A journey through more than 1,500 years of history, architecture and stories hidden within the stone.
Two Historic Mansions, One Hotel
The Efendi Hotel occupies two adjoining historic mansions, joined together to create one extraordinary hotel. During the Ottoman era, these grand residences were home to rulers, merchants and members of the aristocracy. Within their walls lie more than 1,500 years of Acre’s history.
The buildings stand above remains from several periods in the city’s past: sixth-century Byzantine foundations, twelfth-century Crusader vaults and cellars, and features from both the early and late Ottoman periods. The southern building is known as Afifi House and the northern building as Hamar House. Each holds stories, secrets and architectural details accumulated over centuries.
6th Century
Byzantine remains—the ancient foundations of Acre.
12th Century
Underground spaces and vaults from the Crusader period.
16th Century
Early Ottoman layers, dating from a period when the city was regaining prominence.
19th Century
Grand architecture and the residences of affluent Efendi families.
The House That Became a Palace
The northern house, also known as ‘The Palace’, was probably built in part in 1768 by Ibrahim El Sabbagh, a member of a Greek Catholic family. It was constructed above a Crusader vaulted structure whose remains were uncovered during excavations and restoration work.
In the eighteenth century, the lower level housed a masbana—a traditional workshop producing soap from olive oil, then one of the region’s most important trades. Some of its remains can still be seen today.
In 1870, Odeh Hamar acquired the property and transformed it into one of Acre’s most impressive affluent homes. Its walls were painted, its ceilings decorated by hand, marble floors laid throughout the rooms, and its corridors given the grandeur they retain to this day.
Layers of Life
After Ottoman rule ended, the house passed through many hands and welcomed many residents. Following Israel’s War of Independence, Jewish and Arab families lived there side by side. The property later came under the ownership of the Old Acre Development Company.
Uri Jeremias acquired the building through a public tender in 2003. Eight and a half years of meticulous restoration and conservation were required to reveal its original layers, restore the painted walls and ceilings, and preserve architectural details created over hundreds of years.
Today, the two houses live again as The Efendi Hotel—not as a museum, but as a place where history remains part of everyday life: in the stone arches, painted ceilings, floors, cellars and small details that tell the story of Acre.