Self Guided Tours
This tour was written to give the independent travelers the opportunity to explore Nazareth and its many secrets. Please use the numbers on our map to guide you through the tour. We hope you will enjoy it and you are welcome to come and say hello at the inn.
We wish you a great day!
Background
The city where the Virgin Mary received the news that she was to be the mother of the Son of God; the city where Jesus grew up and from which he set forth with his message, is today the biggest Arab city in Israel, El Nasra, as it is called by its Christian and Muslim citizens who share its streets and markets, its aromas of coffee and spices, its bakeries and hummus places and its orange-brown Knaffe hair strings. The city is about 5000 years old, since the first settlement in this area already existed 3 millennia prior to the birth of Jesus.
In the urban web of this city you just need to walk around, leaving your car in one of the parking lots (there are many and they cost little). Everything is close by, and if you cannot find something due to the poor sign-posting you just need to walk into one of the local stores and ask. The people of Nazareth are proud of their city and are happy to have guests in their city (but be aware that on Sundays most places are closed).
The order of the sites as it appears here creates a circular trail beginning and ending at the Church of the Annunciation, but there is no one way in which to visit the city. If you see a beautiful alley that deviates from the trail, explore it.
History of the streets in the old city
The streets in the old city of Nazareth form an urban web with hardly any structure, which makes the city very interesting to explore and also easy to get lost in. But you can always ask directions to the locals, who are more than willing to help you find you way back. The reason for this lack of structure in the streets is because they weren’t made by people, but by donkeys. Nazareth has been built on the slopes of different hills and because donkeys know the best way how to get up a hill, the people would follow the donkeys up the hills and then build the streets where the animals walked. After this the houses were built at the sides of the streets.
So the streets form the oldest part of the city. They are very narrow and were made just wide enough for a fully loaded animal to go through and maybe for one person to walk at the side. This was done for climate control. Narrow streets give shade from the buildings in the summer, and in the winter the narrow streets keep the warmth of the city inside. Although some of the streets look grey and old, a large part of the old city has been repaved during ‘project 2000′. During this project the city was renovated for the pope’s visit in 2000. This renovation would originally take about six months, but due to financial problems, it took almost five years. During that time the streets were open and the shops in the market were very difficult to reach. For this reason a lot of shop owners couldn’t maintain their business in the old city and had to move their shops down to the main street (Paulus VI). After ‘project 2000′ was finished the shop owners didn’t come back because the main street was a lot easier to reach by car. So from that time on the old city of Nazareth became a lot quieter.
blocked doors in the old city
As you walk through the streets of the old city, you’ll notice that some of the entrances to the houses have been blocked. Some of these doors were blocked during or after the war in 1948. In that time a lot of people in Nazareth lost the land that they had outside of the city. This meant that their storage rooms became empty. Besides that, Nazareth was a big Arab community that attracted a lot of refugees from all over the Galilee. To have a little bit of income, the citizens of Nazareth started to rent their empty storage rooms to the refugees. For the safety of the people living in those houses, the owners of the house would block the entrances to the storage rooms and have only the main entrance to use for all the families that lived there.
The (Latin) Basilica of the Annunciation
The church was built over the cave where according to Christian belief Mary lived and where she was visited by the Angel Gabriel who announced her of her conception by the Holy Spirit. The church has been destroyed many times throughout its history. The one standing here today is the fifth church built on this spot and was built in 1969 upon the remains of the old churches which have been incorporated into it.
In its lower level is the grotto with its three capellas and altars, reddish marble columns, mosaic and church remains from the Byzantine period. On the upper level is the larger church hall with its large mosaics, gifts from Christian communities from around the world. The doors of the church are inlaid with bronze and copper and on top of them are sculptures of important figures from Christianity. The dome of the hall is made in the shape of the white lily flower which is identified with Mary, and reaches almost 60 meters in height above the cave. The compound of the Basilica also includes Joseph’s church which was built over what is said to be the house of Joseph the carpenter, Mary’s husband.
Opening hours: every day, 8am-5:30pm tel# 04 657 2501
El-Babour - The Mill of the Galilee
Go in through a little door on the right of the street following the aromas to a large shop that opened more than a hundred years ago as a flour mill and which today offers an array of fresh oils and spices which are a celebration to the eye, ear and nose.
When the flour mill of El-Babour was first in use, it was powered by steam, or vapor. This is how the shop acquired its name: the word babour is derived from the English word vapor. Later the mill worked on diesel and now it is powered by electricity. The mill is still in use.
El Chamam El Kadim - Cactus Gallery
About 10 years ago Elias Shama, a native of the city opened a gallery and a souvenir shop selling handmade jewelry and other artworks. During renovations of the building a large sauna construction was discovered. Under the tiles a historical treasure of the first degree was discovered. Archaeologists that oversaw the renovation discovered amazing things: that the sauna was built 2000 years ago and that the heating system was three times the size of a similar one discovered in the ruins of the old city Bet Shean. These discoveries point to a probably very large city in the times of Jesus, in contradiction to the commonly-held belief that it was in fact a small village at that time. The gallery itself stands over the ruins of the sauna and it is through it that you enter and where the tours can be ordered.
Location: near Mary’s Well Square
Opening hours: Gallery open Monday-Saturday 9am-7pm, tours in the sauna are to be ordered in advance.
Cost: to the gallery: free of charge; Tours: 120nis for one person and to groups of two to four; 28nis per person for a group of five and more; 15nis for children over age 4. The price includes light snacks and guidance of half an hour. You can order a tour without snacks and then the fee is lower.
Greek Orthodox Church of the Annunciation
Also known as Saint Gabriel Church. In the crypt, which is a remainder of a previous church, flows Mary’s well, which on its edge, according to the belief of the Greek Orthodocs Mary was announced of her impregnation by the Holy Spirit. This annunciation church is small, but is considered one of the most beautiful ones in Israel due to its many icons, beautiful murals and luxurious chandlers. The existing building has been built in the eighteenth century on the top of ruins of a Byzantine church.
Opening hours: Mon-Sat 7am-6pm, closed between 10am -12am
Al-Mutran Guest House
Al-Mutran is a 200 year-old Arab mansion turned into a guest house that offers private rooms in a unique old world atmosphere. The Guest House was the mansion of the Kattouf family, famous for their quality jewelry and handmade gold, gemstone and diamond product. The wealth that their craftsmanship brought them allowed them to build a beautiful mansion, with stunning tiled floors, balconies overlooking the city, and elegant architecture. Today, it is remodeled and equipped with everything from modern luxuries like wireless internet and A/C, to antique furniture.
In Al-Mutran lobby you can sit for coffee and to use the internet.
Information: www.al-mutran.com; tel# 04 654 7947
Souk Il Arayess - Bride’s Market
Once the souk was a must for every Arab bride, today it is not as active but still one can see young ladies searching for fabric, jewelry, candles, dresses and ornamental stores. This area of the city is exactly the place to abandon all maps and lose oneself in the alleys. One such store that still exists is Shebat. Tel# 04 655 6003
Fauzi Azar Inn - Guest House
The Fauzi Azar Inn is a 200 year-old Arab mansion turned guest house, offering both dorm beds and private rooms in a unique ‘old-world’ atmosphere. Hailed by Lonely Planet in 2007 as “one of the highlights of a stay in the Galilee” and “a great base for touring major sites of the Galilee,” the Fauzi’s style is both intimate yet laid back, with a warm atmosphere where guests and staff can meet, both to swap travel tips and share their stories.
Historically, the Fauzi was an inn owned by the Azar family, reknown as one of the richest and most powerful families in the Galilee. Built in stone, in the 18th-century, today the Fauzi is a three-storey building, incorporating several impressive features including a six-metre high, hand-painted ceiling, a Turkish marble floor, a magnificent main living area with panoramic views, and a courtyard decorated with stone arches.
04-6020469
Mensa Christi Church
The Mensa Christi Church is located on a side street near the souk, on the way to the Salesian Church. This Church, built in 1860, contains a slab of rock that Franciscans claim was the table at which the risen Christ ate with his disciples. Worth noting are the graffiti of numerous pilgrims from over the centuries. The front door neighbors got the church keys. Please leave a small donation.
The old house
As you walk from the Mensa Christi Church towards the market, you pass an old Arab mansion, hidden behind one of the doors at the right side of the street. Until half a century ago this building housed 7 families at the same time. Most of the original residents left the house about 50 years ago for unknown reasons. From that time the first floor of the house was abandoned and has been left practically untouched since. Although the house has decayed a lot and is probably beyond renovation, it is clear that the house must have been very beautiful when it was still in use. In one of the rooms on the first floor one can admire a beautiful vaulted ceiling, another room holds an original ceiling made of trees.
Coffee Indrawes - Abu Salem
On your walk through the streets of the old city, you can take a break and have a drink in a traditional coffee shop just outside the market area. Experience the local means of recreation in the form of a game of backgammon and have a talk with one of the many wise old men in the shop, while Wissam makes you his famous cinnamon/walnut tea or a good Arabic coffee. Your drink will be served with homemade cookies for only 6-8 shekels altogether.
Synagogue and Greek Catholic Churches
The Synagogue Church dates back to the Crusader period. It stands next to the Greek Catholic Church in the midst of the old market. The Synagogue Church is supposed to have been built on the place where the synagogue used to be in the time of Jesus. This was the synagogue where Jesus preached, proclaiming to be the Son of God and telling the people that no prophet is accepted in his own city (Luke 4: 14-30). His statement made the citizens of Nazareth so angry that they tried to kill Jesus by throwing Him off a cliff. But Jesus left the crowd and the city and moved to Capernaum, which became his main home town from that time on.
The church was originally in the hands of Franciscans but passed into Greek Orthodox control during the rule of Daher al-Omar in the 18th century. In 1887 the adjacent Greek Catholic Church, with its magnificent dome and two bell-towers, was added to the old Crusader structure.
Opening hours: Mon, Tue, Thu and Fri 9am-12:30pm & 2:30pm-6pm; Wed and Sat 9am-12:30pm; Sunday closed.
The Market
The old market of Nazareth is rich with spice, fabric, jewelry shops and more. In Merchants Alley you will find merchants who practice long forgotten arts such as knife makers and in the vegetable market nearby you will discover all kinds of dry thorns you can spice a soup with, and vegetables you never heard of. The big house which reins the vegetable market belongs to El Fahum family, one of the oldest and most known in Nazareth. Under the house are two bakeries: one which sells a sweet bagel with anise, the other an excellent pizza. As the road continues, you will smell the aroma of coffee and you will know you have reached the coffee mill of El Fahum family.
The delicates of the Market:
-Falafels you can eat at Abu Dushei or at the markets corner
-Il Shech is making a state of the art Pizza-Pita for 6 shekels
-Abu Hasan is baking great aniseed bagel
-If you want to treat yourself, sit for Arabic coffee and Kataif (local pancake) at Abu Ashraf place
The White Mosque
The White Mosque, the first mosque in the city, was built by Abdalla El Nini, more than two hundred years ago. El Nini was a well respected judge and the first of the El Fahum tribe. The Fahum family is the only family in the world with this name. It was given to them by the last Ottoman emperor, and means ‘wisest of man’. The mosque was built as a sign of freedom after the Ottoman emperor died, and was made white as a sign of purity.
Abdalla El Nini set forth a policy that preaches for love and respect. In order to make sure his policy would continue after his death, he wrote in his will that the responsibility on the mosque should be given to the wisest of his sons or daughters, or to the Ka-a-bee in Mecca so that the mosque will not be governed under any rule. Till today, the person responsible for the mosque (Ateph El Fahum) reads all the sermons before they are preached to make sure they are fit and in honor of holidays of other religions.
Opening hours: All light hours except praying hours and without pre-arrangement.
Notes: please dress modestly and speak softly. In carpeted areas please take off shoes.
Paulus the Sixth Street
Paulus the Sixth Street is a commercial street and not a touristy one. Nevertheless, it houses some traditional sweet stores, two of whom are highly recommended. One is El Muchtar (17). The other sweet store is El-Machroom (6). A little tip: the locals buy Knaffe at El Muchtar; Baklawa at El Machroom’s.
Nazareth Village
Recreation of a village from the first century, including houses, caves for storage and even a synagogue. Goats are wondering about, people dressed in the fashion of the time work the land with traditional tools, and Joseph the carpenter is there too. During construction of the village, ruins from the Second Temple period were discovered. There is a museum as well, where the history of the city is described.
Location: In front of the French Hospital.
Opening hours: Mon-Sat 9am-5pm. Reserve in advance.
Cost: 39nis per person; 34nis per person in a group of more than ten people; for families 30nis per adult, 18nis per child aged 5-15 years old, free for children under age 5; discount for students
Tours about the agricultural and social lives in that period: reserve in advance (price included in the entrance fee). There are also agricultural tours and you can order a meal in a Bedouin tent.
The Mount of Precipice
No visitor to Nazareth should miss the breath-taking panorama from the city’s highest point, about 2 km to the south-east of the city. The Mount of Precipice, also known as the Mount of The Leap of the Lord and Jabal Kufsi in Arabic, is traditionally the place in the Bible where the people of Nazareth took Jesus to hurl him into the abyss below.
The Mount has been developed into a tourist area, with a viewing platform which overlooks the whole of the Jezreel Valley, from Jordan and the Gilad Mountains in the east, past Mount Tabor (the site of Jesus’ Transfiguration) to Mount Carmel, Haifa and the Mediterranean Sea in the west.
The area also includes the Cave of the Leap (Kufze cave) - an archaeological site of worldwide importance discovered in the 1970s. Thirteen human skeletons and over 60,000 artefacts dating back 50,000 years, to the Late and Middle Stone Ages, were unearthed here.