Carmel · Easy · Circular

Nahal Me'arot caves and the botanical loop

Up to the prehistoric caves of Nahal Me'arot (נחל מערות) on the Carmel, then a round on the blue botanical trail through scrub and pine wood.

Distance
3.9 km (2.4 mi)
Ascent
124 m
Time
About 1 h 15 min
High point
166 m
Grade
Easy

Line © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), checked by Global Adventurer.

0 km1 km2 km3 km166 m31 m
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Nahal Me'arot caves and the botanical loop
Avi1111 dr. avishai teicher · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

The walk

From the car park of the Nahal Me'arot Nature Reserve (נחל מערות) take the paved caves path, which climbs steep steps to the Tabun Cave, runs along the foot of the cliff past the Camel Cave to the long el-Wad Cave, and drops back to the visitor centre. Then follow the blue marks east up the valley floor. At its head the blue trail turns right and climbs through thick Mediterranean scrub to the ridge, heads west through Aleppo pine wood to a view over the coastal plain and the sea, and drops to the green-marked Israel National Trail just south of the entrance; turn right for the car park.

It is 3.9 km round with 124 m of ascent; allow about 1½ hours. The grade is Easy: paved paths and steps by the caves, then rocky paths with one steady climb.

There is little shade on the open slopes, so carry water in the warm months. Dogs are not allowed and fires are forbidden.

Adults pay 24 NIS; entry closes an hour before closing time, at 16:00 in summer time and 15:00 in winter (an hour earlier on Fridays), and INPA asks visitors to book a slot online. Buses on Route 4 stop at Ein Carmel junction, about 800 m away. Drivers coming from the north cannot turn left into the reserve and must turn back at Geva Carmel.

Route drawn by Global Adventurer along OpenStreetMap paths (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), with figures worked out from it. Check the forecast and the ground on the day: paths change.

Good to know

  • Four caves in the limestone cliff hold traces of people over about half a million years; the site joined the UNESCO World Heritage list in 2012
  • Dorothy Garrod began digging the Tabun Cave in 1927; its layers go down some 20 m, with Neanderthal and early modern human remains in the valley
  • The terrace of the el-Wad Cave held a Natufian village some 12,000 years ago
  • The reserve is off Route 4 between Haifa and Zikhron Ya'akov; buses stop at Ein Carmel junction, about 800 m away

Getting there

Start: Nahal Me'arot Nature Reserve car park. 32.67056, 34.96495

Directions to the start

Google Maps Apple Maps Waze Moovit

Waze drives you to the car park; Moovit has the buses and trains to the start.

Places to stay nearby

Rooms in and around עתלית: Booking.com → Expedia → Hotels.com →

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Paths change, and the weather decides the day. The line and figures come from OpenStreetMap and our own checks; take a map, check the forecast, and turn back if it isn't right.