Mount Hermon Ski Resort is Israel’s only winter ski and snowboard resort. It sits in the Golan Heights in the far north of the country. It is amazing to think that in a country as small as Israel you can drive two hours from the desert to a ski resort. While Mount Hermon Ski Resort is not a world-class resort, it has snow for much of the winter. It is incredibly popular with Israelis and tourists alike who take a day or two to enjoy the winter sport activities. In the spring, summer, and autumn, the resort takes on a different role. There are huge amounts of other outdoor activities taking advantage of the amazing landscape. This includes a mountain bike park and hiking.
Winter Months
In the winter, Mount Hermon is open for up to about 50 days of skiing and boarding year, attracting about 300,000 visitors, generally between January and March. The resort has 14 ski runs and 5 chair lifts. As with any ski resort, visitors can take lessons and rent equipment at the center. Ski lifts are open to spectators as well as those skiing. To check on snow conditions and opening times, visit the resort website at www.skihermon.co.il
Summer and Spring
In the warmer months of summer and spring, Hermon attracts some 40,000 visitors who take advantage of the topography and landscape, using the terrain for a large number of outdoor pursuits. Visitors are able to take the cable car to visit the HaMa’apil summit. There are guided summer tours introducing to the flora and fauna in the region. Specialty tours offer explanations of the battle on Mount Hermon. There are large amounts of hiking and biking trails in the area.
Other Attractions
Mountain biking is particularly popular at Mount Hermon. It has special facilities in place at Bike Park, a biking site at the Hermon Ski Resort which has three bicycle trails. There is a relatively easy one, for learning how to mountain bike and practicing technique. It also has two 4.5-kilometer downhill trails that go from the top to the bottom of the ski site and include jumps and other features. Bikers use the ski chairlifts to take them to the top of the trail. An all-day lift ticket costs NIS 135.
