The Dead sea (Hebrew ים המלח Yam HaMelach "Sea of Salt"; arab. بحر الميّت Bahr al-Mayyit or بحر لوط Bahr Lūt, "Sea of Death" or "Sea of the Lot") on the border between Israel and Jordan is one of the most famous travel destinations in near East. The drainless lake is located in the deeply indented Jordan Valley in a bizarre stone desert landscape, it is extremely salty and the lowest freely accessible point on earth.
Regions
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Geographically, the Dead Sea is a relatively uniform region. Since the lake lies in the border area between two states and the Palestinian territories, three sub-regions can still be delimited: While the east coast belongs entirely to Jordan, the Palestinian coast is shared West Bank and Israel the west coast. The Judean desert in the West Bank the northern part of the coast, while the Israeli coastline in the southwest of the Dead Sea.
places
The Dead Sea region is desert, so the whole area is sparsely populated and there are hardly any larger places. The main major city near the Dead Sea is Jericho, the oasis is right on the shore En Gedi and the Israeli seaside resort En Bokek. The most important settlement on the Jordanian side of the sea is Al Mazraa.
Other goals
The excavations of the rock fortress are on the west bank of the Dead Sea Masada and the ruins of the settlement of QumranIn the mountains on the east bank are the waterfalls and hot springs of Main (Entry for Arabs 10 JD, for non-Arabs 15 JD).
background
The Dead Sea is located in the Jordan Rift and is actually not a sea, but an end lake with no outflow. The flowing water (especially from the Jordan) evaporates, leaving behind the minerals that were dissolved in the water. As a result, the water in the Dead Sea has an extremely high salt content (approx. 10 times higher than normal sea water). Because fish or larger animals can no longer exist in this high salt concentration, the lake was given the name "Dead Sea".
There are two main reasons why this inhospitable salt lake in the desert is still a popular tourist destination: On the one hand, cures at the Dead Sea can bring significant improvement in skin diseases, for example. On the other hand - and that is usually the more important reason - many people want to drift on the surface of the Dead Sea, which is easily possible due to the high salt content.
In many places, however, unadulterated bathing pleasure is no longer possible because access has also become more difficult on official beaches: You have to keep walking or feel your way into the water over relatively steep bank sections. This is because the Dead Sea retreats annually, so the water level has been falling continuously for many years. The cause is the excessive water withdrawal from the Jordanthat only arrives here as a trickle. Since the Dead Sea has hardly any other tributaries, more water evaporates than flows in, so the Dead Sea is slowly drying up. The surface of the lake is now below -420 m. Another problem is the spontaneous break-ins on the shore, which are a great danger for the infrastructure and visitors. Since the sea level is below the groundwater level, leaching occurs in the soil, which spontaneously collapses and forms craters several meters wide and deep (so-called sinkholes). There are considerations to give up entire stretches of shore.
Relief could be provided by a canal through which water from the Red Sea, possibly also from the Mediterranean Sea, is supplied by first pumping the water to a certain height and then directing it through the gradient to the Dead Sea. Such a canal could indirectly contribute to the fresh water supply of the nations and additionally drive a power station. Joint plans by Israel, Jordan and the Palestinians have existed for many years as to whether the canal will ever be built, but it is questionable.
The Dead Sea is divided into a large lake in the north and a lagoon further south. The sinking water level created this separation of the originally uniform water surface and by means of a canal, the lagoon is now constantly kept at the same water level with water from the large lake. The creeping dehydration is therefore not noticeable on the beaches along the lagoon.
On the Israeli side, En Bokek is the most important tourist center with many hotels right on the lagoon. If you plan a short visit to the Dead Sea, you will be more likely Masada, En Gedi or Qumran visit and only stop for a swim in En Bokek, as there are no major tourist destinations or sights apart from spa and bathing facilities.
language
On the Jordanian coastline and in the Palestinian towns in the Dead Sea area, the locals speak Arabic; Hebrew is spoken in Jewish settlements on the west coast. At the important tourist destinations in the region, however, you can usually get along with English without any problems.
getting there
The journey takes place via Israel or Jordan, and then mostly just to the respective side of the Dead Sea. There is a border crossing near the water (at the Allenby or King-Hussein Bridge near Jericho), but the procedures at the border are relatively time-consuming and cumbersome, so that it is preferable to only visit one side. You cannot cross the border at the Dead Sea itself.
Under normal political circumstances, the situation on the borders of the West Bank and the Israeli heartland is less problematic; one can usually cross the West Bank on roads 90 and 1 without difficulty and without significant risks and reach all places on the west coast equally. There may be identity checks at the checkpoints here, but these checks are usually a formality for tourists. If you have an Israeli rental car, you should briefly clarify with the landlord in advance whether there are any restrictions on driving on the West Bank or which ones. One only wants to go to them Israeli coastline, you can bypass the West Bank via Be'er Scheva and Arad if necessary.
From Israel
The closest international airport in Israel is the Ben Gurion Airport at Tel Aviv, which is served from a large number of countries. Charter flights also serve the small airports Eilat and Eilat-Ovda in the far south of the country.
The most important road on the Israeli side is Road 90, which runs along the entire west bank; this road crosses Israel as well as the West Bank completely from the Lebanese border to the north Kirjat Schmona to Eilat in the south. The main feeders near the Dead Sea are from Jerusalem Road 1, which crosses at Jericho, and Road 31 from Arad; the last-named road can already be reached north of Beer Sheva (Beersheba) go up.
Various Egged bus routes run along main road 90, connecting the places and sights on the Dead Sea with Jerusalem, Eilat, Beersheba and Arad, among others. As the area is sparsely populated, you should check the timetables before leaving; in some directions there are only a few connections per day.
From Jordan
The nearest airport is in Amman.
As on the west side, a road runs on the east bank of the Dead Sea in a north-south direction (road 65), which has, among other things, feeders from the border crossing at Allenby Bridge and from Amman. The Dead Sea can from Amman, Madaba or Aqaba can be reached in a day trip. The Amman jet bus costs 8 JD; it stops in front of the "Amman Tourist Beach Swimming Pools" (admission for foreigners 16 JD, plus towel rental).
mobility
If you are traveling by car, you can use the respective coastal road to move along the Dead Sea, i.e. Israeli road 90 on the west side and Jordanian road 65 on the east side.
On the west coast you can get along reasonably well with buses. This is especially true in the Israeli coastline - between En Gedi and Neve Zohar - because here the lines coming from the north and the south intersect and the cycle becomes denser accordingly.
Tourist Attractions
The Dead Sea has various high-class sights to offer. Some destinations on the west side are hardly missing on an Israel tour.
- In the Judean desert, so in the West Bank, are the excavations of Qumran; this place is especially well known because ancient biblical manuscripts were found here.
- The oasis of is just south of the West Bank En Gedi; The lush vegetation in the two deeply incised wadis "Nachal David" and "Nachal Arugot", which are part of a nature park, is impressive.
- The ruin of Masada is considered one of the highlights of a tour in the Holy Land; the great rock fortress on the summit plateau of a mountain goes back to Herod; It is best known as one of the last nests of resistance against the Romans in the Judean War.
The Dead Sea and its surroundings are of course also a sight.
activities
The main Dead Sea activity is Dead Sea bathing; you can do this at various beaches along the coast. A public stretch of beach, which is free except for parking fees, is located in En Bokek. Showers and beach changing rooms are available. The public beach in En Gedi is no longer accessible (as of 2018). Bathing possibility for a fee: En Gedi Spa, directly on the road 90. In En Gedi there are also hot springs (En Gedi Spa).
There are a few things to keep in mind when bathing in the Dead Sea:
- Due to the high salt content, you can float on the water; it is impossible to go under. But be careful not to get any water in your mouth or even in your eyes.
- Should you get water in your eye: in no case rub, the tear fluid washes the salt out again within a minute.
- You shouldn't stay in the water for more than half an hour.
- The mud on the shores of the Dead Sea contains many minerals and is said to be medicinally effective, especially for skin diseases.
In the cooler season you can go hiking in the region; There are also interesting hikes away from the main destinations. Those interested in archeology will particularly get their money's worth in Masada, but there are also excavations in other places.
accommodation
In Israel
There are various places to stay overnight on the Israeli coastline. A particularly large number of hotels are concentrated in En Bokek, but the overnight stays here are very expensive. You can also stay overnight in Neve Zohar and in the kibbutz En Gedi (Hotels or pensions), the two state youth hostels in En Gedi and offer cheaper beds Masada.
In Jordan
- Dead Sea Spa. The house has its own beach below the pools. Non-hotel guests can also use it for a fee. The Medical Center works with German health insurers.
security
Occasionally one sees people along the coast who bathe outside of the designated beaches at the Dead Sea. You should refrain from doing this in your own interest.
- There are freshwater showers only on the official beaches and it is uncomfortable if you have the salt water on your skin for a long time.
- If you swallow large amounts of water or get it in your eyes and panic, you can endanger your life on unsupervised beaches because there are no lifeguards nearby. You can drown in the Dead Sea too!
- A great danger arises from the underground washouts, so-called Sinkholes: If you break into a cavity near the shore, you can seriously injure yourself or get stuck in a hole several meters deep.
climate
The Dead Sea is generally very warm, humid and often stuffy; Compared to the neighboring regions at a higher elevation, it is significantly hotter, e.g. on average around 10 degrees warmer than in Jerusalem. On the one hand, this is due to the deep location below sea level (Jerusalem is approx. 1200 meters higher) and, on the other hand, to the geographical conditions: The prevailing westerly wind falls on the eastern edge of the Judean mountain country and warms up as a result (similar to the foehn winds in the Alps). There is a low level of humidity. In summer temperatures of over 40 ° C can be reached, in winter the temperatures do not fall below ten degrees. Rain almost never falls on the Dead Sea, there are only about 20 rainy days a year.
