Get FREE email communications from Fodor's Travel, covering must-see travel destinations, expert trip planning advice, and travel inspiration to fuel your passion.
Immerse yourself in Jerusalem. Of course, you can see the primary sights in a couple of days—some visitors claim to have done it in less—but don't short-change yourself if you can help it. Take time to wander where the spirit takes you, to linger longer over a snack and people-watch, to follow the late Hebrew poet, Yehuda Amicha
Immerse yourself in Jerusalem. Of course, you can see the primary sights in a couple of days—some visitors claim to have done it in less—but don't short-change yourself if you can help it. Take time to wander where the spirit takes you, to linger longer over a snack and
Immerse yourself in Jerusalem. Of course, you can see the primary sights in a couple of days—some visitors claim to have
Immerse yourself in Jerusalem. Of course, you can see the primary sights in a couple of days—some visitors claim to have done it in less—but don't short-change yourself if you can help it. Take time to wander where the spirit takes you, to linger longer over a snack and people-watch, to follow the late Hebrew poet, Yehuda Amichai, "in the evening into the Old City / and . . . emerge from it pockets stuffed with images / and metaphors and well-constructed parables. . . ." The poet struggled for breath in an atmosphere "saturated with prayers and dreams"; but the city's baggage of history and religion doesn't have to weigh you down. Decompress in the markets and eateries of the Old City, and the jewelry and art stores, coffee shops, and pubs of the New.
The city is built on a series of hills, part of the country's north–south watershed. To the east, the Judean Desert tumbles down to the Dead Sea, the lowest point on Earth, less than an hour's drive away. The main highway to the west winds down through the pine-covered Judean Hills toward the international airport and Tel Aviv. North and south of the city—Samaria and Judea, respectively—is what is known today as the West Bank. Since 1967, this contested area has been administered largely by Israel, though the major concentrations of Arab population are currently under autonomous Palestinian control.
This deep valley separates the Old City and the City of David from the high ridge of the Mount of Olives and the Arab neighborhood of Silwan. In the cliff face below the neighborhood are the symmetrical openings of tombs from both the First Temple (Old Testament) and Second Temple (Hellenistic-Roman) periods. You can view the impressive group of 2,200-year-old funerary monuments from the lookout terrace at the southeast corner of the Old City wall, or wander down into the valley itself and see them close up. The huge, square, stone structure with the conical roof is known as Absalom's Pillar. The one crowned by a pyramidal roof, a solid block of stone cut out of the mountain, is called Zachariah's Tomb. The association with those Old Testament personalities was a medieval mistake, and the structures more probably mark the tombs of wealthy Jerusalemites of the Second Temple period who wished to await the coming of the Messiah and the resurrection to follow in the style to which they were accustomed.
Cedars of Lebanon and native pine and cypress trees surround the entrance to Mount Herzl National Memorial Park, the last resting place of Zionist visionary Theodor Herzl and many Israeli leaders.
In 1894, the Budapest-born Herzl was the Paris correspondent for a Vienna newspaper, covering the controversial treason trial of Alfred Dreyfus, a Jewish officer in the French army. Dreyfus was later exonerated, but Herzl was shocked by the anti-Semitic outbursts that accompanied the trial. He devoted himself to the need for a Jewish state, convening the first World Zionist Congress, in Basel, Switzerland, in 1897. Herzl wrote in his diary that year: "If not in five years, then in 50 [a Jewish state] will become reality." True to his prediction, the United Nations approved the idea exactly 50 years later, in November 1947. Herzl died in 1904, and his remains were brought to Israel in 1949. His simple tombstone, inscribed in Hebrew with just his last name, caps the hill.
To the left (west) of his tomb, a gravel path leads down to a section containing the graves of Israeli national leaders—among them prime ministers Golda Meir and Yitzhak Rabin, and presidents Zalman Shazar, Chaim Herzog, and Shimon Peres—and the country's main military cemetery. Officers and privates are buried alongside one another—they are mourned equally, regardless of rank.
The Herzl Center (on the left as you enter the park) presents an engaging, multimedia introduction to the life, times, and legacy of Israel's spiritual forebear. The program takes 50 minutes and costs NIS 30. Call ahead or check online for English-language time slots.
Please try a broader search, or expore these popular suggestions:
There are no results for {{ strDestName }} Sights in the searched map area with the above filters. Please try a different area on the map, or broaden your search with these popular suggestions:
Neighborhoods Some neighborhood filters have sub-neighborhoods that can be selected individually in a dropdown by clicking on the icon to the right of the name.
Distance from:
Try increasing the mile radius or searching near one of these popular suggestions:
Israel Museum
City of David
Yad Vashem
Western Wall
Enter a sight, restaurant, hotel, or other place to find sights nearby.
I want emails from Fodor's Travel with travel information and promotions. I can unsubscribe any time using the unsubscribe link at the end of all emails.
Thank you for your interest!
Look out for our newsletters with travel tips and special offers.
Sign up for Travel Tips & News
By signing up for the newsletter, I agree to the Privacy Policy. You must check the box to subscribe
Thank you for your interest!
Look out for our newsletters with travel tips and special offers.
