Dvorat Hatavor – Visitors Guide (with Coupons)
Dvorat Hatavor is a silk and honey farm near Mount Tabor. At the visitors center, you can join tours and family activities.
Table of Contents
Map
Dvorat HaTavor, as its name suggests, is located not far from the Tavor mountain at Moshav Shadmot Dvora in Lower Galilee. To get there, enter “Dvorat Hatavor” into Waze.
Directions for drivers: Link to Waze and Link to Google Maps
Directions for public transport: Link to Moovit
Interactive map of the area:
Entrance Fee
Child (2-14): 52 NIS.
Adult (15+): 42 NIS.
Notes:
- The entrance fee includes a tour.
- Though the official site does not mention it, children under 2 enter for free.
- Soldiers, pensioners, and students receive a 10% discount.
Coupons
Here are the available coupons:
- 1+1 at Isracard
- 1+1 at MAX
- Cal: adult 32 NIS and child 39 NIS
- Diners: adult 32 NIS and child 39 NIS
- 1+1 at American Express
Coupon for 10% off at Ligdol.- HTZone – starting from 26 NIS per ticket.
Note: the coupons were updated in November 2022.
Opening Hours
Different websites list various opening hours. The official website states only that they are open on weekends and holidays. Thus, to visit Dvorat Hatavor, you must register for a tour. On regular weekends (not holidays), there are tours at 10:00, 12:00, and 14:00.
Note: we joined a tour on a Saturday at 10:00. Since there were few people then, I recommend doing the same.
Contact Information
Phone: 04-6769598, 050-5637645
Email: bee@tour-galilee.co.il
Website: dvorat-hatavor.co.il
Facebook: facebook.com/TavorBee
At Dvorat Hatavor
And now, I will tell you about our visit to the Dvorat Hatavor visitors center.
After parking and payment, we started the tour.
Honey
We received general explanations regarding different types of insects and tasted the honey.
Our instructor was Yigal. He was very friendly, and his explanations were simple and aimed toward kids (they recommend this visit for children above three years old).
Though we did not arrive at Dvorat Hatavor early (around 10:00), we were the only family. Hence we received a private tour.
At the second stop, Yigal showed us a beehive:
Do you know why people selected orange, blue, and white colors for beehives? These are the colors that bees see.
Do you know how bees tell each other where flowers are located? As it turns out, when a bee enters a beehive, it dances. The type of dance signals the location of the flowers.
On our third stop, we went to see bees (from behind a net):
Yigal shows us the construction of a honeycomb:
Silk
At the next stop, we learned about silk.
We received a short explanation of how silk is created.
Here are several cocoons in the water:
After being in the water, they become softer, and then you can weave from them.
Here are the cocoons that were collected from the trees:
And these are several tools used for work:
Next to the silk stop, you can find a craft area. Each child receives a kit to create a bee costume, a candle, and a little chocolate (by mixing honey and cacao powder).
There is also an animal corner where children can feed farm animals.
About
An authentic silk & honey farm located in moshav Shadmot Dvora at the foothill of Mount Tabor in the Lower Galilee – Dvorat HaTavor is a unique visitors center. This Israeli boutique honey farm offers educational programs and family activities. Inviting visitors to join a live demonstration of the production of honey and silk (the only active silk farm in Israel) as it was done by the Ben Zeev family since the moshav was founded in 1939 as part of the original tower and stockade villages.
The farm is open to the public daily with tours at 10:00, 12:00, and 14:00, all year long thanks to the Mediterranean climate. The honey harvesting season happily coincides with the summer vacation and high holidays, which makes seasonal honey festivals a popular attraction. You are more than welcome to call ahead and schedule a complete tour. The tour which includes an explanation regarding the honey production as well as the healing capacities of honey and other bee’s products includes also a visit to the beehives observatory where the actual bees can be observed without any danger of getting stung, a visit to the silk growing facility and activities for children which are suitable for children from the age of 3.
The farm which is a known tourist attraction for more than 20 years was redesigned to accommodate visitors with special needs. It includes all the necessary facilities such as parking, toilets, a kiosk, and a gift shop where you can find pure Dvorat Ha’Tavor honey, souvenirs & honey gift baskets which are common holiday presents among Israelis.
Moshav Shadmot Dvora (“Dvora” named after the biblical prophet Deborah who fought Sisera at the foothill of Mount Tabor) is conveniently located off-road 65North, 20 to 40 minutes drive from a lot of the main attractions in the Galilee such as the Sea of Galilee, the Jordan River, Nazareth, Tiberius, and Mount Tabor.
In addition to the standard tour, Dvorat Hatavor offers special activities for Bar & Bat Mitzvah trips such as the option for the Bar & Bat Mitzvah boys and girls to dress up in the beekeeper costume and accompany the beekeeper into the hives in the bee observatory as the families watch from the visitors stands.
Source: official site
Agrotourism Attractions
You can find similar attractions in the Agrotourism category. And here are a selected few:
- Picking Strawberries – When, Where, and Comparison of Places
- Bustan Shoshan, Matsliah – Exotic Fruit Experience
- Mostly Raspberries
- Flowers
- Picking at Tali Grapes in Moshav Lachish
- Honey tour at Dvorat HaTavor Visitor Center
- Harvesting Olives At Galili Olive Oil, Bethlehem Of Galilee
- The Salad Trail – Visitors Guide – Agricultural Tours in Southern Israel
- Ktofoti – Self-Picking Farm
- Sweet Cherry picking in Israel
- Meshek haPark, Herzliya
Summary
The Dvorat HaTavor tour took almost an hour and a half. It was an enjoyable and informative tour. Both adults and children enjoyed the visit. The only downside is the entrance price. But you can get cheaper tickets using the listed coupons.
Have you visited Dvorat Hatavor? Tell us in the comment below about your experience.
That’s all for today, and I’ll see you in future travels!
Stay Tuned!
For similar points of interest, check out Agrotourism.
Additional Resources
Here are several resources that I created to help travelers:- Trip Planner with Attractions and Itineraries is the page that will help you create your perfect travel route.
- What is the Best Time to visit Israel? To answer this question, we will consider the weather, prices, holidays, festivals, and more.
- Information and Tips for Tourists to Israel will answer the most common questions tourists have about Israel (including safety, passports, weather, currency, tipping, electricity, and much more).
- Israel National Parks and Nature Reserves include a complete list, top ten, map, tickets (Israel Pass, Matmon, combo), and campsites.
- If you are looking for things to do, here are the pages for Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Haifa, Sea Of Galilee, Akko (Acre), Eilat, Nazareth, Safed (Tzfat), and Makhtesh Ramon.
