Lower Galilee & the Sea of Galilee

The Lower Galilee is a land of rounded hills, fertile valleys and, at its heart, the Sea of Galilee, the freshwater lake that has fed the region for thousands of years. Here, in a few villages along the northern shore, most of the Gospel story unfolds. Jesus grew up in Nazareth, made Capernaum his home, called fishermen from their nets, taught on the hillside above the lake, fed the multitude at Tabgha and calmed the storm on its waters. No region in the Holy Land holds more of the places of his ministry, and the landscape around the lake has barely changed.

The Galilee is also a cornerstone of Jewish history. After the destruction of the Temple, the center of Jewish life moved north: at Zippori Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi compiled the Mishnah, the great men of the Sanhedrin sat in its towns, and Tiberias became one of the four holy cities. Ancient synagogues with mosaic floors are scattered across its hills, Bedouin and Druze villages keep their own traditions, and the pioneers of the Kinneret farm planted the seed of the kibbutz movement on its shore.