Bethany Jordan River Baptism Site of Jesus
Bethany Jordan River Baptism Site of Jesus
Bethany Jordan River Baptism Site of Jesus
4
8:30 AM - 6:00 PM
Monday
8:30 AM - 6:00 PM
Tuesday
8:30 AM - 6:00 PM
Wednesday
8:30 AM - 6:00 PM
Thursday
8:30 AM - 6:00 PM
Friday
8:30 AM - 6:00 PM
Saturday
8:30 AM - 6:00 PM
Sunday
8:30 AM - 6:00 PM
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smvNYC
New York City, NY363 contributions
Aug 2021
This is a place not to be missed. When you arrive, you are taken by bus to the site, and are provided with a guide that stays with you the whole time. The place is right on the border with Israel/Palestine, so the guided tour is really needed. We also rented a golf cart (25 JD). This meant that while the rest of the group was walking were were being driven from place to place. This would work well for somebody that has mobility restrictions, but also for people that want to see more, as the gold cart path was different than the pedestrian path. The best part was reaching the Jordan river by ourselves, well ahead of the rest of the group!
Written August 29, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
John F
Edmonds, WA165 contributions
Feb 2020
On a pilgrimage with several others to the Holy Land, we drove to the baptismal site on the Jordan side of the river where we had been just a week before! This time, we were able to get down to the water (still quite high, which is good news for life in the desert)
This side of the river, called "Bethany Beyond the Jordan" (or Al-Maghtas in Arabic), is an archaeological World Heritage site. This is accepted as the site where Joshua led the Israelites into the Pormised Land. From here, you can look back to see the remnants of a monastery on a nearby hillside called Jabal Mar-Elias (“Elijah's Hill”), traditionally identified as the site where the prophet Elijah ascended to heaven. Closer to the river, you pass the remains of churches, baptism ponds, and pilgrim and hermit dwellings.
This entire area was abandoned after the 1967 Six-Day War, when both banks of the Jordan became the frontline of the conflict and the area was heavily mined. The mines were not removed until after the signing of the Israel–Jordan peace treaty in 1994, and in 2015, UNESCO designated this eastern side of the river as a World Heritage site. We found the site quite tranquil and moving, and enjoyed the archaeological treasures along the way.
This side of the river, called "Bethany Beyond the Jordan" (or Al-Maghtas in Arabic), is an archaeological World Heritage site. This is accepted as the site where Joshua led the Israelites into the Pormised Land. From here, you can look back to see the remnants of a monastery on a nearby hillside called Jabal Mar-Elias (“Elijah's Hill”), traditionally identified as the site where the prophet Elijah ascended to heaven. Closer to the river, you pass the remains of churches, baptism ponds, and pilgrim and hermit dwellings.
This entire area was abandoned after the 1967 Six-Day War, when both banks of the Jordan became the frontline of the conflict and the area was heavily mined. The mines were not removed until after the signing of the Israel–Jordan peace treaty in 1994, and in 2015, UNESCO designated this eastern side of the river as a World Heritage site. We found the site quite tranquil and moving, and enjoyed the archaeological treasures along the way.
Written March 16, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
amg14
virginia394 contributions
Feb 2024 • Couples
First of all you CANNOT see this site on your own because it is in a military zone. We arrived at the visitor center, had to wait 20 minutes for the bus, made a 3 minute stop at Elijah’s well, then a 15 minute stop at a gift shop!!!! I told the guide that I didn’t come there to shop and I hoped we wouldn’t be rushed at the other sites. Then we walked to the Jordan and to a very nice church. The guide really didn’t show much interest in explaining things. I felt like I was herded with a large group of people. This took a large chunk out of our day which could have been better spent elsewhere.
Written February 25, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lorian H
9 contributions
Jun 2023 • Solo
The experience started by waiting 40 min in the visitor's center to take the shuttle bus. Once we arrived at the site, we had to wait for everyone to meander around in the gift shop before leaving. The gift shop should be located in the visitor's center where people are already sitting around waiting. I would have left at that point, but you are trapped there as the shuttle busses have to wait for everyone. After the annoying wait for people to shop, it is a long walk to the baptismal site. I have no idea why they would not build the parking closer to the baptismal site. All in all, poorly organized.
Written June 18, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
carnage99
Melbourne246 contributions
Feb 2023 • Solo
Fantastic visit and well worth doing. For sure the tour guide included in the price was a bit rushed and didn’t really give that much detail but it is still an enjoyable visit. The walk down to the river is lovely through the groves. And then you get to see the river (way narrower than I expected) and all the tourists on the Israeli side being baptised. The Jordan side is way more calm. Note that the the regular Jordan pass doesn’t cover this site.
Written February 18, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
betteskid
Boston, MA1,327 contributions
Dec 2022
We visited this site during our stay in Jordan and it was interesting to see how small the Jordan river has become. It was also very muddy and the Israeli bank was very close. Several groups were in the water on the Israeli side, with some being baptized. The small church on the site is lovely as is the walk to the river, although there were quite a few flies (we were told these are seasonal). There are also some ruins on the way to the river. This site is very close to the Israeli border crossing with Jordan, making it easy to stop there.
Written December 17, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Robert D
Brooklyn, New York4,407 contributions
Feb 2024 • Solo
Bethany beyond the Jordan is famous as the place where John the Baptist baptized Jesus. The Baptism Site Museum is run by the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate. The treasures were magnificent, including a robe that took five years to embroider. You follow a path that leads to the spot where Jesus was baptized. There were five churches built near the spot in memory of the baptism. I said prayers here for two friends--one is in the ICU and the other has pancreatic cancer. You can get baptized in the Jordan River. When I was here in 2016, I saw many people getting baptized by full immersion. Now the site was quite empty. The river is not wide and you can see both the Jordanian and Israeli sides.
Written April 21, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Mack 2011
Liege, Belgium444 contributions
Dec 2023 • Family
visit to Bethany: unattractive except for its Christian symbol. The guide doesn't explain anything, he first takes us to the souvenir store... then he takes us to the place of the baptism which is not grandiose. On the other side of the Jordan is Israel. The church has not been visited. Frankly, there is no need to go that far for so little.
Written January 28, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Stephanie M
Montreal, Canada284 contributions
Apr 2023 • Solo
The guide we had on the bus was good and gave useful information. However, I didn’t know that the souvenir shop we stopped at first was the only one on the site, and I thought there would be another one later at the end, so I didn’t buy anything as it was too rushed with too many people crammed together in the small shop. So if you want a souvenir from that place, buy it at that first shop.
Written May 6, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
JMGeneva
Geneva, Switzerland1,974 contributions
Sep 2023 • Friends
You have to take a tour from the visitor’s center and thus have to follow the (minimally motivated) guide till the end. He will first trap you in a junk gift shop for half an hour before taking you to a couple of moderately interesting places, but who obviously seem to make the most illuminated happy. There are several nice looking churches in the area but you only visit one which hosts some kind of uninteresting museum and pass along another.. the nicest are seen from the road… as for the Jordan river it’s a 3 meters wide muddy stream. There is no point walking half an hour under the sun to see it. You’ve been warned.
Written September 6, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi I am not sure if my previous attempt at publishing was successful - I am writing to enquire whether anyone familiar with the Jesus Baptismal site in Jordan can comment about the alleged security incident in Feb 2024 reported by TripAdvisor user BPTreen/Trina from Indiana. Is there any further information about this review or the reported incident available, and any measures taken to secure the safety of future visitors? And why was the "Yemeni military" cited in the review regarding the security incident? Many thanks.
Written March 20, 2024
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