About Dead Sea
The Dead Sea – bordering Israel, the West Bank and Jordan – is a salt lake whose banks are more than 400m below sea level, the lowest point on dry land. Its famously hypersaline water makes floating easy, and its mineral-rich black mud is used for therapeutic and cosmetic treatments at area resorts. The surrounding desert offers many oases and historic sites. The first major Israeli hotels were built in nearby Arad, and since the 1960s at the Neve Zohar resort complex. Israel has 15 hotels along the Dead Sea shore, generating total revenues of $191 million in 2011. Most Israeli hotels and resorts on the Dead Sea are on a six kilometer stretch of the southern shore. The western shore (inside Israel’s borders) is dotted with organized beaches and bathing areas that provide convenient access to the water. Beside two of the therapeutic beaches (Neve Zohar and Ein Bokek) large tourism centers have been established.