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. Shfela, or Shephelah, or Shfelat Yehuda, "Judean foothills", is a lowland in south-central Israel stretching over 10�15 km between Mount Hebron and the coastal plain. It was one of the regions allotted to the biblical Tribe of Judah. Today the Shfela is largely rural with many farms. The Shfela is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible, in Deuteronomy 1:7 (the vale); Joshua 9:1 (the valleys); 10:40 (the vale); 11:2, 16 (the valley); 12:8; 15:33; Judges 1:9; 1 Kings 10:27; Jeremiah 17:26; 32:44; 33:13; Obadiah 1:19; Zechariah 7:7; 1 Chronicles 27:28; 2 Chronicles 1:15; 9:27;26:10; 28:18. The Shfela was the site of many biblical battles. During the Bar Kokhba revolt, hollowed out hills were connected to form elaborate bunker systems for the combat with the Romans. The Shfela is a fertile rolling plain. One of the major characteristics are hills formed of marl-covered soft chalk, as opposed to the Judean Hills which are made of hard chalk and dolomite. The valleys and lower areas contain soil with a high sand content, as well as large tracts of fertile areas. Seasonal swamps can develop during the rainy season. The southern part is made up of loess, while north of Ashkelon consists of clay. The Shfela is 120-450 metres above sea level with a temperate Mediterranean to semi-arid climate. A series of east-west valleys cuts the Shfelah into districts. From north to south, they are: the Valley of Ayalon, Sorek Valley, Valley of Elah, Guvrin Valley, Valley of Lachish, and Valley of Adorayim. The biblical towns established there guarded settlements of the interior and took advantage of trade passing along this route. Ayalon was the primary access corridor to Jerusalem along the ascent of Horon. Caves are a major feature of the southern part of the Shfela, many of them bell-shaped caves such as those in Beit Guvrin. Archaeological surveys in the Shfela have found evidence of habitation during the Late Bronze period. The nearby site of Tel Lachish is a National Park in Israel. Lachish was an ancient Near East town located at the site of modern Tel Lachish or Tell ed-Duweir in the Shephelah, a region between Mount Hebron and the maritime Mediterranean coast. The town was first mentioned in the Amarna letters as Lakisha-Laki�a (EA 287, 288, 328, 329, 335). According to the Bible, the Israelites captured and destroyed Lachish for joining the league against the Gibeonites (Joshua 10:31-33), but its territory was later assigned to the tribe of Judah (15:39) and became a part of the Kingdom of Israel. The Beit Guvrin-Maresha National Park is a national park in central Israel, 13 kilometers from Kiryat Gat, encompassing the ruins of Maresha, one of the important towns of Judah during the time of the First Temple, and Beit Guvrin, an important town in the Roman era, when it was known as Eleutheropolis. Archaeological artifacts unearthed at the site include a large Jewish cemetery, a Roman-Byzantine amphitheater, a Byzantine church, public baths, mosaics and burial caves

The easy way to get to Shephelah, 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.