School ends in late June, the municipal camp covers the first weeks of July, and then August is yours. Here is how the summer is structured in Jerusalem and the camps that fill it, including the English-speaking ones.
The Israeli summer holiday is long: primary schools finish at the end of June, gan and high school a little earlier, and nothing reopens until the first of September. The municipal kaytana bridges the first weeks of July for gan and lower-primary children in their own building; after that the summer belongs to the community centres, the private camps, the grandparents and whatever the parents' WhatsApp group has organised. Plan in March: the good camps fill by Pesach. The gan guide and the schools guide explain the school year the camps sit inside.
The municipal kaytana
Run by the Ministry of Education and the municipality in the gan or school itself, with the familiar staff, for about the first three weeks of July, mornings only, at a subsidised fee. Registration opens in late spring through the gan or school and the municipality's site; it is the cheapest cover you will find and the one every parent uses first.
Community centres and the second half of July
Every neighbourhood's minhal kehilati runs its own camps for older children, often themed (sport, art, science, drama), for the second half of July and sometimes into August, priced between the municipal camp and the private ones. Registration is on the community centre's site and in its WhatsApp channel; the popular themes fill first.
Private and English-speaking camps
- Sports camps: All Star Israel Sports Camp runs multi-sport weeks in Jerusalem and Chashmonaim with buses from the Anglo neighbourhoods, short and long days and kosher lunches; the YMCA and the Jerusalem sports clubs run their own.
- Day camps in English: Ramah's Jerusalem day camp and the camps run by the Anglo schools and shuls take children who have no Hebrew yet, which matters for a first summer.
- Specialist camps: cooking (Chef Donny's kids' camp), theatre, coding, science museum camps, the zoo and the Bible Lands Museum programmes, horse riding, swimming intensives.
- Sleep-away and teen programmes: the youth movements (Bnei Akiva, the Scouts and others) run summer camps and trips; for teenagers a week of volunteering, a leadership programme or a paid job at a camp is the Israeli norm.
The Fun in Jerusalem site and the Anglo parents' groups publish the full list each spring; the services directory lists the ones we know.
The August gap
Almost every camp finishes by the second or third week of August, and the week before school is a scramble. Israeli families rotate: one parent takes leave, grandparents take a week, two families share, and the community centre's late-August programme takes the rest. Book that leave in March too.
What it costs and how to save
- Municipal camp: a subsidised weekly fee, the cheapest option; discounts by income through the municipality.
- Community centre camps: mid-range weekly fees, sibling discounts.
- Private camps: roughly a thousand shekels a week and upward for a full day with transport and food; early-bird and multi-week rates cut it, and camp fees are a common line in the employer's summer benefits.
- Share the driving and the pick-ups with another family; camps end early and the after-camp hour is the expensive one.
Hebrew you will meet
- kaytana / kaytanot — day camp(s)
- chofesh hagadol — the summer holiday
- madrich / madricha — counsellor
- hasa'a — transport (the camp bus)
- yom aroch / yom katzar — long day / short day
- tnuat noar — youth movement
More everyday words are in our Hebrew vocabulary guide.
Common questions
When do Jerusalem summer camps run?
The municipal kaytana covers roughly the first three weeks of July in the child's own gan or school; community-centre and private camps run through July and into August; most end a week or two before school starts on the first of September.
When should I register for summer camp in Jerusalem?
Private and English-speaking camps open registration around Purim and fill by Pesach; the municipal kaytana registers in late spring through the gan or school.
Are there English-speaking summer camps in Jerusalem?
Yes: sports camps such as All Star Israel, the Ramah day camp, camps run by Anglo schools and shuls, and specialist camps that operate bilingually. They are the usual choice for a child's first Israeli summer.
What do families do in August?
Rotate leave, grandparents and shared childcare, use the community centre's late-August programme, and treat the last week before school as a family week. Book the leave early.
A camp to add, or dates that changed? Tell us and we will fix it.
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