24 Best Sights in Haifa and the Northern Coast, Israel

This beautifully maintained stretch of sand in the Achziv National Park is north of Nahariya, on the road to Rosh Hanikra. Beside the ruins of the ancient settlement of Achziv are two huge lagoons along the shore, one shallow, the other deep. There are also watchful lifeguards and playground facilities. In July and August, turtles lay their eggs on the beach. You can picnic on the grassy slopes or make use of the restaurant. Enter at the second sign for Achziv Beach, not the first. For NIS 63 per person, you can camp here overnight. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (fee); showers; toilets. Best for: swimming; walking.

By turns an ancient Roman port city, Byzantine capital, and Crusader stronghold, Caesarea is one of the country's major archaeological sites and a delightful place to spend a day of leisurely sightseeing among the fascinating ruins. You can also browse in souvenir shops and art galleries, take a dip at the beach, snorkel or dive around a submerged port, and enjoy a seaside meal. Caesarea is an easy day trip from Haifa, Tel Aviv, or even Jerusalem. A good strategy is to start at the Roman Theater, at the southern entrance. After exploring, you can then leave through the northern entrance. If you're short on time, enter from the north for a quicker tour of the site. At either of the two entrances to this intriguing site, pick up the free brochure and map.

Entry to the Roman Theater is through one of the vomitoria (arched tunnels that served as entrances for the public). Herod's theaters—here as elsewhere in Israel—were the first of their kind in the ancient Near East. The theater today seats 3,600 and is a spectacular venue for summer concerts and performances. What you see is largely a reconstruction: only a few of the seats of the cavea (where the audience sat) near the orchestra are original, as are some of the stairs and the decorative wall at the front of the stage.

The huge Herodian Amphitheater is a horseshoe-shape stadium with sloping sides filled with rows of stone seats. It's most likely the one mentioned by 1st-century AD historian Josephus Flavius in The Jewish War. A crowd of 10,000 watched horse and chariot races and various other sporting events here some 2,000 years ago. Up the wooden steps, you see the street's beautiful and imaginative mosaic floors in the bathhouse complex of the Roman-Byzantine administrative area.

King Louis IX of France built the walls that surround the Crusader City. The bulk of it—the moat, escarpment, citadel, and walls, which once contained 16 towers—dates from 1251, when the French monarch spent a year pitching in with his own two hands to help restore the existing fortifications. As you enter the southern wall gate of the Crusader city, you see the remains of an unfinished cathedral with three graceful apses.

At the observation point, you can gaze out over the remains of Herod's Port, once a magnificent sight that writers of the day compared to Athens' Port of Piraeus. An earthquake devastated the harbor in AD 130, which is why Crusaders utilized only a small section of it when they conquered the city in 1101.

In the harbor area, don't miss the Time Trek. Inside, you meet 12 of Caesarea's fascinating historic personages—among them Herod the Great, Rabbi Akiva, and St. Paul. These realistic-looking, larger-than-life figures answer questions about their lives in Caesarea. If you climb the stairs of the nearby squarish stone tower of the re-created fortress on the pier, you can view three-dimensional animations on giant screens that explain the amazing construction of the port.

East of the northern entrance to the site, a fenced-in area encloses Caesarea's Byzantine Street. During the Byzantine period and late Roman times, Caesarea thrived as a center of Christian scholarship. In the 7th century, Caesarea had a famous library of some 30,000 volumes that originated with the collection of the Christian philosopher Origen (185–254), who lived here for two decades. Towering over the street are two headless marble statues, probably carted here from nearby Roman temples. The provenance of the milky-white statue is unknown; Emperor Hadrian might have commissioned the reddish figure facing it when he visited Caesarea.

A wonderful finale to your trip to Caesarea, especially at sunset, is the beachfront Roman Aqueduct. The chain of arches tumbling northward before disappearing beneath the sand is a captivating sight. During Roman times, the demand for a steady water supply was considerable, but the source was a spring about 13 km (8 miles) away in the foothills of Mount Carmel. Workers cut a channel approximately 6½ km (4 miles) long through solid rock before the water was piped into the aqueduct. In the 2nd century, Hadrian doubled its capacity by adding a new channel. Today you can walk along the aqueduct and see marble plaques dedicated to the troops of various legions who toiled here.

The prehistoric Carmel Caves, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, are a highlight of this nature reserve, 3 km (2 miles) south of Ein Hod. They form a key site for the study of human evolution in general and the prehistory of the Levant in particular.

The three excavated caves are up a steep flight of stairs, on a fossil reef covered by the sea 100 million years ago. The first discoveries of prehistoric remains were made when this area was being scoured for stones to build the Haifa port. In the late 1920s, Dorothy Garrod of England headed the first archaeological expedition, receiving assistance from a British feminist group on the condition that only women carry out the dig.

In the Tannur cave, the first on the tour, the strata Garrod's team excavated are clearly marked, spanning about 150,000 years in the life of early humans. The most exciting discoveries were Homo sapiens and Neanderthal skeletons; evidence that raised fascinating questions about the relationship between the two and whether they lived side by side.

A display on the daily life of early man as hunter and food gatherer occupies the Gamal cave. The last and largest cave, called the Nahal, cuts deep into the mountain and was the first discovered. A burial place with 84 skeletons was found outside the mouth of the cave along with stone tools, which suggest that people who settled here, about 12,000 years ago, were the forebears of early farmers, with a social structure more developed than that of hunters and gatherers. There is also evidence that the Crusaders once used the cave to guard the coastal road. There's a snack bar at this site.

Built for Pasha al-Jazzar in 1781, Akko's remarkable Turkish bathhouse (Hamam al-Basha, in Arabic) was in use until 1947. Don't miss the sound-and-light show called The Story of the Last Bath Attendant, set in the beautiful bathhouse itself. You follow the story, with visual and audio effects, from the dressing room decorated with Turkish tiles and topped with a cupola, through the rooms with colored-glass bubbles protruding from the roof domes. The glass bubbles send a filtered green light to the steam rooms below.

About 5 km (3 miles) north of Netanya is lovely Beit Yanai, named after ancient Judean king Alexander Yanai. Amenities include barbecue grills, picnic tables, restrooms with showers, and chair and umbrella rentals. There's a seafood restaurant right on the beach, and you can stroll along the Alexander Stream, shaded by eucalyptus trees. Parking is NIS 24 on weekdays and NIS 33 on Saturday. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (fee); showers; toilets; water sports. Best for: walking; windsurfing.

In Kibbutz Sdot Yam just outside Caesarea, this excellent museum houses many of the remarkable artifacts found by kibbutz members as they plowed their fields in the 1940s. Archaeological excavations have uncovered more. The small museum has arguably the best collection of late-Roman sculpture and figurines in Israel, with impressive holdings of rare Roman and Byzantine gemstones; a large variety of coins minted in Caesarea over the ages; and oil lamps, jewelry, and urns discovered on the sea floor.

With its attractive boardwalk and beachside kiosks, Carmel Beach sits in front of the Leonardo Hotel at the southern entrance to Haifa. Amenities: food and drink; parking (fee); lifeguards; showers; toilets. Best for: swimming.

On Saturday at Dado Beach, Haifa's longest sandy stretch, Israelis of all ages come and folk dance to the delight of onlookers. You can also find exercise equipment, picnic areas, and a small bathing pool for young children. The northern part of the beach is wheelchair accessible, as are the restrooms and showers. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (fee); showers; toilets; water sports. Best for: swimming.

About 1 km (½ mile) inside town, turn right to reach the marketplace, a colorful jumble of shops lining the street. You can be assured of finding excellent falafel and fresh produce at any of the roadside stands or restaurants.

The museum is dedicated to the 30,000 people who came to Palestine during the First Aliya (a period of settlement from 1882 until 1904). Life-size model displays highlighting local immigrants (like Zachariya, the seed vendor, and Izer, the cobbler) illustrate life at that time. A film traces the struggles of a family who came from Europe in this difficult period of Israel's modern history. Commissioned by Baron Edmond de Rothschild, the museum's three-floor building is a fine example of late-19th-century Ottoman-style architecture, built of white stone with a central pediment capped by a tile roof. During World War I, the Turks used it as a military hospital.

Nahariya's public bathing facilities at Galei Galil Beach are ideal for families. Apart from the lovely beach, facilities include an Olympic-size outdoor pool (closed in winter), heated indoor pool, wading pool, playground, and clean changing rooms. In peak season, the beach has exercise classes early in the morning. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (fee); showers; toilets. Best for: swimming.

Founded in 1949 by survivors of the German, Polish, and Lithuanian Jewish ghettos set up by the Nazis, kibbutz Lochamei Hageta'ot commemorates their compatriots who perished in the Holocaust at this museum. Exhibits include photographs documenting the Warsaw Ghetto and the uprising, and halls are devoted to different themes, among them Jewish communities before their destruction in the Holocaust; death camps; and deportations at the hands of the Nazis.

The adjacent Yad LaYeled (Children's Memorial) is dedicated to the memory of the 1½ million children who perished in the Holocaust. It's designed for young visitors, who can begin to comprehend the events of the Holocaust through a series of tableaux and images accompanied by recorded voices, allowing them to identify with individual victims without seeing shocking details. There is a small cafeteria on the premises.

Benches sit among palm trees and surround a large fountain at this lively central square with open-air cafés and restaurants that are crowded from morning until late into the evening. Netanya attracts droves of French visitors, and, in summer, their lilting tones float above the café au lait and croissants. Saturday nights are often enlivened by folk dancing, and the amphitheater hosts free concerts in summer and an arts-and-crafts fair on Friday morning.

This museum, on the southern edge of the Wadi Nisnas neighborhood, displays artwork from all over the world, dating from the mid-18th century to the present. It also serves as a special repository of contemporary Israeli art. Included are 20th-century graphics and contemporary paintings, sculptures, and photographs. The print collection is of special note, as are frequent solo exhibitions by young Israeli artists. The museum also houses an interactive children's wing.

Amid masses of trees and lush foliage in the Gan Ha'Em park is a seemingly happy collection of roaring lions and tigers, big brown bears, chattering monkeys, stripe-tailed lemurs, a placid camel, lots of snakes and reptiles, one croc, a kangaroo, and fierce-eyed eagles and owls—plus a bat cave and a waterbird pond. It's a hilly place, but a tram can take you up the steepest terrain. A small natural history museum and petting zoo complement the regular educational exhibits.

Netanya's most popular beach has a broad staircase that leads down to the waterfront. For fitness nuts there's a shaded exercise area with all sorts of equipment, volleyball nets, and a paved basketball court. You can rent kayaks and windsurfing gear in the summer. The beach is wheelchair accessible. There is also a café and two lifeguard stations. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (fee); showers; toilets; water sports. Best for: swimming; windsurfing.

The largest and most popular beach in the area is the exceptionally well-kept Hof Shonit (translated as "Reef Beach"), with a refreshment stand and a restaurant, as well as restrooms and cold showers. In addition to the beach there is a water park with extreme slides for the kids (open only on Saturdays in-season) and adult and toddler swimming pools. Parking is NIS 15. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (fee); showers; toilets; water sports. Best for: swimming.

The beach at Mikhmoret, a moshav (small cooperative settlement) 7½ km (4½ miles) north of Netanya, is popular with swimmers as well as those who laze away the day under umbrellas. The huge dirt parking lot, which charges per car, is 1 km (½ mile) after the turnoff from Route 2. There are three lifeguard stations, a restaurant, café, and chair and umbrella rentals. This is a backpacker favorite, and there's a hostel on the beach. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (fee); toilets; water sports. Best for: sunset; swimming.

This very worthwhile museum next to Kibbutz Nahsholim holds a rich collection of finds from nautical digs and excavations at nearby Tel Dor. It's in the partly restored former glass factory opened by Baron Edmond de Rothschild in 1891 to serve the wineries of Zichron Ya'akov. The sequence of peoples who settled, conquered, or passed through Dor—from the Canaanites to the Phoenicians to Napoléon and his forces—can be traced through these artifacts. Of particular interest is the bronze cannon that Napoléon's vanquished troops dumped into the sea during their retreat from Akko to Egypt in May 1799. An informative film in English illuminates the history of the ancient port city of Dor.

Housed in a landmark building (designed by Alexander Baerwald, a German Jewish architect, in the early 20th century) that was the original home of the Technion, Israel's MIT, this museum features excellent interactive exhibits sure to captivate children and adults alike. Explore the mysteries of DNA, the disorientations of mirrors and visual illusions, or the promises of green energy.

Nisan Cohen, a colorful and charming character who knows everything there is to know about old mechanical musical instruments, has amassed 150 music boxes, hand-operated automatic pianos, manivelles, antique gramophones on which to play his collection of old Yiddish records, and more antique musical marvels. Cohen is pleased to give you a guided tour and then treat you to a personal concert. His sense of humor and gift of the gab make for a touching and intriguing experience. Before the entrance to Ein Hod, watch for a brown wooden sign with yellow letters.

In the hills near Zichron Ya'akov, this sprawling garden is a fitting tribute to Baron Edmond de Rothschild. (Hanadiv means "the benefactor.") At its center is the dignified tomb where Rothschild and his wife Ada lie buried. A 20-minute film in the welcoming Visitors Pavilion tells of his legacy in Israel: the last screening on weekdays is at 3:30. Outside, curving paths frame rolling green lawns, abundant patches of flowers, carob trees, waving palms, and 42 rare plant species. Clearly marked trails lead to a 2,000-year old Roman farmhouse and a hidden spring. After all that legwork, the terraces of the on-site café beckon. A children's playground is set off to one side.

Also known as "the boulevard," the seaside promenade extends north and south of the city for about 6 km (4 miles) with beautifully landscaped walkways that wind around the contours of the sandstone cliffs overlooking the sea; every angle affords a gorgeous view. It's dotted with pergola-shaded benches, wooden bridges, colorful playground areas, and waving palm trees. An elevator at the center of the promenade eases the climb up and down the seaside cliff.

Just next to Dado Beach, Zamir Beach is regarded as one of the best in Haifa, with fine golden sand and many amenities, including coffeehouses, restaurants, access for people with mobility issues, and even Wi-Fi. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (fee); showers; toilets. Best for: swimming; walking.