Masada hosts Tamar Festival from 28 September
Published on 09/27/2026 at 15:53 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael Müller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWS
Masada hosts Tamar Festival from 28 September to 2 October 2026, bringing evening concerts, sunrise performances and public events to the Dead Sea region. The programme centres on the fortress and its foothill venues during the Sukkot holiday period.
The site, a UNESCO World Heritage property in Israel's Judean Desert, is also known by its Hebrew name, which is omitted here because it uses a non-Latin script.
Tamar Festival brings four days of music to Masada
The Tamar Festival runs from Monday 28 September through Friday 2 October 2026 across four venues in the Dead Sea area, including the Masada Hall at the foot of the mountain and the summit itself. The programme combines evening concerts, sunrise shows and performances open to the general public.
The opening programme at the foothill venue includes Marina Maximilian, Ethnix, Miri Mesika with Keren Peles, and Avraham Tal with Mosh Ben Ari. Later evenings include Berry Sakharof, Noga Erez, Tuna and Odaya, while the closing programme features Jimbo J, Liran Danino, Yehudim, Ben Zur and Eden Ben Zaken. The festival programme at Masada also lists free public performances at Ein Gedi and Nahal Amatziahu.
Sunrise performances are scheduled on the summit on 29 and 30 September and 2 October 2026. The festival's split between the foothill stage and the summit means that the musical programme uses two different visitor settings at the same archaeological landmark.
Masada's Herodian palace frames the festival setting
Masada is a rugged natural fortress overlooking the Dead Sea. Herod the Great built a palace complex there in the classical style of the early Roman Empire during his reign from 37 to 4 BCE.
The archaeological property includes Herod's palaces, defensive walls, Roman military camps and an assault ramp. UNESCO describes the surrounding siegeworks as the most complete surviving Roman siege system of their kind and records the site's management by the Israel Nature and Parks Authority in cooperation with the Israel Antiquities Authority. The UNESCO World Heritage listing places the festival's modern stages against a monument whose surviving remains document both royal architecture and Roman military engineering.
Visiting Masada: what travellers from Western Europe should know
- Tamar Festival takes place from 28 September to 2 October 2026, with evening concerts at the Masada Hall and sunrise performances on the summit on 29 September, 30 September and 2 October.
- The festival also uses venues at the foot of the mountain, while the summit performances occupy the former palace area. The programme includes public performances at Ein Gedi and Nahal Amatziahu.
- Masada stands above the Dead Sea in the Judean Desert. The western approach uses Route 3199 from Arad, while the eastern visitor area is reached from Route 90; the foothill and summit venues are separate parts of the visit.
- The site is a steep archaeological fortress with exposed desert terrain, historic defensive structures and an elevated summit. The festival's sunrise events therefore take place in a setting shaped by uneven ground and open slopes.
- Entry requirements depend on your nationality; UK travellers can check the FCDO travel advice at gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice, Irish travellers the Department of Foreign Affairs at ireland.ie.
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Frequently asked questions about Masada
When does Tamar Festival take place at Masada?
Tamar Festival runs from 28 September to 2 October 2026. Masada venues include evening concerts at the foothill hall and sunrise performances on 29 September, 30 September and 2 October 2026.
Where is Masada and how do you get there?
Masada is in Israel's Judean Desert above the Dead Sea. The western approach uses Route 3199 from Arad, while the eastern visitor area is reached from Route 90.
What is Masada?
Masada is a UNESCO World Heritage archaeological site built as a palace complex by Herod the Great. Its remains include palaces, fortifications, Roman camps and an assault ramp.
