~UPDATED July 19th 2005~ Potentially inflammatory line deleted and other minor amendments.
~Summary~ Massada was a half-day tour during my week stay in Israel. It is on a hill and gives good views of the Dead Sea and surrounding area. It is not really a good place for children or adults with walking difficulties, as the terrain in the city is very rough. If you like archaeology and looking at ruins then this is the place for you.
~Introduction~ Massada is an old ruined fortress city, on a hill near the Dead Sea. It was the scene of an uprising against the Roman Empire by a Jewish group called the Zealots. In the ensuing siege the Romans finally stormed the hill top city only to find a handful of people alive. The Zealots numbering over a thousand had taken a fateful decision and decided to burn the city from the inside and kill everyone. Ten men chosen by lots, killed the women and children, then the men and finally each other until only one man was left, he then climbed on to the walls and committed suicide in front of the Romans. Massada is now a symbol for Israeli and the phrase 'Massada will never fall again' is part of an oath taken by certain Israeli Defence Force units.
~Arriving in Massada~ I arrived from Eilat on a tour bus, we assembled at the bottom and took a cable car up to the top of hill and into Massada. There is a path to the top of the hill called the 'Snake Path', but even in January I didn't fancy going up that hill as it looked very steep, twisting and quite challenging.
~The Site~ The cable cars are on the western side of Massada and our guide took us around the edges of the city. The most impressive item for me was the ramp that the Romans built to gain height and attack the city walls. It is on the eastern side and it is really a huge piece of engineering that is still standing even though it is over a thousand years old. Built using Roman skill and Jewish slave labour, the ramp is basically a wide embankment constructed of earth and rocks with a track on top wide enough to take a Roman siege engine. The city itself is now a ruin and it is hard walking around these type of places to imagine what they could have been like all those years ago. The views from the edge of the city are very impressive and on a clear day the views in all directions are very good. The northern part of the city was home to a Roman palace and offers the best views over the Dead Sea.
Walking around the city requires good strong legs and good shoes, so many of my party stopped going around Massada due to stubbed toes, aching legs and crying children. It really is a place for the able bodied, with very few facilities of any kind for those who have trouble getting around. I did see a wheelchair or too, but the helper did have to be very strong to get the chair up the gradients and some places were totally inaccessible.
~Conclusion~ To me Massada was not a memorable place, the ruins are so far gone that it was difficult to work out what the pile of stone was. I would recommend Massada for those who want to see good views over the Dead Sea and desert. This is not a place for small children and people who have a hard time walking. It is very hard on the feet and legs, you would do better to go to the Dead Sea resorts instead.
This is a good review, but the fact that you didn't like the area, which I can understand, came across in it...Go with a friend, spend lots of time, and it can grow on you...I loved it there, but it was not busy, no tours that day...your review was very informative and you made the history about it very interesting. definately worth a visit.....well done...elinor.
danielse 18.07.2005 16:07
Apart from the politically inflammatory suggestion that there were no Jews in Israel between the time of Masada and 1948, I feel that you missed the best part. Masada is a magical experience best enjoyed by getting up in the middle of the night, watching the sound and light show at the base of the hill retelling the history of the place and then climbing to the summit in order to meet the sunrise. It's one of my more glorious memories of Israel.
NH Hotels, the hotel chain leader in Europe, with more than 300 hotels in 20 countries in Europe, Latin America and Africa. Enter into our web site and find the best available tariff at all times
Jul 13th, 2005
very helpful by (68%):
helpful by (29%):
somewhat helpful by (4%):
