cathedral
Church of the Nativity
One of the oldest continuously operating churches in the world, built over the traditional birthplace of Jesus.
0 km · about 5 min drive
AsiaPalestineWest Bank
Bethlehem
West Bank, Palestine · Asia
About Bethlehem
Bethlehem works well as a base: 5 minutes from Al Khaḑir, 31km from Ein Gedi Nature Reserve.
Bethlehem is in West Bank, Palestine, with about 29,000 people. The nearest town is Al Khaḑir, about 4 km away.
Bethlehem is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, located about ten kilometres (six miles) south of Jerusalem, and the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate. It had a population of 28,591 people, as of 2017. The city's economy is strongly linked to tourism, especially during the Christmas period, when Christians embarkRead more
on a pilgrimage to the Church of the Nativity, which is revered as the location of the birth of Jesus.
A possible first mention of Bethlehem is in the Amarna correspondence of ancient Egypt, dated to 1350–1330 BCE, although that reading is uncertain. In the Hebrew Bible, the period of the Israelites is described; it identifies Bethlehem as the birthplace of David. In the New Testament, the city is identified as the birthplace of Jesus of Nazareth. Under the Roman Empire, the city of Bethlehem was destroyed by Hadrian, but later rebuilt by Constantine the Great, who commissioned the Church of the Nativity in 327 CE. In 529, the Church of the Nativity was heavily damaged by Samaritans involved in the Samaritan revolts; following the victory of the Byzantine Empire, it was rebuilt by Justinian I.
Later, during the rule of several Caliphates, Bethlehem became part of Jund Filastin in 637. Muslims continued to rule the city until 1099, when it was conquered by the Crusaders, who replaced the local Christian Greek Orthodox clergy with Catholic ones. In the mid-13th century, Bethlehem's walls were demolished by the Mamluk Sultanate. However, they were rebuilt by the Ottoman Empire in the 16th century when it came to control the region. After the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire at the end of World War I, Bethlehem was part of Mandatory Palestine until 1948, and later of the West Bank that was annexed by Jordan following the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. During the 1967 Six-Day War, Bethlehem was occupied by Israel along with the rest of the West Bank. Since the Oslo Accords between Israel and the Palestinian National Authority, Bethlehem has been designated as part of Area A of the West Bank, nominally rendering it as being under Palestinian control, but it remains under Israeli occupation. Movement around the city is limited due to the Israeli West Bank barrier.
Historically, it was a city of Arab Christians, who made up about 86% of the population in 1950, although in 2022, The Times reported that this community had dwindled about 20%, with a large majority of Arab Muslims.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is there to see near Bethlehem?
Within an hour or so of Bethlehem: Church of the Nativity (0 km), Yad Vashem (8 km), Jerusalem Old City (8 km), Western Wall (Wailing Wall) (8 km).
Are there any good drives near Bethlehem?
The nearest famous roads are King's Highway, Scorpions Ascent (Ma'ale Akrabim) and Dana to Petra Trail.
Where is Bethlehem?
Bethlehem is in West Bank, Palestine, about 4 km from Al Khaḑir.
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Quick Information
- Population
- 29,019
- Continent
- Asia
- Country
- Palestine
- Region
- West Bank
- Timezone
- Asia/Hebron
- Coordinates
- 31.7049, 35.2038
Tags
Worth the detour from Bethlehem
8 notable places within an hour's drive.
museum
Yad Vashem
Israel's official memorial to the Holocaust, with deeply moving exhibits and a striking modernist museum built into a mountainside.
8 km · about 15 min drive
landmark
Jerusalem Old City
A walled sacred city of one square kilometer containing holy sites for Judaism, Christianity, and Islam within four historic quarters.
8 km · about 15 min drive
landmark
Western Wall (Wailing Wall)
The holiest site where Jews can pray, a 2,000-year-old limestone remnant of the Second Temple retaining wall in the Old City of Jerusalem.
8 km · about 15 min drive
cathedral
Church of the Holy Sepulchre
Christianity's holiest site, built on the traditional locations of Jesus's crucifixion and burial.
9 km · about 15 min drive
landmark
Dome of the Rock
The iconic gold-domed Islamic shrine on the Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif, built in 691 CE over the sacred Foundation Stone.
9 km · about 15 min drive
natural wonder
Ein Gedi Nature Reserve
A lush oasis of waterfalls, pools, and wildlife on the shores of the Dead Sea in the Judean Desert.
31 km · about 35 min drive
natural wonder
Dead Sea
Earth's lowest point on land at 430 meters below sea level, with water so salty that swimmers float effortlessly on the surface.
36 km · about 40 min drive
Driving roads near Bethlehem
3 named roads, passes and coastal drives within 150km.
- 75 kmKing's HighwayOne of the world's oldest continuously used routes, winding 280 km from Madaba to Petra past Karak's crusader castle, Dana's cliffs and the mighty Wadi Mujib canyon.
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