Kibbutz Kinneret: Museum and History

Two topics can be considered separately when planning a trip: the history of the Kinneret Farm and Kvutzat Kinneret, and archaeological sites in the broader destination of the Northern District. One specific historical point of interest is the Kinneret Museum in Kvutzat Kinneret. Tel Hazor and Tel Megiddo, on the other hand, are part of the regional picture of the Northern District. If you are looking for hotels in Kibbutz Kinneret, you can consider which of these historical perspectives is especially interesting for your trip.

Kinneret Museum and Local History

The Kinneret Museum comprises ten exhibition rooms in two departments. One is devoted to the early settlement of the Kinneret Farm, while the other covers the development of Kvutzat Kinneret since 1929. The layout thus presents two distinct areas of focus: the farm’s early settlement and the development of the Kvutzat. The year 1929 belongs to the second department and dates the development it covers; the first looks at earlier beginnings of settlement.

The historical contributions of Kinneret’s Yemenite community are also part of the cultural picture in the immediate vicinity of the destination. The community’s settlement was near the Kinneret Farm. Its contributions included reclaiming land, building roads, and planting eucalyptus trees. These activities complement the museum’s areas of focus with specific aspects of the surrounding area’s history: alongside the development of the Kvutzat are work on the land, road construction, and tree planting. If you are interested in the destination’s history, comparing these topics offers different perspectives.

Archaeological Sites in the Broader Destination of the Northern District

In the broader destination of the Northern District, Tel Hazor and Tel Megiddo are distinct archaeological sites. Tel Hazor brings together fortifications, palace history, and an underground water-collection system. At Tel Megiddo, the focus is on an Early Bronze Age temple complex and an orthogonal city plan from the Iron Age. The features of both sites give you specific topics to help guide your interests.

In the broader destination of the Northern District, Tel Hazor is a biblical tell with significant remains of a city associated with biblical accounts. The visit focuses on the Upper City. Tel Hazor includes Solomon’s Gate, a six-chambered gate with two towers dating to the 10th century BCE. The fortifications are considered the finest example of their kind in the area from southern Turkey to the northern Negev. The palace history also reaches far back: the kings of Hazor used the Canaanite palace in the 14th and 13th centuries BCE. The Late Bronze Age palace is considered the most elaborate in Israel and one of the most important in the Levant.

Another feature of Tel Hazor is its water system. It preserves significant remains of a sophisticated engineering achievement, adapted to the geography, for storing water. Steps three meters wide are cut into the walls of the vertical shaft; the excavated shaft is 45 meters deep. Tel Hazor National Park can be reached from the north and south via Route 90 toward Ayelet Hashahar. Check your navigation before setting out.

Tel Megiddo is also in the broader destination of the Northern District. It is one of three tells preserving significant remains of cities associated with biblical accounts and closely linked to events in the Bible. Its Early Bronze Age temple complex is exceptional in terms of the number of its temples, the continuity of cult activity, and the documented ritual activities. Tel Megiddo’s orthogonal city plan dates from the Iron Age and has few parallels in the Levant. The archaeological focuses therefore differ: at Hazor, water engineering and fortifications are among the features of interest; at Megiddo, they are the temple complex and city plan.

Discover more destinations: Jericho, Sde Yoav, Keramim, Yuval, Amir, Bet Sheʼan, Moran, Ma'ayan Baruch.

See the broader travel overview: Israel.