Experience the best that Israel has to offer on the long-distance Israel National Trail

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14,045

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Difficult

Description

The Israel National Trail (INT) is an epic point-to-point hiking route that spans the entire country of Israel.

It runs from north to south, beginning "at Dan, near the Lebanese border in the far north of the country, and [extending] to Eilat at the southernmost tip of Israel on the Red Sea," according to [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel_National_Trail).

The trail measures an impressive ~1,000 kilometers in length. The Israel National Trail was designed to "give Israelis a way to experience the entire breadth of the land firsthand," according to Wikipedia.

As such, the INT puts the best sights and experiences of Israel on prime display. The trail passes through an astonishing assortment of famous locations from ancient history.

The trail begins in Upper Galilee, travels into Lower Galilee, through Nazareth, heads to Carmel, traverses along the coast of the Mediterranean, visits the city of Tel Aviv, heads to the Holy City of Jerusalem, and then traverses the desolate Negev Desert on its way to Eilat and the Red Sea.

"Swimming in the Negev and the Jordan River and visiting the Basilica of the Annunciation will take you to the places where Christianity was born," according to [WikiTravel.org](https://wikitravel.org/en/Israel_National_Trail).

"Walking in the land where the Bible stories unfold and seeing the evidence and the archeological sites of many familiar tales from childhood make the trail a holy and spiritual experience" for many people. The two best times to hike the trail are from late September to November, and from March to mid-May.

WikiTravel warns that you shouldn't attempt the Negev desert section in winter due to dangerous flash floods.

In contrast, hiking during the heat of summer is also ill-advised. Many additional sources are available online and in print to help you plan an epic thru-hike of the entire trail.

But if you aren't feeling up to a thousand kilometers of hiking, no worries: many shorter sections of the INT are fantastic on their own.

The Negev desert is particularly famous and offers some of the best hiking in all of Israel. However long you choose to hike, the INT will reward you with an epic experience that you won't soon forget! Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel_National_Trail https://www.israeltrail.net/ https://wikitravel.org/en/Israel_National_Trail