Around Jerusalem

A friendly Arab village famous for its hummus, its Crusader church, and its identification with biblical Kiryat Yearim.

The town where the shepherds heard the angels announce the birth of Jesus.

The birthplace of Jesus, home to the Church of the Nativity, one of the oldest churches in the world.

A hilltop where one of the fiercest battles of 1948 was fought, now home to one of Israel’s most acclaimed wineries.

A spring-fed Crusader-era farmstead in a wooded valley, perfect for a picnic and a history lesson.

A picturesque village in the Jerusalem hills where Mary visited Elizabeth and where John the Baptist was born.

A forest park in the Ayalon Valley with picnic areas, ancient ruins, and the remains of villages with a complicated history.

One of the sites identified with the Emmaus road, where two disciples walked with the risen Jesus without recognizing him.

A nature reserve in the Jerusalem hills with scenic hiking trails through Mediterranean forest.

The volcano-shaped fortress-palace where Herod the Great was buried, rising from the Judean Desert like a truncated cone.

A kibbutz in the Jerusalem hills built on the ruins of an ancient city, with a winery and views of the Judean mountains.

A kibbutz that held the road to Jerusalem in 1948, with a cemetery honoring the fighters who kept the city alive.

The hilltop where the Ark of the Covenant rested for 20 years, now crowned by the Church of Our Lady of the Ark of the Covenant.

An ancient settlement at the entrance to Jerusalem with a spring, a Crusader church ruin, and one of the alternative Emmaus identifications.

A 625-acre reserve recreating the landscape, agriculture, and flora of the Bible, where visitors can thresh wheat, press olives, and walk through the world of the prophets.

The centuries-old tradition of olive wood carving in Bethlehem, keeping Christian families employed and an ancient craft alive.

Ancient agricultural terraces in the Jerusalem hills where visitors can experience biblical farming techniques among the springs and orchards.

The ruins of a thriving Jewish city from the Roman and Byzantine periods, with a magnificent synagogue, ritual baths, and underground hiding complexes.

The only memorial outside the United States dedicated by name to every victim of the September 11 attacks.

The burial place of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Sarah, Rebecca, and Leah, sacred to Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

A memorial in the Jerusalem hills honoring soldiers who fell defending the western approaches to Jerusalem.

For 1,500 years, monks have lived in caves and cliff-face monasteries in the Judean Desert, seeking God in the most inhospitable landscape on earth.

A cave where tradition holds that Mary nursed the infant Jesus, turning the rock white.

Experiencing the Shepherds’ Fields after dark, under the same stars that the angels filled with light.

A natural cave of stalactites and stalagmites discovered by accident in the Jerusalem hills, one of the most beautiful natural sites near the capital.

A hilltop shrine sacred to Jews, Christians, and Muslims, with panoramic views of Jerusalem and the biblical landscape.

A unique community founded by Finnish Christians in the Judean hills, with a biblical garden, guest village, and a story unlike any other in Israel.