Planning a tour
General information and orientation at the site
The memorial site covers about 90 dunams and includes more than 3,000 commemorative signs and memorial displays.
Visitors have two main parking areas, separately designated for private cars and buses.
The site has three entrances:
Entrance 1 – the main entrance, from the direction of the Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael-Jewish National Fund (KKL-JNF) Memorial Forest.
Entrance 2 – through the dance floor, from the direction of the private car parking area.
Entrance 3 – the police headquarters, near the bus parking area.
A large map with the display locations marked on it can be found at each of the three entrances.
Services and Accessibility
The site is accessible to people with disabilities and has accessible parking.
Visitors have two toilet complexes at their disposal – near the main entrance (Entrance 1) and in the area of the Police Command Headquarters (Entrance 3). These complexes are open daily from 7:30 to 17:00.
Garbage cans and water fountains are located throughout the site for the use of visitors.
Food may be eaten on the site grounds, although visitors are asked to ensure that cleanliness is maintained and that all waste is removed.
The site has 6 study areas that are suitable for gathering, sitting, or group guidance.
Conferences and events may be held at the site upon prior coordination with the KKL-JNF site manager.
The structure of the memorial site
Due to the site’s size, an artistic choice was made to divide it into several central memorial areas. The Memorial Trail is the central paved route for getting to know the site, and it passes through all the displays and complexes. It can be entered from any of the three entrances, and the signs along the Trail help to orient the visitor within the overall site.
The memorial displays are all located at the original spots where the subject of each memorial was located on October 7, and thus a walk along the Memorial Trail allows the visitor to become familiar with the area of the party, as it was seen on that Saturday. In each display, there is a commemoration of those who were murdered on the particular spot, or whose stories are related to the spot, alongside a text by the artist Amir Chodorov describing the events that took place there, and his artistic choices in establishing the display in the particular form that is shown.
There are personal commemorative signs posted in accordance with the various sub-areas: all of those who were murdered and who fell on that day are commemorated on the dance floor; those who were murdered while trying to escape or find shelter in the parking lot and its surroundings are commemorated in the grove; and in the nearby KKL-JNF Memorial Forest, a tree has been planted in memory of each and every one of the murdered and fallen.
The commemorative signs present the personal story of the commemorated as written by the bereaved families. The texts are presented in Hebrew and English, and some of them have a QR code embedded to allow visitors to delve deeper into the story, according to the family’s wishes.
Detailed information about the memorial displays and other guiding aids can be found in the site’s content database.
Recommended tour routes
A tour can be started from any of the three entrances to the site, depending on the point of arrival and the visiting group’s needs. The duration and the route can vary, depending on the pace of the walk and the points on which the group choose to focus.
The full route
This is comprehensive tour that passes through all the memorial stations at the site.
Displays along the route: the dance floor and the central collage, the ambulance plaza, the main stage, the “Anemones Before the Rain” installation, the commemoration in the grove, the Police Command Center, the yellow garbage container, the small bar (the Mushroom Project), the Gama Shelter and the KKL-JNF Memorial Forest.
Duration of the tour: Approximately an hour and a half.
The short route
This is a more focused tour, designed for visitors who prefer a short route, for senior citizens and those who have difficulty walking.
Displays along the route: the central dance floor and the central collage, the main stage, the “Anemones Before the Rain” installation, the Police Command Center and the yellow garbage container.
Duration: 30-45 minutes.
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