Israel tour guide > Caesarea Philipi
CAESAREA PHILIPI (Present day Banias)
In ancient times people came to Caesarea Philipi, set in the southern foothills of Mount Hermon to escape the summer heat. Today modern Israelis come here to enjoy the only 18-hole golf course in Israel.
Herod the Great first built a temple here before his son constructed the city and gave it its name. The natural beauty of the city is summed up in its present day name. Banias is a corrupt form of the Greek name Paneas, which derives from the god of nature, Pan.
The city features in the Bible as the place where Peter recognised Jesus as the Messiah. Its is also the traditional site of several miracles.
