Tiberias: what to see, where to stay and how to get around

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Tiberias is one of the four holy cities of Judaism. After the revolts against Rome the Sanhedrin settled here, the Jerusalem Talmud was completed here, and here the Masoretes fixed the vowels and accents of the Hebrew Bible that every printed Bible still follows. This route goes from the tombs in the town to the ruins of the Roman city and the springs to the south. About three hours, mostly on foot with a short drive at each end; the tombs are open all day, modest dress.

A short history of Tiberias

Tiberias was founded around 20 CE by Herod Antipas, who named it after the Emperor Tiberius. After the Bar Kokhba revolt it became one of the most important centres of Judaism in the land: the Sanhedrin sat here, and the Jerusalem Talmud was completed here around the year 400. The Tiberian vocalisation, still used today to mark vowels in Hebrew, was also established here. In 1204 Maimonides was buried in the city, and in the 1560s Doña Gracia leased the city from Sultan Suleiman in order to settle Jews there. The earthquake of 1837 destroyed most of the city and killed many of its residents. In April 1948 the Arab residents left, and in the years that followed the city grew up the hillside.

The ten best sights in Tiberias

1
Tiberias Promenade
Black basalt towers, fish restaurants and boats; at its best in the evening
2
Tomb of Maimonides
Next to the town centre, open day and night; modest dress
3
Tomb of Rabbi Akiva
On the hill above the town, with a view of the whole lake
4
Tomb of Rabbi Meir Baal HaNes
Above the hot springs south of town; crowded on the eve of Pesach Sheni
5
Hamat Tiberias
A synagogue floor with a zodiac, by the hot springs; small and quick
6
Ancient Tiberias
The Roman and Byzantine city south of the centre; free, little shade
7
St Peter's Church
The Franciscan church on the promenade, its apse shaped like a boat
8
Scots Hotel
The old Scottish mission hospital; walk in for a drink in the garden
9
Tiberias Hot Springs
Hot pools fed by the springs at the south end of town
10
Yigal Allon Centre
The ancient boat of the lake, at Kibbutz Ginosar, 10 minutes north

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What is an audio walk?

Tours in Tiberias →

A guide in your headphones: open the walk on our site, walk from stop to stop, and at each one your phone tells its story. No guide, no group, and free. This is the first walk in Tiberias:

Free walking tours in Tiberias

The city of the sages

Tomb of Rabbi Akiva · Rabbi Akiva, the greatest sage of his age, backed the Bar Kokhba revolt and was put to death by the Romans; by tradition he is buried on this hill. The Talmud says he began to study only at forty, after his wife Rachel left her rich father to marry him.
Tomb of Maimonides · Maimonides, physician to the court of Saladin and author of the Mishneh Torah, died in Egypt in 1204, and by tradition his body was carried to Tiberias for burial. Rabbi Yohanan ben Zakkai and the Shelah, Rabbi Isaiah Horowitz, are buried a few steps away.
Tiberias Promenade · In the 1560s Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent granted Tiberias to Doña Gracia Nasi and her nephew Joseph, Jews who had fled the Inquisition; Joseph rebuilt the walls and tried to bring Jewish refugees from Europe to settle here, one of the first plans of its kind.
Ancient Tiberias · Herod Antipas founded the city around 20 CE and named it after the emperor Tiberius. In the tenth century the Masoretes of Tiberias, among them Aaron ben Asher, set down the vowel points of the Hebrew Bible; the Aleppo Codex, which he vocalised himself, is in the Israel Museum.
Hamat Tiberias · The floor of a fourth-century synagogue shows the twelve signs of the zodiac around the sun god Helios, with the Torah ark and two menorahs above them; an inscription names Severus, a pupil of the Patriarch, who paid for it.
Tomb of Rabbi Meir Baal HaNes · Rabbi Meir, a pupil of Rabbi Akiva, is one of the sages most quoted in the Mishnah. The tradition is that he asked to be buried standing, ready to rise when the Messiah comes; on Pesach Sheni tens of thousands come to his hilula.

Around the north shore

On the north shore of the lake, within a dozen kilometres, are the fishing towns where the Gospels set most of the ministry of Jesus, and the synagogues of the Jews who lived in them. This drive goes from the first-century synagogue of Magdala past the ancient boat of Ginosar to the churches of Tabgha and the synagogue of Capernaum. About 40 kilometres and half a day; every church asks for shoulders and knees covered, and most close for a couple of hours at midday.

Magdala · In 2009, digging for a guest house, archaeologists found a synagogue of the first century here, one of the few known from the time of the Second Temple. In it stood a carved stone with a seven-branched menorah, among the oldest images of the Temple's menorah.
Mount Arbel · Josephus tells how in 38 BCE Herod's soldiers were lowered down this cliff in cages to burn out the rebels hiding in its caves; the caves were fortified again centuries later, and their walls are still seen from the trail.
Yigal Allon Centre · In the drought of 1986 two brothers from the kibbutz, Moshe and Yuval Lufan, found the outline of a wooden boat in the mud of the shore. It dates from around the first century BCE to the first century CE, and it took years of soaking in wax before it could be shown here.
Tabgha · The Church of the Multiplication stands over the floor of a fifth-century church, and in front of the altar is its best-known mosaic: a basket of loaves between two fish.
Mount of Beatitudes · The church was built in 1938 by the Italian architect Antonio Barluzzi with eight sides, one for each of the beatitudes of the Sermon on the Mount, and its gardens look straight down over the lake.
Capernaum · The white limestone synagogue, of the fourth or fifth century, was built on the black basalt foundations of an older one, which many think is the synagogue where the Gospels say Jesus taught. Peter's house is under the modern church next to it.

The first kibbutz

At the southern tip of the lake, in a few square kilometres, the Second Aliyah built the first collective farm and the training farm that came before it, and buried its poets and leaders under the palms by the water. This loop by car visits them, the place where the Jordan leaves the lake, and the hot springs of the Yarmouk. About 60 kilometres and half a day; the cemetery and Yardenit are free, Hamat Gader charges entry.

Kinneret Courtyard · The Zionist Organisation set up the Kinneret farm in 1908 to train young Jewish workers. A group of them, unhappy with working under a manager, asked to farm land across the Jordan on their own, and in 1910 they founded Degania.
Kinneret Cemetery · Rachel, the poet who sang of the Kinneret, is buried here, and beside her grave is a box with a notebook of her poems for visitors. Berl Katznelson lies here too, and the remains of the early socialist Zionists Moses Hess, Nachman Syrkin and Ber Borochov were brought here from abroad.
Degania Alef · The first kibbutz, founded in 1910 and called the mother of the kibbutzim. On 20 May 1948 the Syrian army reached its gate, and the small Syrian tank stopped there by the defenders still stands where it halted.
Yardenit · Kibbutz Kinneret opened this baptism site in 1981 where the Jordan flows out of the lake, and pilgrims from all over the world come down the steps in white robes; the Gospels place the baptism of Jesus further south, near Jericho.
Hamat Gader · The Romans built one of the largest bath complexes of their eastern empire over these springs by the Yarmouk, where the water comes out at about forty-two degrees; the halls were brought down by the earthquake of 749.
Ein Gev · The kibbutz on the east shore went up in a single day in 1937 as a tower and stockade settlement, under the Syrian heights. For decades it was reached mostly by boat from Tiberias, and its spring music festival made it known across the country.

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Getting to Tiberias and getting around

Tiberias Central Bus Station · Buses to Jerusalem, Haifa and Tel Aviv; none from Friday afternoon to Saturday night
Beit She'an Station · The nearest train, 40 minutes south, on the valley line to Haifa

Cheap eats in Tiberias

Tiberias eats on the street and late. Grilled skewers, falafel and pizza sell on the pedestrian streets behind the promenade, and in summer the stalls open in the evening when the heat lets go. Kosher food is the rule, so much of it closes from Friday afternoon to Saturday night.

Basar Al HaEsh · Grilled skewers in pita by the promenade, about 50 ₪
Falafel stand, town centre · Falafel in pita with salads, about 20 ₪
HaMiznon shel Moshe ve-Elad · Sandwiches and hot plates at a local snack bar, about 40 ₪
Pizza Shemesh · A slice to eat walking, about 15 ₪
Gelato on the promenade · Ice cream by the water, about 20 ₪
Tiberias Market · Fruit and olives for a picnic, about 20 ₪

Holy places in Tiberias

Tomb of Maimonides · Open day and night; men and women pray on separate sides
Tomb of Rabbi Meir Baal HaNes · Two synagogues, Sephardi and Ashkenazi, over the grave; modest dress
Tomb of Rabbi Akiva · On the hill; a view of the town and lake
St Peter's Church · The Franciscan church on the promenade; modest dress
Capernaum · The white synagogue and Peter's house; entry fee, closed late afternoon

Nature and day trips near Tiberias

Mount Arbel · The view from the top is easy; the descent down the cliff with handholds is not
Tiberias Hot Springs · Mineral pools; an evening soak after a hot day
Hamat Gader · Hot sulphur pools and Roman baths in the Yarmouk gorge
Gai Beach · A beach with a water park at the south end of town; entry charged
Ein Gev · The quiet east shore; a beach and the kibbutz date palms

Things to do in Tiberias with kids

Hamat Gader · Crocodiles, a parrot show and a warm pool; half a day
Gai Beach · Water slides on the shore of the lake
Yigal Allon Centre · The ancient boat and a short film; an hour
Tiberias Promenade · Boats leave from the promenade for short trips on the lake
Yardenit · Fish and ducks in the clear water of the Jordan; free

Where to eat in Tiberias

Galei Gil · Fish from the lake on the promenade, at tables by the water
Decks · Meat from the grill on a deck over the lake; book ahead
The House · At the north end of the promenade; check hours on Friday
Pagoda · East Asian food by the water, on the promenade
Ein Gev Fish Restaurant · The kibbutz's fish restaurant on the east shore, by the jetty

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Frequently asked questions about Tiberias

What is there to see in Tiberias?

The top sights in Tiberias are Tiberias Promenade, Tomb of Maimonides and Tomb of Rabbi Akiva. The full list on this page has 10 sights, each with a photo and a short note.

How many days do you need in Tiberias?

Three to four days are enough to see the best of Tiberias without rushing, including at least one walking tour.

Is there a free walking tour in Tiberias?

Yes. sleepntrip has 3 free audio walks in Tiberias, with no guide and no group: your phone tells the story at every stop. The first one: The city of the sages.

How do you get to Tiberias and get around?

The main ways are Tiberias Central Bus Station and Beit She'an Station. Full details are in the transport section on this page.

Where to stay in Tiberias, and for how much?

sleepntrip shows only rooms in Tiberias that meet nine conditions: a good location, high guest scores, cleanliness, and a price of up to $80 a night for two. Pick your dates and see what is free.

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