Midnight Mass at this pink-toned church, next door to the Church of the Nativity, is broadcast across the world on Christmas Eve, but there’s nothing like being there in person for an atmospheric – if rather lengthy – Christmas experience.
To access the church via the Church of the Nativity, you need to wander through the Crusader-era Franciscan cloister with a statue of St Jerome.
5.26 MILES
Four magnificent arches, their lintels richly decorated with Crusader crosses, herald the entrance to one of Christianity's most sacred sites. The church…
Temple Mount/Al Haram Ash Sharif
5.28 MILES
There are few patches of ground as holy – or as disputed – as this one. Known to Muslims as Al Haram Ash Sharif (The Noble Sanctuary) and to Jews as Har…
5.23 MILES
The air is electric at Judaism's holiest prayer site, where worshippers recite scriptures, lay their hands on 2000-year-old stone and utter impassioned…
4.69 MILES
More than 5000 years of cultural treasures are assembled around the vast Israel Museum's indoor and outdoor galleries. Highlights are the titanic statues…
28.1 MILES
The plateau atop Masada, which measures about 550m by 270m, is some 60m above sea level – that is, about 490m above the surface of the Dead Sea. The…
19.75 MILES
This reserve consists of two roughly parallel canyons, Wadi David and Wadi Arugot, each of which has its own entrance complex and ticket office. It is…
28.54 MILES
An outstanding and remarkably vivid introduction to Masada’s archaeology and history, this museum combines 500 evocative artefacts unearthed by…
7.27 MILES
A must-see on any journey through the Holy Land is Mar Saba Monastery, a bleak and beautiful 20km drive east of Bethlehem (beyond Beit Sahour).
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For the millions of pilgrims who descend on the Holy Land every year, the Church of the Nativity is the main reason for visiting Bethlehem. The church,…
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A short walk from Manger Sq is the lesser-known Milk Grotto Chapel. Legend has it that Mary and Joseph stopped here to feed the baby during their flight…
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Opposite the Church of the Nativity and named after the second Muslim caliph, Omar Ibn Al Khattab, this is the only mosque in Bethlehem’s Old City. It was…
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The museum, housed in a typical 19th-century Palestinian home, is made up of three rooms recreated as a traditional Bethlehem family abode, with many…
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Has a range of fruit and vegetables, meat and fish, junk, shoes and some mighty tasty snacks. Known to locals as the Green Market, the souq was…
6. International Center of Bethlehem
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This Lutheran-run centre puts on concerts, plays, films, English-language documentaries, workshops and lectures. There’s also a coffee shop, guesthouse,…
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Built in the 19th-century church, the Lutheran Christmas Church is linked to the International Center of Bethlehem and was inaugurated by Kaiser Wilhelm…
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In a desolate corridor created by Israel’s separation wall and near the main checkpoint into town on the Israeli side, stands Rachel’s Tomb. Rachel is…