42 Best Sights in Lower Galilee, Israel

At the foot of Mount Gilboa is this small national park with huge eucalyptus trees and a big swimming pool fed by a spring. Today it's a bucolic picnic spot, but almost 3,200 years ago, Gideon, the reluctant hero of the biblical book of Judges, organized his troops to fight a Midianite army that had invaded from the desert. At God's command—in order to emphasize the miraculous nature of the coming victory—Gideon dismissed more than two-thirds of the warriors and then, to reduce the force still more, selected only those who lapped water from the spring. Equipped with swords, ram's horns, and flaming torches concealed in clay jars, this tiny army of 300 divided into three companies and surrounded the Midianite camp across the valley in the middle of the night. At a prearranged signal, the attackers shouted, blew their horns, and smashed the jars, revealing the flaming torches, whereupon the Midianites panicked and fled, resulting in an Israelite victory.

The spring has seen other armies in other ages. It was here in 1260 that the Egypt-based Mamluks stopped the invasion of the hitherto invincible Mongols. In the 1930s, the woods above the spring hid Jewish self-defense squads training in defiance of British military law.

This historically important but underwhelming structure marks the place where Mary is reputed to have been told by the angel Gabriel that she would bear a son, an event known as the Annunciation. The current "well" represents a structure that was once in use, but the open-air structure does not contain water anymore. Mary's Well Square is home to several shops and cafés, as well as a Greek Orthodox church.

In the same compound as the Tabor Winery, this charming museum contains explanations about almonds and delectable products made from locally grown almonds. If you have kids in tow, don't think twice about signing up for the fun marzipan-making workshop. (There's also a chocolate workshop.) Best of all, you take your creations home.

The domelike mountain, the region's highest, looms over one of the prettiest stretches of the Lower Galilee. Quilts of farmland kaleidoscope through the seasons as different crops grow, ripen, and are harvested. Modern woods of evergreens cover the hillsides, making this a lovely place for a walk or a hike. To get here from Route 7266, take the narrow switchback road that starts in a clearing between Shibli and the next village, Dabouriya.

Apart from the natural beauty, Mount Tabor and its immediate surroundings have considerable biblical history. About 32 centuries ago, Israelite warriors of the prophetess-judge Deborah and her general, Barak, routed a Canaanite chariot army that had gotten bogged down in the mud. The modern kibbutz of Ein Dor, south of the mountain, is the site of ancient Endor, where King Saul unsuccessfully beseeched the spirit of the prophet Samuel for help before his fateful (and fatal) battle against the Philistines (I Samuel 28:3–25).

The shepherds, weavers, and other characters in this reconstructed Jesus-era community delight children and adults alike. Using information gained from archaeological work done in the area, this attraction aims to re-create Jewish rural life as Jesus would have known it more than 2,000 years ago. Workshops, farms, and houses have been built with techniques that would have been used at the time. Interpreters in period costume cook and work at wine presses and looms, giving a sense of daily life. Reservations are required for guided tours, which meet on the second floor of the Nazareth YMCA.

Three beautiful springs and a stream are the attractions at this nature park. Electric carts and bicycles are available to rent but not necessary to enjoy a swim or hike. You can also watch the birds of many varieties that make this nature preserve their home and a migration waypoint.

Bathed in the aromas of herbs and spices, this market in the Old City has something for everyone, from coffee sets to antiques to freshly baked pastries. The old lanes are narrow and shops tiny, with goods spilling into the street, but this souk is more orderly than those in many other Israeli cities. When it gets overwhelming, take a coffee break.

An excellent time-out from historical sights, this winery was founded in 1999. Chill out with a cheese platter while tasting the winery's finest vintages. Tours are available for groups of more than 10 participants.

In addition to sophisticated therapeutic services and facilities, this modern spa has a large, warm indoor mineral pool (35°C [95°F]) and a small outdoor one right near the lake's edge. A restaurant serves lunch.

Foremost among Tiberias's many venerated resting places is this tomb. Born in Córdoba, Spain, Moses Maimonides (1135–1204)—widely known by his Hebrew acronym, the "Rambam" (for Rabbi Moshe Ben Maimon)—was the greatest Jewish scholar and spiritual authority of the Middle Ages. To his profound knowledge of the Talmud, Maimonides brought an incisive intellect honed by his study of Aristotelian philosophy and the physical sciences. The result was a rationalism unusual in Jewish scholarship and a lucidity of analysis and style admired by Jewish and non-Jewish scholars alike.

Maimonides never lived in Tiberias, but after his death in Egypt, his remains were brought to this Jewish holy city for interment. His whitewashed tomb, topped by a soaring spire of red steel girders, has become a shrine, dripping with candle wax and tears.

On a picturesque bend of the Jordan River, where huge eucalyptus trees droop into the quiet water, this spot was developed as a baptism site by Kibbutz Kinneret for Christian pilgrims. The baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist (John 1:28) is traditionally identified with the southern reaches of the Jordan River, near Jericho. But when the area became a hostile frontier between Israel and Jordan, pilgrims began to seek out accessible spots beyond the conflict zone. You often see groups of pilgrims being immersed in the river amid prayers and hymns and expressions of joy. The white robes required to enter the water become transparent when wet, so bring a bathing suit or large towel. Snacks and souvenirs are available.

Kibbutz Ginosar's premier tourist attraction is a wooden fishing boat from the 1st century AD, found on the shore by two amateur archaeologists in 1986. Today it is beautifully exhibited in all its modest but evocative glory in a specially built pavilion in the Yigal Alon Museum: a short video tells the story. Three years of drought had lowered the level of Lake Kinneret and exposed bits of the ancient wood in the mud. Excavated in a frenetic 11 days, the 28-foot-long boat became an instant media sensation. Given the frequency of New Testament references to Jesus and his disciples boating on the Sea of Galilee—including coming ashore at Gennesaret, perhaps today's Ginosar—the press immediately dubbed it the "Jesus Boat."

On the other hand, the vivid relic might have been a victim of the Roman naval victory over the rebellious Jewish townspeople of nearby Magdala in AD 67, as described by the historian Flavius Josephus. Whatever its unknown history, it is the most complete boat this old ever found in an inland waterway anywhere in the world.