Experience the best of Nazareth

Nazareth lies in the hills of Lower Galilee and is the largest Arab city in Israel, with a hillside old city of limestone houses and winding lanes. The Basilica of the Annunciation, a large domed Catholic church completed in 1969 over the remains of earlier shrines, marks the place where, in Christian tradition, the angel announced the birth of Jesus to Mary. St Joseph's Church nearby stands on the site traditionally linked with Joseph's workshop.

The Greek Orthodox Church of the Annunciation is built over a spring, and the old market sells spices, sweets and textiles in narrow arcades. South of the centre, Mount Precipice drops steeply to the Jezreel Valley. Sepphoris, a Roman and Byzantine city with fine floor mosaics, lies a few kilometres north-west, Mount Tabor rises to the south-east, and the Sea of Galilee and the Mediterranean coast both lie within about 30 kilometres.

Galilean Arab cooking is the draw: hummus and falafel, flatbread baked in taboon ovens, labneh with za'atar and olive oil, kebabs and trays of knafeh and baklava, with coffee spiced with cardamom. Spring brings wildflowers to the hills. Summers are dry and winters cool and rainy.