On a cone-shaped hill above the Dead Sea stand the ruins of Herod's fortress. The Gospels tell of John the Baptist's imprisonment and death at the command of Herod Antipas (Mark 6:17–29), and the historian Josephus places it here, at Machaerus. A path climbs to the summit for the view west at sunset.
Highlights
- Herodian palace ruins on the summit
- Views over the Dead Sea
- Reading Mark 6 on the hilltop
- Village of Mukawir below
- About an hour from Madaba