"Cave City Bet Guvrin" Bet Guvrin by gubbi1

Bet Guvrin Travel Guide: 30 reviews and 161 photos

Cave in ancient Maresha, Bet Guvrin, IL - Bet Guvrin

Israel has many unique and fascinating places and I have visited several of the fantastic National Parks. But the one in Bet Guvrin I found sticking out of the other places. Entering the park everything looks quite normal and not much spectecular (well, the landscape is surely beautiful!). The point is, that you can not see the attractions of the park (area of the ancient Maresha) unless you stand in front of them, they hide below the surface. So you walk along a path and suddenly arrive at a hole in the ground into which a ladder is leading down. Stepping inside you find huge structures of rooms which partly have different floors. In some you think you might even get lost. It is really fantastic I had no idea that there exists a place like this.

Bell Caves, Bet Guvrin, IL

A little off the ancient Maresha you will find the Bell Caves. These caves are also human made. In the past during the 7th to 10th century people took lime stone from here. This was done by starting with a small hole in the ground. Then continuesly more lime stone was taken by digging deeper and taking it away in circular direction. By this the caves got deeper and deeper and received their typical bell shape. Nowadays you can walk into the caves from the side and you will be amazed by their size. Other tourists seem very small compared to the caves. Keep your eyes open, the caves are very old and there are inscriptions and signs in the walls high up.

Ruins of ancient Bet Guvrin, Bet Guvrin, IL

The third part of the park is the Roman-Byzantine City of Bet Guvrin. Here you will find excavations of a crusader fortress with a church ruin and a roman theater. It is quite a contrast to the two other places but also very interesting.

Exploring the park is a real adventure.

Pros and Cons

Pros:VERY fascinating and unique!

Last visit to Bet Guvrin: Nov 2010
Intro Updated Mar 12, 2011
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Reviews (18)

Amphitheater, Bet Guvrin NP, IL - Bet Guvrin

The Amphitheater Things to Do (18)

Leaving or coming to Bet Guvrin NP you should also stop for the Crusader Church and the closeby amphitheater. The... more travel advice

Crusader Fortress, Bet Guvrin NP, IL - Bet Guvrin

The Fortress Things to Do (18)

Leaving or coming to Bet Guvrin NP you should also stop for the Crusader Church and the closeby amphitheater. Attached... more travel advice

Crusader Church, Bet Guvrin NP, IL - Bet Guvrin

The Crusader Church Things to Do (18)

Leaving or coming to Bet Guvrin NP you should also stop for the Crusader Church and the closeby amphitheater. The... more travel advice

Rosette in Bell Caves, Bet Guvrin NP, IL - Bet Guvrin

Inscriptions --- Christian Symbols Things to Do (18)

Beside some arabic inscriptions you will also find several christian symbols on the walls. Some look like that the... more travel advice

Comments (2)

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HORSCHECK Jan 7, 2012 at 5:02 AM

Awesome page about your adventures in Israel. Interesting stories about the different names of the caves. Well done. .-)
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yumyum Mar 13, 2011 at 10:04 AM

Excellent! I love looking at caves!