Welcome to Our Honeymoon In Israel!

In this blog we gladly share with you two of the most beautiful weeks of our lives – our honeymoon, which was very special and adventurous. Looking for a honeymoon location? Here you can find travel ideas and information about locations, tours, trips, biking, hiking and sightseeing in Israel.

Israel is a great honeymoon destination and offers many different types of attractions such as hotels, beaches, guest houses, historical sites, nature reserves, national parks and much more!

Our honeymoon tour starts in Tel Aviv and is focused in the beautiful north of Israel. We have included many photos of Israel which portray our honeymoon's memories. We hope you would enjoy visiting Our Honeymoon In Israel and hopefully one day – your own vacation in Israel!

WeddingAbout us:
Ilan was born in Israel and is a graphic designer, Thamara was born in Holland, is a tennis coach and used to be a professional tennis player, we met online on ChristianCafe.com, fell in love, got married in Holland and had our very special wedding celebration in Israel. 

Day 1 – Renaissance Hotel, Packing and Driving To Amirim
Renaissance Hotel
Our first honeymoon day started very early at 1:00 Am, it was actually our first night after the wedding celebration. We spent it in a fancy hotel in Tel Aviv called Renaissance; it was a gift from a good friend of us. Interestingly, the name of the hall where we had our wedding celebration was also called Renaissance. It was a great start and a chance to get some rest before continuing on our honeymoon adventure.
In the photos you can see the view of Tel Aviv and the Mediterranean Sea from the balcony of our hotel room and the rich Israeli breakfast we had there. Click on the photos to see bigger images.
Tel AvivRenaissance Hotel










Packing
We left the hotel at noon and went back home to pack and get ready for our honeymoon adventure. We hadn’t had time to do so earlier because we were so occupied with the preparations for our wedding celebration and looking for nice places to stay on our honeymoon.
loading bicyclesWe packed quickly, had a small meal and loaded our bicycles on the small car we had rented. Seppo, Ilan’s uncle who came all the way from BC Canada with his wife Annikki to our wedding celebration helped us loading the bicycles.

Amirim
Finally as the sun was going down (in Israel the sun sets around 5:30 PM in late October) we left from Tel Aviv to Amirim. Amirim is a beautiful Moshav in Galilee 2.5 hours north of Tel Aviv (a moshav is a cooperative Israeli settlement something like a village). Amirim is about 650 meters above sea level overlooking the Sea of Galilee, which is about 200 meters below sea level. Amirim established by vegetarians offers guesthouses known as zimmers (guest chalets), art galleries and vegetarian restaurants.

Zimmer JacuzziWe arrived around 8:00 PM to a beautiful zimmer we had reserved. It was beautiful; we had some food, wine, candles, incense, a Jacuzzi, bathrobes, a nice kitchen, Stereo, DVDs, TV and a nice bed waiting for us there. Though it was dark we had a beautiful view of the twinkling lights of the villages below us. We also got a greeting card from the owner of the zimmer and a gift: elephant shaped salt and pepper shakers!

We had a romantic dinner, later we danced to the sounds of the beautiful classic folk Israeli music we brought with us and then enjoyed a good warm Jacuzzi.

Day 2 – A Peaceful, Quiet Day In Amirim


Morning
As we woke up in the morning we saw a great full moon through the window as you can see in the photo, very appropriate for a honeymoon:)

When we went out of our zimmer we could see how beautiful it was in daylight.


Lunch
We went for a late breakfast (almost lunch) at a very nice vegetarian restaurant, we were amazed by the variety, quantity, taste and wonderful service we received for a very low price (see pictures of day 4).
Observation Point and Memorial Monument
Not far from the restaurant there was a beautiful observation point, there stood an old fighter jet as a memorial for a pilot who died in the war of 1973. Israel is full of memorial monuments because it has suffered many wars.
It was nice to see how the doves (a symbol of peace) found their place on the jet’s nose.
In the next pictures you can see a clear view of the Sea of Galilee and the city of Tiberias.
Afternoon and Evening
We got back to our zimmer for a nap (we had few days of rest on our honeymoon and many days of activity and adventure) then we had to do some business arrangements, yes it doesn’t sound very romantic but you’ll understand as we explain: You see, in Israel you get only money gifts for weddings or other big events, usually to cover the expenses of the event, leaving us with many checks and money bills which would only be safe in the bank. So we had to count and arrange our gifts to be able to put them in the bank the next day. The nice thing was the chance to read all the greetings and blessings in the greeting cards that came with our gifts. Our second day of our honeymoon ended with another romantic evening.

Day 3 – Tiberias, Biking Along The Sea of Galilee


Another beautiful day has begun and we enjoyed a nice breakfast. During our honeymoon we started practicing our cooking skills, which was also a great experience.


Arbel
We left to Tiberias to deposit our gifts, on the way we past by Arbel cliffs which are on the western side of the Sea of Galilee. Arbel is about 400 meters above the Sea of Galilee, used to be populated in ancient times and has a great view of the area. In the picture you can see the many caves where people used to live, and a cactus full of sweet fruit full of tiny thorns.







Tiberias
In about 30 minutes we reached Tiberias, we found a bank and finished with our business arrangements and went to eat a nice falafel for lunch. Falafel is one of the most popular Israeli foods; it’s like round chickpea burgers with salad and t’hina (known as tahini) plus other tasty and spicy things altogether in one pita bread, yummy! In Tiberias there are some streets where all the shops sell falafel (big competition!), in every street the price is different.



Biking Along The Sea of Galilee
We saw some places around Tiberias and then we unloaded our bikes for the car and went on a nice ride along the Sea of Galilee. As we were riding we found a new bike path surrounding the southeastern side of the Sea of Galilee. It was great riding surrounded by eucalyptus trees and banana groves. Ilan took this next video while riding his bicycle, he almost crashed though.



Then the bike path suddenly ended, so we went closer to the Sea of Galilee close to a banana grove. The water was a little rough and the sun was going down, then we had a nice ride back to our car, loaded the bikes and went down town Tiberias to buy some groceries.



 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
What a beautiful smile!







































Day 4 – Vegetarian Restaurant and Trip to Mt. Meiron


Vegetarian Restaurant
Another beautiful day has begun and we started it with a wonderful breakfast at our local vegetarian restaurant in Amirim. If you visit Israel looking for a beautiful and quiet place to stay, Amirim is a great place and this restaurant experience is highly recommended!


We started with appetizers. You can see in the picture the large variety of appetizers.


Later we had the main course made of eggs and a nice yogurt for desert.











But that wasn’t the end, after desert we got a teapot full of fresh herbal tea with allsorts of cookies!At this restaurant you are welcome to enjoy your tea on the back balcony with a beautiful view of the valley and the Sea of Galilee far bellow, or outside in front of the restaurant on the nice low sofas as we did that day.

We even had a little friend giving us company!


Riding On Top of Mt. Meiron
After the great breakfast we had (well, it was brunch actually), we had a beautiful drive to Mount Meiron. Mount Meiron is the second highest mountain in Israel after Mount Hermon. Mount Meiron is 1204 meters above sea level and is one on Israel’s nature reserves. On Mount Meiron there is a field school that provides accommodation and camping places. There are many beautiful walk paths on the top of the mountain and the view is amazing. When we arrived we unloaded our bikes and started riding on one of the paths. Paths are marked very well in Israel so it’s quite easy to find your way around. Some small parts of the paths were not suitable for bicycles so then we had to carry our bike by hand.

In the beginning we found a nice observation point with a great view of the city of Zfat and the Sea of Galilee very far away.
Then, when we were riding on the path you see in the photo, Ilan’s bike chain broke. What do we do now? Should we walk back to the car when it’s still not too far or continue on the same direction walking with our bikes? Ilan tried to fix his bike chain with a rock and it actually worked! We were amazed and happy, not knowing how long the bike chain would stay connected, to our surprise it’s still connected to this day!

After we finished riding the first path we had about an hour before the sun goes down, so we decided to ride another beautiful path, 30 minutes each direction. The ride and the view were wonderful. In the next pictures you can see some of that path.
We saw some big old oak trees.












On the way back, there was a trail that was on a sandy side slope, suddenly, Thamara who was riding in front, slipped and rolled few meters down the slope with her bike – it was scary. Thamara’s elbow was a little scratched but otherwise she was OK, her bicycle was new was slightly damaged – the rear wheel became a little crooked and also the front basket. Still, we were able to continue and enjoy our way back.
Later we met a group of young girls singing and playing a recorder (a flute), they were surprised to see how we got there with our bikes since we had to carry them climbing some big rocks. They offered us some coffee (several times on our trips in Israel we met people on nature reserves who kindly offered us coffee), Since we wanted to go back before it was too dark, we had to say no.
We got to the car loaded the bikes and started driving, not far from the field school we saw a wild bore crossing the road, it was the first time we ever saw a wild bore, it was big. Too bad we weren’t fast enough to take a picture.


Day 5 – A Lazy Day In Our Zimmer And A Great Romantic Dinner In A Restaurant




After our adventure on Mount Meiron we slept in quite late on our fifth honeymoon day and had a lazy day in our nice zimmer, the whole day just relaxing!



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By evening we just had to do something so we went out to look for a nice restaurant. We found a very nice restaurant; of course it was also vegetarian since it was in Amirim. The meal, the desert and the atmosphere were just great!

































Day 6 – A Bike Ride To Amud Creek


On our 6th honeymoon day we did some road cycling from Amirim to Amud Creek, the night before we had looked in a sightseeing book for nice places to see around Amirim and we found Amud Creek a beautiful nature reserve. Since Amud Creek was close about 6 kilometers, we decided to go there by bike. The way was very hilly with hard uphill riding and fast and fun down hill riding.

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In the pictures you can see a view of amirim from above and the hills we had to climb.
Thamara’s bike wasn’t working well with its crooked wheel and we had to stop for some fixing. It took us a couple of hours to get to Amud Creek. When we entered we were told at the sites office that the paths there are not suitable for bike riding and that we were too late for taking the tour by foot, since it’s about 4 hours walk and it was closing soon. We decided to come back the next day with our car since we were told that Amud Creek is one of Israel’s most beautiful nature reserves. Then we headed back to Amirim to enjoy another romantic evening.

 A view of the city of Zfat while riding.












From Amud Creek you can see a great view of Mount Meiron and see how high it is.




In this funny photo we forgot to take off our hats, so Ilan was trying to take them off just before the camera would take the picture.

Day 7 – Leaving Amirim, Visiting Amud Creek & Moving To Had-Nes Zimmer In Golan Heights


Leaving Amirim
Our seventh honeymoon day was full of activities and adventures. First, we had to pack our things and get ready to leave our beautiful zimmer in Amirim and move to our next place in another beautiful zimmer in a place called Had Nes on the Golan Heights. In the picture you can see our dining room where we had great romantic meals with windows overlooking the Sea of Galilee.

Then after checking out, we left and had one more look at this beautiful place.











Amud Creek
On the way, we went to see Amud Creek. This time we were early enough for a 4-hour hike in this beautiful place. Amud Creek is a beautiful nature reserve and is one of Israel’s most beautiful national parks. We went to the reserves office to pay the entrance fee and then we learned that we could buy a yearly pass for all of Israel’s national parks. It was a good bargain since for the price of visiting 5 national parks we could see them all - over 60 places!
We highly recommend visiting Israel’s beautiful national parks and getting their special offers to see them all. If you’re a tourist then you can get a pass that is good for 2 weeks which is also a good deal. For more information, visit the website of Israel’s national parks at this link: http://parks.org.il/ParksENG
When we started walking we saw some big lizards (about 30 centimeters long) on the rocks, as in the picture.
Then just before going down to the creek, stands an old abandoned British police station full of bullet holes.






To enter Amud Creek you first need to go down the valley, it’s a long walk down and coming back is a long climb up. On our way down we saw groups of visitors climbing up some were school groups. Some of the kids warned us that it’s a hard climb up, but we were willing to go for this adventure.
In the picture you can see the entrance to Amud Creek, the valley and a great view of Mount Meiron.

An old water fountain.














Amud Creek has many old abandoned buildings that served as water powered flourmills and workshops.
The water in the creek is full of fish.
Amud Creek has a large variety of trees and different plants such as fig trees, oak trees, plane trees, olive trees and many more… In the picture you can see the beautiful red fruit of the Rough Bindweed plant known as Smilax Aspera in Latin.

There are also bridges to cross to the other side of the creek. We took this picture at the end of the trail and crossed the bridge to the other side.

Right across the bridge we saw all those old abandoned workshops.




















We took short videos of the creek. In this video you can see and hear the creek, it was just beautiful. Later in the video we sang a praise song to the God who made all this and the God who brought us together. It’s a song from Psalm 118 in the Bible “Give thanks to the Lord for He is good, for His mercy endures forever”. We also sang this song on our wedding.




An Adventure On The Way To Had Nes On The Golan Heights
After we finished our tour of Amud Creek we sat down on one of the sites picnic benches and had our lunch. Then, we took the car and drove to our next wonderful zimmer in Had Nes, which is a small village on the Golan Heights. This time Thamara was driving and Ilan was looking at the road map. Driving on the hilly highway was beautiful and easy.

Later, Ilan saw a shortcut on the map; it was supposed to be a small road, which leads to Had Nes. We made a left turn to that road and were looking for the smaller road, which was hard to find. While searching, we saw this very mysterious cloud.
Eventually we found a small and bumpy gravel path not suitable for our small car. We took it and drove slowly on it. On the way we saw some cows, Thamara always said that she had never seen cows on the fields of Israel as in Holland where she comes from. So this view was a surprise for her.
In this picture you can see two cows but only one head, can you tell to which cow it belongs?
We drove farther and farther until we reached a remote ranch. By this time Ilan was getting worried that we were loosing our way, it wasn’t clear where we should turn and it was also getting dark and we were afraid we would get stuck there.

A view of the Sea of Galilee from the gravel path:

Later when it was already dark we saw a pickup truck behind us, the people in the pickup truck were probably wondering what we were doing there with our small car, we asked them for instructions and they guided us. Thamara was cool about the situation unlike Ilan, which was very relived to be back on a good asphalt road. We still made a few mistakes on the road before we eventually arrived to Had Nes but that was easy.

We found our zimmer and unloaded our stuff.

This is how we first saw our zimmer in Had Nes.





Later that night, we drove to Katzrin the biggest town on the Golan Heights to do some groceries. The roads at night on the Golan Heights are very dark since there are no lights on the roads.

In Katzrin we saw fireworks, later we learned that it was celebrating 30 years since it was established.

Indeed our seventh honeymoon day was a full day!
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