Cnaan Village Boutique Hotel & Spa

Five Suites on the Golan Escarpment

Had Nes is a small moshav on the western edge of the Golan, set on the slope that drops several hundred metres to the Sea of Galilee. Cnaan Village occupies a piece of that slope with five double suites and nothing else: no lobby to speak of, no restaurant, no corridors. Each suite takes two people, has its own terrace and its own jacuzzi, and faces the water. The gardens hold the pool, the sauna and the spa. It is a small, single-minded property built for couples, and it does not pretend to be anything broader.

Why It Works

The north of Israel is full of zimmerim, the cabin-and-hot-tub formula that the country invented for weekend couples, and most of them are exactly what they sound like. This is the version done properly: five suites rather than fifteen, a real spa with professional treatments rather than a massage table in a shed, a pool kept at temperature year-round, and a breakfast that justifies getting up. Adults only keeps the register calm. And the site does the rest, because a slope this steep gives every suite the same view without any of them overlooking another.

Why This Location

From the terrace the Kinneret sits below you and the hills of Lower Galilee rise on the far side, with Tiberias visible along the shore. That geography is the itinerary. The Golan wineries are within half an hour, and so is Katzrin; Gamla and its vultures, the Jordan river crossings and the Banias springs are all morning drives. Rosh Pinna and the old stone lanes of Safed are twenty-odd minutes across the valley, and the lake shore itself, with its beaches and its hot springs, is a descent of a few kilometres. Mount Hermon is an hour north for the snow season. You will want a car; everything worth doing here is a drive, and the roads are empty.

Fast Facts

• Price: Premium

• Vibe: adults only, romantic, quiet, panoramic

• Rooms: five double suites, each with a private terrace and its own jacuzzi

• Best For: couples, wine travellers touring the Golan, anyone who wants two nights and no schedule

• Our Favorite Thing About the Hotel: the jacuzzi on your own terrace, with the Sea of Galilee several hundred metres below it

• Dining: a generous breakfast included, served in the garden or beside the pool; no restaurant on site

• Amenities: heated pool, sauna, hot tub, spa with professional treatments, treat bar, gardens, adults only

• Attractions: the Sea of Galilee and Tiberias, the Golan wineries, Katzrin, Gamla nature reserve, Safed and Rosh Pinna, Mount Hermon

A Jacuzzi in Every Suite

The suites are generous for two and built around one idea: that you will spend most of the stay on your own terrace. Each has a jacuzzi out there, a bed positioned for the view rather than for the television, and enough terrace to eat on. There are only five of them, so booking well ahead matters, particularly at weekends when Israeli couples come north. Ask which suite sits lowest on the slope; the difference in the sightline is small but real.

The Pool, the Sauna and the Treat Bar

Down in the garden the pool is kept at a comfortable temperature through the year, which on the Golan matters, because the winters here are genuinely cold and the summers are ferocious. Beside it are the sauna, a hot tub and the spa, which does proper massage and treatments rather than the token version. A treat bar handles the hours in between. Breakfast comes out to the poolside on request, which is the best use of a morning here.

Driving Out From Had Nes

There is no restaurant on site, so plan dinners. Katzrin and the wineries are the obvious first evening, the lakeside fish restaurants at Ein Gev or along the Tiberias shore the second. In between, the Golan opens up: basalt plateaus, cattle, orchards and roads with nothing on them. Come back up the escarpment at dusk, when the lake turns metal-coloured and the lights of Tiberias come on across the water.