Travel to Beit Guvrin-Maresha national park (also sometimes spelled Bet-Guvrin) is easy by car from Tel Aviv. It’s about 1.5 hours drive southeast from central Tel Aviv. However, if you do not want to hire a car, then there are also day tour options. We arrived in the morning by 10 AM before the crowds, which was nice. Some of the caves are quite narrow so it is good if there are not too many people. Also the parking in lot A can get very full. Make sure to look at the map for the parking locations to see the various sights!
The park is a beautiful natural reserve with hills, rocks, olive trees and wild flowers. In addition, there are interesting historic caves to visit including burial caves. And just outside of the park you can see the Roman amphitheatre and baths, and the Crusaders fortress.
Highlights
- Polish cave
- Agricultural installation complex and outdoor architectural museum
- Columbarium Cave
- Wildflowers in springtime
- The Bathtub cave
- Maze cave
- The Oil press cave
- The Villa
- Sidonian caves, burial grounds
- Bell caves, huge and impressive
- St Anne’s Church, a little walk from the other places
- Roman amphitheatre and baths
- Crusaders Fortress
- Tel Maresha for the flowers and a great 360-degree view
Before you go
- Go in the morning, when it is less crowded
- There is an admission fee (28 NIS in March 2023) for the national park that you pay at the entrance. It’s better to have cash
- If you’ll be going to more than one national park then you may want to get a pass
- Hiking boots are useful as the cave surfaces and some trails are rocky
- The caves with steep stairs are not really suitable for small children, but we saw many families at the bell caves
- When it’s sunny, wear sunscreen. I got sunburnt in early March on a sunny day. There is little shade around except for a few olive trees
- Bring snacks and water
- Follow the rules which are listed on the map
Transport
- There is no way to go to the park by public transport, so you can either hire a car or find a tour that goes there for the day. Luckily, I had friends who picked me up and drove there. It’s 1.5 hours south of Tel Aviv
- The map shows where to park. We parked in lot A for most of the trip. Later, we moved to lot D to visit the Bell caves and lot E for the Roman amphitheatre
Accommodation
- I stayed in Tel Aviv during this trip, since it is just 1.5 hours drive from the national park. See the Tel Aviv post for hotel recommendations
Food
There are a few snack bars within the park, but most people brought their own picnic lunches. We had a few of our snacks there, including Bamba (peanut-flavoured puffed corn snacks like Cheetos). After our visit, we went to a restaurant outside of the park.
FAQs
Q: Do I need a tour guide?
A: No, not to walk around the park, as there is a map and there are lots of signs.
Q: Do people speak English?
A: Yes, most people speak English
Q: Is it walkable?
A: You will do a lot of walking, but there are different car parks depending on the sites to visit.
Go to Israel
Go to Country Map