Travel Israel

CATW:
Israel is expensive compared to other middle east country because of its high standard of living. The minimum wage in Israel is currently over $1000/month and in addition the employer has to contribute to the employee's National Insurance, pension fund, etc. The hotel employees in Egypt and Jordan earn a fraction of that without benefits, hence the lower prices.

No doubt you are happy with the lot of the average Egyptian because it cheapens your vacation and you wish that Israelis go around around barefoot on donkeys so that your AsAEurpean money would buy more.

.#9
Israel is expensive considering it's in the Middle-East.

Because the governments have taxes to collect, and a population that have taxes to pay, a country to defend, rubbish to collect and recycle seven days a week. I could go on, but you get the picture. Israel has always enjoyed a higher standard of living, than her neighbours, since its inception.

A hotel in Tel Aviv can cost as much as in Europe, and the quality is not that good as compared to Western standards.

I do not know where you choose to stay. But of course a hotel room or a serviced apartment can cost a hell of a lot more than in Europe. But Israel also has backpackers/ hostels and cheap hotels. But some people are clearly able and willing to pay, for high end luxury accommodation, and some tourists choose to return several times a year. Hence the continued growth rate in Israel's tourism and hotel building programme.

All this is clearly underlined by Israel's hotels high occupancy rates, and profitability as an operating investment.

So we come back with your assertion that: Israel is expensive considering it's in the Middle-East.

I will ask you a question, should Israel come down to their Middle Eastern neighbours level of living standards? Lol!

mbgg, Well said. Israel's standard of living has shot up because of it's vibrant economy.

Seb, it might be worth devoting more time in Jerusalem, which is teaming with things to see. July is really not a good time to go to the Sinai, it wil be blistering hot ( 40C +). Perhaps go north to the Galilee. Safad, Nazareth and Haifa might be good alternatives to a long hot trip to far off Dahab. ,

Israel is not a destination for backpackers anymore, the tourism industry is now targeting rich tourists. It has become very expensive over the past years. The cost of labour is not really the issue, as the hotel / restaurant industry employs many immigrant workers with low wages. Israel's expensive prices are mainly due to high taxes and the fact that the economy is at the hands of a few monopolies. The latter were the target of last summer's social protests.

July / August is not a good time to set foot in the Middle-East in general because of the heat, no matter the country, except if the plan is to stay on the beach. It's actually cooler in Dahab than in Tel Aviv or Haifai or Sharm because of the local breeze .

Thank you, Catw, the AsAEuropean economist. Israel is hot, Israel is expensive, Israel is ..... the usual Catw negative response, totally irrelevant to the OP's questions.

The OP asked whether touring Israel is expensive and how is the weather, nothing unusual here. This being a travel forum, not a tourist agency trying to sell something, I thought it best to tell the truth.

That life in Israel is very expensive is one of the major topics among Israeli citizens, Mbgg. It's better to help the OP plan his / her budget accordingly. That Israel is extremely hot during the summer is not very surprising, considering it's in the Middle-East, not Scandinavia.

#15: +That life in Israel is very expensive is one of the major topics among Israeli citizens,

Yes, it always has been that way, no news there. It's a fact that Israeli's and tourists have found the cost of living high, for at least since the early1960’s.
In the same way, it is a fact the Mediterranean countries are hot in the summer.

Should Israel come down to their Middle Eastern neighbour’s level of living standards? You have not answered the question.

That's why many Israelis go on the beach in Sinai, rather than in their own country.

#19: Israelis have abandoned, relinquished, renounced, forsaken, deserted, the fleshpots and carrot chillums of the camps and resorts of Sinai.

After Israel issued (12 months ago) a travel warning to Israelis to leave Egypt's Sinai Peninsula due to kidnapping alerts. This came from the (outgoing) head of the Counter-Terrorism Bureau in the Prime Minister's Office, Nitzan Nuriel.

#24 I am personally both delighted and thrilled you have lived to tell such an epic travelers tale, and that you were not kidnapped or worse.