salt using headlamps to explore the caverns.
We crawl through tight spots, climb into huge chambers, and see rare sights that very few humans have seen.
Though many countries have salt mines, natural salt caverns exist in only two countries in the world, Israel
and Iran. We will see snow-white stalactites and unique stalagmites and other fabulous salt formations. At the
end we exit at the beach of the Dead Sea. This unique tour can be done year round, day or night. This tour by
the light of the full moon is fabulous. It is appropriate foranyone who is reasonably fit.
My favorite culinary treat to share is the Exotic Moroccan Culinary Experience at Moshav Dalton. Indulge in a taste
of heaven with a meal you will never forget. Enjoy the hospitality of an authentic Moroccan chef with golden
hands. She will invite you to her home for a kosher meal made from the freshest, most delicious vegetables
in season, and the finest free-range meats available, as her husband is the local butcher. She will prepare her
home-baked breads, a number of courses, side dishes and desserts especially for you.
“Visit a powerhouse of organic agriculture”
Judith Isaacson runs Custom Israel Tours, which specializes in arranging self-drive and escorted tours in Israel.
Her website is www.customisraeltours.com
The popularity of organic agriculture in Israel is growing, but I didn’t realize until recently that some 40 years ago
Agriculture and dairy run according to the Torah, ecology, kosher communal dining, organic crops, donkeys, friendly bees, bird watching and real live kibbutzniks. Welcome to Kibbutz Sde Eliayhu in the Jordan River Valley.
This old-time kibbutz was established in 1938 as one of the original “tower and stockade” settlements. A member
of the Religious Kibbutz Movement, Sde Eliyahu is a thriving community settlement on the Israel-Jordan border in the Beit She’an Valley. Situated on a migratory bird route, the kibbutz is a bird watcher’s dream in autumn and spring. Birds are also attracted to the fishponds, one of the main industries of Sde Eliayhu, and a walk among
the ponds is fascinating.
The popularity of organic agriculture in Israel is growing, but I didn’t realize until recently that some 40 years ago
Sde Eliyahu was pioneering organics. When I visited we picked organic vegetables and later, feasted on them. We learned about the owls that keep the fields rodent-free, and spotted the owl houses. We learned how the fields are kept bug-free without pesticides and why this is a good for all of us.
The climate of the Jordan River Valley is excellent for growing dates, and Sde Eliyahu has a sizeable palm
orchard. Row upon row of tall, majestic trees can be seen from a distance as we approached. Upon arrival, we were greeted by dozens of friendly donkeys — the natural weeders of the date tree orchard. Instead of machinery or human labor to keep the grounds immaculate, the donkeys are given free reign of the grounds, as they weed and feed in one motion.
BioBee is a registered trademark of Sde Eliyahu. It is an invention that promotes natural plant pollination in fields
and greenhouses via bumblebees. We were not allowed into the work area, but we got to see the bees and learned about the queen and her slaves. The kids were enthralled.
During our visit we headed to the communal dining room to eat with kibbutz members. At the self-service cafeteriastyle hall there were choices for dieters, vegetarians, and fish eaters; there were salad bars and choices of soups. Then came exquisite chocolate chip cookies. It was averitable feast of fresh kosher organic foods — the perfect way to end an educational and fun visit.
“Sample Jewish-Iraqi delicacies”
Yaron Burgin is coowner of Abraham Tours, which offers excursions in Israel, and Abraham Hostels, which runs the Abraham Hostel Jerusalem.
His websites are www.abrahamhostels.com and www.abrahamtours.com
His websites are www.abrahamhostels.com and www.abrahamtours.com
Masada is a spectacular site with an amazing view of the Dead Sea, important because of its story of heroism
during the Jewish rebellion against the Romans.
I consider it a must-see site for visitors to Israel, Jewish and non-Jewish.
The Ramon Crater is a unique formation the likes of which cannot be found elsewhere in the world. There are
wonderful hikes, biking tours and motorized tours. From remains of volcanic activity to colorful sand stone, anyone
who goes in to the crater will be amazed by the beauty and power of the Negev desert. (The Ramon Crater is
featured in Paul Harris’ article)
My culinary pick is the Ima Kube Bar in Jerusalem’s Mahaneh Yehuda market. Kube is a traditional Jewish- Iraqi dish and there are many ways to cook it. The kube is a kind of dumpling with meat or vegetables in the middle,
which is often served with vegetables in a soup. Ima Kube serves fantastic kube, with quick service and good prices.
“Military history and Magic Burgers”
Yaniv Madar, one of the publishers of Jewish.Travel, has worked in the Jewish and kosher travel business
for 13 years.
Living in Israel for almost 37 years I have visited numerous sites. Some are breathtaking, like Masada at sunrise
and the landscapes of the Golan Heights; some are sacred like the Western Wall tunnels and the Cave of the Patriarchs; and others, like Yad Vashem, are distressing. But the two places that deeply engraved their impression on me were the Etzel Museum and the Palmach Museum, both located in Tel Aviv and dedicated to the fighters who guaranteed the birth of the State of Israel.
They attest to the survival of the Jewish People, to its reinvigoration post-Holocaust, and to its flourishing in its
independent state. They deliver their messages in a professional, inspiring and touching way.
For a bite to eat, I like to take visitors to Magic Burger on Tel Aviv’s Ibn Gvirol Street. I find it unique because, aside from the delicious burgers and greasy fries, this place resembles something of the Israeli spirit and stubbornness. Magic Burger opened its doors about eight years ago in a very unusual location, across Rabin’s square, literally next door to MacDonald’s.
It took a lot of courage and hutzpa from the owner, Chaim Mizrahi, but after two years of my favorite fast food joint working its magic next door, the MacDonald’s branch closed down. And yes, Magic Burger is kosher.