Purim Carnival

Israel, Jerusalem – Tel Aviv

Purim is a Jewish holiday that celebrates the Jewish people being saved from persecution over 2000 years ago. It is one of the most joyous Jewish holidays often called the Jewish Mardi Gras. Here is your guide to celebrating Purim in Israel!

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Everything you need to know about Purim

Most people know about Passover and Hanukkah, but one of the most fun Jewish Holidays is Purim! Here is everything you need to know about celebrating Purim in the holy land, from where to party and what to do, to enjoy this holiday!

When is Purim 2024?

Adar is a month on the Hebrew calendar and Purim is celebrated on the 14th of Adar. In 2024 or 5784 in the Hebrew Year, Purim begins sundown on Saturday, March 23 2024, and ends at nightfall on Sunday March 24, 2024.

The 15th of Adar is known as Shushan Purim. Cities that were protected by a wall that existed during the Biblical time of Joshua, for example Jerusalem, actually celebrate Purim a day later. For these places Purim will begin at sundown on Sunday March 24 and finish on Monday, March 25, 2024.

Shushan Purim is also known as being a day of joy and celebration even in the places where Purim has already occurred.

What is Purim?

Purim is a Jewish holiday that celebrates a failed attempt by an ancient Persian King to wipe out the Jewish population over 2000 years ago. The story is recorded in the Biblical Book of Esther and occurs in the ancient Achaemenid Persian Empire.

The story follows Esther the chosen wife and Queen of King Ahasuerus who uses her influence to save the Jewish people in the empire from a bloody massacre by Haman the advisor to the King who conspired to kill the Jews.

What does Purim mean?

The Purim definition refers to a lottery system that Haman used to decide what day the massacre would occur. The lot he selected fell on the 14th day of Adar which is why Purim is celebrated on this day. Purim actually means “lots” in ancient Persian.

How do they celebrate Purim?

Purim is often called the Jewish Mardi Gras because of its carnival-like celebrations. Purim is a big deal in Israel and the Purim celebrations occur all over the country in almost every city, town and village in Israel. Purim is filled with parades, parties, costumes, alcohol, food and lots of merrymaking.

The Jewish holiday of Purim is actually more of a national holiday than a religious holiday. There are not large celebrations for Purim outside of Israel. Even those who aren’t religious will still join in the Purim festivities dressing up, drinking, eating and being merry, because it is such a fun holiday.

Purim is like Halloween because everyone dresses up in costumes! We mean everyone from little kids to adults. You will see adults walking all around the streets in costumes.

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What is the story of Purim?

What is the origin of Purim? The history of Purim is told through the Purim story that pays homage to a brave young woman named Esther, from the Book of Esther. The tale begins with ancient Persian King Ahasuerus who ruled some 2500 years ago.

The King was searching for a wife and selected Esther, an orphaned girl who was being fostered by her first cousin Mordecai, to become his new wife and queen.

Meanwhile Haman who was the Kings’ advisor conspired grand plans to kill all the Jewish minority in the empire. He obtained King Ahasuerus’ permission to do so, as well as the funds to execute the plan. He casted ‘purims’ a lottery to select the date for this genocide.

Mordecai, who is Jewish goes into public mourning upon hearing about these plans along with the other Jews in the Ahasuerus’ Empire. Esther who is also Jewish unbeknownst to the King is persuaded by Mordecai to use her influence to stop the plan from going ahead suggesting that maybe it is fate that she was selected to become Queen.

Esther Saves the Jewish People from Genocide

During this time a Queen was not allowed to go before the King without being summoned. Punishment for doing this was the death penalty. Esther decided that she didn’t care about the consequences and had to try anyway, in order to save her people. Esther did not care if she died.

To prepare for her meeting Esther decided to fast and pray for three days and requested that all the Jews in the Empire fast with her. On the third day she worked up the courage to seek an audience with the King inviting him to a feast the next day. Luckily the King accepts her invitation.

The next evening both King Ahasuerus and Haman attended Esther’s banquet. At the banquet she reveals that she herself is Jewish and that Haman is planning to kill her and her people. This enrages the King who orders Haman to be hanged.

King Ahasuerus allows Mordecai and Esther to create a decree replacing Haman’s one. Mordecai and Esther create a decree that the Jews may preemptively kill those who pose a lethal risk to them.

This results in the deaths of 75,000 Jewish people’s enemies. Mordecai becomes the second rank to King Ahasuerus and creates an annual commemoration to remember how the Jewish people were saved from annihilation.

The Four Purim Mitzvahs

In the Biblical Book of Esther, it states that Purim celebrations should be about “feasting and gladness, sending portions to one another and gifts to the poor….” There are four main Purim celebrations that include:

Hear the Megillah aka the Book of Esther
Give to the needy
Send Food Gifts to friends
Feast!!

Public Recitation of the Book of Esther

People head out to the synagogue to hear the whole Book of Esther which is called the Megillah being read out. This must be done twice, first on Purim night, and again on Purim day.

It is important that you listen carefully to the story and take in every word. When Haman’s name is mentioned people stamp their feet and make noises to eradicate the name. In addition to a public reading of the Book of Esther everyone must also say special prayers.

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Everyone must donate to the less fortunate

One of the most important features of Purim is Jewish unity. A beautiful Purim tradition is donating to the poor. One can give either money or food donations and they must do this to at least two people during the daylight hours of Purim. They must also place two coins in a charity collection box.

Exchanging gifts of food and drink

Purim emphazises the importance of community, friendship and togetherness and this is demonstrated by a lovely Purim tradition of giving and receiving food and drink packages between Jewish family and friends. This custom has grown into a major gift giving event.

The parcels are called Mishloach manots and people must send at least two different ready-to eat food items to at least one Jewish acquaintance during the daylight hours of Purim. The gifts must be delivered via a third party and even children give candy to their friends on Purim.

It’s important to know that you don’t spend more on the gifts than you did donating to charity.

Feast!

During Purim people will gather together with family and friends and celebrate with a large feast called Seudat Purim! The meal traditionally begins before sundown and lasts late into the night. Fasting is actually prohibited on Purim!

The table should be beautifully decorated, and the dinner should include lots of meat, singing, laughing, having fun and drinking. In fact, consuming lots of alcohol is common and there is a saying that one should drink until he is not able to tell the difference between Haman and Mordechai.

The Fast of Esther

On the day prior to Purim, the 13th of Adar, everyone must do the Fast of Esther. The Fast of Esther means that nobody can eat or drink to honor Esther’s three day fast before she approaches the King. The fast starts an hour before sunrise and lasts until nightfall.

Why do people dress up for Purim?

The primary tradition of Purim is rejoicing! It’s all about celebrating how the Jewish people were saved from Haman’s plans. Pretty much everyone dresses up for Purim wearing costumes or masks, or at the very least their best clothing.

Kids wear costumes to school, adults wear costumes to work. The most popular costumes are the King, Queen Esther, Mordecai and Haman.

It is believed that this tradition of dressing up is because in the Purim story in the Megillah, there are a lot of characters that dress up and pretend to be something they are not. You have a young girl attempting to be Queen. An evil man trying to appear to be a loyal advisor and main character is of course God, who cannot be seen, but is pulling all the strings.

During Purim there are plenty of costume contests occurring or re-enactments of the story of Esther. There are plenty of public celebrations that occur throughout Israel in the city of Tel Aviv a free street party that is attended by thousands of people, all dressed in costumes.

What to wear for Purim?

If you are in Israel for Purim, you MUST wear an amazing costume because the Israelis go all out for this holiday. There are party shops all throughout Tel Aviv and Jerusalem in case you don’t have room in your suitcase to bring. You can pretty much dress as anything or anyone! You will see people dressed as pop stars, movie stars, Star Wars characters, singers, animals, cartoons and whatever you can imagine. Even if people don’t go all out in costume, which they do, you can still put on a wig, or some silly accessory.

Eating Haman’s Ears

On Purim everyone eats Haman’s ears which are the traditional food eaten during Purim. They are essentially triangular cookies with various fillings of chocolate or jam, dates, cheese or other various fillings called hamantash. The origin of this tradition is a mystery but probably comes from the old tradition of cutting off a criminal’s ears.

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Holon Adloyada

Purim parades which are called Adloyada, and they occur all over Israel. But the biggest and the most famous Purim Parade occurs in Holon. The Adloyada in Holon, just south of Tel Aviv! The parade draws crowds of over 150,000 people.

The parade features elaborately decorated giant floats, 4,000 dancers, drummers, bands and street performers who all participate in the parade. It is a great day for the whole family! The event is free to attend and begins at 12pm starting from Sokolov Weizmann Street at the corner of Golomb. Join in the fun and wear a costume or some bright colours!

Purim in Tel Aviv

Tel Aviv is pretty much considered the party capital of the Middle East and it is the perfect place to celebrate Purim! Purim in the capital city does not disappoint! There are loads of events to choose from, but the biggest event is a huge street party that occurs. Thousands of people come together dressed in costumes. It is free to attend and there are performances from top musicians. Expect huge crowds of people singing, dancing, eating, drinking and merrymaking!

Another popular event is the Tel Aviv Purim Zombie Walk! Join thousands of people, dressed as Zombies who parade through the streets of the city.

The Annual Tel Aviv Zombie Walk

This has quickly become an institution and the number of zombie participants has grown exponentially every year. This crazy event only happens during Purim and it is a lot of fun. Everyone dresses up as a zombie and joins in the parade. Of course, you could just witness it.

It is a must do when celebrating Purim in Israel and over 5000 zombies took part last year. Join thousands of people, dressed as Zombies who parade through the streets of the city. The event begins at 21:30 on the corner of Ben-Zion Boulevard and King George (close to the Dizengoff Center).

Purim Rave Tel Aviv Street Party & Fair

One of the wildest Purim parties in all of Israel takes place in Tel Aviv every year. A massive street party takes place that features big stages that feature leading DJs who pump out mainstream and electronic music. There are also loads of vendors set up selling food, drinks, fashion and all sorts of items. Everyone comes to drink, party and have a great time.

Purim in Jerusalem

If you want to celebrate Purim in the city of gold, there are plenty of events occurring all across from Jerusalem from parties to carnivals, there is something for everyone! The main Purim event in Jerusalem takes place in Safra Square. Many of the museums in Jerusalem will hold special events for Purim

Jerusalem Purim at Safra Square is designed for kids with lots of family-friendly events including circus acts, costume competitions, live music performances, arts and crafts workshops. There are also performances from top Israeli television stars and musicians.

If this is not for you there are plenty of Purim Parties like Jerusalem’s Nachalot Street Party, held on Nisim Bachar Street and is free to attend. There is also the Purim Rave Party at the Tower of David, a Purim Party at the Shuka and so much more.

The Imagine Purim Desert Carnival

Celebrate Purim at a desert party surrounded by the endless expanses of the desert! A three-day celebration takes place at Shittim in Dimona. Join one of the most isolated communities in Israel for a colorful rave that goes for three days. This Purim Carnival is filled with lots of costumes, live performances, workshops and of course partying. Why not celebrate Purim surrounded by the magic of the desert.

Getting to Israel

Getting to Israel is becoming simpler and more affordable with more flight routes flying between Europe and North America opening up. The majority of people fly into Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport which has flights from most major European and American airlines.

To get to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv, the most common way is by a sherut, which is a shared taxi. This takes under an hour.

It is also possible to enter Israel from both Egypt and Jordan via land border crossing which is common for those traveling across the Middle East.

Where to stay for Purim in Israel?

Purim is celebrated all over Israel. You just have to decide where you would like to stay. We recommend either Tel Aviv or Jerusalem as this is where the most prominent events take place.

What to eat for Purim?

Besides the hamantash cookies here are some other traditional Purim foods that you are likely to find on this festive occasion.

Purim Challahis a large and intricately braided bread. Many claim that it’s intended to serve as a reminder of the hangman’s rope used on Haman. Although there are many different ways to make bread, some individuals favor a straightforward recipe while others opt for something complex.
Fassoulyeh Bchuderahis frequently served because Queen Esther was a vegetarian. It is a tasty and satisfying vegetarian stew. This tasty dish is ideal for your Purim table and includes navy beans or cannellini, brown sugar, cinnamon, and diced tomatoes.
Brisketis a customary Jewish evening dish. In this dish, a relatively basic cut of beef is elevated by the robust flavors of wine and dried fruit, making it genuinely festive fare.
Kreplachfeatures during many Jewish holidays. Similar to hamantaschen, this dish is triangular. However, in contrast to the sweet hamantaschen cookies, kreplach are salty. Kreplach are dumplings that can be served with meat, onion, and spices.

What to do and See in Israel

Israel is a bucket list destination. This small but diverse country offers unique attractions for visitors of all backgrounds. Israel is steeped in history and is home to many of the top historical sites in the world. In addition to this you have scenic deserts, lush rainforests, amazing beaches and vibrant cities. Here are some of the top things to do in Israel.

Masada and the Dead Sea Day Trip from Tel Aviv (purchase here)
Day Tour to Jerusalem and Bethlehem from Tel Aviv (purchase here)
Jerusalem Boutique Tour from Tel Aviv (purchase here)
Jerusalem and the Dead Sea from Tel Aviv (purchase here)
Nazareth and the Sea of Galilee Day Trip from Tel Aviv (purchase here)
Caeserea, Rosh Hanikra and Acre Day Trip from Tel Aviv (purchase here)

Rejoice!

Last but not least, the main Purim practice is to rejoice! Aside from the costumes, presents, drinks and parties, the primary purpose of Purim is to remember how the Jewish people were spared from Haman’s plot to kill all Jews, as recorded in the Hebrew Bible’s Book of Esther.

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