Bisan and myself have camped in many places around the world; we camped in the golden deserts of Dubai in the UAE, the medieval city of Visby in Sweden, the majestic mountains of Malga in Spain and last but not least the Rose City of Petra in Jordan. Shockingly, we have never camped in Palestine, our homeland and the place where we spend most of our time.

But this finally changed this week when my friend Nayef Hamouri, a talented Palestinian photographer invited Bisan and I to join him on a hiking and camping trip in Arab Al Rashayde, a bedouin community in the southern West Bank, close to an area overlooking the Dead Sea. The trip has been done annually under the name “Tent and a Moon”, a very romantic name I must admit! And we were so excited to finally have the chance to camp in Palestine.

I think the reason why we never camped here before is because we were so preoccupied with camping and traveling abroad, we were unsure if it is safe or not, or if it can be done properly like in other countries. Turns out many people camp in many areas and it all is a matter of good preparation and knowing the right locations to camp safely. (Check out or new series about camping in Palestine).

Leading up to camp day,

Deciding that we would like to learn more about camping in Palestine, we signed up for the trip and it cost us 165 shekel per person. The price was actually very affordable, especially because the cost was shared by a large number of people. Sometimes you take part in other outdoor activities in Palestine and unfortunately you pay a lot for a simple hike, which is why we were eager to join this specific group.

It was important for us to be prepared as well, because camping in the desert comes with its own set of challenges such as the low temperatures at night, painful insect bites and the lack of access to any shops or stores while camping in a remote desert. For that reason, Bisan and I purchased a 4-person tent, sleeping bags, hiking back bags, torch lights a bit more. (Check out our Camping 101 video to see what you need for a camping trip).

Being the photographer in this gang, I also had to make sure that my gear is ready and that I have everything I might need for a successful photography trip. I took a DSLR camera, one wide lens, a polarizing lens, a wired shutter release, extra charged battery, car battery charger, tripod and extra memory card.

You probably would need more preparation if you are planning to shoot through the night, but because my main goal was to photograph the sunrise, I did not feel the need to bring a long more lenses and batteries. It would be very heavy to carry in the hike.

Camping Day,

We all met at 3PM to take off to the camping site and it was so lovely getting to know people in the bus. I am not sure if this is a universal phenomena, but a bus ride is the best chance to get to know companions in travel, laugh, chat and most importantly dance before you even get to your destination. Our group was simply the best and we laughed so hard it was ridiculous.

The funniest part was when we noticed that we are driving through Bethlehem. We were a bit shocked because we honestly thought that we are going to camp over the Dead Sea near the city of Jericho. We realized then that the camping site is actually near Arab al-Rashayida, a Palestinian village located twelve kilometers east of Jerusalem. The village is in the Bethlehem Governorate, central West Bank.

Approaching the bedouin community, we started to see sheep herds and shepherds scattered over the hills, the empty and vast yellow mountains and small kids waving at the bus from afar. This is one of the most precious characteristics of Palestine; you can find all sorts of landscapes and experience different climates in such a small space.

We arrived at the site and were told that we will hike for a few kilometers to the camping site overlooking the Dead Sea. We were offered a chance to leave our heavy bags in one of the cars, which will be driving to the camp site. That was actually a good offer because without the heavy bags, we were able to enjoy the walk and spend more time taking smashing pictures.

The hike was actually very easy and the weather was cool, because we started around sunset. We left Ramallah around 3PM and arrived at the bedouin site around 5PM, and this meant we were hiking with the sun setting and the weather was not as hot as we thought. While this was a good aspect hiking at night, this also meant that we will arrive at the camping site after dark and miss the chance to see the Dead Sea at sunset.

Bisan and I were divided on whether it is better to hike in the afternoon or at sunset, so we decided to leave it up to you to decide what you like more.

Sunset Hike VS. Afternoon Hike

Camping at site,

Mid hike the organizers decided to transport us in cars instead of hiking the remaining few kilometers for reasons I am honestly not sure about, but Bisan and I agree that it would have been an amazing hike for lovers of hiking. We arrived at the site and the food was waiting for us; rice, lamb and a green Arabic salad. We ate, cleaned up and began to set up our tents. It was a bit windy at first which made the process of setting up tents a bit fun! (Watch our story highlight to see how one tent required the help of 5 people!)

The bedouin group we were with provided us with camping mats which we used to sleep in the tents and they also stayed the night with us for protection and guidance. The group we were with is that of tour guide Farhan Ali, a Palestinian bedouin from Arab Al Rashayde community and an expert in this field, which we recommend you contact him in case you want to camp at Arab Al Rashayde. You can find his contact info on his Facebook page.

It was an experience dinning with the Bedouin tour guides and hearing their stories from the past and sharing their insights about life as a bedouin. While it seemed like a difficult life to adopt for me and the rest of the group, it was clearly the only thing they want and enjoy. Abu Hussein, a very funny old man, told me that while our kids in the city were locked up in cement blocks and are fearful of going anywhere, their children are free with the wilderness as their home and backyard. He made us want to try to explore their lifestyle further and experience life as free bedouin souls. You never know, maybe Bisan and I will move into a Bedouin community for few days!

During the night, we sat in groups around the big bonfire and shared our stories about travel, life and the future. It was a beautiful experience and chance to leave our phones and technology behind and simply enjoy the moment. But soon, Bisan and many others sneaked into their tents and decided to get some rest before dawn. Meanwhile, I stayed up to watch the moon dive slowly behind the mountains and the sun rays start to light up the day.

Around 5am and as a few hikers started to wake up, we moved to sit at the edge of the camp sit to set up our cameras and phones on the tripods in anticipation of a majestic sunrise. We drank Arabic coffee and talked about how blessed we are to be able to see another sunrise. As the sun peaked from behind the Jordan mountains, everyone was quiet for the first time since we arrived at the site. It was definitely a moment that reminded us of everything beautiful in life, including being able to share such a moment with the people you love and care about.

We then had a very simple breakfast made of jam, Labaneh (strained yogurt), Qalayit Bandura (A tomato pan with garlic and green chillies) and hot black tea. As the sun continued to rise along with the temperature of the location, we gathered our belongings, dismantled our tents and cleaned up in preparation for departure and the last exciting part of our day; racing in pickups through the desert!

We got in the back of a 4×4 pickup with Abu Rasheed, also a local from Arab Al Rashayde community who clearly enjoyed drifting in the desert too much. He got too excited when we started cheering for him to go faster and we ended up racing other cars and beating a few on the way back to the bedouin community.

We are so happy to have been able to experience this amazing trip and we plan to camp in more places around Palestine and continue to provide you with the more experiences to learn from and maybe live yourself. We have a lot more stories and videos from this amazing day and you can find all of it on our instagram page and the stories highlights.