A huge number of attractions are concentrated in small Israel, which are able to tell about the turbulent past and present of the country much more accessible than reference books and textbooks. The largest beach resort of Netanya is ready to share the most interesting excursion routes with tourists keen on history and archeology. The territory where the settlement of Netanya was founded in 1929 has been inhabited since ancient times, but so far archaeologists have managed to find only monuments of the early and classical Middle Ages. You will also find what to see in Netanya! Byzantine mosaics and watch castles have been preserved here, museums with various expositions have been opened, and a park with a collection of exotic plants has been laid out.
TOP 10 attractions of Netanya
Park "Utopia"
In 2008, Kibbutz Bahan, near Netanya, opened the Utopia Park, often referred to as the Orchid Park. On an area of 40 hectares. housed thousands of representatives of a wonderful family gathered around the world.
In the Utopia park, visitors will find many amazing adventures and acquaintance with a variety of inhabitants:
- A small zoo invites you to look at animals for which spacious enclosures are equipped. You will see beautiful deer, loud peacocks, timid goats, self-righteous donkeys and motley parrots.
- An open area with musical fountains will allow you to cool off on the hottest day.
- Green labyrinths of plants are the pride of landscape designers.
- The rose garden contains hundreds of rose bushes of various colors and sizes. The collection of species of the queen of flowers in Utopia Park is the largest in the country.
- Alleys of giant cacti will allow you to imagine that you are transported to Mexico. Huge thorny trunks soar upwards for several meters.
Most of the park is located inside covered pavilions, where plants from the rainy forests of the equatorial belt feel comfortable. There you will see predators that feed on insects.
Mosaic from Kiryat Nordau
During the construction of another object in one of the districts of Netanya, workers discovered a mosaic dating from the Byzantine period. She covered the floor of the temple, built in the 7th century. n. e., and very well preserved. The main motif, artistically laid out with multi-colored pebbles, represents the leaves arranged in the form of a border. The central field is covered with geometric patterns. The mosaic resembles a large carpet that was once spread on the floor of the temple.
The found fragments were transferred to the Wings complex in the city center, where the mosaic can be easily seen while walking along the Netanya embankment.
Shlulit ha-Khorev
The name of the largest city park in Netanya is translated from Hebrew as "winter puddle". Israelis are self-critical and rarely exaggerate their own merits. A small lake in the park, filled with water during the rainy season, was the reason to call the city recreation area without unnecessary pomp.
The lake in the park is really small and is most deep in winter, but this does not prevent it from playing the role of a magnet that attracts both people and animals to the park.
In Shlulit ha-Khorev you can see necklace parrots. They organize in large flocks and, like Russian sparrows, flutter between rare trees, stirring up the surrounding area with sharp cries.
The park is equipped with educational stands, which tell in detail about all its inhabitants, albeit in Hebrew. If you cannot boast of knowing one of the oldest languages in the world, grab videos or come to the Netanya city park by bike - get a lot of pleasure from active communication with nature.
Iris reserve
Between Schlulit HaChorev Park and the Mediterranean Sea, you will find a small nature reserve where irises bloom wildly in February and early March. They do not look like the inhabitants of the usual Russian front gardens and city flower beds! Irises in Netanya are crimson, burgundy, the color of red wine, dark chocolate and other shades of red-brown scale.
The place is very popular with photographers, whose objects of passion are birds. The iris reserve is home to many beautiful birds, among which is the Palestinian nectary, which lost the title of the symbol of Israel to the hoopoe, but did not become less beautiful from this.
Kakun Castle
The history of the medieval castle Kakun in the vicinity of Netanya is very confusing. Conflicting information about the date of its construction in no way gives historians to finally decide on the year when the fortress appeared. There is evidence that Kakun was erected in the first third of the 12th century, but other sources claim that the date of construction is only 1187. One way or another, Kakun stood at the crossroads of trade routes and served as a stronghold for the Knights Templar.
The castle was built on a hill, the height of which, although it was only 52 meters, seemed very impressive against the background of an ideal flat landscape. From the walls of the fortress, an ideal view opened up and the surroundings were visible at a glance. However, the strategic position of Kakun did not prevent the soldiers of the Mamluk Sultanate from taking the castle from the crusaders. It happened in 1265, when the Arabs were making their blitzkrieg across the Holy Land. Caesarea fell in the same year. So the Mamluk Sultan Baybars destroyed all possible centers of the revival of chivalry in the Middle East.
The castle lies in ruins, but even the ruins give an idea of its strategic importance during the Middle Ages. The fortress was built in full accordance with the then well-known principles of fortification architecture. Fragments of walls made of natural stone, arches and passages, rooms with vaulted ceilings and windows have survived.
Monument "Wings"
The full name of the memorial complex, which appeared in Netanya in 2012, sounds like "Monument to the victory of the Red Army over Nazi Germany." The authors of the project are Russian sculptors S. Shcherbakov, V. Perfiliev and M. Narodnitsky. According to the people of Israel, the sculptors managed to convey the great tragedy of an entire nation and its hope for revival.
Two wings, as if growing out of the earth, symbolize the transition from darkness to light, hope for a peaceful future. A dark tunnel located behind the wings reminds of the horrors of the Holocaust. The bas-reliefs on its walls return the viewer to the terrible years of the war and tell about the troubles that the Jewish people had to endure. You will see the feat of Soviet soldiers, the darkness of the concentration camps, through which millions of innocent people passed, the grief of mothers and the hope that the world will be able to get out of the abyss into which fascism pushed it.
The monument is called the new symbol of Netanya. It is easy to find it on the city embankment.
Turtle sanctuary
Small by world standards, the Alexander River in Israel is named after the king of the ancient Jewish state of Judea, who lived in the 1st century. BC NS. The river is only 32 km long. It originates in the mountains of Samaria, collects water from several large streams along the way and approaches the outskirts of Netanya, where a turtle reserve is located in the area of the village of Kfar Vitkin.
The reason for its organization was attempts to preserve a small population of a rare species of turtles. African Trionixes live mainly on the black continent, but sometimes they are still found in the Middle East. They are classified as endangered species and have been in the Red Book for the past few years.
The turtle habitat near Netanya is surrounded by avocado plantations tended by the villagers of Kfar Vitkin. On the banks of the river there are picnic areas, children's and sports grounds. On weekends, the Turtle Sanctuary becomes a favorite vacation spot for Netanya residents. Numerous tourists also come to look at the country's largest reptiles: some individuals of the African Trionix reach sizes of more than 1.2 m in length and can weigh more than 50 kg.
Memorial complex Yad-LeBanim
The Yad-LeBanim organization in Israel unites relatives of soldiers who died defending the interests of their country. Its main task is to support the families of the victims: both material and psychological. The organization has created a park in Netanya dedicated to the defenders of Israel, and the memorial complex Ya-leBanim - one of the city's attractions.
In the park, you will see several sculptural compositions made of reclaimed military equipment - aircraft, tanks, fuel tanks, self-propelled guns, machine guns. The meaning of the monuments is Israel's unwillingness to fight only for the sake of war and its desire to "forge swords into plowshares" at the first opportunity.
Monument to the Victims of the Holocaust
The most terrible monument to all those who died during the Second World War in Netanya is called a red railway car with the number Munchen 12 246. It was accidentally discovered in 2014 in Germany. The documents found indicated that the car was originally used to transport livestock, and during the war, Jews were transported in it to concentration camps. Thousands of people went to the place of their own death in a red car.
Netanya Municipality has installed a wagon in Yad LeBanim Park.
Old Sycamore
In the very center of Netanya, you can look at another city attraction, which, according to various estimates, is between 600 and 1500 years old.
An ancient legend is associated with the fig tree, called the sycamore tree in the Bible. It says that the mother of the commander Khalid ibn al-Walid, an associate of the Prophet Muhammad and a serious and very formidable man, was buried under it. Fear of the mention of his name prevented local residents from cutting down the old sycamore tree, while the rest of the trees around were used for firewood or as building material.
French soldiers rested under the al-Walid tree during their march to Akko. Old Sycamore in Netanya survived the invasions of the Arabs and the Crusades, saw Napoleon, gave shade to the soldiers of the English corps and the builders of the railway. The tree is still alive and can be seen by anyone who has decided to cross the backyard of the famous Palace of Culture in the city, where the Netanya Fig tree is rustling with branches.
