Zichron Yaacov

Zichron Yaacov is located between Tel Aviv and Haifa.  The name means Jacob's Memorial and the town spreads over a cliff, east to the coastal highway, overlooking the Mediterranean Sea.

The Settlement was founded in 1882 by Jewish Pioneers from Rumania, members of the Hovevi Zion movement.  They called the settlement Zammarin. However, before the end of the first year, difficult economic conditions and disease forced some of the settlers to leave.

In 1883, Baron Edmond James de Rothschild became the Patron of the settlement. He undertook to plan its residential design and agricultural economy and renamed the settlement in memory of his father.  In 1885, Rothschild helped to establish the first winery in Israel, Carmel Mizrahi.

In Zichron Yaacov you will find unique tourist attractions, romantic views and pastoral tranquility, country style accommodations, galleries, restaurants, excellent wine all with the "taste of the past". 

What to see:
The center of the town has been reconstructed and renovated. The main street, Derech Hayayin (Path of the Wine) is filled with coffee-houses, shops selling local jewelry and crafts, boutiques and special designed houses as well as the Old Water Tower, one of the first Water Towers of its kind.

Carmel Mizrahi Winery and the Tishbi Wineries - visit and get a close glimpse of the wine production from beginning to end and enjoy an opportunity to sample the excellent wines of the area.

During World War I, Zichron Yaacov gained notoriety for the establishment of the Nili Spy Ring by Sarah Aaronson, together with her brother Aaron and Alex and their friend Avshalom Feinberg.  The group volunteered to spy on Ottoman positions and report them to British Agents offshore. The Aaronson House-Nili Museum recreates the history of this period.

Museum of the First Aliya (Immigration to Israel) is located in a historical building, built in1894 by Barton Rothschild who used it as a Command Center. The museum was opened in 1990 and shows the story of the First Aliya between they years 1882 to 1904.

The Ohel Yaacov (Tent of Jacob) Synagogue was constructed by the Baron in memory of his father.   The Synagogue has a large main section for men and a second floor, wraparound, women's section. The Synagogue opened in 1886, features a majestic ark made of white marble and marble interior walls, and has conducted daily prayer services continuously to this day.

A trip to Zichron Yaacov is not complete without a visit to the beautifully landscaped gardens of Ramat HaNadiv, Baron Rothschild's Memorial Gardens.  The Gardens sprawl over 1,100 acres, 20 of which are the Memorial Garden, the final resting place of the Baron and Baroness Rothschild.  Not only are the Gardens beautiful, the surrounding nature reserve will appeal to hikers.

Zichron Yaacov
Zichron Yaacov is located between Tel Aviv and Haifa, spreads over a cliff, overlooking the Mediterranean Sea.

Key Words:   Baron Edmond James de Rothschild, Carmel Mizrahi, Tishbi, Derech Hayayin, Ramat HaNadiv, Baron Rothschild's Memorial Gardens, Aaronson House, Nili,