Zikhron Ya'akov

Zikhron Ya'akov (Hebrew: זכרון יעקב) is a small town in the south slope of the Carmel Range, overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. It was founded in 1882 by Baron Edmond James de Rothschild. It is famous for the Carmel Winery, and for the midrahov (pedestrian only street) in the city center.

Get in

By car

From Tel Aviv or Haifa, take road 2 to the Zichron Yaakov interchange, then follow signs to the town.

From Jerusalem, take road 6 (toll road) to the Ein Tut interchange, then drive about 18km west to Zichron Yaakov. If you don't want to pay the toll, use road 2 instead of road 6.

By bus

From Tel Aviv

There is no direct bus from Tel Aviv. Take bus 852 to Hadera and from Hadera take bus 70.

From Haifa

From Haifa take bus 202.

Zichron Yaakov is a rather small town on top of a mountain, with main roads at the foot of the mountain. This means buses that enter Zichron are infrequent, but it is rather easy to get a bus to the west or north city entrances (on roads 4 and 70 respectively). Each of these junctions are about 2½ km from the city center. Infrequent local buses make this trip, or you can wait for a taxi or hike it.

Get around

Zichron is small enough you can usually walk from place to place. Inside Zichron there is a limited bus service. There are four internal bus routes (1, 2, 3, 5) but they mainly come every 60 minutes. Bus 5 also serves Mall Zichron shopping center.

See

• 1 Beit Aharonson (Nili Museum), 40 Hameyasdim. Museum dedicated to the Nili organization, which conducted underground operations during World War I against the Ottomans. (updated Aug 2016)
• 2 First Aliyah Museum, 2 HaNadiv. Commemorates the first wave of modern Jewish immigration (aliyah) to Israel, which took place in the 1880s. (updated Aug 2016)

Do

• Walk around the picturesque historic midrahov.
• 1 Ramat Hanadiv. Just outside Zichron Ya'akov, this park includes a beautiful landscaped garden, the Baron de Rothschild burial site, trails in nature, and archaeological ruins including a Roman-era bathhouse and Neolithic tombs. Ramat Hanadiv is very southernmost point of the Carmel mountain range, so it has an amazing view toward the coastal plain to the south as well as the Mediterranean Sea to the west. (updated Jul 2016)

Buy

• 1 Mall Zichron, Western Industrial Zone (Bus: Kavim bus #5), ☏ +972 4-6397395. Su-Th 09:30-21:30 F 09:00-14:00 Sa 10:00-22:00. An outdoor shopping center with shops and restaurants (updated Aug 2016)

Drink

• 1 Carmel Winery. (updated Aug 2016)
• 2 Tishbi Winery, 652 Binyamina-Giv'at Ada. Weekdays 08:00-16:00, Fr 08:00-15:00, Sa closed. (updated Aug 2016)

Sleep

• 1 Elma Hotel, Yair 1. A luxury hotel which is also a cultural center, hosting concerts and other events. Its restaurant is recommended too. (updated Aug 2016)