Located at the Red sea coast, Eilat is the extreme southern part of Israel, attracting tourists from all over the world for its beautiful natural habitat, pleasant climate, clean water in the sea, fine diving etc. Also because it is a few minutes drive from the Jordanian city of Aqaba and Egyptian city Taba. Even Saudi Arabia is located not far from the Eilat, but conventional tourists are not, as of yet permitted to enter the country.

One of the great things about Eilat’s unique location is that several cross-border tours are organised here. The best time to visit is during summer, between July to November.

We booked the bus tickets and accommodation at Eilat, 15 days in advance. It was about six hours journey from Haifa to Eilat by Volvo buses. There are many such hostels around the Eilat Bus station. Hotel accommodation is from 125 Shakeels onwards. Craves and prehistoric temples dating back to the Neolithic age indicate that people lived in the Eilat region as long as 10,000 years ago! It may be they, who invented the stone plough and first used wood as a form of worship. Eilat was also well known in chalcolithic times for the level of metallurgy that developed at the copper mines of Timna (known as Timna park).

History time
In the days of King Solomon, Eilat was the only port in the Kingdom of Israel. Romans based their tenth legion in Eilat and forced Christians to work in the copper mines in Jordan. Led by a bishop, a large Christian community developed in Eilat. Until the tenth century, a small group of Jews also lived in the town.

The liberation of Eilat by the Israel Defence Force in March 1949 marked the end of the war of Independence. Cease fire agreements that Israel signed with Jordan and Egypt placed Eilat and all of the Negev (desert) within boundaries of the new Jewish state.

Here, even though buses and other vehicles are available to get by in, I found taxis to be the more convenient and less expensive.

The ‘Eilat Coral Reef’ is the northern part of the Red Sea’s 4500 km of coral reefs and the most northern part in the world. The warm water of the sea and its clear water create an environment most suitable for corals. Entry fee per person is 40 Shakeels and if you want to indulge in underwater sea observation in a ship, it will be cost around 80 shakeels. The highlight of the coral world is natural colonies of a variety of corals, big aquariums, big pools of sharks, rays, sea turtles etc. 

A unique show of flashlight fish is shown in a completely dark room, illuminated only with the luminescent organs of the fish. All tanks contain natural sea water directly pumped from sea, without any filtration or treatment.

Fun underwater
The underwater observatory is a long tower, entering into the depths of sea, and is about 100 metres away from the shore connected by a bridge. There are two observation rooms which are about six metres below sea level, where one can find colonies of corals and fish. You can find many shops selling ornaments made of natural pearl and Eilat’s famous blue stone.

We took a tour inside the sea. We entered into a submarine-like ship which has transparent glass on both sides for observation. It was about 20 minutes inside the sea and I found that it was the most amazing one I had seen! Just North of the Coral reef is the Dolphin reef or Dolphin beach where visitors can observe dolphins, even swim or dive with them! A very large area for the Dolphins has been covered with a plastic mesh in the natural sea. Dolphins are free to move within this region.

The next day, we took a tour to Timna park, one of the ancient copper mines of the world. Between the spectacular mountains, one can find proof of the ancient mine.

Still the entire region is highly rich in copper ore, but due to decreased demand in copper, the mine was closed completely. If you put little water on any small stone piece, it will turn green because of the high content of copper.

Birds galore
Eilat is an ideal place for birdwatching. As it is the only land bridge between Asia and Africa, that makes it one of the world’s most  important route for migratory birds.

Fall and Spring are the main seasons for this, however migration can be observed throughout the year except during May and June. If you get any chance to visit Israel, don’t forget this wonderful place.