When one stands on the observation deck on the Louis Promenade on Mount Carmel, Israel’s north and Haifa Bay as seen from the promenade look as though they were taken from a painting. In the distance one can see the peak of Mount Hermon, the houses of downtown Haifa and the city’s Hadar neighborhood are scattered among the green areas, and thus Mount Carmel, called in one famous song “the mountain which is green all year long,” gets a special meaning.

There are 17 special observation decks along Mount Carmel. One is the observation deck on the Louis Promenade, which was established in 1992 and is 400 meters long. The Louis Promenade is located on Haifa’s Yefe Nof Street.

The location of the promenade near hotels and coffee shops in the Carmel Center makes it a natural continuation of Haifa’s tourist avenue. All along the promenade one can enjoy a spectacular panoramic view of Haifa Bay, the Krayot, Akko, Nahariya, Mount Hermon and Rosh Hanikra.

And speaking of promenades, a new promenade recently opened in Haifa. Located by the sea, the Hecht Park Promenade (parking is available at the Maxim Restaurant at the entrance to the city) is beautiful and safe (a child cannot run onto the nearby train tracks or onto the road). There is plenty of grass and a large area in which one can run, ride a bike or just play ball. The park has a large playground with six different swings, equipment for climbing with ropes, carousels for families and individuals, slides, and much more.

Haifa is blessed with many museums. If science is your thing, visit the Science Museum in the old Technion building in the Hadar neighborhood. If a Japanese museum is your idea of a good time, visit the Tikotin Museum which is adjacent to the Dan Carmel Hotel. If it is the sea and maritime aspect that you want, visit the Immigration Museum, Maritime Museum, or the Museum of the Navy where you can see the remains of the bridge of the Dakar submarine and the last of the Cherbourg missile boats which were smuggled from France. All three museums are located in southern Haifa.