Masada and Dead Sea

We had a bit of time to sleep in (one of the first times) because the rental company just opened at 9. With the car we drove straight to a nearby hostel where you could buy the Israel Pass, a similar system as the Jordan Pass but only for National Parks.
We made the detour because we went straight to a National Park. The Masada National Park is located next to the Dead Sea and contains an ancient fortress dating way back before Christ. The access to the fortress can be done either via cable car or hiking up. The cable car was way too expensive so we hiked up in the midday sun and it felt pretty hot. I can't imagine what it would be like in summer! The 350m climb led over 800 stairs, surprisingly it took us just a bit more than half an hour. But we were glad that there was water available on top.
The fortress itself is not a good condition, many parts were just merely ruins. But the views were gorgeous and you could imagine the beauty of it standing on top of the mountain in former times. We took our time exploring the top before moving back down. As it was still daylight we decided to go straight to the Dead Sea. By the time we arrived the sun almost set and I just took a quick dip.
Our options to stay for the night were limited as there are only luxury resorts nearby starting from 150€ a night. But, to our surprise, there were parking spots available right next to town to camp out. After some walking around in town (also overpriced) and a stop in McDonald's (to our great disappointment there's no McFalafel) we went to the car. We moved the seats all the way back and we were able to lay down quite comfortably.Read more