Mitzpe Ramon Visitors Center
Mitzpe Ramon Visitors Center
Mitzpe Ramon Visitors Center
4.5
8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
8:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Saturday
8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
The Makhtesh (crater), above which the Makhtesh Ramon Visitors Center is located, is part of the Matsok HaTsinim and Har HaNegev nature reserves. The Visitors Center offers an experience combining the life story of the Israeli astronaut, Col. Ilan Ramon, while enabling visitors to become familiar with the largest makhtesh in the world and its unique natural phenomena.
Duration: 1-2 hours
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.5
421 reviews
Excellent
268
Very good
87
Average
40
Poor
15
Terrible
11
Dmitry F
Modiin, Israel4 contributions
Aug 2020
You are shown a few movies: first about an Israeli pilot and astronaut Ilan Ramon and then about the makhtesh. You cannot skip any part and have to patiently sit though the movies about Ilan Ramon, though they go into the level of detail that may be interesting only to his friends and family - and not to a random tourist that has come to learn about the history of the place.
Now, what's the connection between the two? It was customary among Jews to change their "foreign" surnames to sound more Israeli; thus, Ilan changed his last name to "Ramon" based on the second half of the original "Wolferman".
Yet, the visitor's center tries to make an impression that the place was named after him. And I see that many reviewers here got this impression. Go figure.
They don't talk about other shuttles, other astronauts, or about other Jewish astronauts (for example, Judith Resnik is not mentioned at all). This is a clear dedication to one person and his family - and I found it too much, especially given that it's unrelated to the makhtesh and not advertised in advance. The curtain opening is some circus beyond human understanding.
On the positive side, they have good air conditioning and at least one of the movies about the makhtesh is very interesting.
Now, what's the connection between the two? It was customary among Jews to change their "foreign" surnames to sound more Israeli; thus, Ilan changed his last name to "Ramon" based on the second half of the original "Wolferman".
Yet, the visitor's center tries to make an impression that the place was named after him. And I see that many reviewers here got this impression. Go figure.
They don't talk about other shuttles, other astronauts, or about other Jewish astronauts (for example, Judith Resnik is not mentioned at all). This is a clear dedication to one person and his family - and I found it too much, especially given that it's unrelated to the makhtesh and not advertised in advance. The curtain opening is some circus beyond human understanding.
On the positive side, they have good air conditioning and at least one of the movies about the makhtesh is very interesting.
Written 15 September 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
ogol17
Joshua Tree, CA983 contributions
Jan 2022 • Friends
This visitor center used to be excellent but since it reopened it is disappointing. Most of the exhibits now are not about the Ramon crater but about Ilan Ramon, the Israeli astronaut who is associated with this place for vague reasons. There are very few explanations about the crater, and the staff is unfriendly and rushes you through the exhibits.
Written 8 January 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Harold B
Jerusalem, Israel84 contributions
Aug 2021
The whole tour took one hour. We found the explanations regarding the astronaut Ilan Ramon very interesting, as well as the the explanation of the formation of the crater.
A pleasant way to spend an hour in Mitzpe Ramon
A pleasant way to spend an hour in Mitzpe Ramon
Written 22 August 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Karen S
New York City, NY5,892 contributions
Jul 2020 • Couples
We stopped here as they have a special exhibition for the 1st Israeli Astronaut who died aboard the Columbia space shuttle in 2003. They also had a small exhibition of stars taken at night in the Ramon Crater with an audio visual explanation of how the crater was made.
Written 9 July 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
archer o
Coventry, CT61 contributions
Mar 2017 • Couples
As stated above, the views were spectacular at virtually any point along the rim, including the visitor center, and the staff was very helpful in recommending hikes/walks/sites in the area that fit our schedule and interests. The map available for handout was very useful as well. This area was really worth a 24 hour side trip, and we wish we'd had another 24+ hours to spend here.
Written 1 April 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
limorika
Ramat Gan, Israel42 contributions
May 2015 • Friends
The Ramon crate is mostly accessible in any day, but even if you came in a middle of a desert storm- don't miss the visitors center, where you can learn and get educated about the great wonder who is the crate and the great nature powers who made it. hope you won't miss the spectacular view from the huge window who is hanged by the side of the crate.
Written 13 December 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
I visited this place🇺🇸🇫🇷🇨🇭🇬🇷🇬🇧
Israel35,417 contributions
I had been here a number of previous times in past years, and I must say that something clearly annoyed me this time.
First let me state that I am an admirer of Col. Ilan Ramon- we eagerly followed every aspect of his space flight and we participated in the national mourning at his tragic death (as well as of his son). He is an Israeli hero.
HOWEVER, the visitor center to the crater, which was dedicated to explaining, demonstrating and exploring the crater and the Negev desert, has been converted to be now primarily a museum of and memorial to the fallen Israeli pilot- and as far as I can tell, for no reason other than the shared name. I know of no deep personal connection between the astronaut and the city, the crater or the Negev desert.
And worse than that- it's not a walk through exhibit. From the moment of entry, one is escorted into small exhibit halls between doors and elevators that are subsequent closed behind the group, which is then required to wait and watch programs or hear explanations at a pre-designated speed ( there is no bypassing and moving ahead- I tried and failed even though my son and I were the only two people in our "group"). I certainly wanted to see the exhibits but I was forced to do it at the museum's designated speed and order of progression, and not my own.
By the time we finished those presentations on the fallen astronaut, I had no interest nor energy for the geological exhibits, and I don't think that they are abundantly described, but we had run out of time to view them, because we had been trapped by the slow speed (to our taste) of the Ilan Ramon exhibit.
First let me state that I am an admirer of Col. Ilan Ramon- we eagerly followed every aspect of his space flight and we participated in the national mourning at his tragic death (as well as of his son). He is an Israeli hero.
HOWEVER, the visitor center to the crater, which was dedicated to explaining, demonstrating and exploring the crater and the Negev desert, has been converted to be now primarily a museum of and memorial to the fallen Israeli pilot- and as far as I can tell, for no reason other than the shared name. I know of no deep personal connection between the astronaut and the city, the crater or the Negev desert.
And worse than that- it's not a walk through exhibit. From the moment of entry, one is escorted into small exhibit halls between doors and elevators that are subsequent closed behind the group, which is then required to wait and watch programs or hear explanations at a pre-designated speed ( there is no bypassing and moving ahead- I tried and failed even though my son and I were the only two people in our "group"). I certainly wanted to see the exhibits but I was forced to do it at the museum's designated speed and order of progression, and not my own.
By the time we finished those presentations on the fallen astronaut, I had no interest nor energy for the geological exhibits, and I don't think that they are abundantly described, but we had run out of time to view them, because we had been trapped by the slow speed (to our taste) of the Ilan Ramon exhibit.
Written 15 October 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
MyBTJ
Philadelphia, PA161 contributions
Aug 2020 • Family
The visitors center serves as a good introduction to the Crater in general. It provides a good overview with informative videos.
Written 26 December 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
FunkyMan3333
Ottawa, Canada311 contributions
Dec 2019
Take the time and do the tour here at the visitors center. The documentaries about Ilan Ramon are heart-wrenching, inspiring, and moving. The documentary on the geology of the makhtesh was informative.
Written 28 December 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
moshe s
Petah Tiqwa, Israel6 contributions
Aug 2019 • Family
Learned alot. Always good to get inspired by Ilan Ramon.
Very organized and interesting.
View is awsome.
Very organized and interesting.
View is awsome.
Written 18 September 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ma i gruppi della chiesa di 30 persone come arrivano a vedere l'alba sul cratere???In pulman?Gli alberghi dove sono situati?
Written 18 November 2019
Nelle vicinanze non ho visto alberghi,ma probabile in qualche paese vicino
Written 28 November 2019
אתה משלם כניסה וזה מוזיאון של אילן רמון ז"ל יש הסבר בטלוויזיה ויש המחשה של מכתש רמון שבקושי רואים משהו. אין הדרכה. אתה שומע הסברה דרך טלוויזיה או ברקע אתה שומע. זה נחמד מאוד בפנים...
Written 6 March 2019
I plan to have a stop at the Makakhtesh Ramon Visitor Center while I take bus 392 from Eilat to Beersheva. Is it possible to spend around 1~2 hour at the center? What can I do in this place? And is it worth to stop here during my way?
Written 19 August 2015
I think the view from the visitors center alone is worth the stop. It took us about an hour and a half to go through. If you plan on bringing lunch with you and eating there, using the bathroom, getting a cold drink, it'll take 2 hours. I think it's worth it. The view is unreal. Bring a camera.
Written 19 August 2015
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