Come to sunny Eilat – it’s got everything...except tourists

When I told my ten-year-old nephew Sebastian of the things I had done and the things I had seen, his eyes grew large as falafel balls

This being an Israeli town, there are poignant memorials to fallen local soldiers, many of whom volunteered here. But to begin with we were taken to Eilat’s incredible International Birding and Research Centre (open every day and entry is free). As a Londoner whose default is to scream and flinch in response to pigeons and seagulls, I’m still amazed that less than a couple of hours at the sanctuary changed my feelings and opinion on birds for life. We were given a captivating tour and talk by the director, Noam Weiss, on their impressive research and conservation projects.

Eilat is a salt marsh on the edge of the Sinai and Sahara deserts and a crucial stopover for millions of birds on their migratory routes. Unsurprisingly it’s an excellent place to indulge in bird watching. From the viewing platforms we saw flamingoes wading in the marshes and cormorants, their enormous wings spread, drying themselves in the sun.

Some birds are temporarily captured here, weighed, examined, tagged and then released within an hour. I was invited to release an 11-gram female Sardinian Warbler. Obviously I named that bird “Baby Misha’”because I love birds now, don’t I?

​Next we were taken to Top 94 Eilat, an adventure park created in 2013 which “has something for people from one to one hundred”. It did not disappoint. It boasts a 20-metre climbing wall – the biggest in Israel – a shooting range, bouldering, an archery range and honestly a massive plethora of fun and adrenaline-pumping challenges. I soon found myself, harnessed, and on the Stairway to Heaven, where I climbed ascending columns with nothing to rely on but my balance. I got to the top and it was so exhilarating. After a little bit of wall-climbing and a spot of archery we were treated to a session of fast and furious karting.

After a quick lunch at local kosher favourite Omer’s, where I had a vegan burger and others ate goose, we were on to the Underwater Observatory Marine Park.  Climbing down to the Red Sea seabed and looking out at the open waters teeming with exotic, strange and wonderful life is by itself enough to make the trip to Eilat worth it. I could have spent days in that beautiful blue observatory watching the sea-life free in its natural environment. After watching a 3D film on whales, in the venue’s Aqua Dome – which is like an IMAX – I felt incredibly emotional. Sadly we didn’t have time for a shark dive, which is available for certified and insured divers, because we had to snorkel in the Red Sea. Yet another magical experience. Out in the waters for an hour with a guide, we swam through fishes and corals.

First on the itinerary for day two was a morning trip to Dolphin Reef for a “guided encounter with dolphins”, which I took to mean a mystical metaphysical tango between me and a dolphin, dancing amorphously to whale music, as one, occasionally breaching above sea level for a synchronised routine.

It didn’t mean that.

The guided encounter meant we watched majestic dolphins interact, on their own terms, with the guides. We were allowed to dangle our feet in the water and I had the thrill of a dolphin deliberately brushing my legs. The emphasis everywhere in Eilat is about nature being as undisturbed as possible.

First on the itinerary was a ‘guided encounter with dolphins which I took to mean a mystical tango between me and a dolphin. It wasn’t

You can have gorgeous “experiential treatments” at Dolphin Reef. It entails a therapist guiding you around in a warm sea water pool while you rest comfortably with your neck and knees supported with buoyancy aids. It’s magical, though at around £80 not particularly cheap, but the price includes a full day’s access to Dolphin Reef. Lunch there was delicious and for me only made better by the large number of young, well-fed, stray cats larking about all around us.

Next came the item on the tour I was dreading: the camel ride.

I had visited Eilat, as a bouncy, curly-haired teenager back in the 1980s, and it was fun. Apart from the camels. A four-hour trek riding into the desert and back to have bread, kneaded by barefooted Bedouins, had scarred me for life. The camels spat, snarled, blew off and endlessly excreted while, for some reason, glaring at me the entire time.

To add injury to the insult, I was then horribly saddle-sore for days and decidedly “unbouncy”. If you ask me, I remember thinking, there was a jolly good reason Mary and Joseph rode into Bethlehem on a donkey and not on a camel.

Understandably, I was therefore wary of the camel part of the tour. I looked up the average lifespan of a camel; 45 years. It was therefore just about feasible that I might meet the very same camels from almost 40 years ago. What if they remembered me? To my great joy and immense relief these camels, the guides at Ramon RZR assured us, always behaved impeccably. They were all female, good-natured, and never spat or snarled. A half-hour ride was perfect and actually really enjoyable. Maybe Joseph and Mary should have ridden female camels after all?

Next at Ramon RZR, a venue out in the desert of Mitzpe Ramon, a short drive from the city, came another adrenaline hit; riding three-wheelers – a cross between quad bikes and scooters – out into the desert. This was like no other motorised experience. Riding through the beautiful colour-changing mountains of the desert is like being on a magical moon.

Later that day we had an audience with the Mayor of Eilat, Eli Lankri. We met at the Terminal, Eilat’s old airport which is now an entertainment and cultural area. The idea, we are told, is for this space, in the heart of the city, to be for everyone, a place with heart and soul, to bring tourists together with locals. Eateries, exhibitions, an open air cinema, children’s play areas and a street-food market among other attractions. All they need now is the international tourists, and some direct flights to bring them in. Hopefully, Wizz Air, among others, will soon comply.

During the recent wars, Eli said, Eilat took in 65,000 evacuees from other parts of Israel. It was a challenge – 15,000 were children and needed schooling – but, more than that, it had been a great privilege. So lovely a place is Eilat to live that around 2000 of the evacuees decided to stay permanently. I could already understand why.

Day three was more relaxed but equally brilliant. We were driven out to Ne’ot Smadar, Israel’s kibbutz/town of the year. It’s a vegetarian paradise of some 200 inhabitants which grows its own vegetables and has a brewery, a bar and a dairy goat-herd. The main building is Disney-esque and palatial. The kibbutz rents out a few rooms and I honestly cannot wait to stay next time I go. After lunching there – on gloriously fresh and tasty food – we went on to our final spectacular destination: Timna Park.

It’s 70 square miles of ancient rock formations and rich, rich history. So far 8,000 archeological sites of interest have been identified, with more being discovered all the time. After an introduction by Ranger Ron, who made aliyah from the US many years ago, we drove around the park with Ron and Shai. Shai Cohen had been our brilliant main guide for our trip and every moment of our rides and walks Shai had filled with an incredible depth of local, historical and geological knowledge. The highlight of our stay in Timna was driving to a remote spot with Ranger Ron and Shai and just listening to the noisy silence of the desert with all our torches and phones turned off. It was another magical experience (and not just because for once Shai wasn’t going into the minutia of the rock formations).

Eilat has everything and more. All they need now is us. Our action-filled three days were only a small slice of a fun, friendly and fantastic city.

Millions of migrating birds can’t be wrong. Eilat really is worth flocking to. And what makes it even more special is that it’s part of Israel. Our Israel.

I certainly will be going back myself. And just remember, if you see a Sardinian Warbler while there, just shout out, “Fly high, Baby Misha!”

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Misha Mansoor was the guest of The Israel Ministry of Tourism