1 Day jeep tour from Jerusalem to the Judean Desert: Wadi Kelt, Marsaba Monastery and Nebi Musa

These day trips to the Judean Desert from Jerusalem cover the best of its historic sites, off-road trails and breath-taking scenery. The Judean desert is home to some of the most revered and impressive monasteries in the world and it is steeped in religious history and tradition. Our tours get off the beaten path to explore the most scenic routes and head deep into the desert where the descendants of the nomadic shepherds that historically roamed here still tend their herds and live in traditional styled tents.
Both tours take between 7-8 hours and have a similar route at start of the day, for the second half of the day we offer our regular tour from most of the year and summer tour for the hotter months when afternoon temperatures are quite high.
Judean Desert Tour from Jerusalem
Morning:
Driving out of Jerusalem we head straight into the serene desert scenery towards biblical Mount Azazel, an important historical site in both Jewish and Christian tradition, this is where goats were traditionally sacrificed on the Day of Atonement and where the modern term ‘scapegoat’ comes from. From here we head towards the dramatic cliff face where the Mar Saba monastery is situated. The official name of the Monastery is ‘The Great Lavra of St. Sabbas the Sanctified’ after its founding saint. We take in the most picturesque views of the monastery from a beautiful viewpoint across the valley before continuing off-road to Nabi Musa, a holy site for Muslims, considered to be the burial site of Moses.

Afternoon:
Option 1: Regular tour – Ideal for the winter and cooler months.
Drive to Wadi Kelt (Qelt) to where we stop at a viewpoint to take in the superb views of Saint George’s monastery which is built into the cliff face. From here we visit the spring of Ein Qelt and the Herodian aqueduct.
Option 2: Summer – Best suited for the hotter months.
Drive into Wadi Kelt and to the Ein Prat nature reserve (admission tickets – 25 shekels per adult – 19 shekels per child) here we can enjoy a short dip in the cool spring water (21 degrees Celsius) before continuing to Nahal Prat where we take in views of St. Chariton’s Monastery, considered to be the oldest monastery in the Judean desert, and visit the upper spring.
Before sunset we head back to the road and up towards Jerusalem where our tour ends.

In option 2 there is an extra payment for the entrance fees of the reserve 30 Shekels p.p.