Discovering treasures of Israel’s Western Galilee

Yoney Skiba welcomes guests to the full-size Ethiopian hut in the yard of her home on Kibbutz Evron, near Nahariya, close to Israel’s northern border with Lebanon. 

Skiba, who came to Israel as a child in the 1994 Operation Solomon, offers a brief talk to tourists about her aliyah experience and Ethiopian-Jewish culture; points out various authentic Ethiopian artifacts and artwork in the hut; prepares traditional injera sourdough flatbread; and demonstrates the preparation of Ethiopian coffee. Ethiopian-Jewish music heightens the experience that she offers to groups, students, Jews, and non-Jews interested in learning about the culture of a significant Jewish community and its efforts to integrate into Israeli society.

Skiba’s Mevrahatey (My Light) initiative is just one of hundreds of projects adopted by the Treasures of the Galilee umbrella group, with the goal of jumpstarting tourism in Israel’s Western Galilee region. Some of the most offbeat and creative tourism initiatives in the area are headed by enterprising women like Skiba, who are looking to increase their business.

Founded by philanthropist and Nahariya native Raya Strauss Bendror, Treasures of the Galilee brings together community activists, academics, CEOs, mayors, and religious leaders from the Western Galilee to help fund tourism projects like Skiba’s in an effort to create jobs and stimulate the economy of the region. 

With cities rich in history like Akko (Acre), the natural beauty of the northern coastline, spectacular national parks, and one of the most diverse populations in the country, the Western Galilee deserves to be a top destination for visitors, Strauss Bendror explains. 

After scouring the area for the best tourist sites, restaurants, B&Bs, galleries, wineries, and craftspeople, Strauss Bendror and her team provided copywriters and photographers for each place so they could beef up their online presence, and all are now included in an app and website that make it easy to pinpoint places of interest and plan a trip.