I'll let others more knowledgeable than I comment on your general itinerary; I'll just ask you to go back and reference my post #1 regarding the airport.
If you're going back to TA on the 17th to see more of the city then no problem, but since the airport isn't actually in TA you could head there just as easily from Jerusalem as TA.
Good luck.
Thanks, I did see that, but it seemed like the best way to get two half days in Tel Aviv, which is all I think I really need this trip.
The best way to go to Ein Gedi from Haifa is to take the #940 direct bus from Haifa - Hof Hacarmel station to Jerusalem (2 hrs) and then the bus to Ein Gedi (1 hr). Check the schedules on the Egged web site. If you leave early enough you should have enough time to hike at Ein Gedi in the afternoon (look at the National Parks website for the closing hours). Then check theschedules for Ein Gedi to Massada to see if there is a bus at that hour. If yes, stay overnight at the Massada Hostel and get an early start climbing Massada. You have to book the Massada Hostel well in advance.
Note that June 9 is a Saturday. Do you want to spend the day in Safed ?? The city is pretty much closed down on Shabbat. Why not spend Friday morning in Tel-Aviv (a good day for going around the markets), then take the last train to Akko (at about 14:30). Spend Saturday in Akko and go to Safed on Sunday. Alternatively, spend Friday & Saturday in Tel-Aviv (a good idea) and leave for Safed on Sunday.
Well, I figured Safed would be a nice place to wander around on Shabbat, no? Thanks for the advice on getting to Ein Gedi from Haifa.. The masada hostel is actually already booked out, but I thought maybe I could get there from Ein Gedi pretty easily? What do you think?
catw, I have usd the trains many tiesm ovr in ISraleand find that they are very reliable. I routinly use the train for the airport to go north. I susggest you quit mis-informing thise whon arwe tryig to find accuarate travel info.
ESF, if youn climb Massada in June, make an early start of it.
I haven't been in Safed for a while but I think you will find more things open in the middle of the week. The atmosphere will be much different on a Saturday, but I don't know how much this atmosphere will interest you.
The buses to Massada stop at Ein Gedi on the way so check the schedule. But if you want to climb the snakepath to see the sunrise or go up very early to avoid the heat, it is obviously much better to stay at Massada. Check if place is available on another day and work your schedule around that.
Safed has a large Jewish religious population which means that all shops and most restaurants will be closed from Friday afternoon until Saturday around 20:30. You can get the "walking down the empty narrow alleyways" atmosphere every day very early in the morning and every night so as a tourist there's nothing to gain by staying over the weekend.
The only exception I can think of is if you're interested in Judaism and you want to join the prayers and religious studies over the Shabat.
Book a room in Ein Gedi. It's only a 20 minute bus ride away from Masada. As #16 wrote, take an early bus to Masada, especially if you intend to walk up the Snake Path in June.
http://mslworld.egged.co.il/EggedTimeTable/WebForms/wfrmMain.aspx?width=1024&language=en&company=1&state=
http://www.zimmeril.com/site.asp?site_id=512
http://www.iyha.org.il/eng/Index.asp?CategoryID=77&ArticleID=63
Thanks everyone. As for Shabbat in Safed; I'm Jewish, and would quite like to have the "day off", even though I'm not usually that observant. As long as I'm not going to get yelled at for walking around carrying a backpack, I think I'll quite enjoy having the place empty.
Thanks also for the advice re. the snake trail on Masada - I'll get there as early as I can. Is it possible to get taxis from ein gedi to masada so that I can make an early start of it?