Discover Ezuz: Oasis and rock art in the surrounding area

Around Ezuz

The area around Ezuz offers two distinct points of interest to help you plan your trip: the Beerotayim Grove and a hill with rock art. The grove is a small oasis on the edge of the western Negev, toward the Egyptian border. Together, these two sites offer a glimpse into the landscape and cultural history, each with its own focus.

Beerotayim Grove: Oasis and railway route

The narrow access road to the grove follows a route laid out for the Ottoman railway. The oasis and the road’s alignment offer different points of interest: a small natural area on the one hand, and the history of a route built for the railway on the other. This makes it possible to explore the surrounding area from both a landscape and transport-history perspective.

Rock art near Khan Beerotayim

A roughly one-kilometer walking path north of Khan Beerotayim leads to a hill featuring rock art depicting people, animals, and an unusual tree. Based on the art’s similarity to other rock art in the Negev, KKL-JNF believes it dates from sometime between the early and late Islamic periods. The images combine clearly identifiable motifs with a cautiously worded historical interpretation. For travelers interested in rock art, the open question of when it was created is also a focus, alongside the depictions themselves.

More nature and culture in the Southern District

The Southern District is home to natural and cultural sites with a variety of attractions. Avdat National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site along the route of the ancient Incense Route in the Negev Highlands. Masada offers a different historical perspective: the site is a symbol of the ancient Kingdom of Israel, its violent destruction, and the last stand of Jewish patriots against the Roman army in 73 CE. Among the surviving remains at Masada are the ruins of Herod’s palaces and intact Roman siege works, which are among the most complete of their kind in the Roman world.

Another archaeological site is the Canaanite Gate in Ashkelon National Park. Built of mud bricks and kurkar bricks, it dates to 1850 BCE and is considered the oldest vaulted gate in the world. At the visitor center at the Ramon Crater, the life story of Lieutenant Colonel Ilan Ramon, the first Israeli astronaut, is presented alongside an introduction to the world’s largest crater and its distinctive natural phenomena.

Register in advance through the visitor coordination system to reserve a place on your chosen visit date at both Masada and the Ramon Crater Visitor Center. Check the current requirements before planning your visit.

Ein Gedi offers a different kind of nature experience in the Southern District. The nature reserve includes Israel’s largest oasis, with springs and waterfalls, ibexes and rock hyraxes, and flowing streams. A hiking trail follows Nahal Arugot, which flows year-round, to a hidden waterfall and pools in its upper reaches. Trail conditions may change after floods, so take this into account when planning your visit. The route description adds a specific itinerary to the nature reserve’s features: water not only shapes the oasis but accompanies the trail to the waterfall and pools.

Discover more destinations: Ein Gev, Herzliya, Bat Yam, Rishon LeZion, Lavi, Kfar Aharon, Liman, Kibbutz Snir

For the main travel overview: Israel.