MyWorldReviews.com

Masada

HaDarom, Israel

Inside the visitors center

The Masada cable car

Masada is the name of an ancient city in Israel. The city is now a tourist destination. There are ruins on the top of a hill that visitors can see. At the bottom of the site, there is a modern visitors center. The center features a 10-minute video that introduces visitors to the history of Masada. The video is quite well done, and provides an excellent history lesson for people who are unfamiliar with the history of the area. The visitors center also contains free bathrooms.

Visitors can either walk or take the cable car (for an additional fee) up to the top of the hill. Although it's cheaper to walk, it is not advised during the heat of the day. If you want to go for a walk, take the cable car up the hill, and then walk down. The site is located in the middle of the dessert, and can be oppressively hot during the day.

At the top of the hill, there are some ruins to walk around and look at. Most of them aren't labeled. An audio guide is available for a fee (from the visitors center). It could be a good idea (since nothing was labeled), but we didn't try it out, so we can't say for certain.

The ruins at the top weren't really much to see. I think the best part of going up to the top of the mountain was the view of the Dead Sea and the surrounding desert. The dry rock landscape was quite pretty in its own desolate way.

Cost

The view from the top of the Masada mountain. Notice the dead sea in the background

Adult visitors pay 23 NIS to enter the park. Children pay 12 NIS, and students pay 19 NIS. Cable car tickets and the audio guide are also sold for an additional fee. (Student entrance plus a one-way cable car ride costs 41 NIS).

Estimated Visiting Time

The bottom of the snake path (walking path), looking up at Masada

Visitors should allow 90 minutes at the top of the site to look around and explore. It takes between 30-45 minutes to walk down the hill, and around 10 minutes to take the cable car (each way).