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Jericho is one of the oldest inhabited cities in the world, dating back to almost 9000 BC. In addition to the Christian pilgrimage sites, there are a handful of important archaeological sites.
Jericho Cable Car
The Jericho Cable Car is one of the major tourist attractions in the city of Jericho. It takes visitors up to the top of the Mount of Temptation.
The Jericho Cable Car opened in 1999 and is the longest cable car in the world below sea level. The cable car line is 1,330 meters long and takes less than five minutes to reach the station on the Mount of Temptation. There are 12 cabins and each cabin carries eight people.
Tickets to the Jericho Cable Car
A two-way ticket costs ₪60 (as of May 2024) and the cable car runs every day. The cable car station is located across the street from Tell es-Sultan and the Temptation Center.
Riding Up the Jericho Cable Car
As you make your way up to the mountain, there are fantastic views of both Jericho and the Monastery of the Temptation.
Once at the top, there’s a restaurant, café, souvenir shops, and plenty of vendors. We sat and enjoyed the views with a glass of fresh-squeezed pomegranate juice before riding back down. They also have ice cream, snacks, and food.
Even if you’re not visiting the monastery, it’s worth heading up for the views. It’s possible to see the entire city of Jericho and far into the distance. Coming back down, the only minor annoyance is having to walk through a seemingly endless overpriced gift shop to exit the bottom station.
Monastery of the Temptation
The Monastery of the Temptation, or Deir al-Quruntal, sits along a cliff on the Mount of Temptation. It belongs to the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem. According to Christian tradition, Jesus fasted on the mountain for 40 days and was tempted by the devil (Matthew 4:1-11). The mountain is named for this event.
The first monastery was built by the Byzantines in the 6th century above the cave believed to have been inhabited by Jesus. The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem purchased the land for the current monastery in 1874 and constructed it between 1895 and 1899.
Visiting the Monastery of the Temptation
The Monastery of the Temptation is generally open from 8am to 4pm during the week and 8am to 2pm on Saturdays and Sundays. Modest clothing is required to enter and a donation is appreciated. After riding the cable car, you can reach the gate of the monastery by taking a long walk up several switchbacks.
On the day we visited, it was terribly hot and a few members of our pilgrimage group struggled along the way. Lots of water, sunscreen, and a hat or umbrella to protect from the sun are highly recommended.
When we arrived at the gate, a caretaker opened the doors and let us in. We walked down a narrow passage past offices and monastic cells on one side and solid rock on the other side. It led to a small cave chapel where we sat for a few minutes to rest. The monks offered us water to cool down.
Church of the Annunciation
From there, we walked down another narrow passage to the Church of the Annunciation. We lit candles in the narthex before entering the church.
The small church is somewhat bare other than a few frescoes on the columns. It contains a gorgeous wooden iconostasis.
Chapel
A staircase leads up to a chapel that contains the rock on which Jesus sat during his fast. The chapel was in the process of being decorated, with unfinished frescoes along the walls. Only the frescoes under the dome were complete.
Monastic Caves
Finally, before walking back down to the cable car station, a monk opened a door and led us to a balcony. Our guide, Archbishop Aristovoulos of Madaba, pointed to some cliffside caves and told us they were once used by monks centuries before the monastery was built.
Tell es-Sultan
Tell es-Sultan is an archaeological site where ancient and biblical Jericho was located. It sits across the street from both the Jericho Cable Car and Temptation Center. Tell es-Sultan is a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Visiting Tell es-Sultan
The site is open year-round from 8am to 5pm and adult admission is ₪10 (as of May 2023). Not everything is labeled and some signage has either disappeared or been scratched out. When there are interpretive panels, they’re in English and Arabic.
History of Tell es-Sultan
Tell es-Sultan, also known as Tell Jericho, was inhabited as early as the 10th century BC. It was first identified and excavated in 1868 by British archaeologist Charles Warren (1840-1927), who concluded there was nothing of interest.
From 1907 to 1909 and again in 1911, German archaeologists Ernst Sellin (1867-1946) and Carl Watzinger (1877-1948) dated walls to the Middle Bronze Age (1950-1550 BC). They were followed by British archaeologist John Garstang (1876-1956) between 1930 and 1936.
British archaeologist Kathleen Kenyon (1906-1978) carried out detailed excavations between 1952 and 1958, finding a tower and walls dating back to the Neolithic Age. Since 1997, extensive excavations have taken place under Italian archaeologist Lorenzo Nigro yielding important artifacts.
Area A
Area A is on the southern side of the site near the entrance. It consists of private homes, a tower, and fortifications dating back to the Middle Bronze Ages I-III (1900-1550 BC). Pottery, mortars, and a bronze adze were discovered there.
The entrance to the tower was through the top via a wooden staircase. It was built around 1900 BC on stone foundations and contained a basement. The tower was destroyed by a fire around 1800 BC.
Area B
Area B contains city walls and a building dating back to the Early Bronze Age III (2700-2350 BC). At that time, the city was enclosed by a double line of fortifications consisting of mud brick walls. The inner wall was four meters thick. The building in Area B was excavated and restored between 1997 and 1999. It included a row of rectangular rooms parallel to the walls and was believed to have been used for food production.
Trench III
Trench III, near Areas A and B, contains houses and walls from nine different phases of occupation spanning from the 10th century BC to the 6th century BC. The oldest phase is from the Proto-Neolithic Period (10,000-8500 BC) and the most recent phase dates to the Roman period. It was difficult to get a good look into the trench from the path.
Area F
Heading north towards the top of the site is Area F. It contains a large Early Bronze Age III residential area, including nine well-preserved housing units. Each house had a hearth and working areas such as benches, grinding slabs, or pulping platforms. Most of the finds were related to food production and preparation. There was no signage available for Area F at the time of my visit.
Views
At the very top of Tell es-Sultan is a covered platform with beautiful views of Jericho and the surrounding area.
Tower of Jericho
A walkway crossing a deep trench at the top reveals the Tower of Jericho below. It’s a stone structure built in the Pre-Pottery Neolithic A Period (10,000-8800 BC). The tower is 8 ½ meters (28 feet) tall and almost nine meters (30 feet) in diameter at the base. The walls are 1 ½ meters (4.9 feet) thick, and there’s an internal staircase with 22 steps. It’s estimated to have taken 11,000 days to build.
The tower was discovered by Kathleen Kenyon just inside the city walls and dates back to at least 8000 BC. It’s considered the world’s oldest stone building and possibly the first example of monumental architecture. It was also the tallest man-made structure in the world until the Pyramid of Djoser was built in Egypt in 2650 BC. Archaeologists originally believed the tower was used for defensive or irrigation purposes, but it may have been used to mark the summer solstice. There was no signage for the Tower of Jericho during my visit.
Northern Section
The rest of Tell es-Sultan to the north contains trenches. There was no signage at the time of my visit so it was hard to make anything of it. In a few sections it was easy to spot mud bricks, but it would have been nice to have some information posted.
Elisha’s Spring
An important site near the entrance to Tell es-Sultan is a fountain containing water from Elisha’s Spring. The spring has helped Jericho thrive in harsh desert conditions, consistently providing water that has a temperature of 26°C. Elisha’s Spring is named for Elisha, an important prophet in Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. It was identified in 1838 by American biblical scholar Edward Robinson (1794-1863) based on it being the closest spring to Jericho.
In II Kings 2:19-22, the people of Jericho went to Elisha and told him that their city had water, but it wasn’t good water and couldn’t be used for irrigation. Elisha asked for a bowl of salt and threw it into the water. He then said the water was healed, and from that point forward, the water flowed pure. The tiles around the fountain state Jericho as the lowest place on earth and the oldest city in the world.
Temptation Center
On both of my trips to Jericho, we stopped at the Temptation Center for lunch. It’s a huge tourist complex across the street from the Jericho Cable Car and Tell es-Sultan.
The Temptation Center started out in 1979 as a small café, the Mount of Temptation Restaurant. It was founded by Abu Raed and his wife, Maha, who are fantastic hosts. The tourist center opened in 1988 with a souvenir shop on the ground floor and restaurants on the upper and lower floors. The souvenir shop offers typical souvenirs as well as Dead Sea health and beauty products.
Restaurants
On my first visit, I had lunch on the upper floor, which holds the buffet section of Temptation Restaurant. There are several different Middle Eastern specialties on offer. While the hospitality was fantastic, the food was mediocre and overpriced. It’s definitely geared towards mass tourism.
On my second visit, I followed our bus driver to the restaurant on the ground floor. This section of Temptation Restaurant has table service and the food is phenomenal. The driver ordered a spread of kebabs, spreads, vegetables, and more, and I couldn’t get enough. If you’re visiting, skip the buffet and go straight to the sit-down restaurant. You won’t regret it.
Camel Rides
After lunch on my first visit, a camel driver was waiting in the parking lot to score some easy cash from customers visiting the restaurant. He succeeded, and several members of our group hopped on for a quick ride. It’s definitely not as authentic as riding a camel in the desert, but it was a nice diversion for some.
Tree of Zacchaeus
The Tree of Zacchaeus is a popular Christian pilgrimage site for visitors to Jericho. Zacchaeus was a wealthy tax collector who was trying to see Jesus as he walked through a crowd in Jericho. He was too short to see through the crowd, so he climbed a sycamore tree to get a better look. As Jesus approached, he asked Zacchaeus to come down from the tree (Luke 19:1-8).
Monastery of Prophet Elisha
There are three sites in Jericho claiming to have the Tree of Zacchaeus, including a Franciscan monastery, a Russian Orthodox mission, and a Greek Orthodox monastery. We visited the Greek Orthodox Monastery of Prophet Elisha, which has an unassuming entrance behind a simple stone wall. It’s administered by the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem.
The Tree of Zacchaeus is protected by a small chapel with an open roof. It’s surrounded by glass on all four sides. The tree was intact until the 6th century, and today only the stump remains. Icons in front and near the tree depict the meeting between Jesus and Zacchaeus.
Church of Prophet Elisha
Just past the tree is the Church of Prophet Elisha. This modern church contains several icons and frescoes. The nave is painted a beautiful shade of blue.
The most stunning work is under and around the dome, and the iconostasis is made of marble. There’s a fresco in the narthex of Apostle Zacchaeus depicted as a bishop. Tradition says St. Peter appointed him Bishop of Caesarea.
