Dead Sea

The Dead Sea

The water level has dropped more than 50 metres since 1930. By 2025 the surface sat at roughly 439 metres below sea level, and it falls at about one metre per year. Old photographs show shorelines that are now several hundred metres inland. Sinkholes have opened along sections of beach that were accessible a decade ago. The Dead Sea is the most visited body of water in the Middle East and it is quietly disappearing, which makes going now feel less like tourism and more like a responsible act.

The salinity sits around 34%, nearly ten times saltier than any ocean, which is why the floating works the way it does. Not a gentle bob: your legs and torso rise involuntarily above the waterline. The first few minutes feel absurd. After that, you understand why people have been coming here since Herod the Great built a fortress above the shore two thousand years ago.

The Israeli Side

Ein Bokek is the main resort strip on the Israeli side: a corridor of large hotels with direct beach access, a free public beach with showers and changing facilities, and all the convenience that makes it the obvious base. Mineral Beach, about 10 kilometres north, charges an entrance fee but offers a more curated experience including mud stations where staff show you how to apply the black Dead Sea mud before letting it set in the sun. It’s worth the entry cost.

Kalia Beach at the northern end is more relaxed and less commercial. It sits near the point where the Jordan River once entered the sea before the water diversions of the 20th century reduced that flow by about 90%.

Masada is the serious side trip. The ancient fortress-palace built by Herod sits 450 metres above the Dead Sea plain on a sheer-sided mesa. The cable car costs around 83 NIS return. The sunrise hike up the Snake Path starts at 4:30am and requires fitness and a headlamp, but reaches the summit as the light crosses the Jordanian plateau. The remains of ten Roman siege camps are visible from above, laid out in the desert exactly as they were when Flavius Silva encircled the fortress in 73 CE.

Qumran, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered between 1947 and 1956, is a worthwhile stop even if you have seen the scrolls themselves at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem. Standing at the actual caves where the jars were found adds something the museum display cannot.

The Jordanian Side

The drive from Amman takes around an hour. The resort hotels near the Amman Beach and O-Beach stretch occupy the northeastern shore, with private beach access and direct views across to the Israeli hills. Kempinski Hotel Ishtar and Mövenpick Resort Dead Sea are the two best-known names, both large, both with strong spa facilities that make use of the mineral-rich water and mud.

Wadi Mujib is the better argument for the Jordanian side. The gorge carries a seasonal river down to the Dead Sea through sheer sandstone canyon walls, and the canyon hike runs knee-deep through the water between walls that rise over a hundred metres. It receives a fraction of the traffic at Petra and is a more physical, more memorable experience than the resort strip alone.

The Mud Treatment

Every beach has free mud available from the shoreline. You apply it, let it dry in the sun for 15 minutes, then wash it off in the sea. Whether it does anything for your skin is genuinely debated in the dermatological literature, though the Dead Sea mineral cosmetics industry is a significant export business for Israel and Jordan. You will want photographs regardless. The grey-white coating looks strange enough that strangers will photograph you too.

Where to Stay

On the Israeli side, Isrotel Dead Sea and Herods are well-regarded mid-to-upper range options. Booking directly with the hotels is generally cheaper than booking platforms for this stretch. On the Jordanian side, the resort hotels are the main option and should be booked well in advance during European school holidays.

A single night is enough for most visitors. The resort strips are comfortable but not particularly interesting after dark, and the main reason to stay overnight is early morning access to the beach before tour groups arrive from Jerusalem and Amman.

Practical Tips

  • Do not shave the day before you swim. The 34% salinity will find every cut.
  • Keep your face entirely out of the water. Getting it in your eyes is genuinely painful and medically serious. Float on your back, weight distributed across your shoulders.
  • Summer temperatures exceed 40 degrees regularly. October through April is substantially more comfortable for everything outside of the water.
  • The shrinking shoreline means some hotels have extended their jetties or modified beach access in recent years. Check current beach conditions when booking.
  • If your primary interest is Masada and Qumran, a two-night stay in Ein Bokek makes sense as a base. If you want the Jordanian canyon hikes and spa hotels, stay on the Jordanian side and cross for a day trip.