Ein Bokek, front row
Hotels opening directly onto the equipped, lifeguarded beach. The most convenient, the most expensive, and the only area where you walk to the water in a bathrobe.
Dead Sea hotels: it all comes down to the distance to the water
The Dead Sea is not a town, it is a strip of hotels along the shore, concentrated in Ein Bokek and, further south, in Neve Zohar. The choice therefore rests on few criteria, but they matter enormously.
The first is access to the water. Some properties open directly onto the beach; others require a ten-minute walk or a shuttle, which changes everything when it is forty-five degrees.
The second is the meal plan. Here, half board is almost the norm, because there is practically nothing to eat outside the hotels.
Good deals and small budgets: the Dead Sea without the front row
Moving back one row of hotels or heading down to Neve Zohar can cut the nightly rate by a hundred euros, for the same water.
What this category looks like
Second-row hotels in Ein Bokek or older properties in Neve Zohar, often renovated in phases. Half board included, freshwater and saltwater pools, spa at extra cost. Expect a five- to fifteen-minute walk to the beach, sometimes a shuttle.
Who it's for
Stays of two to three nights, stopovers between Jerusalem and Eilat, and those who come for the water and treatments more than for the room.
What we check for you
The actual route to the beach, and whether there is a shuttle and its timetable. The state of renovations, as several properties work wing by wing. And exactly what half board covers, as dinner is sometimes served within a very short window.
Ideal for families: the pools as much as the sea
At the Dead Sea, children swim little in the sea: the water stings the eyes and the slightest scratch burns. The pools are what make the stay.
What this category looks like
Ein Bokek hotels with several pools, including at least one freshwater pool, family or connecting rooms, buffet half board and sometimes a kids' club. Most have shaded access to the beach.
Who it's for
Families with children of all ages, stays of three to five nights, and trips combining the Dead Sea, Masada and Ein Gedi.
What we check for you
The number of pools and whether they are heated or cooled depending on the season, which changes everything between January and August. Whether there is real shade around the pools. And the age policy, as some properties in the area are reserved for adults or guests over sixteen.
Comfort and prime location: feet in the salt
What you pay for here is simple: step out of the hotel and be in the water, without crossing a road.
What this category looks like
Front-row properties in Ein Bokek, with private beach access, full spa, mud and mineral treatments, spacious rooms with a balcony facing the water and views of the Moab mountains.
Who it's for
Wellness stays, cures, trips marking an occasion, and those who come to rest rather than sightsee.
What we check for you
Whether beach access is truly private and direct, or goes through a shared gate. What is included in the spa and what remains paid, as the difference can be considerable. And the room's orientation, as the view over Jordan varies from one wing to another.
Ein Bokek or Neve Zohar: which area to choose?
Ein Bokek, second row
The same services five to ten minutes' walk from the beach, for a noticeably lower rate. The best compromise for most stays.
Neve Zohar
A few kilometers south, quieter and more affordable. Access to the water is less organized and a car becomes useful.
Arad
Half an hour's drive away and six hundred meters above sea level, with dry air recommended for respiratory problems. Much cheaper, but you are not staying by the water.
Around Masada and Ein Gedi
A few isolated lodgings and guesthouses, for those who want to be there at sunrise. Few services nearby.
Kosher hotels and Shabbat at the Dead Sea
Almost all the hotels in Ein Bokek are kosher, which makes things simpler. But Shabbat has a particular practical consequence here: there is nothing around the hotels, so everything depends on the property's internal organization.
What lies behind a “kosher hotel”
The kitchen's certification and the rabbinical authority that issues it, the Shabbat elevator and the floors it serves, how key cards work from Friday evening to Saturday evening, how meals and buffets are organized during Shabbat, the hot plate, and the hotel synagogue.
What we do
We check these points before your booking, and above all we check what stays open during Shabbat: pools, spa, beach access. At the Dead Sea, if the hotel closes its facilities, there is no alternative nearby.
Traveling during the holidays
Passover and Sukkot fill Ein Bokek several months in advance, and full board generally becomes mandatory. Rates change significantly. We will tell you frankly what is still available and at what price.
Do you need a car at the Dead Sea?
Yes, in most cases. There is hardly any transport on site, the hotels are lined up along a single road, and everything worth seeing is twenty minutes or more away: Masada, Ein Gedi, the Nahal David canyon.
If you stay only in Ein Bokek for the water and the spa, you can do without one. As soon as you want to see anything else, it becomes essential. Many of our clients combine Jerusalem and the Dead Sea with a car picked up in Jerusalem.