There are vacations you choose because of the destination, and others because of the hotel. In our case, it all started with a dinner. When we heard that Chef David Biton would host Chef Elazar Tamano from Studio Gursha for a one-time dinner at Midian restaurant, it was clear we were driving to Six Senses Shaharut. But only on the long road south did we realize that the meal was merely an excuse. The real story awaits where the road ends, the desert takes over the landscape, and the clock is no longer relevant.
As you get farther from the center - and it is indeed a long drive - the pace changes. Gas stations become scarce, green colors give way to shades of sand, cliffs and mountains become more present, and the phone stops vibrating endlessly. Not because we decided to disconnect, but because the poor reception in the desert does it for us. There is something about the road to Shaharut that prepares the body and mind for what comes next: A quiet that needs no explanation, endless open spaces, and a feeling that the daily race was left hundreds of kilometers behind.
Unlike urban hotels, the Six Senses Shaharut resort, situated on a ridge overlooking the Arava and the Edom Mountains, does not try to stand out or compete with the surrounding landscape. On the contrary, it was designed to blend into the scenery, and when driving on the road leading to it, one barely notices it. Only upon drawing closer does one realize that the local stone and architecture create an illusion that the buildings have been here forever.
This is perhaps the reason why the place gives off a different feel from other luxury hotels. There is no gleaming lobby or attempt to impress through over-the-top splendor. The luxury stems from restraint - from the fact that the desert is the main star, and everything else is meant to enhance it.
The suite that lets the desert in
We spent the night in the Six Senses Suite, the resort's entry-level suite, but the word "entry-level" is somewhat misleading. Upon entering, you immediately feel this room was designed with the experience in mind, not just the design: 58 square meters of open space, earth tones, natural wood, soft lighting, and large windows that frame the view like a changing picture.
The room has everything you expect to find in a luxury hotel - a spacious bed, an indulgent bathroom, a high-quality sound system, a private balcony, a television, and a coffee machine. But it is precisely the small details that tell the story. The hats and walking sticks for a desert hike waiting for guests, the organic cotton robes, and the Marshall speaker are not just amenities; they are part of the property's concept, encouraging you to step out into nature, return, listen to music, sit on the balcony, and simply slow down.
No one is in a hurry to leave the balcony, either. The desert view changes constantly. In the morning it is bright and soft, in the afternoon the mountains take on a copper hue, and toward evening the sun paints the Edom Mountains in shades of orange, pink, and purple. It is hard to think of a better setting.
If there is one thing that sets Six Senses apart from other luxury hotels in Israel, it is the fact that food is not merely a service provided to guests. Here, it is an integral part of the property's identity. Instead of viewing the restaurant as just another hotel amenity, the resort built an entire philosophy around culinary arts based on seasonality, local ingredients, and collaborations with top-tier Chefs and food figures. From the moment you sit down at Midian restaurant, with its windows open to the desert view, you understand that this evening is going to be much more than a meal.
Food at the top of the agenda
At Six Senses, food is not treated as just another part of the hospitality package. You quickly realize that gastronomy is one of the property's main pillars. The ingredients coming from Arava farms and the emphasis on seasonality are not mere slogans, but a philosophy felt in almost every bite.
The reason we came was the hotel's culinary guest series. This time, Chef David Biton, who leads the resort's kitchen, hosted Chef Elazar Tamano from the Studio Gursha restaurant. Two Chefs, two different culinary languages, but one evening that managed to connect them in a remarkably natural way.
Even before the first course arrived, it was clear this was no ordinary tasting menu. The space of Midian restaurant, with its large windows facing the Edom Mountains, fills with the soft light of sunset. As the desert shifts colors between gold and deep red, the first courses begin arriving at the tables. In the summer, you can also sit comfortably outside without feeling the heat and high humidity that oppress the center of the country. It is hard to think of a better setting for a meal that seeks to tell the story of a place.
The meal opened with a selection of small dishes, each a world of its own: Crispy millet with cured hamachi and lemon creme fraiche, beef tartare served on injera, akara filled with tuna tartare, and yellow grape gazpacho with green leaves from the hotel's organic garden. These dishes did not try to impress through unnecessary complexity, but rather through precision.
However, if one dish had to be chosen that will remain in memory long after returning home, it was undoubtedly the sweet corn-filled agnolotti. Ostensibly a simple dish, but one that proves how difficult it is to turn simplicity into excellence. The pasta was delicate and thin, the filling just sweet enough, and the corn cream enveloped everything without overwhelming it. Roasted baby corn also swam in the cream, adding a fun crunch. It was one of those dishes that makes you want to slow down, take another bite, and only then realize how much magic lies in a single dish.
The main course did not disappoint either. Holstein prime rib, aged dry for 50 days, arrived at the table cooked to precise doneness - incredibly juicy and tender, needing very little additions to stand out. Tabun-roasted vegetables complemented it naturally without stealing the show.
And then came the okra. Admittedly, this is not usually a dish we would order voluntarily, but it became one of the evening's biggest surprises.
The texture was almost as soft as cream, the flavors deep and comforting, and all the prejudices we held about this vegetable simply vanished. No less exciting was the steamed kohlrabi dish stuffed with cheese - ostensibly two unexciting vegetables that managed to surprise thanks to proper handling and seasoning.
The grape salad, combining green leaves from the organic garden, caramelized pecans, and a precise sour gazpacho dressing, was also the kind of dish that finds you wiping the plate clean with a piece of bread until nothing remains.
Alongside all of these, a rich wine menu was served, crafted to accompany the dishes throughout the evening. But beyond the food itself, what stayed with us was the balance. No dish tried to dominate. The connection between David Biton and Elazar Tamano felt like a genuine culinary dialogue, one where each gives space to the other, yielding a result greater than the sum of its parts.
A morning at a different pace
After such an evening, it seems the best way to start the day is by not rushing anywhere. Instead of running to breakfast, we chose to join a Hatha yoga class, offered free of charge to hotel guests.
There is something almost symbolic about doing yoga in the desert. The absolute quiet and sense of freedom brought the body to a different rhythm. This yoga class is extraordinary not because of the practice itself, but because of the location where it takes place. For a moment, all the noise in your head simply disappears.
Only afterward did we sit down for breakfast, which continues the same concept that accompanies the entire hotel. The pastries are baked on-site every morning, and the ingredients are fresh. The croissants, we were told, undergo a three-day preparation process - and after the first bite, you understand why no one is willing to cut it short.
Here, too, there is no feeling of an overloaded buffet that creates FOMO; everything is arranged elegantly. Alongside cold items, a menu is offered from which you can choose eggs prepared in various styles.
After a final cup of coffee, we said goodbye to breakfast and headed to the hotel's shared pool. Six Senses features two pools - one outdoors and one indoors - and some rooms include private pools. We chose the outdoor one, which, unlike at other hotels, does not suffer from overcrowding or seating issues. The pool also overlooks the desert landscape, and nearby is a bar offering soft drinks, alcohol, and light dishes to grab poolside, ranging from pizzas to burgers.
Although it is hard to leave the cool water, we eventually parted from the pool in favor of a cocktail workshop, which turned out to be one of the funniest activities of the vacation. Beyond learning to prepare a few classic cocktails, we discovered how much thought lies behind a proper balance of flavors, alcohol, and aromas. It was a lighthearted, amusing activity with real added value, and above all, another opportunity to meet people, laugh, and slow the pace.
Far beyond a Chef's dinner
During the weekend, we found ourselves thinking quite a bit about the reason we came here. On paper, it was a long drive for a single dinner. But as the hours passed, it became clear that the food was only a small part of the story.
Perhaps it was the fact that for two days, there was almost no need to get into the car. Perhaps it was the landscapes that changed every hour, the quiet unbroken for even a moment, or the feeling that there was no pressure to accomplish anything else. Instead of running from attraction to attraction, you can simply choose how you want to spend the day: Swim, sit with a book, join a yoga class, drink a cocktail at sunset, or simply gaze at the desert and do... nothing.
In an era when almost every vacation is accompanied by a list of "musts" - must see, must accomplish, must photograph - Six Senses Shaharut offers something completely different. It does not try to fill every minute with a packed schedule, but rather reminds you how pleasant it is to leave room for spontaneity and quiet. Perhaps that is also why the activities, food, and wellness here feel like parts of the same concept, rather than a collection of attractions designed to pass the time.
The culinary offerings fit into this exact concept as well. While the meal that brought us here was excellent, on the way back home we were no longer talking only about a specific dish. We were talking about the fact that for two days, we barely looked at the clock.
The writer was a guest of the hotel.