The Media Line: Israel Launches First ‘Biblical Trails’ Project With Joshua Trail  

Israel Launches First ‘Biblical Trails’ Project With Joshua Trail  

By The Media Line Staff  

Israel has begun work on a NIS 3.2 million tourism trail in that will link the Elon Moreh Heritage Center to the Mount Kabir Nature Reserve, the first project in a wider government initiative to develop biblical tourism routes across Judea and Samaria.  

The “Joshua Trail” will include an accessible walking route and a suspension bridge leading toward the summit of Mount Kabir. A cornerstone for the project was laid yesterday in Elon Moreh.  

The trail is the first development planned under the Tourism Ministry’s new “Biblical Trails in Judea and Samaria” initiative. It is intended to give visitors access to views of Samaria while connecting the route with historical and biblical sites in the area.  

Tourism Minister Haim Katz said the project is part of an effort to attract more visitors and expand tourism infrastructure in Samaria.  

“Every trail we develop and every site we make accessible connects more people to the area, strengthens settlement and generates growth,” Katz said.  

He compared the region’s tourism potential to that of the Italian countryside.  

“Samaria can and should become Israel’s Tuscany. It has landscapes, vineyards, wineries, history and heritage that cannot be found anywhere else.”  

The Tourism Ministry is working on the project with the Ministry of Heritage, Israel Nature and Parks Authority, Samaria Regional Council, Judea and Samaria Regional Cluster and Elon Moreh Heritage Center.  

Heritage Minister Rabbi Amichai Eliyahu and Samaria Regional Council Head Yossi Dagan joined Katz at the cornerstone ceremony. Tourism Ministry Director-General Michael Izhakov, Judea and Samaria Regional Cluster Director-General Keren Gefen and several regional tourism and development officials also attended.  

Dagan said the trail would allow more Israelis to visit an area associated with biblical history.  

“This place, where the forefathers of the nation walked, will now become accessible and welcoming to large numbers of visitors from across Israel,” he said.  

Dagan also characterized tourism development as part of continued construction and investment in Samaria, saying, “Our response to every challenge is to continue building and continue developing tourism in the heart of the land of the Bible.”