We’ve covered miniature versions of cities here before; like Miniatürk, one of the world’s largest miniature parks, and Mini-Paris. Well, you can add one more “mini” to the list with Mini Israel. First conceived by Israeli entrepreneur Eiran Gazit after he visited the famous miniature town of Madurodam in the Netherlands in the 1980s, Mini Israel first opened as a tourist attraction in 2002.
Located near Latrun in the Ayalon Valley, Mini Israel consists of about 350 miniature replicas of the country’s most notable buildings, like the Dome of the Rock and the Shrine of the Book. Importance is placed on the sites associated with not only Judaism, but Christianity and Islam as well. The park itself is shaped like a star of David with each of the six triangles representing an area or city like Tel Aviv or Haifa. Believe it or not, but the waterproof models include kinetic moving parts like trains or figures playing sports. And boy, are there are a lot of parts! The exhibit includes 500 animals, 30,000 figures, and about 5,000 transportation vehicles. All 15,000 trees are real bonsai cultivated and planted by a nursery. So if you want to see a place where children tower over “tall” building and historic churches, then Mini Israel is the place for you.
