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Photo: User:Magister, CC BY 2.5 via Wikimedia Commons
Three huge Herodian-era stone carved reservoirs capable of holding 160,000 m³ of water. They are located in a pine tree forest about 3 km from Bethlehem in a beautiful hiking area called the Artas Valley. In Artas, there is also the very beautiful Italian Order of the Sisters of Mary of the Garden built the Hortus Conclusus Convent and as well a Palestinian Folklore museum. Artas village also boasts an annual lettuce festival.
Solomon's Pools are three ancient reservoirs located in the south-central West Bank, immediately to the south of al-Khader, about 3.5 kilometres (2.2 mi) southwest of Bethlehem, near the road to Hebron. The pools are located in Area A of the West Bank under the control of the Palestinian National Authority.
© OpenStreetMap contributors
Monastery built in 1901. Hosts the Feast of Hortus Conclusus, which takes place on the third Sunday of August.
Al Khader Church
St. George was a very important Christian Saint for Orthodox Christians, also called "Mar Jeriess" in Arabic. The monastery is said to hold relics from the saint that possess healing powers-especially for mental illness. The monastery was used in the 19th century as a psychiatric facility to treat mental illness by using St George's relics. The site is also venerated in Muslim tradition as the setting for the Muslim prophet Al Khider's teachings. In mid-April or early May (it goes by the Julian calendar), the town (both Muslims and Christians) holds a festival for St. George that is worth seeing.
Church of Annunciation
Another church worth a visit. Right next to it, up the road, you can also find the Virgin Mary Church.
Historic Lutheran, built in 1893.
Gives the visitors to get in contact with the Palestinian students to get an insight of the life on the campus and in Bethlehem. There are tours in German and probably English available.
Undoubtedly the top attraction in Bethlehem, a veritable citadel built fortress-like on top of the cave where Jesus was born to Mary. It is one of the oldest churches in the world, and has been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The first incarnation of the building was erected on the orders of the Roman Emperor Constantine I (the Great) in 330 CE. While the layout largely corresponds to Emperor Justinian's plans from 540 CE (the first building having been destroyed in a 536 riot), the church was first heavily fortified by the Crusaders and then degraded (mostly through neglect) under Mamluk rule. An earthquake in 1834 and a fire in 1869 didn't help. Today, the structure is mostly sound but somewhat dark and gloomy in appearance, only the adjoining Franciscan Church of St Catherine (dated 1881 and the site of the yearly December 24 midnight mass broadcast around the world) being in excellent shape. The alleged site of Jesus' birth is actually in a cave in the church (the original Manger where Jesus was born was a cave, not a shed, as popularly depicted). There is a star marking the exact location of Jesus' birth in the cave. The original Manger with the star marking Jesus' birth site is called the Grotto of the Nativity, and is accessible from inside the church. (The tomb of famed theologian and Bethlehem resident St. Jerome, who spent his life translating the Bible, is also in the cave with the Grotto.) Entrance to the entire complex is free, but in the high season (and especially on Jan 6th) be prepared for massive crowds and hour-long waits for entry into the Grotto. There are usually accredited but dodgy tour-guides waiting at the entrance or inside of the church who offer to give tours to groups/individuals, sometimes allowing you to skip the crowds. Make sure to agree on a price before taking the tour, and if the promise was to skip the crowds and get into the grotto directly but not possible sometimes, lower the price by at least half. Otherwise do not support them, as it is unfair to the other visitors waiting.