Manara Cliff Cable Car & Mountain Slide

September 13th 2010

Since its opening in 1998, Manara Cliffs has hosted more than one million visitors from all around Israel and all around the world. Located in the Galilee, between Rosh Pina and Kiryat Shemona, Manara Cliffs is a fun vacation destination for the whole family, thanks to alpine sliding, a cable car cruise, a clinbing wall, a zip line and more.

The facility is best known for its cable car ride. Running from the foothills of Kiryat Shemona to the top of the Naftali Mountain range at Kibbutz Manara, the cable cars cover a total distance of a mile and a quarter, making it the longest cable car ride in Israel. There are 12 cable cars, and each carries up to eight people. This long and luxurious cable car ride is a great way to appreciate the dramatic, hilly landscape from up high and to just relax while your eyes drink in the stunning scenery.

At the same location, tourists looking for a bit more extreme sports kind of fun can race down the mountain slides along 4000 feet of track. Like the cable car, it’s the longest run of any mountain slide in Israel. One or two people board a cart at the bottom of the hill, and the cart travels approximately 800 feet while attached to a cable. Then the carts are detached from the cable, and you take over the steering while also controlling the cart’s speed. These low-riding carts have been known to reach speeds of 25 miles an hour.

There are a few other extreme sport type of activities at Manara Cliffs. For anyone over the age of five, there’s a 54-foot high climbing wall with two parallel tracks. Rappelling, the direct vertical decent down the face of a rock using a rope, is also an option at Manara Cliffs. For those who want to pull themselves across a cable suspended high above the ground, Manara Cliffs has the longest zip line in Israel. In order to be hooked up to the zip line, children have to weigh at least 66 pounds.

If you’re looking for a slightly calmer experience, Marana Cliffs offers awe-inspiring views of the Galilee, the Golan Heights, Mount Hermon and the Hula Valley. Guided tours of the local olive groves and lunch or dinner at the Manara Cliffs restaurant round out a truly great family experience.