Even expert descriptions from a tour guide don’t always help in this regard. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could really peer into the past and see what these places looked like not as ruins, but when they were filled with life?

The Israeli start-up “Vortex” had the same idea and went about developing a virtual reality headset that brings the ruins in Israel to life. Visitors to the ancient towns of Caesarea and Acre, as well as to the Western Wall in Jerusalem, can take a journey into the past with the Vortex headsets, which provide a stunning 360-degree experience putting the wearer right in the middle of the action.

For these “Archtours,” as the virtual tours are called, a team of historians and archaeologists was brought together to help make the “show” as realistic as possible. You can now take a stroll up the marble steps of King Herod’s palace, or see ships docking at the ancient harbor in Akko. Ancient citizens will also be there to greet you and go about their business, decked...

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