By The Visit Israel Editorial Team · Last updated
Multi-day guided tours timed to Christmas in Bethlehem and Nazareth — with Midnight Mass access, Checkpoint 300 logistics handled, and hotel bookings in Jerusalem included.
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Abraham Tours runs small-group day trips from Jerusalem and Tel Aviv during the winter season — Bethlehem, the Dead Sea, and Masada sunrise at their quietest and most atmospheric.
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Jerusalem hotels fill weeks ahead of Catholic Christmas (Dec 24–25) and even faster for Orthodox Christmas (Jan 6). Book early for the Old City, German Colony, and City Centre areas.
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Israel is the only country where Christmas is celebrated not once but three times — and in the city where the story began. Catholic, Orthodox, and Armenian Christmas services at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, a Nazareth festival that fills the Old City of the Arab north, and Jerusalem’s winter atmosphere make Christmas in Israel an experience unlike anywhere else.
This guide covers how to attend the celebrations, how to navigate Bethlehem, where to experience the season across the country, and the practical advantages of travelling Israel in winter.
Christmas in the Holy Land follows three distinct calendars, each with its own ceremony:
Catholic & Protestant Christmas — December 24–25: The internationally broadcast Catholic Midnight Mass at the Church of the Nativity is officiated by the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem and attended by dignitaries, pilgrims, and visitors from around the world. Manger Square fills with crowds; a tree is lit; carol concerts run from the afternoon of December 24.
Orthodox Christmas — January 6–7: Greek Orthodox, Romanian, Russian, Coptic, and other Eastern churches follow the Julian calendar and celebrate on January 6. The Greek Orthodox Christmas liturgy at the Church of the Nativity draws large Middle Eastern Christian communities and is a more intimate affair than the Catholic event. Jerusalem’s Jaffa Gate area and the Christian Quarter see processions.
Armenian Christmas — January 18–19: The Armenian Apostolic Church celebrates Christmas on January 18, making the Armenian Patriarchate in Jerusalem one of the last to mark the season. The Armenian Quarter of the Old City comes alive; the ceremony at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is one of the year’s most atmospheric.
The Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem is built over the traditional site of Jesus’s birth, and has stood in some form since the 4th century. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the focal point of the Christmas celebrations.
The main Catholic Midnight Mass (December 24) is organised by the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem. Attending the indoor service requires an invitation or ticket — apply through lpj.org or join a tour that includes Mass access. Demand significantly exceeds capacity, and solo visitors without tickets are unlikely to secure indoor access. Manger Square itself is free and open to all, and screens broadcast the Mass to the thousands who gather outside; this is how most visitors experience it.
Arrive early — by 10pm — for a good position in Manger Square. The square fills to capacity by 11pm.
For Orthodox and Armenian services, contact the respective patriarchates in Jerusalem well in advance. These services are smaller, more accessible to serious visitors, and often more moving than the televised Catholic event.
Outside the Christmas period, the Church of the Nativity is open daily to visitors at no charge. The Grotto of the Nativity (the cave beneath the main altar) is the most visited point; queues can be long at any time of year but are especially so around Christmas. The silver star on the floor marks the traditional birth site — no need to express reverence or any religious belief to visit as a tourist.
The adjacent St Catherine’s Church (Latin Patriarchate, built in the 1880s) is where the Midnight Mass is physically held; the two buildings share a compound.
Bethlehem is in the West Bank, 10 kilometres south of Jerusalem. Israeli citizens cannot enter Area A of the West Bank; tourists with foreign passports cross freely.
Checkpoint 300 (Container Checkpoint): the standard crossing point for tourists travelling from Jerusalem. It is open to pedestrians and buses, not privately driven Israeli cars. Processing time for foreign passport holders is typically 5–20 minutes. You show your passport, walk through the terminal, and Palestinian taxis are waiting on the other side. The crossing is open 24 hours; expect it to be busier on December 24 than any other day of the year.
Ministry of Tourism free buses: the Israeli Ministry of Tourism has in past years operated free shuttle buses from Jerusalem’s Liberty Bell Garden (Gan HaPaamon, near the First Station) to Checkpoint 300 on December 24. This service is not guaranteed year-to-year and details change — check the Israel Ministry of Tourism website and Israeli MFA travel updates closer to December for current arrangements. Do not rely on this service when booking flights.
Organised tours: the simplest option for first-time visitors. Tour operators handle transport, Checkpoint 300 logistics, and often include Mass access in the package. Day trips from Jerusalem run from roughly 09:00 to the Christmas service in the evening; overnight options based in Bethlehem hotels also exist.
Jerusalem’s Christian Quarter is dressed for Christmas from early December, with lights along the Via Dolorosa, the Christian Quarter Road, and the area around the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem’s Old City covers both Calvary (Golgotha) and the traditional tomb of Jesus. Six Christian denominations — Greek Orthodox, Roman Catholic (Franciscan Custody), Armenian Apostolic, Coptic, Ethiopian, and Syriac Orthodox — share the church under a complex centuries-old arrangement called the Status Quo.
Each denomination holds its own Christmas liturgy on its respective date. The Catholic service (Latin Patriarchate procession from Jaffa Gate to the church, December 24) is the most visible; the Greek Orthodox Christmas Day liturgy (January 7) draws large Arab Christian communities from across the Galilee and the West Bank.
The church itself is open to visitors throughout the year and year-round access doesn’t require booking. For the Church of the Holy Sepulchre full visitor guide, including the shared-space customs and the best times to visit outside busy periods, see the dedicated page.
Beyond the formal services, the Christian Quarter transforms in December. The New Gate area, Latin Patriarchate Road, and Christian Quarter Road are lit and busy with pilgrims, tourists, and Old City vendors. The Armenian Quarter’s Patriarchate compound, normally quiet, opens for visitors around January 18.
Mahane Yehuda Market, Jerusalem’s main produce market, makes little overt acknowledgement of Christmas (it operates within a predominantly Jewish commercial context) but is worth visiting in the lead-up to the holidays for winter produce — persimmons, citrus, date honey, and the early pomelo season.
Nazareth — a city of roughly 75,000 residents, predominantly Arab, split between Muslim and Christian communities — hosts the largest Christmas celebration inside Israel. The Old City and the area around the Basilica of the Annunciation fill with a Christmas market, live music, and a procession on Christmas Eve.
What to expect: stalls selling local food (kanafeh, msabbaha, Arab pastries), handicrafts, and ornaments; live Arabic and Western Christmas music; a municipal Christmas tree in the main square; and the warm commercial-festive energy of a city that genuinely celebrates the holiday as its own.
The Basilica of the Annunciation: Nazareth’s main Christian landmark, built over the traditional site of the Archangel Gabriel’s announcement to Mary, is open to visitors year-round and holds special services during the Christmas season. It is the largest church in the Middle East.
Getting there: Nazareth is approximately 1.5 hours from Tel Aviv by bus (Egged/Kavim services) and 2 hours from Jerusalem. A day trip is very feasible; staying overnight allows the evening markets and the evening procession. See the Nazareth travel guide for accommodation and site-by-site detail.
Tel Aviv’s New Year (December 31) is a secular celebration with no religious dimension. The city marks the Gregorian New Year with beach parties, Dizengoff Square events (usually a free outdoor countdown), bar specials along Rothschild Boulevard, and the hotels along the beachfront hosting ticketed events.
Tel Aviv in December is pleasant — 14–18°C, dry most days, the sea too cold for swimming but the promenade and cafes busy. The city doesn’t close for Christmas or New Year in the way Jerusalem quiets for Jewish holidays.
December through February is Israel’s green season and its quietest:
Fewer crowds: the major sites — Masada, the Western Wall, Yad Vashem, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre — all have shorter queues in January than at any other time of year. This is the best window for a visit without the summer queues.
Lower prices: hotel rates outside the Christmas peak week (December 23–January 2) and Orthodox Christmas (January 5–8) are among the year’s lowest. Tel Aviv in January–February is measurably cheaper than May–June.
Green landscapes: the Galilee, the Judean Hills, and the Negev highlands are green after the winter rains. The wildflower season begins in the Negev in January–February, building to the red anemone carpets of the Darom Adom festival by mid-February.
Eilat and the Dead Sea in season: while Jerusalem is cold and occasionally wet, Eilat on the Red Sea runs 20–24°C through winter — its most comfortable weather of the year. The Dead Sea in December–January is warm enough to float comfortably (the water temperature doesn’t change much). Many Israelis escape to both in winter for exactly this reason.
Snow in Jerusalem: rare, unpredictable, and unforgettable if it happens — Jerusalem in snow, the Old City walls white against a grey sky, shuts the city down but creates one of its most photographed moments.
Visa and entry: standard visa rules apply. The ETA-IL (₪25 online pre-travel registration) is required for most nationalities in addition to the normal entry requirements.
Transport on Christian holidays: Israeli public transport continues to run normally through Christmas and New Year (they are not Israeli public holidays). There are no bus or train suspensions on December 24–25 or January 1.
What’s open: Jewish-owned businesses may or may not acknowledge Christmas at all. Arab-owned restaurants and businesses in East Jerusalem, Nazareth, Jaffa, and Haifa’s Arab Quarter observe Christmas. In general, Christmas doesn’t create shutdowns outside the Christian Quarter of the Old City and Bethlehem — it’s a visitor event within a country that follows a different holiday calendar.
Safety: up-to-date travel advice applies as at any time of year. The Christmas period at the Church of the Nativity and Manger Square involves large, managed crowds — sensible city-safety practices apply.
Christmas in Bethlehem is celebrated three times: Catholic and Protestant Christmas Eve is December 24–25; Orthodox Christmas (Greek, Romanian, Russian, Coptic) is January 6–7 (Julian calendar); and Armenian Christmas is January 18–19. Each ceremony is distinct — the December 24 Catholic Midnight Mass at the Church of the Nativity is the largest and most internationally attended. The Orthodox and Armenian services are smaller and more intimate, often preferred by visitors wanting a less crowded experience.
Yes, but tickets are required. The Bethlehem Christmas celebrations are coordinated by the Palestinian Authority, and the main Midnight Mass (Roman Catholic, officiated by the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem) requires an invitation or ticket obtained through the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem (lpj.org) or authorised tour operators. Free outdoor celebrations in Manger Square are open to all. The Orthodox and Armenian Christmas services are also accessible to respectful visitors with advance inquiry to the relevant church community.
The main crossing point is Checkpoint 300 (the Container Checkpoint), open to tourists travelling by foot or bus — not by car. Processing time is typically 5–20 minutes for tourists with a foreign passport, faster than the long queues Israeli citizens sometimes face. Palestinian taxis wait on the Bethlehem side. The Israeli Ministry of Tourism typically operates free shuttle buses from Jerusalem's Liberty Bell Garden (Gan HaPaamon) to Checkpoint 300 on December 24; this service is not guaranteed and details vary year to year — check the Israeli MFA and Ministry of Tourism websites closer to the date. Most tour operators handle the crossing logistics as part of the Christmas programme.
Christmas in Bethlehem is one of the most heavily managed tourist events in the region, with Israeli and Palestinian security coordination, and tens of thousands of international visitors attend each year. The celebrations and Manger Square are open to tourists. General safety guidance on the West Bank applies year-round — check your home government's current travel advisory and consult the is-israel-safe guide for context. Many visitors find the Christmas visit straightforward as part of an organised tour.
Nazareth hosts what is considered the largest Arab-Christian Christmas celebration inside Israel. The city's mixed Jewish-Arab-Christian population creates a distinctive atmosphere: the Old City fills with lights, stalls selling local food and handicrafts, live music, and a parade on Christmas Eve. The event has grown significantly in recent years with municipal investment; it runs across the Christmas week in late December. Nazareth is about 1.5 hours by bus from Tel Aviv and 2 hours from Jerusalem — feasible as a day trip or overnight.
Jerusalem can receive snow in December and January — it happens most years at some point between mid-December and February, though snowfall is rarely on Christmas Day itself. When Jerusalem does snow, the city closes (public transport stops, schools shut) and the Old City's rooftops and the Western Wall plaza transform dramatically. It is a cherished experience but not reliably timed; the best advice is to build flexibility into your trip and not plan specifically around snow. The Dead Sea and Eilat, 80–90 minutes away, remain warm (18–24°C) even when Jerusalem is snowing.
By The Visit Israel Editorial Team · Last updated