| Lonely Planet™ · Thorn Tree Forum · 2020 | |
First trip to Israel!Country forums / Middle East / Israel | ||
Hi! I am interested in traveling to Israel in the very near future. I am wanting to get some basic information and travel trips from those who have been there before or who live there so I can know what to expect. A few questions I have are: Is it safe for a woman to make the trip to Israel alone? Will I be able to use American money to pay for expenses and etc.? What is a fair estimate of how much money someone should bring for expenses and extras? Are there sight-seeing tours that take groups of people around to see points of interest or are people left on their own to sight-see? What are some of the places that people coming to Israel should definitely not miss seeing when they visit? Is there a limit on the amount of time that you can spend in Israel? What is the average length of time that someone should expect to spend in Israel if he or she expects to see all the highlights? Any other information/tips would be greatly appreciated! I am especially concerned about travel safety so if you have any advice specifically for traveling to Israel; I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you! :) -Jennifer | ||
Welcome,
Safety can be the least of your worries. | 1 | |
Hi! Thank you for all of your input. This would be my first trip to a foreign country so I am a little apprehensive wanting to ensure that I consider everything to make it a pleasant experience. It is very helpful to know that Israel isn't a budget destination. I was just wanting to get an idea of the cost of things in relation to expenses in the U.S. so that I have an idea. The comparisons to LA, NYC, and etc. are very helpful to me.! I am wanting to travel to Israel for basic sight-seeing of religiously relevant places. I will make a list of all of the places important to me and weave them into my travel plans. I have heard that it is best to have a schedule when traveling so that you don't stand out as a tourist with negative consequences. However; I would also like to be able to do things that look interesting once I arrive so I don't want to overplan. I have an American passport and will have approximately 2 weeks to spend. Is there a certain time of year that is best to visit Israel? Thanks again! -Jennifer | 2 | |
OK that's helpful. The generally accepted best way to handle finances is to use a credit card to limit the amount of cash you'll need and to access cash using an ATM. Cash transactions should be handled with NIS the currency of Israel. There are no "negative consequences" associated with being a tourist in Israel. Israel has a very healthy tourist industry and the US and Israel have a pretty good relationship. Despite the hugely biased liberal media in the US, US citizens have nothing to apologize for and are treated pretty darn well throughout most of the world. Don't let the apologists negatively influence your perception of traveling the world. Jerusalem should be the epi-center of your trip. There's a weeks worth of things to see and do there. You can then do day trips to places like Bethlehem. Good luck. | 3 | |
The first order of business if you don't have one is to get a guidebook. There is a brand new LP out. I prefer Frommers but its a few years old. Start reading all the posts on here. There is a wealth of info. Then come back with specific questions. I would come in early Oct. The feast is over and the weather is still good. Spend a week in Jerusalem. Preferably staying in the old city. Then a couple of days in Haifia/Akko and a few days in Tiberias. There will be lots of info wherever you stay on day trips | 4 | |
I have to agree with what laketraveller says. I know many single women who visit here all the time. They do fine. I also don't understand your fear of being spotted as a tourist. It is easy to spot tourists--there are thousands and thousands of them wandering around at any given time. No one cares and there is no danger in being a tourist. You indicated you want to visit religious sites and Bethlehem was mentioned. I guess the first question however would be --what religion are you. If you are not Christian, then Bethlehem is not a big deal! You can spend months and months and months in Israel and not see everything. Two weeks is a good first trip. The best season is Oct-( making sure you do NOT come on Jewish holidays) and April-May--again watching out for holidays. The least expensive months are probably January and February. | 5 | |
Yes alhaderech that was my mistake. I try never to assume and I was guilty of assuming the OP is interested in Christian sights. Sorry. | 6 | |
@Alhaderech Thank you very much for your tips regarding travel to Israel. My concern regarding appearing as a tourist was the risk of being a target for robbery, kidnapping, rape, or pickpockets. Thank you also for your consideration with regards to travel sights. I am Catholic, but considering conversion to Judaism. I am looking for the all-around religious experience during my trip! :) Thanks again for your insight and tips! @bosworth Thank you for your input as well. I will locate a guidebook as soon as I can and use it to plan my trip. One concern I do have is making sure it is up to date so that it contains information that will be applicable to my trip. Your advice re: when to visit and temperatures was very helpful! Thanks for all of your insight! :) @laketraveller Thank you for all of your advice. I found it very helpful and relevant since I was looking for all the information I could get. :) | 7 | |
A two week trip is good for first timers. For food, consider about $5-$15 for street food and a drink, or $10-$20 for a very basic restaurant, and $20 and up for fancier stuff. A bottle of mineral water will cost about $1-1.50 in a supermarket, and $2-$3 in a kiosk. Public transport is relatively inexpensive, and it will cost you about 4$ to take a bus from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem (~50 minutes) and about 8$ to take the train from Tel Aviv to Haifa (1 hours) As for tours, I assume any place you stay will have a connection to day tour operators, in case you don't want to do it solo. As said, you can use your credit card nearly everywhere, and certainly to withdraw cash as there are ATM machines almost everywhere. You can also change US dollars in all the major cities with relative ease. Change shops are better than banks, and the post office is also a good place to change money. Good Luck | 8 | |
Worth noting that Bethleem is not in Israel but in the Palestinian territory. You can go there by bus or taxi from East Jerusalem, the Palestinian side of the city. Everyone will have a different opinion. On my side I'd say the highlights of Israel are Jerusalem and the Old City (both of which are half Israeli, half Palestinian), Tel Aviv and Jaffa, Akko / Saint Jean d'Acre, Safed, the Dead Sea and Masada. You can also go and visit the magnificent natural parks in the Golan, which is part of Syria but has been under Israeli control for many years. For the time being Israel is as safe as it goes. | 9 | |
@yarden Thank you for your specific information related to cost of items and lodging. It will be very useful in budgeting and deciding how much money to bring on my trip. I like the idea of being able to use a credit card and access to change shops as needed. Thank you for the information about public transportation as well. Do you have any advice for someone who has never rode on public transportation before? :) @catw I appreciate your input regarding highlights and places I should definitely see while on my trip. The natural parks sound interesting so I will be sure to check those out. Thanks for the tip; very helpful! :) | 10 | |
Never rode public transport? Then I assume you are American, and not from New York...... It's fairly straight forward - if you need to get from point A to point B you can either use the net to find the relevant train http://www.rail.co.il/EN/Pages/Homepage.aspx or bus http://egged.co.il/Eng/ There are also service taxis (sheruts) that are minivans, and their advantage is that they run on Saturdays and Holidays, pretty much 24/7 for some destinations. Just ask at your hotel where the station is and how to get there, pay in advance for train, or as you get on for the bus, and enjoy the view.. | 11 | |
@yarden Thanks! The transportation links are great. I will be sure to save them and refer to them as needed! :) | 12 | |
In addition to everything else that has been written: Most shops take credit cards, but some small establishments aren't set up for it so you do need some cash. There are ATMs everywhere. Just make sure you have a 4-digit PIN, and tell your bank you are going to Israel so your card isn't stopped for security reasons (because the bank thinks it might have been stolen). Public transport - buses mostly, but trains as well) - runs between all the cities. There are several companies operating the buses in different parts of the country (Egged is the biggest, but it doesn't cover the entire country), and you can get an idea here:
Actually, no. The only sherut route that runs 24/7 that I know of is Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and reverse. There is no sherut from Jerusalem to any other city (that would be of interest to tourists) on any day of the week. From Jerusalem, if you want to go anywhere on a Saturday you would either need a rental car or else take a taxi. The exception is Palestinian transport to West Bank cities including Bethlehem. These buses run on Saturdays as normal. For that reason, Saturday is a very good day to go to Bethlehem. The buses leave from a terminal next to the Damascus Gate of Jerusalem's Old City. Using public transport, in general you buy a ticket on the bus, from the driver (cash - shekels - only). The only tickets that need to be booked in advance are those to and from Eilat. And for a first-time visitor with only two weeks, I wouldn't recommend going to Eilat, which is really not much more than an overdeveloped beach resort. If you're going by train, you buy a ticket at the ticket window in the station, a few minutes before you travel. Jerusalem now has a light rail (tram, streetcar) running through the city centre. Tickets for this are bought in a machine on each station, and need to be validated on the train as soon as you board. And public transport tickets within Jerusalem are valid for 90 minutes on any combination of city buses and light rail.
Practically unknown in Israel, provided you use your common sense. Don't walk around with a wallet sticking out of your back pocket, don't leave luggage unattended - although if you do, it will be blown up by the bomb squad as a suspicious object, rather than stolen! Israel is very security conscious. You'll see lots of soldiers everywhere. This doesn't mean that anything in particular is happening. Most of them are travelling to and from their bases, and they are there to keep us (and you) safe. Any further questions, just ask! | 13 | |
@shuffaluff Thank you so much for all of your great advice. I especially appreciate the tip regarding atm/debit card usage and letting my bank know before my trip so that no hiccups arise. Your additional insight about transportation is also very helpful! I do have a question about Palestinian transport to Bethlehem. What does it mean that the transport to Bethlehem is a Palestinian one? I will plan my Bethlehem trip for a Saturday since it will best tuck right in that way. Is a handbag or a backpack ideal for day trips? Thank you for your insight on crime in Israel. It sounds very safe and that makes me feel very secure. I will be sure to use common sense! Thanks again! :) -Jennifer | 14 | |
HI! The transport to Bethlehem from Jerusalem is an Arab bus. It is not a bus from the Palestinian Authority. It is perfectly safe. I also would suggest you stay in the NEW city of Jerusalem, not the old City. I feel that someone of your background will most likely find the streets of the Old City more deserted or less tourist filled after dark than you would find comfortable. What kind of hotel budget do you have, I also think you should pick up a Foder's Guide book. They just published a new one. ( and I like it better than LP) | 15 | |
"I do have a question about Palestinian transport to Bethlehem. What does it mean that the transport to Bethlehem is a Palestinian one? " Of course it's Palestinian. The bus departs from East Jerusalem (in the Palestinian territory but under the control of Israel), drives through West Jerusalem and crosses into the Palestinian Territory and Bethleem. Same if you take a taxi in East Jerusalem. No Israeli bus could go to Bethleem as Israelis are strictly forbidden by Israeli law to enter the Palestinian territory (except for armed settlers). Bethleem is a classic hang out for Western expatriates living in Jerusalem with their families, it's safer than Jerusalem. On week-ends there are more diplomatic plates than Palestinian plates on Manger Square's parking. The main risk is having to wait at the checkpoint due to traffic jams. | 16 | |
Bethlehem ...... it's safer than Jerusalem Please tell us why Jerusalem isn't safe and why all the Western diplomats flee to Bethlehem. Is it because their lives are in "danger" in Jerusalem or because the restaurants are cheaper in Bethlehem ? The BS rating moves up another notch ..... | 17 | |
They go to Bethleem because Jerusalem turns into a ghost city on Saturdays (it's shabbat) and because you can easily have lunch and walk in the country side from the city, which is quite small. Jerusalem and Bethleem are both safe, however there have a number of cases involving pickpocketing or breaks-in in Jerusalem which you do not have in Bethleem. | 18 | |
You know very well that the Old City in Jerusalem is open as usual on Saturday (except for sites in the Jewish Quarter) and that many attractions in the new city are open: the Israel Museum, the Tower of David Museum, the Museum of Islamic Art, etc. So to describe Jerusalem as a "Ghost town" is just more of your typical disinformation. No pickpockets at a tourist site - anywhere ... ??? LOL | 19 | |
mbgg--catw is CORRECT, in the Old City there ARE pickpockets. CATW just conveniently forgets to mention WHO the perpetrators of the beak-ins ( minor) and pickpockets ARE! The very same Arabs won't do it in Bethlehem because the "justice" system run by the PA is much harsher than that run by Israel. re: Jerusalem being a Ghost town--all I know is all those ghosts look real to me. The old city is crowded and there are plenty of open tourist sites in the New city! | 20 | |
#16 (catw)
======================================================== | 21 | |
All Israelis are forbidden by Israeli law to enter the Palestinian West Bank, with the exception of setttlers who can access the settlements built in the West bank in violation of international law. However the average Israeli never sets foot in settlements. | 22 | |
Another comment from Catw that shows her ignorance. Tell us how YOU differentiate between settlers and other Israelis. | 23 | |
An Israeli citizen is someone who lives in Israel. A settler is someone who lives in one of the settlements built in the neighbouring Palestinian territory (West Bank, East Jerusalem, Gaza) in violation of international law. According to the latest survey released earlier this month, there are currently 7,5 million Israelis living in Israel and 500 000 settlers living in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. | 24 | |
But the question was how the authorities prevent "regular" Israelis from entering the West Bank while allowing "settlers" in. How do you tell them apart ? | 25 | |
The Israeli ID indicates where citizens live - in Israel or in a settlement. | 26 | |
Who checks the IDs ? | 27 | |
Ma'ale Adunim, Ramot, Gilo and Pisgat Ze'ev are settlements located in the Palestinian territory. Settlers who live there would move back to Israel tomorrow if they could afford to. The Old City has a specific status, which has not been definitely solved to this day. | 28 | |
#32 (catw) Your usual parroting of international anti-Israel organizations' opinions. Don't you have an opinion of your own based on your reading of International Law (IL)? As I have shown you many times, their opinions are inconsistent with IL. BTW, you totally disregarded what I wrote in #31. Are you planning on answering the specific questions I posed? Or are you planning on ignoring them - as usual - since you can't answer them? | 29 | |
And all this (the usual catw rant, so b-o-r-i-n-g and predictable) has precisely what to do with going by bus to Bethlehem? Which was asked in post #14. | 30 | |
The United Nations Security Council, the United Nations General Assembly, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the International Court of Justice and the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention have all confirmed that Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territory are illegal as they are in breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention. The Government of Israel disagrees, but he's the only one. | 31 | |
Repeat #34. | 32 | |
#35 (catw) Repeat #33 and #31 I don't think we'll get any answers from catw - as usual. | 33 | |
Repeat #35, it contains all the answers you're looking for. | 34 | |
I cannot recall in history when the West Bank was under control of Palestinains. The territory had beeen annexed by Jordan in 1952. | 35 | |
@Shuffaluff Thanks, but I don't think anyone read post 14 or 34. I purchased a guidebook so I am hoping that it will answer my remaining questions. Thanks to everyone who answered my questions. :) | 36 | |
Pinky, you shoud have a good safe trip in israel This might be of some help to you: | 37 | |
@ZedisDead Thank you for your informative link. I will add it to my useful links collection! :) | 38 | |
Zedis, your loss of memory is not relevant to your fellow travellers. | 39 | |
Sorry Cat, I really am not a student of pop culture's history of the Palestinians-Israekli conflict. I do know that the Ottomans controlled the region that included Israel up until 1917, I recall a British mandated territory being established by the League Nations, and it became known ask Palestine. I do recall that it was initially portioned, allowing the creation of Jordan. There was another attempt to partition it between Jews and Palestinian Arabs in 1947. The Palestinians Arabs along with the Arab League rejected it. The invasion buy surround Arab states resulted in the loss of the West Bank and East Jerusalem to Jordan and Gaza to Egypt. Jordan went on to annex the West Bank and East Jerusalem in 1952. Then we get up to 1967, when Arab threats of invasion, rattling did not have a good result for them. Sorry if you prefer to dabble in fiction. But I do not for the life of me recall Palestinian Arab ever having control over the West Bank. And we do know that Jerusalem was not ton be included in either state. | 40 | |
The United Nations Security Council, the United Nations General Assembly, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the International Court of Justice and the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention have all confirmed that Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territory are illegal as they are in breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention. The Government of Israel disagrees, but he's alone. Everyone, including Israel (see the Olso agreements) agrees that there are two nations in the so-called Holy Land: Israel, and Palestine (West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and Gaza) | 41 | |
Just curious: what is your legal background? I'm asking because you're challenging international law as acknowledged by the UN Security Council, the United Nations General Assembly, the ICRC, the international Court of Justice and the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention. | 42 | |
ZedisDead: | 43 | |
The United Nations Security Council, the United Nations General Assembly, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the International Court of Justice and the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention have all confirmed that Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territory are illegal as they are in breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention. This is not Europe, this is international law. Worth noting that there are 7.5 millions Israelis living in Israel, as compared to only 500,000 settlers living in the Palestinian Territory. | 44 | |
Once again, International law does not determine disputed borders, they are determined throug negotiatiion and kutual agreement. No matter how many times you say otherwise | 45 | |
Just curious: what is your legal background? I'm asking because you're challenging the definitions of both Israel and of the Palestinian territory as confirmed by the UN Security Council, the United Nations General Assembly, the ICRC, the international Court of Justice and the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention. Besides, let's be serious one minute. It's ridiculous to pretend that the state of Israel has no borders more than 60 years after it was created. You should go and chill out on the beach, there are plenty of magnificent ones in Israel and it can only do you good. | 46 | |
I am not an expert ion international law and I seem to doubt you are one as well, but I have lived in Israel for a number if years as an Israeli citizen and have studied the history of the conflict over the years. I am familiar with land disputes. The internationally recognized borders Israel ha thus are with Egypt and Jordan, through a peace agreement and with Lebanon. The line with the West Bank and Jerusalem were armistice lines determined after the 1948 war in independence. prior to 1967, the Wets Bank had been under annexation by Jordan and Gaza was under an Egyptian military government. There was no such animal as East Jerusalem. Under the UN partition plan of 1947, Jerusalem was supposed to have been internationalized. It was never divided, a demand the Palestinians stand firm on. Do you dispute this? | 47 | |
Besides, let's be serious one minute</i>. Good advice; why don't you follow it ? | 48 | |
Catw reminds me of my own cat. My cat will do things a number of times over with the same reslt. it is not unlike Catw continuing to say the same thing and get the same corrections from a multitude of posters | 49 | |
Who are these "others" who disagree with the UN Security Council, the United Nations General Assembly, the ICRC, the international Court of Justice and the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention? | 50 | |
=================== | 51 | |
The so called Green Line has never been recognized as an international border. Border disputes re decided through negotiation and mutual agreement. Ccatw, no matter how hard you search, you will never find a legal decision designating the Green Line and an international border, and you certainly will not find a ruling designating Jerusalem as a divided city. | 52 | |
The United Nations Security Council, the United Nations General Assembly, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the International Court of Justice and the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention have all confirmed that Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territory are illegal as they are in breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention. No amount of PR can change reality. | 53 | |
You never answered my question. How is it "Palestinian territory" if they never had sovereignty over it? | 54 | |
#65 Forget it, ZedisDead. I have been trying to get catw to answer my questions for years without success, as you can see. All he/she does is spew his/her biased agenda based on the opinions of others. Apparently he/she can't think for himself/herself, so that when one points out a fact which does fit his/her agenda, he/she is 'lost'. | 55 | |
How come there's a "Palestinian territories" thread on this forum and on all travel forums online if the Palestinian territory "does not exist"? Both Israelis and Palestinians deserve to live in peace. Sadly they will never be able to enjoy peace as long as some extremists deny the existence of either the Israeli or the Palestinian people, as you do. | 56 | |
How come there's a "Palestinian territories" thread on this forum and on all travel forums online if the Palestinian territory "does not exist"? I see that you have changed your mind: it isn't the UN, etc, that determines international borders, it's the travel forums !!!!!! Are we supposed to take you seriously ? | 57 | |
Who needs to go to Israel to see the conflicts there? Can we at least be free of it on LP! Stand back from the world globe by about 3 feet and realise that there is a lot bigger world than just your little bit of dirt. Get over it! | 58 | |
The United Nations Security Council, the United Nations General Assembly, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the International Court of Justice and the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention have all confirmed that Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territory are illegal as they are in breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention. Both Israelis and Palestinians deserve to live in peace. Sadly they will never be able to enjoy peace as long as some extremists deny the existence of either the Israeli or the Palestinian people. | 59 | |
Catw is on auto response and has not a clue what he is talking about. | 60 | |
I have always envisioned catw as female. How about it c? Inquiring minds want to know. Me first; I'm a he. | 61 | |
I'm a he as well. Catw, where are you from? | 62 | |
I'm a she (which for some reason surprises a lot of people on this forum). | 63 | |
The United Nations Security Council, the United Nations General Assembly, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the International Court of Justice and the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention have all confirmed that Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territory are illegal as they are in breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention, regardless of their gender. | 64 | |
Nothing original from Catw, as usual. Haven't your friends told you that you are boring ? | 65 | |
Perhaps catw should change its name to parrotw. | 66 | |
Oh well. Shuffaluff, when I first came on the scene here I did envision you as male. It didn't take too many posts though before you mentioned your gender. IMHO an interesting by-product of this format is the way we perceive certain posters only to find out they are of different genders, creeds or cultural backgrounds than we had originally suspected. | 67 | |
I think most people assume I am male because I'm always going on about railways... ;-) People always turn out to be vastly different from what you expect. Why you expect a certain image I have no idea. It's like hearing a radio newsreader every day, and then seeing that person on TV for the first time. They always look nothing like what you expected. Another travel forum that I post on had a real-life gathering in Tel Aviv a few months ago. There were a lot of surprises! | 68 | |
ha.....shuffaluff. As a railway enthusiast ....what rail experiences should I experience in Israel instead of taking a bus? I have been keeping an eye in this forum as I hope to finally visit Israel next year for a month. I am not a card carrying enthusiast but I do love traveling on trains if I can aford them. | 69 | |
taranaki, send me a PM with your e-mail address and I'll give you a bunch of ideas. A few years ago I devised an itinerary for two English railway enthusiasts who tour the world looking for things of railway interest. Do you like old (disused) stations? We have lots of those. And train travel in Israel is inexpensive. The ride to Jerusalem is beautiful. Very scenic, rather slow and infrequent, and the Jerusalem station is out in the wilds, but for railway enthusiasts it's a must. And there is a very nice railway museum in Haifa. | 70 | |
You can see which area of the country are served by railways on the Israel Railway web site: | 71 | |
If you are looking for an experienced Palestinian Tour Guide, Khalid is your guide. He is an English speaking tour guide who specializes in Alternative tours in and around Bethlehem, including Hebron, Ramallah, Jericho and the Dead Sea. | 72 | |