Hi there!
I'm happy to share with you a day trip that I took to the Western Galilee, courtesy of the Ministry of Tourism.
Trip Agenda Options
Breakfast Buffet at Kibbutz Lohamei HaGetaot's 'Bait VKait' B&B
The Escape Fortress at Yehiam Fortress National Park
Rosh HaNikra Grottos and Golf Cart Tours
Betzet Beach Caravan Park and Lunch
The Extreme Park in Akko/Acre
Trip Details
Breakfast Buffet at Kibbutz Lohamei Ha'Getaot 'Bait VKait' B&B Phone: 04-9933271, Hebrew Website or English Tripadvisor website
Kibbutz Lohamei Ha'Getaot is famous for its holochaust museums for adults and children. The Kibbutz itself was founded by holocaust survivers including fighters of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. It is also known for its vegetarian food products factory 'Tivol'. The museums and factory store can be visited. However, during this trip we only stopped over for its sumptuous and kosher B&B breakfast buffet, which is open to external visitors. Alon Yerushalmi and Oranit Abir managers of the B&B and 'Bait VKait' services extended their welcome to you.
With respect to the sleeping arrangements it will interest you to know that the Kibbutz has several offerings beginning with family suites and garden apartments and also what they referred to as a 'campus' that can host up to 150 people at a time for group tours or occasions. As such, the 'campus' offers a 'Kosher Mehadrin' certified dining room.
The Escape Fortress at Yehiam Fortress National Park Phone: 055-6644461, email dror@escapegroup.co.il, Hebrew Website or English Tripadvisor Website
The Yehiam crusader fortress is a national park that you can visit regardless of the escape activity. However, for groups of anywhere between 15-200, the escape activity is an exceptional upgrade to the experience. Visitors begin the escape activity with a welcoming reception buffet of cocktails and a yoghurt bar. They are then taken to see an explanatory film and are separated into groups of 6-8 people. Each group starts in a separate room in the fortress and has to solve a part of the riddle. All groups meet at the end where they combined solutions help them to escape the fortress. They are then taken for a tour of the fortress and conclude the visit with a sweet buffet. The game takes about 60 min and the tour an additional 20-30. The film is available in Hebrew, English, Russian, Spanish and is soon to be in Arabic. Dror extends his welcome to you.
Rosh HaNikra Contact for all tours described below: Phone: 073-2710100 or English Website
The Rosh HaNikra grottoes are a fascinating geologic formation located on the northwest tip of Israel. The grottoes are marine caves that were created by subterranean tremors causing water to infiltrate the soft chalk rock. The grottoes are interconnected through a series of tunnels inside the rock that you can walk through. A visit to the site includes a short cable ride down to the grotto level as well as a documentary film about the history of the site and its flora and fauna. The film is an experience in itself because it is located within the train tunnel that was dug by the British in 1941.
In addition to the attractions at the grotto level, a new offering includes a combination with golf cart tous. You can either use the golf carts for a drive down the coastline or take an agricultural tour.
The agricultural tour leaves the site at the entry level (upper level of the cable car) and takes you through Kibbutz Rosh HaNikra's agricultural industries. The tour takes you through the cow shed, which has been awarded prizes by the European Community for the quality of the milk produced where you, the plant nursery where they grow tropical fruit such as pitayas (dragon fruit) and passionfruit and finally to the banana and avocado groves.
During Hannukah there will also be special lantern tours every 45 minutes to the grottoes including the audiovisual show that will conclude with lighting of candles and holiday doughnuts 'Sufganiot'. The tours will take place between 4-6th and 9th Dec 2018 from 17:15 and up.
Betzet Beach Caravan Park and Lunch Phone: 050-9550232, email: hofbetzet18@gmail.com
Betzet beach is a northern beach near Rosh HaNikra with crystal clear waters and a sandy beach, the perfect location for a camping area which is where we went next. The camping area has luxurious caravans, new Coleman tents and air-conditioned tents for rent. You can also use the facilities for parking your own caravan, but not for your own tents.
The rental caravans are equipped with clean sheets, towels, kitchenware, coffee and sugar and have their personal seating areas and grills.
The tent dwellers also have access to a large lawn on which the tents are located. Each tent is provided with mattresses, a table, a beach chair for each visitor, a parasol for each family, toilets and showers with hot water, cleaning services all day long, night lighting, central electricity, central refrigerators and a central grilling area.
The beach also opened a new dining area with a sea view serving a barbecue menu and salads. Guests can also order breakfast and lunch. The dining room has an adjacent snack bar serving à la carte dishes, snacks, drinks and coffee, and even holds some swim gear, if needed. The location can be used for group events.
The Extreme Park at Akko / Acre
Address: 3 Shlom Ha'Galil St. Akko Phone: 1-700-556-070 or Hebrew Website or English Tripadvisor Website
The park at Akko offers four main activities: wall climbing both indoors and outdoors, a zipline, a two-level sky track at 7m and 15m high and the tallest bungee jump in Israel from a wall of 33 meters. The owners of the park are able to organize group events as well.
Additional Options
My previous post about Akko / Acre should provide you with additional options for visiting. To read about Akko, click here.
Food
This post is all inclusive.
Accomodation
This post is all inclusive.
My Timeline
The trip filled up a day. We left Tel-Aviv at 7:30, arrived at our breakfast buffet at 9:45, concluded our day at Acre at around 18:30 arriving in Tel-Aviv at 20:00. This is what it looks like on the map:
I hope I've given you a few ideas for your Hanukkah vacation.
Happy Hannukah! Talma
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