Nova Music Festival Memorial Site

Plan Your Visit

• Location: Re’im Car Parking Lot, close to Kibbutz Re’im and Re’im Forest
• Opening Times: 09:0-18:00
• Price:  Free
• Average Visit Duration: To give yourself time to appreciate how solemn and sacred space this is, we would recommend a minimum of 1 hour to walk around the area.
• Relevant Tours: Gaza Envelope Tours

Retracing the Events of October 7th

For anyone interested in the history and politics of the Middle East, a visit to the Nova Music Festival Memorial Site is an absolute must when visiting Israel.

On 7th October 2023, hundreds of Israelis (most of them quite young) were attending an all-night music Peace Festival in Re’im, situated in the Western Negev.  At around 6.30 am, sirens began blaring and rockets were seen in the sky.  Attendees quickly began running for cover but soon after, Hamas gunmen arrived at the site, ambushed many of them,  and began shooting.  

By the end of the day, over 340 young people were dead, many injured and more kidnapped and taken to Gaza.  The events of October 7th - both at Nova and the surrounding kibbutzim - amounted to the worst terror attack on Israeli soil since the establishment of the state in 1948.

A Tribute to Those Who Died

Arriving at the site, you can’t fail to see photographs of the victims, set in the area where the horrors of that day occurred.  Next to the photos of many are Israeli flags and below many are sculptures of red anemones, made by Israeli artists.  These beautiful red flowers bloom each year in the desert and represent these young souls.

The memorial site, established by the Jewish National Fund (JNF) and the victims’ families, has also planted trees in memory of those who perished.  

A Deeply Emotional Experience

As well as the tributes to those murdered, you will see a large decorated banner and collage of those killed that day.  Close by is a bomb shelter, with memorial posters.  Inside was where many victims took shelter before gunmen arrived and threw hand grenades into it.   

Since the massacre, the site has welcomed tens of thousands of visitors - ranging from schoolchildren and international delegations to the Israeli public and visitors from across the globe - all wanting to pay their respects to those murdered that day.  Visiting this site is a deeply emotional experience for most.  Whilst it is not an easy thing to do, and gives great pause for thought, those who visit come away saying how glad they are that they made the effort.