The healing waters of the Galilee: Rediscovering Israel’s northern sanctuary

My journey begins at the lowest point on Earth, beside the quiet waters of the Dead Sea, where salt, sun, and stillness create a natural rhythm of recovery. This area exhibits the science of healing in its purest form, as I wrote in my previous article “The Dead Sea clinic: Israel’s untapped engine of healing.” The dense air, mineral-rich waters, and filtered sunlight form a restorative clinic. Nature itself can be medicine.

The Dead Sea represents descent, depth, and introspection in a place of surrender and stillness. The Kinneret, on the other hand, embodies ascent, vitality, and motion. It is a source of living water. Together, they create a natural symmetry with a southern basin of recovery and a northern basin of rejuvenation.

Scientists have long studied the Dead Sea’s atmosphere, seeking to understand its healing synergy of air density, solar radiation, and minerals.

The Kinneret, however, the lowest freshwater lake on Earth, some 210 meters below sea level, has received less attention even though it shares the same geological environment. Its mild climate, hot mineral springs, and tranquil surroundings have vast potential for integrative wellness. Along these northern shores, a new story of healing is emerging.

Visionaries and hospitality innovators are rediscovering that Israel’s wellness landscape is not shaped by geography alone but also by the connection between body and land and between science and spirit.

Our family journey brings us to one such sanctuary, a retreat where nature, design, and care meet in harmony. It becomes both our base and our classroom; a place to rest, observe, and witness how hospitality itself can evolve into therapy.

Our visit to Hamat Tiberias National Park comes at the invitation of the Israel Nature and Parks Authority, whose stewardship allows visitors to experience this meeting point of nature, heritage, and healing in its most authentic form.

When I learn that these waters contain more than 100 distinct minerals, I am astonished. Having spent years studying the Dead Sea – known for its 28 minerals – I have come to understand that the northern waters have a story that is just as remarkable. Here, beneath the Galilee, nature has composed an even richer mineral symphony.

Park director Sharon Medo explains how scientists and visitors continue to be amazed by the curative power of these springs. Their mineral balance, he says, helps improve circulation, calm inflammation, and ease respiratory conditions. Studies by Israeli researchers confirm that the Hamat Tiberias springs rank among the most mineral-rich in the world, providing relief for arthritis, skin ailments, and cardiovascular issues.

Listening to Medo, I think of how modern research confirms what ancient cultures already knew – that these waters are part of a living chain of healing stretching back thousands of years.

The site of Hamat Tiberias rests upon the biblical city of Hammath, mentioned in the Book of Joshua. In the Jerusalem Talmud, the “hot springs of Hamat” appear by name, with accounts of Jews walking there on Shabbat to heal. Centuries later, Tiberias became a major center of Jewish learning – home to the Sanhedrin and the compilation of the Jerusalem Talmud.

Archaeologists have uncovered two ancient synagogues here, the most famous adorned with a 4th-century mosaic depicting menorahs, ritual vessels, and a radiant zodiac. Inside the protective pavilion, a light-and-sound display brings the ancient floor to life. Color and music flow across the stones, recreating the rhythm of pilgrims who once came to these waters seeking purification and renewal.

A preserved inscription reads: “The hot springs of Tiberias were known throughout the Land of Israel for their pleasantness and healing properties, becoming a meeting point between peoples and cultures.” That line bridges past and present – from the ritual baths of the Second Temple period to the modern spas and wellness seekers who arrive today.

Above the park, overlooking the Kinneret, stands the tomb of Rabbi Meir Baal Haness (“the miracle worker”), a 2nd-century sage whose legacy of compassion continues to draw visitors seeking blessing and recovery. A disciple of Rabbi Akiva’s, Rebbi Meir became a symbol of mercy and spiritual strength. For generations, pilgrims have come to his resting place to pray for healing, often drawing water from nearby springs in a tradition that unites body and soul through faith.

As steam drifts around my camera lens, I think about how healing in antiquity was never solitary. It was communal.

The baths were places of connection, where health was as social as physical – a form of shared resilience.

Listening to Meco describe collaborations with Israeli universities to research the springs’ therapeutic qualities, I imagine how climatotherapy could return here, merging heritage and science. The minerals remain constant; only our understanding changes.

Beyond their geology, the waters of Tiberias preserve a memory of recovery. From the Roman and Byzantine bathhouses that once lined the shore, to the Zionist pioneers who revived the area a century ago, the city has long symbolized the restoration of body, community, and hope. These pools, once crossroads for empires and faiths, could again serve as sanctuaries for renewal in a nation seeking healing after collective trauma.

As sunlight flickers through the pavilion and the rising steam catches the air, I feel how deeply the land itself participates in renewal. The same elemental forces that carved the Dead Sea’s depths now breathe through the Kinneret’s edge. Together, they tell a single story. Israel’s geography of healing flows from one body of water to another, like the pulse of life.

After exploring the springs, we wanted to experience the Kinneret from its heart, out on the water. I am here with my wife, Adi, and our two boys, Lavie and Eitam. It is our first time sailing together here. The last time we were on a boat as a family was in Alaska’s Lake Clark National Park, a wilderness the size of Switzerland, where silence and scale leave you humbled.

Standing on the deck of a wooden boat surrounded by Galilean hills, I feel the same awe – only now it is deeply personal.

Our host is long-time sailor David Smadar, who heads the boat company Galilee Sailing. His family has worked these waters for more than 50 years. I first met him while collaborating on the Dead Sea Boat Project, in which he sought to fulfill his father’s dream of sailing a boat on the lowest point on Earth.

We sail northwest. Adi and the boys stand at the bow, their faces glowing in the silver light. The Kinneret’s waterline has receded sharply. Once submerged, basalt terraces and docks now stand high above the surface. I recognize some of these places from earlier visits – areas that were underwater only two years ago.

Smadar steers toward a quiet cove on the northern shore, a spot he calls the “hidden waterfall.” We anchor in the shallows and climb out across exposed rock. Streams trickle underfoot, leading us to the falls. I have seen old photos of how the water once lapped against the cliffside, but now the lake has retreated dozens of meters. What was once a seamless flow between the waterfall and the lake has become a corridor of dry stone.

My sons wade ahead, their laughter echoing among the rocks. The water is cool and invigorating, in sharp contrast to the stillness of the southern lake. Watching them, I wonder at the beauty that endures and am concerned for its fragile balance.

Back on the boat, Smadar points at the empty shoreline. “It’s not only the lake that’s drying,” he says softly. “For two years, because of the war, tourism stopped completely. Hundreds of families depend on sailing here. When the water drops, we rebuild marinas and move docks; but when people stop coming, the whole ecosystem suffers.”

His words stay with me. I think of the Dead Sea, where I have walked across salt flats that were once deep water, and I see the same story unfolding here in the North. “Our best PR has always been our guests,” Smadar adds.

“When they come, meet Israelis, and sail with us, they become our ambassadors. But for two years, they couldn’t come. That silence hurts more than any headline.”

As the boat drifts under the fading light, Adi and I watch our boys trail their hands through the water. The Kinneret mirrors the sky – luminous, fragile, and enduring. This lake, like the Dead Sea, holds the story of connection between families, between people and places, and between what vanishes and what can be revived.

Long before the State of Israel was established, this region was a global crossroads of pilgrimage. From here, Christianity spread its message of renewal across continents.

Seeing these holy sites from the deck offers a profound perspective. The same lake that sustains Israel’s communities remains a source of faith and inspiration for millions worldwide.

Today, Israel’s National Water Carrier is undergoing a historic reversal. For the first time, desalinated water from the Mediterranean is being pumped back into Lake Kinneret to sustain its level. “Instead of taking the water from north to south, we’re sending it from south to north,” Mekorot spokesperson Lior Gutman explains.

This initiative marks the world’s first large-scale effort to replenish a natural freshwater lake with desalinated seawater – a case study in ecosystem rehabilitation.

Two decades ago, the Kinneret supplied most of Israel’s drinking water. Today, it provides less than 10%, its role having been replaced by desalination systems along the Mediterranean coast. Now the Kinneret has become the first example of desalinated water returning to a natural lake at full operational scale.

The same natural system that sustains the Kinneret continues south through the Jordan River toward the Dead Sea. In November 2025, Israel’s Water Authority began diverting desalinated water into northern tributaries feeding the lake. The process is gradual, allowing the ecosystem to adapt step by step.

The Kinneret has become a case study for large-scale ecological recovery – a project that could influence future restoration across the Jordan Valley and perhaps one day the Dead Sea itself. For those studying climate-based therapy or environmental resilience, this renewed water cycle represents more than infrastructure. It is a model of renewal, a reminder that healing landscapes begin when natural flow is restored.

As Smadar guides us back toward the dock, he speaks quietly. “This lake connects people. It always has. When visitors return, it will come alive again.”

His words capture the essence of the Galilee. The health of the Kinneret is measured not only in centimeters of water but also in encounters, the living current that flows when travelers, pilgrims, and locals meet.

Our journey through the Galilee’s wellness landscape reaches its height not at the springs or on the water but on the hillside overlooking both. For one glorious weekend, my family and I stay at David’s Harp Galilee. This resort hotel blends into the land and lake with seamless grace, with architecture and atmosphere working together to restore calm.

From arrival, stillness seemed to settle around us. Morning light fills the lobby, gliding across brass and cedar. The staff greets us naturally, without pretense. Adi, Lavie, and Eitam are drawn to the glass elevators rising against the lake’s reflection, while I sense something deeper. This architecture listens to the land it inhabits.

The resort’s vision is simple: to create a sanctuary where body, mind, and place reconnect.

With 250 rooms and suites spread across multiple levels, it maintains the intimacy of a retreat while offering a full range of resort amenities. Wellness extends beyond the spa, into the courtyards, terraces for reflection, and guests cycling or swimming as the sun rises.

The mix of visitors is striking yet harmonious: families, wellness facilitators, corporate teams, pilgrims, and newlyweds. Despite the variety, the atmosphere remains serene, movement without noise, togetherness without intrusion. Spacious lounges and sound-balanced halls preserve quiet energy.

Beside the main terrace, an open-air amphitheater hosts concerts under the evening sky. Facing the Kinneret and the Golan Heights, each note seems to rise with the breeze.

When I meet CEO Sigal Chen, her clarity about the resort’s purpose is unmistakable.

“David’s Harp Galilee was created to help people return to what they’ve forgotten: breath, stillness, belonging,” she tells me. “The Galilee and the Kinneret aren’t scenery; they’re living energy. People tell us they sleep differently here, that they wake lighter. That’s success.”

In just two years, the resort has become a center for healing retreats, now entering its third cycle. Four times a year, it fills with participants seeking balance and renewal, guided by skilled facilitators and nourished by healthful cuisine. These gatherings have evolved into a quiet tradition, continuing even through uncertain times.

The resort also partners with Michael Smigels of Keter Travel for special programs, such as the upcoming Passover retreat for Anglo families, an uplifting blend of entertainment, empowerment, and relaxation for body and mind.

Since the outbreak of the war, hospitality in Israel has taken on new meaning. Chen says that more guests now arrive alone, seeking stillness and safety.

“People come carrying tension,” she says. “We give them room to release it.”

Each floor includes reinforced safety rooms. During the conflict, the resort opened its doors to IDF reservists and their families, offering refuge and gratitude.

“The hotel became a home,” Chen says. “Those days reminded us why we built this place.”

When I ask about hosting rehabilitation or climatotherapy retreats for wounded IDF soldiers, she answers instantly: “That’s exactly what we hope to do. The Kinneret and the Galilee have natural healing power. Helping soldiers rebuild here would be a privilege.”

Later, walking past the 14 Serenity Rooms, each with a private jacuzzi overlooking the lake, I can imagine that vision. Private, filled with light, and oriented toward water, these rooms feel restorative by design.

At sunrise, I walk through the lobby with my camera. The first light reveals how every detail of the hotel serves the same calm rhythm, with harp-like ceiling curves, warm wood art, and clay jars recalling the Galilee’s story. The building feels alive, its materials in quiet dialogue. You slow down as you move, following light and air through open, curving paths that guide without rush. The architecture itself heals: free yet safe, generous yet contained.

From a wellness perspective, natural materials, open views, and soft acoustics ease the body into rest. Calm is built directly into the environment.

The restaurant continues this harmony. Morning light floods the dining room, reflecting off glass panels framing the pool and lake. The buffet is generous but unhurried: local fish, fresh herbs, warm pastries. The space feels full yet never crowded.

Below, the spa offers the same quiet precision: soft light, clean lines, gentle sound. Dry and wet saunas and alternating warm and cool spaces encourage tranquility.

Treatment rooms are intimate and soundproofed, finished in stone and wood. Therapists work with quiet focus, adjusting each session to the guest. Presence replaces performance. Healing follows the same natural cycle as the landscape: warmth, pause, renewal.

As a photojournalist and wellness specialist, I often ask: Can a place carry people from arrival to insight, from silence to dialogue?

At David’s Harp Galilee, the answer is clear.

More than a hotel, it stands as a framework of connection linking people, cultures, and the land that sustains them. The resort unites professionalism with sincerity, design with empathy, structure with soul. At a time when tourism often feels transactional, David’s Harp renews the essence of hospitality: presence, purpose, and peace.

Standing on our terrace as dusk settles, with Adi beside me and the boys playing cards, I watch the sky shift from gold to violet over the vineyards. The air feels still and whole. It is the kind of moment when travel stops being an escape and becomes a return to balance and gratitude.

On this quiet ridge above Israel’s living waters, David’s Harp Galilee reminds every visitor of a simple truth: Healing begins the moment we slow down enough to listen. 