There’s no better time than a vacation to spoil yourself with a spa treatment or a massage or better yet, a traditional Turkish bath. Ghattas Turkish Bath includes a hammam, a steam room, dry sauna, jacuzzi and massage treatments. Emil Ghattas was born and raised in Akko’s Old City and after finding success in the High-Tech field, he decided to come back home and fulfill an old childhood dream. While he was growing up in the 1950s, the local hammams were very popular since many of the households did not have running water or bathtubs. Once the majority of the houses had a regular supply of water and electricity, the traditional hammams were abandoned. Finally, after years of visiting hammams in other countries, Emil decided to buy an old building (from the Ottoman period) in Akko’s Old City, renovate it and turn it into a luxury bathhouse. There are several treatments to choose from but the traditional and most popular ones are the scrub treatment and the Turkish massage. Once you make a reservation, you’ll get the Turkish bath area just for yourself (for two hours), without any other guests around. For more details and the variety of treatments check Ghattas Turkish Bath.
This looks beautiful. I’ve been to Israel a few times last year, but only ever for work, so other than Tel Aviv where I stayed, I didn’t get to see much… unfortunately. But this looks great and I’d love to go back and see it all. So far, my only ‘encounter’ which Akko was buying a bottle of their gin as my souvenir 🙂
If you have a chance you should definitely see a little bit more of Israel! We like your souvenirs technique! Much better than a simple magnet for your fridge 🙂
What a beautiful guide – this destination looks so gorgeous. I love the architecture and would love to explore…
Thanks Keri! It’s a great little city to explore. Very charming!
I’ve never heard of Akko! Looks like you did get off the beaten path. Israel is high on my list. Did you just go to Akko for the day or is it worth staying a few days?
We actually live in Israel 🙂 Akko is wonderful and so is the north of Israel. A day trip to Akko vs. a couple of days – depends on how much time you have. Akko itself is doable in one day but the atmosphere there is special and it can be a great base to explore the north of Israel. we will slowly add more and more options for an off the beaten path itinerary in Israel so you’ll have more info.
I have never been to Israel! Gosh, the place looks amazing, the architecture is just incredible. I love exploring off-the-beaten-path destinations, so I guess this is getting added to my list 🙂 Thank you for this comprehensive guide!
Our pleasure Mo! It is a charming destination if you are heading to Israel one day.
Wow! This is such a great recommendation. Akko, in Israel sounds a great place to get lost in and visit the Turkish baths. I never knew they would have one there and only thought it was available in Turkey or Hungary, The architecture looks really interesting as well!
Thanks so much Pashmina, Akko is quite unique! You can find these Turkish baths sometimes at the places where the Ottomans used to rule. If you visit Israel. you definitely need to visit Akko 🙂