We wish to thank Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia for some of the information on our web pages. We share images and information with Wikipedia. We also donate to Wikipedia, & would suggest that others do the same. Ein Gedi is an oasis in Israel, located west of the Dead Sea, near Masada and the caves of Qumran. The name Ein Gedi is composed of two Hebrew words: ein means spring and gdi means goat-kid. En Gedi thus means "Kid spring." The word 'ain' or 'ein' also means spring in Arabic, and the word 'Gedi' or 'Jadi' also means a goat-kid in Arabic. The Bible mentions Ein Gedi several times. In the 2 Chronicles 20:2 Ein Gedi is identified with Hazazon-tamar, where the Moabites and Ammonites gathered in order to fight Josaphat. In Genesis 14:7 Hazazon-tamar is mentioned as being an Amorite city, smitten by Chedorlaomer in his war against the cities of the plain. In Joshua 15:62, Ein Gedi is enumerated among the cities of the Tribe of Judah in the desert Betharaba, but Ezekiel 47:10 shows that it was also a fisherman's town. Later, King David hides in the desert of Ein Gedi (1 Samuel 24:1-2) and King Saul seeks him "even upon the most craggy rocks, which are accessible only to wild goats" (1 Samuel 24:3). The indigenous Jewish town of Ein Gedi was an important source of balsam for the Greco-Roman world until its destruction by Byzantine emperor Justinian as part of his persecution of the Jews in his realm. A synagogue mosaic remains from Ein Gedi's heyday, including a Judeo-Aramaic inscription warning inhabitants against "revealing the town's secret" � possibly the methods for extraction and preparation of the much-prized balsam resin, though not stated outright in the inscription � to the outside world. According to the Jewish-Roman historian Josephus Flavius, the Sicarii, who fought the Romans until their defeat and mass suicide at the Siege of Masada, plundered local villages including En Gedi. At En Gedi, they drove out the defenders, and killed over seven hundred women and children who could not run away. The Ein Gedi Nature Reserve at this site is a sanctuary for many types of plant, bird and animal species. The vegetation includes plants and trees from the tropical, desert, Mediterranean, and steppian regions, such as Sodom apple, acacia, jujube, and poplar. The many species of resident birds are supplemented by over 200 additional species during the migration periods in the spring and fall. Two of the mammal species are the Nubian ibex and the rock hyrax. The En Gedi Antiquities National Park features several archaeological sites including the Chalcolithic Temple of Ein Gedi, which served as a cultic center for the nomadic tribes of the region, a first-century CE village, & a Jewish settlement from the third to the sixth centuries CE, where dwellings and a synagogue have been excavated.. En Gedi also has a kibbutz, & Botanical Garden at the site. People also come here to swim in the Dead Sea.

The easy way to get to Ein Gedi, Israel, is to fly into the Ben Gurion International Airport. The airport is at the junction of the Haifa, Jerusalem, Dan, and Tel Aviv metropolitan areas. The Ben Gurion International Airport, (IATA: TLV, ICAO: LLBG), also referred to by its Hebrew acronym Natbag, is the largest and busiest international airport in Israel. It was named the best airport in the Middle East by the ACI organisation.[ The airport is located near the city of Lod, 15 km (9 mi) southeast of Tel Aviv. It is operated by the Israel Airports Authority, a government-owned corporation that manages all public airports and border crossings in the State of Israel. The Ben Gurion International Airport is considered one of the world's most secure airports, with a security force that includes both police officers and IDF soldiers. There are several hotels in or near Jerusalem. There are several Guided Tour Agencies offering standard city, and historical tours of Jerusalem, Israel and the surrounding areas. After arranging your flight we would suggest getting your hotel and then letting them arrange tours of the area for you. If you call the hotels Concierge Services ahead of your arrival, all of this can be pre-arranged for you. I do this all the time. It is safe and it works!!! I have never experienced a problem doing it this way! I have links to Priceline.Com on our page so that you can arrange your flight and hotel in the Jerusalem, Israel area.